AMAZING GROWTH- Au Natural click

With the help of my blogger friends I have chosen this photo for my entry to Jai and bee's- Au Natural Click event.I thank each and everyone who helped me choose the photo!!!

Amazing Growth

BLACK BEANS AND RICE

Rice 'n' Beans is a very popular dish throughout Latin America and the Caribbean as well as in communities of Latino people elsewhere.The dish usually consists of white rice accompanied by brown, red or black, dry beans and seasoned in various ways. Different regions have different preferences.They are either served side by side or mixed together.(courtesy-wikipedia)

I prefer to mix it all together and also add other seasonings to suit my flavor.So without further delay here is the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

Cooked white rice-3 cups

black beans-1 can

onions-1 medium size,diced

green pepper/red pepper-half a piece,diced small

garlic-2 cloves,minced

green chillies-2-3,finely chopped

white vinegar-2 tsp

hot sauce-few dashes

cajun seasoning-2-3 tsp

lemon juice-a little

coriander leaves- to garnish

salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

Add a tbsp of oil in a pan.When it gets slightly hot add garlic and green chillies.Let it brown slowly, then add onion and pepper.Sprinkle some salt and pepper.Should not brown the onions,it just needs to get soft.Drain out the water from the can aand add the beans into the pan.Mix it all together.Add in the vinegar and few dashes of hot sauce according to ur preference.Then add the cajun seasonings to the mixture.It gives a nice southern flavor to the dish.You can use any other seasoning you like if u dont like cajun flavor.Before adding the rice ,the liquid in this mixture should be slightly evaporated otherwise the rice will get mushy.It just needs to be slightly moist enough for everything to be combined together.Adjust the salt.Garnish with coriander leaves and sprinkle some lemon juice.Serve it hot with any meat.

A SMALL NOTE OF THANKS!!!

Hi friends!!i started this blog without thinking how much ppl are gonna respond to my recipes.But the response has been soo great that i am so happy and motivated.Your constant support and encouragement has phenominally helped me improve my posts every time.I would like to thank each and everyone of u for ur support and encouragement and i hope u will keep doing the same.CHEERS TO U ALL AND THE BLOGGING WORLD!!!

If you havent got the chance to answer my this weeks TQ please click here

more FFF(fun food facts) and TQ's(trivia question)

Here some more interesting FFF i came across.

Pumpkins are fruits, not vegetables

The average pumpkin weighs between 10 and 30 pounds. The winner of the 2003 biggest pumpkin contest weighed 1,140 pounds.

It takes between four and five pounds of grapes to make one pound of raisins

Most raisins are made from the Thompson Seedless variety of grapes. Because you can keep them indefinitely without having them spoil, raisins are a good choice for long trips.

Did you know that bananas are considered to be the greatest body builders among the fruit foods?

They have tissue building ability. Serve daily and you will have better health and save money! Do not keep bananas in the refrigerator.

Honey heals wounds?

Use Honey to help heal a small wound.Apply the honey to the bandage, notdirectly on the wound. Honey will help prevent scarring.

The answer to last week's TQ:
I was first discovered thousands of years ago, growing in the Andes mountains in South America. However, my early ancestors were small and rather bitter tasting. I was introduced to India in the early 17th century, reaching China a short time thereafter. Upon my arrival in Europe I was called a variety of names, some of which had to do with my resemblance to a truffle. Today, I am the main ingredient in an extremely popular snack food that no fast food restaurant would be caught without. What am I?

ANS:-POTATO!!!
Thanks to everyone who responded and each and everyone of u did get it right:))). And also my heart congrats to all those who got it right!!!

And now this week's TQ .

On what vegetable did an ancient Egyptian place his right hand when taking an oath?

I have to say this but please "NO CHECKING ON INTERNET OR BOOKS" for answers:)).My friends lets have some fun,take some wild guesses :).THANK U

SANDWICHES from LEFTOVERS

Sandwiches are one of the quickest and easiest food we can make at home .Great for kids to take for lunch to school.Here are a couple of sandwiches that i always make from my leftovers.When i make cutlets and aloo gobi i always make sure to keep some aside to make these sandwiches the next day.It is reallllllllly tasty.
Click here for my vegetable cutlet recipe.Fit in a cutlet ,few onion rings and some ketchup in a potato roll or bread and u r good to go.


Another sandwich i treasure a lot is from leftover aloo gobi.Especially the very next day of its preperation when all the flavours has been nicely infused into the potatoes and cauliflower.Quick to make and delicious to taste.Click here for my aloo gobi recipe. Smear some butter on the inner side of the potato roll or on bread, lightly toast it on a tawa,fill it up with aloo gobi and press the bread on both sides till they r slightly crispy.
Serve it hot.

KELLYA AMBAT/SWEET BANANA CURRY

Kellya Ambat is a sweet konkani dish.Along with sweetness it gives a hint of spiciness in ur throat just b4 gulping it:).There are varieties of savoury type ambats .But i have come across only 1 sweet ambat that is made only with banana.As a kid i 1st ate this dish in my local gsb temple during festival times.Even though its sweet it wasserved alongside other savoury curries with rice.But i liked to eat it alone without mixing it with rice or anything.Very easy to make and no complications.

INGREDIENTS

chana dal-1/2 cup
Ripe plantains-4 nos
jaggery-1 cup grated
salt -a pinch
coconut-1 cup
turmeric-1 1/2 tsp
red chillies-4 nos
cashew nuts-few
mustard seeds-1 tsp
cumin seeds/jeera-1 tsp
curry leaves-1 sprig

METHOD
Cook chana dal in a pressure cooker.You have to keep in mind that the dal shouldnt get mashed up and that it maintains its original shape .This my hubby told me:).This gives a nice texture to the dish.The combination of melting bananas and biting dal is unbeatable.
Slit the plantains right in the middle and cut it into 1/2" half moon shape pieces.Cook it along with jaggery in lil bit of water.While cooking jaggery and plantains also oozes out water.Add a pinch of salt.Salt enhances the sweet flavor of the dish.Ones the bananas r cooked add in the dal.
Grind coconut,turmeric and red chillies together smoothly with water and add it to the rest.Dont close the lid after adding the masala as it will curdle.Reduce the flame and let it simmer for 5 mins or so.
Now add the tadka a combination of mustard seeds,jeera and curry leaves. Brown some cashews in some ghee and add to the dish.
Serve it hot or cold with rice or like me have it just like that:).

WING SAUCE CHICKEN FRY

I created the wing sauce chicken fry in the spur of the moment.Both hubby and me didnt have chicken for sometime now and were craving to have chicken fry.Both of us love the flavour of Frank's red hot cayenne pepper sauce so i thought why not incorporate this flavour in my chicken fry batter and so thats how i came up with this recipe.This sauce is also used to coat chicken wings and hence the name:).The fry came out soooooooooooooo good and yummmmmmmmmy :).So here is the recipe.
INGREDIENTS

chicken- breasts boneless cut to bite size pieces
all purpose flour-4 tbsp
ginger garlic paste-1 tbsp
soya sauce-1 1/2 tbsp
Frank's red hot cayenne pepper sauce-according to ur taste(i used a lot coz we love the flavor and spiciness of it)
green onions/scallions-2 nos. finely chopped
onions-half a piece.finely chopped
salt and pepper
oil for deep frying

FOR COATING

All purpose flour
plain bread crumbs

METHOD

Mix all the ingredients from all purpose flour to salt & pepper(remember to very lil salt as the hot sauce and soya sauce contains salt) with lil water and make a very thick batter such that it will stick to the chicken pieces.Leave a bit of the green onions for garnishing.Onions give a very nice flavour to the chicken fry.Add the chicken and let it marinate for about 2 hrs.On a plate mix equal quantities of flour and bread crumbs.I didnt have enough flour so i used some bread crumbs also and this combined coating mixture gave a nice sweet crispiness to the chicken.Sweetness from the bread crumbs.
Now take the chicken pieces one by one and coat it with this mixture.Nicely press the chicken on all sides so that the coating sticks to it.
Heat oil in a deep bottom vessel.When the oil gets hot drop the chicken pieces carefully and slowly so that oil doesnt spill out.For extra precaution u can use rubber gloves.Keep in mind not to over crowd the vessel otherwise the chicken will just steam and u wont get a crisp chicken and it will drink a lot of oil too.So the frying should be quick.The chicken will cook fast as they are boneless breasts.Fry it on a slightly medium high flame.Ones they get brown just like in the photo shown above,take it out and put it on a paper towel to drain off the excess oil.Garnish with some green onions.
Serve it Frank's hot sauce or eat it just like that.
Hope u all enjoy it!!!

CABBAGE and ONION DOSA

Cabbage dosa is my all time favourite.Its so good and tasty that u dont even need a chutney to dip it in.Its that good.Its spicy and tangy taste makes it extremely good even as a side dish with pej/kanji.Unlike the regular dosa this dosa batter doesnt need fermentation.This is my entry to Srivalli's dosamela event .

INGREDIENTS

Raw rice-2 cups
shredded coconut-1 cup
turmeric-2 tsp
cumin seeds-1 1/2 tsp
red chillies-4nos
greenchillies-4nos
tamarind concentrate-1 1/2 tbsp
asafoetida-1 tsp
salt to taste
cabbage-1 cup ,chopped fine
onion-1 medium size,chopped fine

METHOD

Soak rice for 4-5 hrs in warm water.In a blender grind it smoothly to a fine paste with water and shift it into a bowl.In the same blender grind together ingredients from coconut-tamarind concentrate with water as well.Mix this with the grounded rice in the bowl.Add in the chopped cabbage and onions.Add salt as required.The consistency of the batter should be medium,not toot hick nor thin,that way it will be easier to spread.Keep it aside for half an hr.
Heat a tawa/griddle.When it gets hot pour a laddleful of batter onto it and spread it slowly.Spread it out as much as u can(if u find it difficult to spread then keep the dosa thick).Spread some oil over it and close it with a lid.Cook it on a medium flame.When u see the edges get brown turn it over .Press it gently all over and let it cook for a couple of minutes.
Serve it hot with rice or eat it on its own.

SOME FUN FOOD FACTS(FFF) and A QUESTION!!!

I was doing some research on some food facts and i came across some interesting ones and i wanted to share it with all of u.

• Carrots Really Can Help You See In The Dark!!

Vitamin A is known to prevent "night blindness," and carrots are loaded with Vitamin A. So, why not load-up today!

• The Word "Salary" Comes From "Salt!"

Salt, our oldest preservative, was extremely rare in the past. So rare, in fact, that it was often used as pay. Imagine...earning a couple of tablespoons of salt for a hard-days work. Today, salt is so common that restaurants give it away for free, and packaged food contains so much that it's far too easy to eat too much salt (salt is also known as "sodium").

• Sometimes Frozen Fruits And Vegetables
  Are More Nutritious Than Fresh!

The longer that fruits or vegetables sit around waiting to be sold or eaten, the more nutrients they lose. But fruits and vegetables grown for freezing are usually frozen right after they're picked. Therefore, they have less time to lose their nutrients.

• It Takes 3500 Calories To Make A Pound Of Fat!

So, as long as you're active, and burning of calories, calories shouldn't have too much of a chance to turn into fat.

More FFF later.:)

TRIVIA QUESTION: I was first discovered thousands of years ago, growing in the Andes mountains in South America. However, my early ancestors were small and rather bitter tasting. I was introduced to India in the early 17th century, reaching China a short time thereafter. Upon my arrival in Europe I was called a variety of names, some of which had to do with my resemblance to a truffle. Today, I am the main ingredient in an extremely popular snack food that no fast food restaurant would be caught without. What am I?

IDLI and SAMBAR

Idli is every south Indian's cherished item.They are soft,fluffy and round shaped cakes steamed in an idli maker.Its all a meal in itself and we have it not just for breakfast but for dinner too.

Recipe for making Idli batter is same as that for making dosa except that it should be grinded slightly coarse,texture similar to rava/sooji.Whenever i make the batter i make sure to make large quantity of it so that it stays the entire week or more.We make so many variations from it like idli for 1 day,masala dosa another day ,appam ,uttappam and the list goes on and still we dont get tired of it.

Click here for my batter recipe.

Pour some water into the vessel that holds the idli tray and heat it.Let it come to a boil.Until then fill the oil greased round moulds of the Idli maker with the batter .These moulds are perforated to allow the idli's to cook evenly.Close the lid.Let it cook for about 10-12 mins.Pork the center of the idli with a fork or knife.If it comes out clean then its done.

Serve it hot with sambar or chutney or a combination of both.

Sambar recipe follows.

SAMBAR

There are so many variations of sambar .I usually have small onion sambar with my idlis and vegetable sambar with my rice.So here my recipe for Small onion sambar.

INGREDIENTS

Toor dal-1/2 cup,cooked

Small onions-20 nos,sliced

tomato-2 nos,diced

sambar pdr-2 tbsp(check my recipe here)

curry leaves-1 sprig

mustard seens-1 tsp

red chillies-4-5 nos

cumin seeds-1 tsp

tamarind paste-1 tbsp

coriander leaves-a bunch(i use a lot coz i like the flavour of it in sambar)

salt to taste

METHOD

Heat some oil in a pan.Add mustard seeds.When it starts to crackle add in the cumin seeds,curry leaves,red chillies and small onions.Ones the onions are soft and translucent add in the sambar pdr and tomato.Combine toordal and tamarind paste in a bowl and add into the pan.Pour some water if its too thick

Add salt and let it come to a boil.Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve it hot with idli/sambar.