How to roast papad in microwave

nowadays many people are calorie & diet conscious so they prefer less oily foods .In india you will find papad as a common side dish in many states right from North to south
We have many varieties of papad made from urad dal ,moong dal,sabudana ,rice ,nachni ,jowar,potato etc.

Normally these papads are deep fried in oil .So many people will try to avoid eating fried papad due to deep frying
But today I am going to tell you a method which uses zero oil for roasting papads in microwave & they taste even better than the fried ones .

You can use this method for roasting any papads.



Ingredients 

Papad of any variety ( urad dal /poha /moong dal etc) i have used  lijjat urad papad

Microwave

Method:

1.Place the papad's  on the base of turn table (plate) side by side.take care they do not overlap each other



2.Close the oven door.Now select microwave mode  & use the highest power.

3.Set the timing for seconds & press start button.After 30 seconds open door & get hot roasted papad without using a single drop of oil



4.If you feel that papad is raw from a specific side than again microwave it for 10  seconds

Beetroot rasam

Rasam rice is a deadly combination with papad .Todays rasam is not only tasty but even healthy as it has beetroot as its main ingredient



A good way to make your kids eat beetroot.

While I was preparing the rasam itself, it was so flavorful and loved the aroma a lot. Beetroot rasam is one of the tastiest dishes that can be made from Beetroot. The dish is very easy to make and does not take long.



Ingredients

Medium size Beetroot 1 
tomato small -1
Tamarind Small lemon/ gooseberry size 
Jaggery 1/4 tsp 
Rasam powder 1 tsp (OPTIONAL)
Green chilli 2 
Turmeric A pinch 
Salt As needed 

Roast and grind 
Oil 1 tsp
Red chilli 4
Coriander seeds 1 tblsp
urad dal - 1 tbsp
Jeera 1 tsp
Curry leaves 5
Coconut, grated  1 tbsp

Tadka/tempering
Oil 1 tsp
Mustard 1 tsp
Curry leaves 1 sprig
Finely smashed Garlic 2 tsp
Asafoetida/ hing 1 pinch



Method:

1.Firstly, peel and cut beetroot to small pieces.next steam tomato & beetroot either on stove top by peeling off the skin and boiling in water, or pressure cook it or microwave it.
Soak tamarind in hot water, extract juice & add about 3 cups water to it.

2.Roast the ingredients under ‘roast & grind’ Cool down and grind it first next add cooked beetroot and tomato and little water & again grind it to a paste.



3.Boil the tamarind water,along with the ground paste, rasam powder if using, salt, jaggery, turmeric, slit green chillies. Let it froth and boil for a minute.



4.In a kadai, heat oil, temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table and add it to the rasam, mix well. 



5.Serve hot with rice and papad

Nachni bhakari

Bhakri (भाकरी bhākarī or Dhebra)   is a round flat unleavened bread often used in the cuisine of central India.Bhakri is made from jowar (sorghum), bajra (pearl millet) ,tandul (rice) flour and ragi (red millet or finger millet) 




Like breads around the world, bhakri is a staple. It is accompanied by other foods like currys and may be spread with butter. Other Indian breads include: roti, chapati, paratha, kulcha, and phulka. ...

The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one, based on similar characteristics and uses.

Millet flour (called "Bajari" in Marathi) has been commonly used in Western India for hundreds of years to make the local staple flat bread (called "Bhakri"). Typically, "Bhakri" is made from "Jowar" (Sorghum) flour. today we are going to learn nachani chi bhakari 

Another cereal grain popularly used in rural areas and by poor people to consume as staple in the form of roti or other forms is called ragi in Karnataka or nachani in Maharashtra, with the popularly made ragi rotti in Kannada.

These are well known as Bhakri in Maharashtra and Rotti in Karnataka.  One good thing about Bhakri is that these are oil free.

In maharashtra we  make a variety of bhakaris using gluten free flours. A good bhakri will be only about 2mm thick and will puff like a pita when placed on fire. It will be soft to handle.Ideally a bhakri gets combined with pitla or zunka & green mirchi thecha.



Ingredients:


Nachni/Ragi/Finger Millet Flour - 1 cup
Rice Flour/Tandlacha Peeth - 1/4 cup
Water - 1 1/2 cups
Salt

Method:

1.Take Nachni & rice flour in a vessel and make a well in the middle. Add salt and warm boiling water.



2.After the dough cools down a bit, start the kneading process.



3.Gradually add remaining water to knead it in to soft dough.

4.Divide dough in to  equal balls, take one of the ball and smooth it out between palms and flatten it out.


5.Dust dry nachani flour on rolling board and Flatten the dough into a circular shape on a floured surface using palms.



6.Use rolling pin to roll out bhakari to get even consistency (this is for beginners)



7.Spread a bit of sesame seeds on the top of bhakari and give them a gentle pat as well, so that sesame seeds won't fall down while bhakari is getting roasted.(this step is optional)

8 Place the roti on a hot tava/griddle/skillet  in upside down position ( the lower portion with sesame seeds of bhakri should be on griddle ) and apply water on the top side of the roti  .










9. Let bhakari roast for a minute or two or until water starts to evaporate.

10 Once the water dries out, immediately flip the bhakari over and roast from other side as well for about a minute.











11 Now move the skillet away, lift the bhakari and roast it on a direct heat .











12.Serve hot with a dollop of ghee or butter on the top of it.

Easy Paneer Sabji

Todays paneer sabji is a quick and easy recipe .Paneer is something that is used on a very regular basis in Indian homes in some form or the other

It can be cooked with some basic ingredients in your kitchen like onion,tomatoes,green chilli,ginger garlic paste & few spices.
It doesnt use curd or cashewpaste or freshcream.But you can add a tbsp of curd and cashewpaste/ fresh cream if you want a hotel style taste.
But i have not added as I wanted to keep it simple.

Posting this recipe after almost 2 years was lying in my drafts.

Ingredients
Paneer (Indian Cottage Cheese) – 250 grams
Tomato’s (Chopped) – 2 medium size ( you can even puree tomatoes)
Onions (Chopped) – 1 large size
Ginger Garlic Paste – 1 teaspoon
green chilli chopped
kasuri methi - pinch
Jeera powder - 1 teaspoon
Turmeric Powder - ¼ teaspoon
Red Chilli Powder – 1 teaspoon
Garam Masala – ¼ teaspoon
Dry Coriander Powder – 2 teaspoon
shahi jeera - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil – 1-2 tablespoon
lemon juice- amchur powder - 1 tsp
Coriander  – 1 tablespoon

Method:
1.Take a kadai, heat oil ,when oil is hot add shahi jeera .Once jeera crackles add chopped onions,green chilli,ginger garlic paste 
2.sauté for 3 – 4 minutes on medium to low flame till light brown.
3.Add in chopped tomatoes/tomato puree and stir, let it cook for few minutes till tomatoes go soft.
4.Add in turmeric powder and stir, now add other dry masalas to it.
5.Now add in the paneer cubes,kasuri methi and mix well, let it cook on low flame for few minutes.If required sprinkle little water if you feel sabji is becoming dry


6.Squeeze lemon juice /amchur powder mix well .Top it with chopped coriander leaves and switch off the flame and cover the kadai with lid.
7.Let the paneer rest in the masala for 5 minutes.
8.serve this with hot chapatis or parathas.

TIPS

1.Adjust red chilli powder as per your taste

2.Can even add 1 tbsp tomato ketchup to above recipe.

3.you can add a tbsp of curd and cashewpaste/ fresh cream if you want a hotel style taste.

Konphal kaap |Purple yam chips

Purple yam  also known as konphal in marathi & ratalu in gujarati is a tuber easily found in india. 

Today I  am posting about konphal kaap /purple yam slices which is a marathi dish.



Purple Yam is an earthly, healthy and delicious food. Our family favors this vegetable for its unique and interesting texture and its beautiful color. Purple yams are tubers with grayish brown skins and purple flesh. They taste sweet and a variety of a true yam, which is known as "ube" or "ubi" in the Philippines. It has rough textured, dark colored skin and a light purple colored flesh. Purple yam is very gnarled looking in appearance and grows on a vine rather than underground. 

This has purple colored flesh but it has a light colored skin and is shaped like other varieties of yam.



Earlier i have posted vangyache kaap (brinjal slices) recipe,suran (yam) kaap recipe

Similarly potato slices (batatyache kaap can be prepared)

Purple yam can be used  in the form of stir fries, in curry dishes and also as chips.
Its a good side veggie dish with a dal rice combo or  can serve as healthy evening snack.



Ingredients
250 gms purple yam (konphal/ratalu), peeled, washed and sliced.
2 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 or 2 tbsp lemon juice  / tamarind juice
1 cup semolina/rava/sooji
2 tsp rice flour (tandulacha peeth)
salt as required
oil for frying

Method:

1.Remove skin of purple yam and slice it into large pieces.Keep the pieces in water & then drain to remove water.


2.Now rub slices with lemon juice /tamarind juice on both sides .This is an important step. Yam has some juices which are irritant in nature these need to be neutralized before consumption. A good way to remove any natural irritant is by using tamarind juice in the preparation. Hence follow this step without fail. Sprinkle salt on yam pieces & apply tamarind juice uniformly to coat the yam slices.


3.Rub the yam with the turmeric & red chilli powder ,mix well to coat the yam slices uniformly with spices .




4.Marinate the yam slices for 20-30 minutes. 



5.Mix rava with rice flour & 1 tsp salt & keep aside.Place the yam slices in rava mixture & press with fingers so that rava gets coated on yam slice.turn & coat the back side of the yam slice in rava rice flour mixture . Pat excess rava.



 



6.Shallow fry the yam slices in oil on a flat pan or tava. Turn the slices so that remaining side also gets cooked to golden brown colour.




7 Drain on kitchen tissues and serve hot as a side dish  or with green chutney .


Tips :
Marinated yam slices can also be baked instead of frying .
Use only rice flour for coating skip rava

Potato cheese toast

Choosing menu especially a new one for breakfast is a cumbersome task .I lIKE TO EXPERIMENT SO I HUNT FOR NEW RECIPES.

Cheese potato toast was one such delicious recipe .Its so simple, easy to make. Try it out, even you and  your family would love it.

Every bite of this crispy aloo cheese toast will make you happy & you will want to have more of it.

I have used brown bread to make it more healthy but you can use white bread too .TRy this on weekend & I am sure you will be loaded with appreciations from your family

Ingredients

Bread slices  6  (i used brown bread)

Potato boiled & mashed finely  2 

Grated cheese - 2-3 cubes 

Black pepper powder  1/2 tsp 

red chilli flakes       1 tsp (avoid if making for children)

Mixed herbs /italian seasoning - 1 tsp

Chopped coriander leaves  2 tblsp 

lemon juice - 1 tsp

Salt  As needed 

Oil  1/4 cup 

Butter  2 tsp 

Method :

1.Pressure cook corn and potato for 4-5 whistles with little water. drain water from corn .let potatoes cool ,Mash potatoes well and add coriander leaves,italian seasoning ,red chilli flakes,black pepper powder,lemon juice(except cheese) salt to it.

2 Mix everything well & now with a spoon place this mixture on top of bread slice .

3.Heat a tava and spread some oil. Once the tava is hot place the bread slices with potato mixture side down.Let the bread gets roasted for 2 minutes on medium flame.

6.Flip the bread slices and add grated cheese on top of potato mixture & cook till cheese is melted. Cook until the toast turns golden brown in color.if required drizzle some oil from sides.Once cooked remove on  a plate & spread melted butter on it

 

7 Cut potato cheese toast into halves or triangles ,sprinkle some italian seasoning & chilli flakes

8. serve warm with tomato ketchup or coriander chutney.

Tips :

1.You can even replace chilli flakes with chopped green chilli

2. Adjust the quantity of chilli flakes /green chilli / pepper powder /seasoning as per your taste & spice levels.

3.You can mix 1 tblsp grated cheese too in the potato mixture, but do not add more than that as it will get burnt

4.Oil should be generously used, otherwise it will be too dry.

5 Can use olive oil instead of normal oil

6 Can add chopped pudina leaves to above mixture.

7.If you dont count on calories, you can use butter generously instead of oil.

Moog thalipeeth |Sprouted mung marathi thalipeeth

Presenting yet another speciality of my mom & mausis.....It is a multi-grain mildly spiced pancake  with flavor and nutrition.I have added my special touch to make this healthy recipe more nutritious by adding sprouted moong in addition to chopped onion


In Maharashtra, a particular flour mixture called "bhajani" is widely sold (it can also be made at home). It consists of many different types of grains...wheat, sorghum, millet, rice, corn...plus some dals and spices, all roasted and ground into a wonderful aromatic flour. 

This can be used as a base for thalipeeth, as well as to make many kinds of savory snacks.



Ingredients

2 cups bhajani flour (kepra brand/home made)
3/4 cup water,
2 tsp black Maharashtrian goda masala,
2 tsp red chili powder,
1 tsp turmeric powder,
1/4 tsp asafoetida (hing)
lots of coriander/cilantro,
2 small onions  /1 medium onion
1 cup sprouted moong
1 cup chopped coriander
salt to taste,
some oil.

Method

1.Chop onions into medium pieces. Chop cilantro. Combine bhajani flour, moong sprouts, chopped onions, cilantro, salt, turmeric, chili powder, black masala, asafoetida ,coriander and 2 tsp oil.



2.Add water gradually and keep mixing to form a smooth pliable dough.

3.Divide the mixture into equal sized balls.

4.Take 1/4 cup water in a small bowl. On a greased plastic sheet/paper, place a ball in the center. Start working with your fingers to flatten the ball. Dip fingers in water occasionally to keep the mixture from sticking to your hands while spreading. Form a thin disc of even thickness. Try to smoothen out the surface by gently patting all over.



5.Spread 2 tsp oil over the heated griddle.

6.Lift plastic sheet, gently flip the thalipeeth over the heated griddle, loosen the edge to let it come off easily from the sheet and stick to the griddle staying intact.


7.Cover the griddle for 2 minutes keeping the heat on medium. The bottom side becomes crisp and brown. Turn and let the other side cook too.

8.Remove and serve with a dollop of homemade butter/ghee, and/or any pickle, yogurt or sour cream .












Tips and Variations :

 To increase the nutritional value of the recipe and make it even more zesty, add one or more of these vegetables: chopped green onions, red/green peppers, leafy vegetables like spinach, grated carrots, raddish etc.