Unde huLi/ Nucchina unde/ Steamed lentil dumplings

This is a very traditional dish of Karnataka and a very healthy recipe as it is full of proteins and it is steamed. Unde means dumplings or balls, huLi is the term used for the kadi or the majjigehuLi or the mor Kozambu that accompanies the dish.  There are two variations of  the dumplings. One is the Tam Brahm version with no onion and garlic and the other one has both. The recipe gives both variations. The kadi that is traditionally made with this uses coconut, toor and chana dal. It is the same recipe as mor kozambu minus the vegetables.  But I have an easier no fuss version here!

 

 

 

Ingredients : Serves 3-4

Lentil dumplings

1 and half cup toor dal

1 table-spoon chana dal

1 table-spoon moong dal

4-5 red chillies ( or use 2-3 green chillies )

1/2 ” piece of ginger

2-3 tablespoons of shredded coconut

1 cup finely chopped dil leaves or soppsige soppu ( or use coriander )

Salt to taste

Pinch of asafoetida or ( 1 cup finely chopped onion )

Soak the dals for about 4 hours after washing thoroughly. Grind the coconut and red chillies to a fine paste. To this add the dal and pulse the mixture. The mixture should be coarsely ground. Transfer to a bowl and add the chopped dil or cilantro. At this stage add the hing or the chopped onion. Add salt and mix well. Steam this mixture for about 10-15 minutes. Once the mixture is cooled, shape the mixture into dumplings. Some people prefer to make the dumplings first and then steam it. But sometimes they end up cooking unevenly. I prefer to steam the mixture and then make the dumplings. This is a tip I got from my mom!

Kadi/ Majjige huLi

2 cups thick yogurt

2 tablespoons besan or chickpeas flour

1/2 ” piece of ginger

1 cup chopped coriander

A few sprigs of curry leaves

A pinch of turmeric

A pinch of hing/asafoetida or ( 2 small cloves of garlic )

Salt to taste

Mustard, cumin seeds and oil for seasoning

Beat the yogurt and add the chickpeas flour and bring this to a simmer. Add a cup of water if the consistency is too thick. Grind the garlic, ginger and cilantro to a fine paste and add this to the yogurt. Add turmeric, curry leaves and salt to taste. Let this boil for another 5 minutes.

Temper the mixture with mustard, cumin seeds. If using hing, add the hing to the oil at this point.

Serving suggestion : Add the kadi to a bowl and then add the dumplings to this. This allows the dumplings to absorb the flavour of the kadi and it tastes even better!

 

 

 

 

Egg Curry

I have been craving for some egg curry for a while now and I tried to look up restaurants around which served egg curry and couldn’t find any!

I finally got down to making it myself today. I looked up a lot of recipes online and each one had different ways of making it and different ingredients.

I finally came with a version of my own 😀

Ingredients : Serves 4

4 eggs hard boiled.

1 small onion or 1/2 large onion

2 cloves of garlic

2-3 tomatoes

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon red chilli powder

1 teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

5-6 cashwe or almonds ( I used almonds )

2 tablespoons oil

Salt to taste

Cilantro for garnish

Heat the oil in a pan. Saute the onions and garlic. Add the tomatoes and saute until they turn soft. Add red chilli powder, garam masala and coriander powder. Fry for another minute. Let this mixture cool. Blend this mixture with the poppy seeds and almonds until smooth. Transfer this back to the pan and let it simmer for 5-10 minutes. Add 1 cup of water or coconut milk if you want a rich curry. Turn off the heat and add the hard boiled eggs and cilantro.

Enjoy with rice or roti!

Puff pastry

The one thing I miss dearly about namma Bengalooru is the neighbourhood bakeries and all the yummy stuff that they sell. The masala bread, veg puffs, benne biscuit..drooool! Luckily some of these things are easy to make especially puffs with the store bought puff pastry sheets available.

I made two kinds of puff pastry, sweet and savory. Here’s the recipe for both.

Veg Puff :

Ingredients : serves 4

Puff pastry sheets ( store bought )

1 small onion

1 small potato

1 carrot

1/2 cup peas

1/2 green bell pepper

1/2 tea spoon garam masala

1/2 tea spoon red chilli powder

Cilantro for garnish

Salt to taste

1 tablespoon oil.

Thaw the puff pastry sheets as per instructions. The packet I bought had no instructions, so I just thawed it by keeping out at room temperature for 45 minutes.

For the filling, heat the oil and saute the onions. Add the spices and saute for one more minute. Dice the vegetables thinly and microwave on high for 1 minute or until they are cooked. Add the vegetables, peas and mix well. Add salt and cilantro and mix well.

Dust the surface and the rolling pin with flour and gently roll the puff pastry sheets to about half their thickness. Cut the strips into desired size. I cut them into 3″ * 6 ” size approximately. Spoon the filling into one side of the puff pastry sheet. Brush the sides of the sheet with water and seal tightly.

Place them on a baking sheet and in a preheated oven bake the puff pastries at 350-375 F or until golden brown on the inside.

Sweet puff pastry

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Ingredients :

1 granny smith apple.

1-2 tablespoons apricot preserve or jam

nutmeg

Cut the granny smith apply into small pieces. Heat the apricot jam until it liquifies slightly. Turn off the heat and add the apple pieces. Add a pinch of grated nutmeg.

Prepare and fill the puff pastry sheets the same way as described above and enjoy while it is hot!

Mixed greens salad with lemon dressing

I was looking for a very simple salad dressing recipe which was healthy and didn’t have things like mayo, vinegar etc. Something you can quickly whip up at home with minimum ingredients. I then saw this simple salad dressing on Giada’s show on food network. She made a salad of English cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, dill and Feta cheese and this yummy lemon and olive oil dressing. I have adapted the same recipe for the dressing but with different veggies.

The photo doesn’t do too much justice to the recipe as it was taken with my phone camera 🙂

Ingredients : Serves 2

Store bought mixed greens like baby spinach, arugula, water cress.  1/2 a pack

Sunflowers seeds or pine nuts 1-2 tablespoons

Dried cranberries 1 tablespoon

Lemon rind 1/2 teaspoon (Use a lemon and not a lime)

1/2 of a juice of lemon

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1/2 red pepper cut into thin strips

1/2 yellow pepper cut into thin strips

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Salt to taste

Grate the lemon till you get 1/2 teaspoon of lemon rind into a bowl. Squeeze the juice of half the lemon. Add salt and pepper.

Add the olive oil while whisking the mixture.

Just before serving, mix the greens, peppers, cranberries and seeds and pour the vinaigrette on top and toss the salad well.