Fallooda - An Indian dessert

After with all the spicy non vegan recipes, I'm here with a delicious, yummilicious, finger-licking drink to your taste buds..... Falooda!! As the name sounds different..this one is truly an different dessert/drink:) 

There are lot more versions in falooda...The authentic one calls for use of FALOODA SEV ( which can be prepared at home ( Check Here) and also use of basil seeds. I used vermicelli which we use for making payasam etc.  And also I didn't use basil seeds (Nanari ) as I didn't get it near my place. This is my version, simple and easy. 

You Need: (Serves - 1 no)

Rose Syrup - 6 tsp 

Whole Fat milk - 1 cups

Sugar - As per taste

Cashew nuts/Almonds/Pista - For garnish

Cherries - For garnish

Vermicelli - 4 tsp per serving

Vanilla Ice cream - 1 or 2 small scoops

FALOODA

If using, Soak the basil seeds for 30 min or more. Chop the nuts into mini bytes.

Once the milk is boiled, add the sugar, rose syrup (4 tsp) and mix well. Refrigerate this. Prepare this first in the morning and keep handy so that you can just use instantly when your guests arrive in evening.

Just before serving, take a pan, add water just enough to cover the vermicelli and cook. Strain the water and keep aside. It takes hardly 5 min.

Take the serving glasses, add the 2 tsp of rose syrup, then the boiled vermicelli, then slowly pour the chilled milk over the sides till 3/4 filled. Then top it with vanilla icecream. Garnish with nuts and cherries.

Note:
1. Be careful while pouring milk and ice cream so that you can form a layer.
2. Use of basil seeds is healthy version. After chilled milk, add the basil seeds. Then ice-cream and nuts.
3. The vermicelli should be in separate strands like in payasam. If the vermicelli is cold, it will stick to each other like in upma. So prepare this at last before serving guests. Add directly into glass while it is as separate strands.


The taste of ice-cream with the flavored milk, with healthy basil seeds and bytes of vermicelli along with crunchy nuts makes this dish unique......Mouth Watering isn't..? :)

Chettinad Fish curry

This is traditional south Indian style fish curry......Authentic village style curry:) It has nice aroma and taste yummy...Must try by sea food lovers..:)

You Need: 

Fish - 1/4 kg ( you can use prawns as well)

Onion - 3 nos 

Cumin seeds - 3 tsp

Coconut - Little less than half of coconut 

Cashew  nuts - 3 tsp (Optional)

Chilli powder - 3 to 4 tsp ( As per required spice level)

Coriander powder - 1 to 2 tsp

Green chilli's - 2 nos (Optional)

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Fenugreek seeds - few

Curry leaves - a handful

Salt - To taste

Oil - To fry

Clean and wash the fish. Pat dry and keep aside.

Grind the coconut to a fine paste. Then add onions and cumin seeds and grind well. This is the masala which gives the authentic taste to this curry.

Heat the kadai, add oil. Once heated, add mustard seeds, fennel seeds, curry leaves. Salute for a min. Then add the grinded masala and 1 cup of water. Let it boil well. Once it starts to boil, add the spice powders and salt. Cook well for 10 to 15 min in medium flame. Meanwhile add water to the tamarind and extract the tamarind juice from it. Add it to the curry.

Check the salt, spice and tamarind sour taste, curry consistency in this stage and add any if required.

Once the curry is cooked well, add the fish pieces and let it cook in low flame for 5 to 7 min.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with rice.

Authentic, South Indian style fish curry is now ready.

(South Indian )Fish Puttu (Shredded Fish fry)

I adopted this recipe from my aunt near my native place Tuticorin. This is south Indian style fish puttu or shredded fish stir fry. This is traditional Kerala dish with the addition of scrambled egg. 

This is very easy to make and tastes awesome. You can try using chicken and prawns in this recipe. 

You Need:

Fish ( I used sheela fish) - 1/4 kg

Onions - 5 to 6 nos (Finely chopped)

Chilli powder - 2 to 3 tsp ( As per required spice level)

Curry leaves -  a handful

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Fenugreek seeds (Vendhayam) - Pinch

Turmeric powder - pinch

Salt - To taste

Oil - To fry

Coconut powder - 3 tbsp (Optional)

Boil the fish in non stick pan with enough water for 3 to 5 min. Dont overboil. Just enough to shredd the fish into pieces. You can use the remaining water (stock) in your fish curry.

Remove the outside skins and bones if any. Keep aside.

Take a kadai, add oil. Once heated, add mustard, fennel seeds and curry leaves in order. Salute each for a min. Then add the finely chopped onions, salt to taste. Fry till it turns golden brown colour. Add the chilli powder and salute well. Once the mixture is cooked and blended well, add the shredded fish pieces and stir well. In the last stage add coconut powder if using and salute for a min.

Once the fish pieces and coconut(if using) are blended well with the masala, switch off the flame.

This fish stir fry goes well with any kinda rice or as appetizer.

Truly a yummilicious appetizer and different fish recipe. 

Bread Malai

My first introduction to this dish was in one of my friend's house in US. Thereafter, I serve this dessert whenever I invite my friends to home. This is also called as Shahi Tukra:)

You Need:

Bread - 6 
Milk - 1 lt
Badam - 15 (soaked overnight, peeled and chopped, Optional)
Sugar - 1 cup or Condensed milk - 1/2 tin
Ghee / Oil - To deep fry
Saffron - 3 to 4 strands ( If using sugar)

Deep fried bread in saffron flavored malai (Pic 1)

Bread Malai using condensed milk

Take the bread pieces, remove the sides (optional) and then cut into triangles.

Option 1:  Deep fry the bread slices in oil (Pic 1) .
Option 2: Alternatively if you are calorie conscious , you can also roast it in little oil/ghee in non stick tawa (Pic 2).

If you follow option 1, it tastes little more crispy than optional 2. But, I stress again, both the method tastes very similar and highly delicious. Guaranteed!

There are two ways to prepare the malai.

Way 1:

Sugar Syrup: Take one cup of sugar and one cup of water. Stir continuously till the sugar is dissolved. Add pinch of cardamom powder for flavor. Stir till it changes to light golden color syrup. Soak the bread pieces one by one in hot sugar syrup for a min and remove. Keep the remaining sugar syrup aside.

Take a non stick pan, add milk, remaining sugar syrup. You can add saffron now. The one litre milk should be reduced to 1/2 litre. Stir continuously till the mixture starts to thicken. This is called malai/rabri.


Soak the roasted bread slices in hot malai mixture and keep it in the refrigerator. Serve chilled. Top it with nuts.

Way 2:

This method is not time-consuming since the addition of condensed milk. Take a non stick pan, add milk, condensed milk. Stir continuously till the mixture starts to thicken. The one litre milk should be reduced to 1/2 litre.  Pour the rabri over the bread pieces and sprinkle almonds. Serve chilled.

Truly a royal dessert. Also called as Double ka meetha,  in the state of Andhra Pradesh.  Its another dessert which is really to die for! 

PS: No drooling over my bread malai :P

Vegetable Manchurian

2 cups finely chopped capsicum, cabbage, carrot, beans and spring onion whites (packed cups)

2 tbsps maida/all-purpose flour

2 tbsps cornflour

1/2 tbsp rice flour

1 tbsp ginger-garlic-green chilli paste

1/4 tsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp black pepper powder

warm water as required (less than 1/2 cup is needed)

salt to taste

oil for deep frying

For sauce:

1/4 cup spring onions, finely chopped

1 1/2 tbsps finely minced garlic

1/2 tbsp finely minced ginger

2 finely chopped green chillis

1/2 tsp red chilli powder (preferably Kashmiri)

2 tsps soya sauce

1/2 tbsp chilli sauce

2 tsps vinegar

2 tbsps tomato sauce

1 tsp brown sugar

salt as required

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 1/2 – 2 tbsps finely chopped coriander leaves OR spring onion greens

1 Heat oil for deep frying in a heavy bottomed vessel.
2 In a bowl, combine maida, cornflour, rice flour, salt, ginger-garlic-green chilli paste, pepper pwd, soy sauce, salt and all the finely chopped vegetables. Sprinkle little water to make a thick mixture. Add water little by little and use only as much water as required to form small balls. You should be able to make small balls as shown in the picture above.
3 Carefully place each ball into the hot oil. Do not crowd the vessel. Reduce flame and deep fry the vegetable balls till cooked. Increase the flame towards the end of the cooking process and fry till they turn golden brown. Remove onto absorbent paper and keep aside.
4 Heat oil in a large wok and once the oil is piping hot, add the chopped garlic and stir fry for a few seconds. Add the green chillis and ginger and stir fry on high for a few seconds.
5 Add the whites of spring onions and stir fry on high for 2 mts, constantly tossing them.
6 Add the vegetable balls and stir fry for another 3 mts. They should retain their crunch. Reduce to medium heat and add the brown sugar, soya sauce, tomato ketchup, chilli sauce and vinegar. Mix well and cook for 2 mts. Add 3-4 tbsps of water and cook for 2 mts.
7 Toss on high flame for 1-2 mts. Turn off heat. Garnish with the chopped spring onion greens and/or coriander leaves.

Sweet & Sour Chicken

I adopted this recipe from one of the food blog and did little variation to suit to my hubby's taste. 

You Need:

Chicken - 1/4 kg ( Use boneless chicken breast pieces)

Onion - 2 nos (Finely chopped)

Capsicum ( I used red ones) - 1/4 of one piece.

Tomato sauce - 10 tsp

Soy sauce - 1 tsp

Chilli powder - As per required spice level

Pepper powder - 1/4 tsp ( Just for flavor)

Garlic - 2 nos (Finely chopped)

Corn flour - 2 tsp

Maida flour - 1/2 cup

Salt - To taste

Oil - To fry

Wash and cut the chicken breast into small chunks. Take a bowl, mix maida, salt and chilli powder and make a paste by adding little water. Dip the chicken pieces in this maida mixture and deep fry till golden color in very low flame. Make sure you don't burn them.

Drain the excess oil using tissue paper and keep aside.

For the curry: Chop the onions, garlic and capsicum. Take a pan, heat 2 tsp of oil. Add onion, saute  till translucent. Add garlic and fry till raw smell goes. Add tomato sauce, soy sauce, chilli powder, pepper powder, salt and one cup of water. Wait till it boils. Add the capsicum and cook covered for few more mins. Check the spice and salt level in this stage and add if needed. Add the chicken bites and mix well.

Meanwhile, mix corn flour in water and add to the curry. This is for thickening the curry. Let it cook for few more mins. The curry would have thickened well. Switch off the flame once the desired consistency has come.

Tips: Add more chilli powder to overcome the sweetness of tomato sauce.
Add 3 tsp of rice flour in maida mixture to get crispy texture to chicken bites.

Sweet, sour, spicy and crispy chicken curry is now ready to be served with pulav or with plain rice. 

Gulab Jamun (Version II)

You Need:

Gulab jamun mix (Any brand)

Water - 2 cup

Sugar - 2 cups

Cashew nuts - 5 gms ( coarsely grind it)

Add 1/4 measure of water to 1 measure of MTR mix and knead the mix gently into a dough. The dough should not be two thick or thin consistency. If water is less, it will become hard and if water if more, it will break. Set aside for 5 min. Make small balls and keep the smmal bites of cahew nut in each ball and then futher round it into smooth balls. .Fry in hot oil/ghee over a low flame until golden brown. Soak the gulab jamuns in hot sugar syrup until they completely absorb the syrup and serve. The syrup should be made earlier and kept hot. 

To make sugar syrup, mix 2 cups of sugar with 2 cups of water in a deep pan. Add 3-4 cardamom pods, slightly crushed. Stir constantly with a spoon on medium heat for 10-15 minutes until sugar is all dissolved in water and the syrup turns to slight golden color.

Check out here Version I recipe of Gulab Jamun.

Yummy golden brown balls in flavored sugar syrup with chunk of cashewnut is now ready to be gulped…:)

Rava Kesari

You Need:

Rava - 1 cup

Sugar - As per sweetness

Cashew nuts - For garnish

Raisins - 2 tsp

Milk - 2 cups

Water - 1 cup ( you can also use 3 cups of water or milk)

Ghee - 4 tsp

Yellow food color - pinch

Take a non stick pan, fry the semolina in little ghee until it is lightly browned. Keep aside.

Then fry the raisins and nuts in little more ghee.  Keep aside.

Then bring water and milk to a boil. Add the rava and stir continuously to avoid clumps. Reduce to medium low flame. Stir until the mixture thickens and rava is cooked well. If required, add more water for the rava to cook.

Once the rava is cooked, add the sugar to the rava and it will liquefy the mixture again. To it add 2 tsp of ghee and yellow food color. Cook till the mixture starts to thicken. Switch off the flame. Add the nuts and raisins.

Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled. Either way it tastes splendid. 

Traditional Kesari is ready now. Enjoy this sweet delicacy with a cup of tea:)

Prawn - Drumstick Curry

This recipe is adopted from my MIL. Trust me, you'll never go wrong with this recipe. The prawn and drumstick combination is really mouth watering..:)

You Need:

Prawns - 250 gms

Onions - 1 no

Tomato - 3 nos

Drumstick - 1 no

Brinjal - 2 nos ( I didnt have stock at home)

Coconut - 1/4 of one full coconut

Fennel seeds (sombu) - 1 tbsp

Chilli powder - As per required spice level

Coriander powder - 2 tsp

Tamarind - one small lemon size

Curry leaves - few

Coriander leaves - For garnishing

Salt - To taste

Take a pressure cooker, add oil. Once heated, add onions and fry well till translucent. Meanwhile , add water to tamarind and leave it for few min. Extract the tangy water from the pulp and keep aside. Then add tomatoes, chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, salt, tamarind water, brinjal, drumsticks, curry leaves and cook for 3 to 4 whistles.

Meanwhile, grind the coconut and fennel seeds to fine paste by adding little water. Open the cooker and add this coconut mixture and cook open for 5 to 10 min. Check the spice and salt level in this stage. Add more if needed. Add water if you require more gravy.

Switch off the flame once the coconut mixture is blended well with the masala and the curry has acquired the desired consistency.

Garnish with coriander leaves.

Mouth watering prawn curry is ready to be served.

Chettinad Prawn masala fry

This recipe has been adopted from my MIL. Trust me, this is really a finger-licking dish. This is must try if want you to win your man's heart..:)

You Need:

Prawns - 250 gms

Onion - 3 nos

Tomato - 3 nos

Chilli powder - As per spice level

Green chilli's - 2 nos ( Optional, I personally like spice from green chilli's)

Curry leaves - one handful

Salt - To taste

Turmeric powder - pinch

Coriander leaves - For garnish

Chop the onions and tomatoes. Clean and wash the prawns. Dont forget to take the vein at the back of the prawn.

Heat the oil in the kadai, add onions and saute till it becomes translucent. Add curry leaves and sliced green chillis and stir for few more min. Dont avoid using curry leaves. It really enriches the flavor. Then add tomatoes. Add salt now which will make the tomatoes to cook fast. Add chilli powder and little water for the mixture to cook and to avoid burning.

Cook till the mixture is cooked completely and tomatoes are mashed well. Check the spice and salt level in this stage and add if needed.

Once the mixture is cooked well and add the prawns. Dont add water as sufficient water will ooze out from the prawns itself.

It is well known fact, that it takes very few minutes for the prawns to get cooked. Stir the mixture well so that the prawns are well coated with masala.

Garnish with coriander leaves.

Spicy and finger licking prawn masala fry is ready to be served. You can serve this as side dish or as an appetizer.