Bisi Bele Bhath

      The flagship recipe of Karnataka cuisine and one of my favourite... Bisi Bele Bhath.
   
      As the name itself suggests, this recipe is made with lentils and rice and served hot. There is a special masala that is prepared for this recipe. Though nowadays you can buy readily available masala from the market like MTR's but the authentic taste is obtained only with homemade masala since the masala ingredients vary a little in different regions.
   
      In this post I have also given the recipe for masala. So enjoy a wholesome meal with all the feel good factors of Indian kitchen like lentils, vegetables and masala together. So it is very nutritious too. 

Ingredients:

For the masala:

Coriander seeds - 1 cup
Channa dal - 1/4 cup
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Dry coconut (dessicated) - 1/2 cup
Dry red chillies - 2 cups
Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 cup (or little less than channa dal)
Moggu - 7 to 8 (I use the small variety of this which is similar to clove. If you are using marathi moggu, use only 4 to 5)
Hoovu (Stone fungus) - small lemon size

For Bisi Bele Bhath:

Rice - 2 cup
Toor dal - 1 cup
Potato - 1 med size
Carrot - 1 med size
Capsicum - 1 small
Boiled peas - 1/2 cup
Tomato - 1 med size
Beans - 8 to 10
Bisi Bele Bhath Masala - 4 tsp
Tamarind juice - 1/4 cup
Jaggery - 1 small lemon size
Salt to taste
Oil - 4 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
Channa dal - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Red chillies - 4 to 5
Curry Leaves - 10
Asafoetida - 1 pinch

Method:

Wash together rice and toor dal and pressure cook it with little extra water than usual.

Chop all the vegetables in big pieces and boil them. You can remove the pulp of tomato and chop it.

Heat 2 tsp oil in a large pan. Once hot add tamarind juice, jaggery, salt, masala and vegetables to it and mix well. Allow it to simmer for few minutes so that the vegetales soak in all the flavours. Now add the cooked rice and dal to it and mix well. Add little water if needed to get the consistency. The bhath should be little watery since it thickens up after some time. Cook on low flame for five to ten minutes so that all the flavours come together.

Heat oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds, channa and urad dal. Also add curry leaves, turmeric, red chillies and asafoetida. Add this to the bhath.

Serve hot with ghee on top and some fried papad or Boondi.

Gongura Thokku

            Gongura or Pundipalya is an Indian leafy vegetable widely used in Andhra Cuisine. It is rich in antioxidants, iron and fibre... It can be cooked in variety of ways and one among this is Thokku... Thokku has consistency of dry chutney but is tangy in taste...

              The below recipe is very easy to make and can be stored for about a month in the refrigerator. 

Ingredients:

Gongura - 1 cup

Green chillies - 4 to 5

Salt to taste

Oil - 3 tsp

Mustard seeds - 2 tsp

Method:

Take the gongura leaves, wash thoroughly and pat dry to remove the excess water.

Dry it in the sun for around 4 to 5 hrs. The leaves change colour and become dry.

Now grind it with chillies and salt as finely as possible. Do not add water.

Leave it aside for the entire day. Gongura soaks up the salt and chillies flavour.

Next day heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. Once they splutter, allow it to cool. After the oil is cooled completely, add it to the thokku. 

Mix well and refrigerate it. Enjoy it with hot rice and ghee on a lazy day when you are bored of cooking...

Happy Cooking.. :)

Tomato Rasam / Tili Saaru

      Rasam or Tili saaru is a dish prepared without using any lentils. It is generally very lite in texture and is a superb drink especially when you are down with cold.. You can compare it with clear soup.. :) 

     In other south indian states, this is called rasam... but in typical Karnataka cuisine, this is called Saaru. Saaru is usually cooked with toor dal.. but in tili saaru no lentil is used. 

      Rasam powder is made in all South Indian homes and is used on a daily basis. Our lunch and dinners are incomplete without Rasam. It tastes great with rice and papad... 

      There are many variations of rasam powder, but the recipe which I have given below is made in Brahmin households in my native Bellary...

For the rasam powder / saarina pudi

Coriander seeds - 1 cup

Cumin seeds - 1/4 cup

Peppercorns - 1/4 cup

Red Chillies - 3 cups

Fenugreek seeds - 3 tbsp

For the saaru...

Tomatoes - 2 

Coriander chopped - 3 tsp

Curry leaves - 8 to 10

Rasam powder - 2 tsp

Jaggery - 2 tsp

Oil - 2 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Asafoeida - 1 pinch

Turmeric - 1/2 tsp

Rock salt to taste

Method:

Dry roast all the ingredients for the rasam powder.. Grind them to smooth powder. 

Heat oil in a pan. Add chopped tomatoes to it. When they turn soft, add curry leaves, rasam powder, jaggery and salt and mix well. Add two cups of water to it. Mix and allow it to cook on medium flame for around 10 mins.. If required add more water. Add chopped coriander to it. 

Heat a tsp of oil in a different pan and temper it with mustard seeds, asafoetida and turmeric. Add this to the rasam. 

Enjoy this with hot rice, ghee and papad.. :)

Note:

I have used dried red chillies that are medium hot. If you are using very hot red chillies, use only 2 cups..

Tender Mango Pickle / Midi Uppinakayi

      I know I am little late in posting this recipe as the season for tender mangoes is almost over. Nevertheless, there is always a next year to try the recipe. If you are lucky enough you might find them in the market.

      This is absolutely an easy recipe with very less oil and is tasty enough to tickle your tastebuds... :)

Ingredients:

Tender mangoes - 50

Rock Salt - 1 bowl

Red Chillies - 25

Fenugreek seeds - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 4 tbsp

Asafoetida (hing) - 1tsp

Turmeric powder - 2 tbsp

Method:

Wash the mangoes and dry them on a cloth. After they are dried completely, take a knife and make small slits on the mangoes. This helps the mangoes to soak in the juices..

Mix the mangoes with salt and store it in a glass jar for a week. Mix it once in a while with a dry spoon. After one week there is lot of juice/ salt water collected in the jar.

Remove the salt water collected in a bowl. Soak rest of the ingredients in it for about an hour. Grind the ingredients into a smooth paste. 

Add this paste back to the jar and mix well. Close the jar and leave it for around 15 days. The pickle would be ready to eat. 

When serving the pickle, temper it with oil and mustard seeds. Serve it with hot rice and ghee..

Note: 

1. I have used byadgi red chillies.. They are less spicy and give very good colour. If you are using other red chillies, use only 20 of them.

2. Use the ladle/ spoon with absolutely no water when mixing the pickle.. Otherwise it would get spoilt.

Enjoy Cooking.. :)