Bhatt ki Dal

Bhatt ki dal is an iconic dish and a traditional recipe of the Kumaon region in Uttarakhand. This dal is prepared using bhatt aka locally grown, organic black soybeans though I have used the regular ones here. It is a typical winter dish which provides enough energy to suit the cold, hilly terrain. I had prepared this simple yet nutrition packed dal as a part of my Uttarakhand Thali a few months ago. The soy beans are soaked, ground and cooked along with spices which makes it as easy and quick dish. 

Recipe source: Here

Ingredients:

1/2 cup black soy beans ( I used the yellow one.)

1 to 2 tbsp. ghee / oil
1 tsp. cumin seeds
2 pinches of asafoetida
1 green chili
1/2 tsp. finely chopped ginger

1/4 tsp. chopped garlic (I didn't add any.)
1 onion, finely minced

Chili powder to taste
1 tsp. coriander powder

1/8 tsp. turmeric powder

1/2 tsp. garam masala powder3

2 tbsp. wheat flour

Salt to taste

Directions:
* Soak beans overnight in water and drain. 

* Grind them to a fine paste adding a little water if needed.

 

* Heat ghee in a pan and add cumin seeds and asafoetida. When cumin starts to brown, add ginger, garlic, green chili and onion. 

* Sauté until onion is cooked. Next add coriander powder, turmeric, garam masala, salt, chili powder and sauté for few seconds. Add wheat flour and cook until it starts to brown.

* Pour in the ground paste and about a cup or more of water to the pan.

* Mix well and simmer for about 15 minutes until it thickens.

* Serve warm with rotis.

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Potlakaaya Pindi Miriyam / Andhra Style, Spicy Snake Gourd Dal

Pindi miriyam is a traditional dish from the south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a lentil based preparation flavored with the addition of a freshly ground spice paste. The paste includes 'miriyam' or black pepper as well which gives a spicy kick to the dish. The dish has a thicker consistency compared to the regular sambhar dish. There is another version called paala pindi miriyam that do not use any lentils but prepared with milk and the spice paste and that recipe is found here.

This had become almost like a forgotten dish though it was a favorite dal of mine while growing up. This is my maternal grandmother's recipe which I got from my aunt as my mother has almost stopped preparing this in the recent years and had forgotten the recipe. It seems that it was one of my grandfather's favorite dishes and so, my grandmother used it prepare it now and then. My mother on the other hand hated the dish and would be in tears whenever she saw the dish. It is hard to visualize the scene as I have never seen my mom disliking any food prepared at home. And guess what, this is one of the dishes she used to prepare regularly while I was growing up and had become one of my favorites over the years. 

We usually use snake gourd in this recipe but any vegetables on hand can be used. My mother used to add coconut in this recipe while my grandmother's recipe does not include it. I prepare it nowadays without adding coconut but I highly recommend it as coconut enhances the flavor of pindi miriyam. I have started making this dish recently and thought of posting today this comfort meal of mine.

Ingredients for dal:

3/4 cup yellow lentils / toordal

1 heaped cup of chopped snake gourd pieces

1/8 tsp. ground turmeric

Salt to taste

1 lime sized tamarind ball

Ingredients for the spicy paste:

1/2 tsp oil (I didn't use any.)
1 heaped tsp. rice 

1 heaped split chickpeas / chana dal

1 tsp. black gram / urad dal

1 heaped tsp. coriander seeds
1/2 tsp. peppercorns 
A pinch of fenugreek seeds 
3 / 4 dried red chilies
2 pinches of asafoetida (I added it in tadka instead.)

1/4 cup fresh / frozen shredded coconut 

Ingredients for tadka:

1 tsp. oil

1/2 tsp. mustard seeds

1/2 tsp. cumin seeds

Few curry leaves

Directions:

* Rinse yellow lentils / toor dal with water and drain. Pressure cook the lentils adding snake gourd pieces, turmeric and 1 and 3/4 cups of water, for three whistles. If the lentils takes longer to cook than three whistles, cook the snake gourd separately as the pieces may turn mushy if cooked longer. Lightly mash the cooked dal with a back of a ladle.

* Soak the tamarind in water for about an hour to soften it or cook the tamarind with water in a microwave for two minutes. Squeeze the tamarind paste and keep it ready.

* Meanwhile, toast the ingredients mentioned under the list. Add oil to a small pan and add rice, split chickpeas, and black gram. Saute until dals start changing color and add coriander seeds, peppercorns, fenugreek seeds, and red chilies. Saute on low flame until coriander seeds and  fenugreek starts changing color. Add asafoetida and turn off the stove. 

* When the toasted ingredients cool down to room temperature, grind them along with coconut to a thick paste, adding water as needed.

* Add a tsp. oil in a kadai / pan and add mustard and cumin seeds. When mustard seeds start to splutter, add curry leaves. (I added asafoetida here.) Immediately add the cooked dal with the snake gourd pieces, the ground paste and salt to the pan. Add tamarind water to your taste. 

* Mix the contents in the pan with a ladle, taste and adjust the seasonings if needed. Add extra water if it appears too thick. (Pindimiriyam's consistency is on a thicker side compared to sambhar and so add water accordingly.) 

* Bring the mixture to a boil, lower the heat and cook for a couple of minutes more. Turn off the stove and serve warm with rice / roti.

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Bengali Cholar Dal / Cholar Dal Narkel Diye

Today's recipe of cholar dal comes from the Bengal region and was included in my Bengali thaali that I posted in September. Cholar dal is a traditional dal prepared in Bengalis homes using chana dal / split chickpeas, ghee toasted coconut and spices. It is not every day kind f dal but usually meant for festive meals like Durga puja bhog and special occasions. This savory and subtly sweet dal does not contain any vegetables and the preparation is quite simple and straight forward. 

It doesn't contain the panch phoran, the traditional five spice mix that is frequently used in Bengali cooking but uses other whole spices.  This flavor filled dal is unique with an inviting addition of toasted coconut slices and raisins along with sugar. I found it interesting and the dal very enjoyable with a slight crunch of those crispy coconut pieces and raisins in each bite. It can be served with luchi, a Bengali puffed bread, rice, khichdi or pulao. 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup split chickpeas / chana dal

1 - 2 tbsp. ghee

2 tbsp. fresh coconut pieces

1 tbsp. raisins

1 tsp. cumin seeds

1 bay leaf

1 inch cinnamon stick

2 or 3 cardamom

1 tsp. ginger paste / grated ginger

2 dried red chili

1 pinch of asafoetida

1/8 tsp. ground turmeric

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp. cumin powder

1/4 tsp. garam masala powder

1/2 tsp. sugar

(I added 1/4 tsp. chili powder as well which is optional.)

Directions:

* Rinse and soak chana dal for a couple of hours. Drain the water used to soak the dal. Pressure cook chana dal adding about 1.5 cups water, for 3 or 4 whistles. The dal should be cooked such that it doesn't turn mushy but still hold some shape. (I had about a cup of cooked dal along with water.) 

* Heat ghee in a pan. Fry coconut pieces and raisins separately and keep aside.

* To the same ghee, add cumin seeds, bay leaf, red chili, cinnamon, and cardamom. Saute for few seconds and add asafoetida and ginger paste. Cook on low flame for about a minute.

 

* Next add the cooked chana dal along with the water, turmeric, salt, chili powder, and sugar. (The toasted coconut and raisins are also added at this point but I decided to add them at the end.) Cook the mixture until it thickens.

* Add cumin powder and garam masala at the final stages and cook for a minute and turn off the stove

* Garnish with the fried coconut pieces and raisins and serve it warm with rice / khichdi or luchi.

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A Simple, Vegetarian Assamese Thaali ~ Mati Mahor Dali

My regional thaali today comes from the North East Indian state of Assam, whose cuisine is supposedly close to East Asian and South East Asian countries like Thailand, according to Wiki. I knew a few things about Assam before I planned to create this thaali like it's world famous tea, Assam silk, the Bihu festival and the signature white and red sarees women adorn during the occasion, a couple of dishes I had tried in my kitchen, and a few details about their cuisine picked up now and then through blogging. Not much from the culinary point of view to be able to create a thaali on my own. People well versed with the local cuisine have been generous enough to share their culinary skills with others in the virtual world and have aided me in this regard indirectly providing me the details needed. And so there is no one source from which I was able to create this spread. 

Assamese cuisine mainly differs from the other regional Indian cuisines because of it's usage of less spices and simple style of cooking that rarely involves any elaborate preparations. The concept of 'bhun-na', the frying before the main ingredients are added is absent in Assamese cuisine. The cooking is a blend of indigenous styles and vary regionally. The cooking styles is influenced both by those in the hills who ferment and dry to preserve food and those who live in the plains with access to abundant sea food, meat and fresh vegetables. 
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Rice is an integral part of cooking in Assam just as in south India. It is eaten in one form or another at all meals and wiki has a lot of info on their rice cooking styles.Their breakfast and snacks are called 'Jolpaan' and are mainly rice based. Poita bhaath is leftover rice which is soaked overnight to be eaten as breakfast or lunch the next day with mustard oil, salt, green chilli and pitika. Odisha has also a similar dish called pakhala. The meal revolves around rice aka bhaat and they prefer plain rice over the pulao / briyani kinds. They prefer to use joha rice which is short and aromatic and no breads are served with the meal. The preferred cooking medium is mustard oil just as the other East Indian states since it can also be consumed raw.

A tidbit:
Did you know the Assamese ferment milk in bamboo tubes? They cover the bamboo tubes with banana leaves and leave it at room temperature for about two days to make yogurt.

I served the following with rice along some lemon slices and green chillies which are a must in an Assamese thaali. Salted cucumber slices were included as a salad. 

Amita Khar / Omita Khar - A side dish prepared with raw papaya and khar
Aloo Pitika - Potato mash

Dali - A simple lentil and potato side dish
Mati Mahor Dali - A black gram based lentil dish
Bilahir Tok - Tomato Chutney
Xaak - A spinach saute
Bhaja - I made fritters with spinach as I had seen them in a Assamese thaali video.
Papad - Microwaved lentil wafers
Payokh - Rice kheer
Doi - Yogurt

A traditional Assamese meal or thaali is served in bell metal utensils with various courses and eaten with one's right hand. I could not stop from noticing the similarities with the Bengali cuisine in the style the courses that are served. While Bengalis start their meal with a bitter vegetable to cleanse their system, Assamese go with khar, an alkali dish first for the same reason. I have given below the list of dishes that go in a typical Assamese thaali though not in an order. They are all served with rice with some lemon wedges and red and green jolokia chillies on the side. Truly a  mildly flavored, simple meal compared to the regional cuisines I am acquainted with.   

1. Khar
The meal starts with a khar. Khar is an indigenous preparation where banana peels and / or trunk of the banana plant are dried, burnt and the resulting ashes are mixed with water and kept overnight. The filtrate of the mixture which is going to be stored for the future use is called khar and Assamese cannot do without it. Some of the vegetarian options to prepare khar are raw papaya, bottle gourd, jasmine flower, ash gourd, pumpkin, ridge gourd and local greens. Baking soda is the closest substitute for khar. I made this with raw papaya and chana dal / split chickpeas and found the dish is an acquired taste.

2. Pitika

Pitika, a ball of mashed vegetable is also an essential part of a thaali. There are several vegetables used to make pitika but the most popular one is that made with potatoes called aloo pitika. Sometimes onion, either raw or fried can be added as well. Fried chilies could be a flavorful addition as well.The preparation is found in the neighboring states as well. Biharis call it chokha while it is called kangmet in Manipur.

3. Bhaja / Bora - Fritters 
Fried fritters were not a part of traditional Assamese cooking but are prepared now because of external influence. Bhaja are fried vegetable fritters made with a coating of chickpea flour / besan and rice flour mixture. Bora are lentil fritters and what are called vada in other parts of India. They both are made with a wide variety of local vegetables, flowers, and shoots which sure sound exotic to non locals. Fritters for example are made with pumpkin, the tender leaves and flowers of the pumpkin plant, night blooming jasmine, agathi flower, tender leaves of bottle gourd, eggplant, cauliflower and others while boras are made with lentils adding either greens / vegetable / fish eggs and such. I made spinach fritters for this course.

4. Dali - A lentil / legume preparation
The indigenous people did not eat dal as well traditionally just like the above course of fritters. It was slowly introduced into the cuisine again with outer influence. Black gram is the preferred dal in Assamese cuisine and a dal prepared with it called mati mahor dali is a must if serving an Assamese thaali. It can be cooked with or without the addition of khar. If not black gram, the dali can be prepared using other dals like masoor dal adding vegetables such as raw jack fruit, kohlrabi, papaya, pumpkin, potato and others. Below is potato - masoor dal. 

5. Xaak and Vegetable preparations
Xaak, a simple greens stir fry with the addition of lentils / fish / meat / eggs is a must. They are just simply cooked in water and salt and then lightly sauteed.

Whereas a vegetable preparation is spiced with panch phoran and salt. Ginger, garlic and turmeric are all optional ingredients in a vegetable preparation. I have noticed that a dry saute of a locally available potato is also a must in an Assamese thaali. They are small marble sized and they are cooked / fried whole without peeling. I made a spinach and peanut subzi.

6. Tok and Achaar
A tok is a sweet sour dish aka chutney while achaar is the pickle. 
Panitenga or kahudi and karoli, the tangy fermented black mustard chutneys are signature Assamese accompaniments. There is Bilahir tok aka tomato chutney which is included in my thaali. The chutneys are made with a wide variety of greens unique to the region. A chutney made with dried fish is a most popular one among the tribes. Apart from the usual Indian pickle variety, pickles are also made with olives, hog plums, star fruit, magosteen, elephant apple, jujube, ghost peppers, etc.

7. Tenga
My understanding is that it is a non vegetarian course and is a sour one. Tenga would be the last side dish to be served while khaar is the first one in an Assamese meal. Sour fish curries are a must for non veg thaalis while duck is also the most popular meat choice.

8. Doi 
The meal ends with a serving of yogurt. Dessert is not a part of thaali but a simple payokh - a kheer made with joha rice or barnyard millet can be served. 

9. A Tamul Paan  
Betel nuts and leaves are served after the meal. 

I am posting the recipe for mati mahor dali today which is always included in an Assamese thaali. Dal preparations in Assam lean towards simplicity and this one is no exception. The basic version needs just a tempering of panch phoran and chilies though there are onion and ginger here, We loved this dal, including my husband who hates to see black gram as a side dish. One can go with split black gram but I used the whole black gram / sabut urad dal here.

Ingredients:
1 cup of black gram
2 pinches of turmeric powder
2 tbsp. mustard oil (or any preferred oil)
1/2 tsp. panchphoran
1 bay leaf
2 dried red chilies, broken into bits
1 inch piece of grated ginger
1 onion, chopped
2 green chilies, slit (Mine were hotter.)

Directions:
* Soak black gram in water for about 3 to 4 hours. Pressure cook the dal adding about two cups of water. Don't make it mushy.
* Heat mustard oil in a pan. When it's smoking hot, add the panch phoran, bay leaf and the red chilies. Add the chopped onion when they start to splutter. (Don't bring it to a smoking point if using any other oil.) Fry until onion starts to turn light brown in color. 
* Add ginger, green chilies and turmeric. Saute for a minute and add the cooked dal. Add salt as needed and adjust the water consistency if needed. The dal should be not too thick or too thin, somewhere in the middle. Bring it to a boil if water was added.
* Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with rice.

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A North Indian Mini Vegetarian Thaali ~ Lucknowi Dal / Dal Lucknawi

This meal was not part of the plan until a few days ago.  The originally scheduled post was the first thaali I cooked for this event, a simple lunch from Andhra. I realized while drafting that there was not really color contrast in the images and the thaali looked drab. This is what happens with me when I prepare posts in advance and have the extra time to mull over. 😉Then I thought of replacing it with a Kerala breakfast platter I cooked last month as I had two more thaalis from Andhra. And over weekend I decided that it is going to be a north Indian meal on the spur of the moment when I was cooking our lunch since I already posted one meal this week from southern part of India. I did not spend much time in deciding the menu as I was going to randomly cook from the northern region of India rather than picking one particular state which would have needed some planning. 

My thali doesn't contain the ubiquitous chole, dal makhani, or any paneer dish - the kind of Punjabi dishes popular all over the world (or where ever the presence of an Indian eatery is) and has become equivalent to north Indian cuisine. There are more states packed in northern India compared to other regions and so obviously there is a wide variety in cooking techniques and recipes across the region. The Indian food that has become popular worldwide in restaurants like the tandoor dishes, breads, curries all come from this region. I am not going into detail here because it is beyond the scope of this post.  
 
This platter is a balanced and nutritious meal just like the Tamil Nadu meal I posted. North Indian meals in general include rotis and rice for their carbs. The roti served may vary regionally and I included jeera rice, phulkas and tikar in my platter. The protein part in a north Indian meal comes from dal, a lentil based side dish to go with the rice and rotis. I included a subtly spicy dal from Uttar Pradesh and a raita as I had made my tikar spicier. A bowl of yogurt / raita or even buttermilk aka chaas served at the end of the meal is protein packed too. The vegetable dish aka subzi is a side dish as well. And if the subzi happens to be a paneer (Indian cheese) based one which is common in some of the northern states, one would get an extra dose of protein. If I had paneer, I would have gone with it though it would have been a stereotypical choice. I went instead with aloo matar making my paneer detesting husband happy. I served dahi baingan too since I wanted to include a Kashmiri dish as well. I had jalebi in the platter as I had some homemade ones though a sweet dish is not eaten by everyone for every day meals. Simple vegetable based salad and chutney / pickle is a common part of the meal. We had carrot and cucumber salad and a mixed vegetable achaar.

My north Indian lunch platter had 
Salad and pickle (Not pictured.)
Jeera rice 
Phulkas - Wheat flour flat breads
Tikar - Rotis from Rajathan, made using maize and wheat flours, onion and spices.
Aloo matar - Potato and peas curry from Punjab 
Dahi baingan - Kashmiri dish of fried brinjals in yogurt base 
Lucknawi dal - A lentil dish from Uttar Pradesh that is lightly spiced and cooked adding milk.
Raita - A yogurt dip
Homemade jalebi - Dessert

I am today posting the recipe for Lucknawi dal which is a simple flavored one that I found online. What makes this dal unique is that here toor dal aka pigeon peas are initially cooked until done and further boiled in milk and then given a flavorful tempering of with cumin, chillies and asafoetida. One can add some garlic cloves as well in the seasoning. There is another version from Lucknow or Awadh cuisine called Sultani dal where the dal is cooked in a mixture of milk, yogurt and cream. Sure that sounds like a dish fit for the king. Lucknawi dal would be thinner than what it looks like in the above image. I had made it slightly thicker so that my seasoning doesn't sink and disappear.

Ingredients for dal:
1 cup toor dal  / pigeon peas
2 green chillies, finely chopped
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
Salt to taste
1 cup milk
1 tbsp. ghee / oil
1 tsp. cumin seeds
4 red chillies, broken to bits (or to taste)
A pinch of asafoetida powder
Minced cilantro to garnish

Directions:
* Rinse and pressure cook toor dal along with 2 cups of water, green chillies and turmeric until soft. (The number of whistles depend upon the pressure cooker used and the quality of dal being used.)
* When the valve pressure is gone, remove the lid and add salt. Slightly mash the dal with the back of the ladle. 
* Heat ghee / oil in a pan and add cumin seeds and red chillies. When the cumin starts to turn brown, add asafoetida. Immediately add the cooked dal to the pan. 
* Next add a cup of milk and about a cup of water to the dal and simmer the mixture for about five minutes.
* Garnish with cilantro and serve hot.

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Dahiwaali Toovar Dal

After the black gram and the split chick peas based dals, here is a dal prepared using toor dal / yellow lentils. Toor dal or pigeon peas is used in my kitchen almost on a daily basis and is a pantry staple like many households of India. In fact, for the south Indian folks who eat a rice platter served with a vegetable preparation, lentil based side dish and yogurt for their lunch and dinners, these lentils are the most commonly used ones. Today's dal however doesn't come from a south Indian kitchen and I happened to try this version from Tarla Dalal. This dal is a simple one with an unusual addition of yogurt to it. A good addition to everyday kind of dals to rotate.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup pigeon peas / toovar dal
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
1/2 cup low fat yogurt
1/2 tsp. chickpea flour / besan
1 tbsp. oil
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 onion, finely chopped
Salt to taste
Chili powder to taste
1 tsp. cumin powder
1 tsp. coriander powder
2 tbsp. minced cilantro to garnish

Directions:
* Rinse and pressure cook pigeon peas adding a cup of water and turmeric for three whistles or until the lentils are softly cooked. When the valve pressure is gone, remove the lid and mash the lentils well.
* Whisk together yogurt and chickpea flour together in a bowl and keep aside.
* Heat oil in a non stick pan and add cumin seeds. When they start to brown, add onion. Fry until the onion turns light brown. Lower the heat and add mashed dal, salt, chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and the yogurt mixture. Stir well and add about 1/4 cup of water. Cook the mixture for about 5 minutes. Turn off the stove.
* Garnish with cilantro and serve warm with rice / rotis.

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Bihari Kaddu Aur Chane Dal / Split Chickpeas - Bottle Gourd Dal

I had prepared this dal a while ago as part of a Bihari meal. This is a very common preparation in the state of Bihar and other surrounding areas. It is cooked using split chickpeas / chana dal and bottle gourd. Yes, you read it right. It is prepared with bottle gourd and not pumpkin. Surprisingly, Biharis call their bottle gourds kaddu while the other Hindi speaking areas call pumpkin as kaddu and bottle gourd as lauki. It is one of those hearty, every day kind dals prepared in Indian kitchens. It is a quick and easy dal with simple flavors.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup Bengal gram / Chana dal / Split Chickpeas
1 cup peeled and cubed bottle gourd
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp. oil
1 tsp. cumin seeds
2 - 3 red chillies
Salt to taste
1 tsp. garam masala

Method:
* Soak split chickpeas / chana dal for a couple of hours and drain. Pressure cook split chickpeas / chana dal adding turmeric, a bay leaf and 1.5 cups of water until soft. Don't make it thinner since the dal needs to be on the thicker side. When the valve presssure is gone, remove the lid and mash the dal well or pulse in a food processor. (If the dal was not soaked in advance, pressure cook it longer.)
* Cook the bottle gourd cubes separately with enough water in a microwave.
* Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds, bay leaf and red chillies.  Add the cooked dal and bottle gourd cubes, salt and garam masala. Simmer for a few minutes and turn off the stove.
* Serve warm with rotis / rice.

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Himachali Mah Ki Dal

This mah ki dal or mash dal comes from a Himachali dham. A dham in a nutshell would be a traditional midday meal that is specifically reserved for religious and other special occasions in the state of Himachal pradesh. Each region in the state have their own set of specific dham recipes. This mash dal or the black gram gravy is a mandatory part of the dham served in the Mandi region. There are six dishes served with rice in a Mandyali dham and none of the preparations contain onion or garlic. This mah ki dal is the fifth item to be served with rice and is a simple 'satvik' preparation  unlike the Punjabi version.

Ingredients:
1 cup black gram / Sabut urad
1 tbsp. coriander seeds
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tsp. fennel seeds
1 inch cinnamon piece
2 green cardamom
2 black cardamom
12 peppercorns
1 tbsp. ghee / oil
2 bay leaves
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Directions:
1. Soak black gram overnight in plenty of water and drain.
2. Coarsely grind coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, cinnamon, cardamom and peppercorns. 
3. Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add bay leaves, the crushed spice powder and saute for few seconds. Add dal, turmeric powder, salt and about 2 cups of water and close the lid. Pressure cook the dal until soft. 
4. Remove the lid when the valve pressure is gone and mix well. Mash the dal with the back of the ladle lightly if preferred. 
(I separately pressure cooked the dal in advance. I prepared the tadka from step 3 in a pan and added the dal along with 3/4 cup water. I cooked for about 10 minutes and lightly mashed the dal.)

 

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A - Z Karnataka Recipe Series ~ H For Hitakida Bele Huli

So far in my A - Z Karnataka Series
A - Akki Halbai
B - Biscuit Roti
C - Congress Kadalekayi
D - Davanagere Benne Dose
E - Ellu Pajji
F - Field Beans / Avarekalu Payasa
G - Girmit

H for hitakida bele hili or saaru. Hitakida bele huli / saaru is one of the classic dishes of Karnataka cuisine and any series on Karnataka food would be incomplete without it. Avarekalu or fresh hyacinth beans is a winter crop and an integral part of Karnataka cuisine. These beans' based dishes dominate the meal menus especially in Bangalore - Mysore region households during the season.   

Thanks to my sister in law who comes from a Kannadiga family, my 'H' recipe was ready even before I thought about doing this Karnataka food series. She had prepared a couple of dishes from the state during our last India trip, which had those star ingredients that I couldn't have sourced locally. I could present this popular and delicious dish only because of her. This huli was cooked and clicked in her kitchen and is her mother's recipe. 

'Hitakida bele' literally means skinned beans. The term huli / saaru usually refer to the gravy based bean / lentil / dal dishes. As the name of the dish indicates, hitakida bele / skinned fresh field beans are the star of the dish and lentils of any kind are not used in this preparation. The beans are first sauteed lightly in ghee to get rid of their smell and then cooked with a spicy paste made with toasted and ground ingredients like coconut, chilles, coriander and Bengal gram. This paste forms the base and gives the thickness to this yummy and flavorful gravy. This recipe has only a simple seasoning of mustard seeds, not even curry leaves or asafoetida. 

Ingredients for grinding:
2 tsp. oil
1 tbsp. Bengal gram / chana dal / kadale bele
1 tsp. rice / akki
1/2 tsp. poppy seeds / gasagase
1/2 tbsp. coriander seeds / dhaniya
4 dried red chillies or adjust as needed
1/4 cup or a little more grated dry coconut
Other ingredients:
2 tsp. ghee
1 cup hitakida avarekalu / skinned fresh field beans / hyacinth beans
Salt to taste
1 tsp. oil
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds

Directions:
* Heat oil in a small and add Bengal gram and rice. When the Bengal gram starts to change color, add coriander seeds, poppy seeds, chillies and coconut. Saute until coriander starts to change color. Turn off the stove and let the ingredients cool. Grind the ingredients in a blender adding water as needed. (We had prepared more dal and so the paste quantity was more as well.)

* Add ghee to the same pan and add the beans. Saute them for a minute or so. Add water as needed and cook until they turn tender. (It will not take much time for the beans to cook but the beans should not turn mushy. Below is the picture of hitakida bele.)

* Add the ground paste and salt to the pan. Add water to the required consistency and bring the mixture to a boil. Lower the heat and cook for about 5 to 6 minutes and turn off the stove.
* Heat a tsp. of oil and add mustard seeds. When they start to splutter, remove and add it to the cooked beans mixture and stir well.

* Serve warm with rice.   

Notes:
1. The quantity of coriander seeds can be altered according to one's taste preference. It can be increased to about a tbsp. in the recipe but the flavor of the final dish would be stronger.
2. A combination of spicy and Byadagi chilli varieties can be used for color.
3. Onion and tomato can be sauteed and added while grinding the other ingredients.
4. Some versions use tamarind and jaggery in the recipe. 

 

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Dal Mughlai

I had come across this dal a while ago and had bookmarked it to try later. This week seemed like a right occasion to try it when I am posting 'pigeon peas' based dishes. I am not sure about the origins of this dal or whether the dal has any connection with the royal kitchens. And if indeed it is the case, this dal seems like a precursor to modern day 'dal fry' recipe. Surprisingly this dal is not a 'rich' kind where any dairy product is used as in the case of Sultani or Nawabi dals. This is more like a simple and flavorful, every day kind of dal cooked in North Indian homes without all the spice powders. The dal goes well with rotis / rice or plain pulaos.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup pigeon peas / toor dal
1/4 cup split chickpeas / chana dal
1 cup peeled and cubed bottle gourd / lauki
1 cup chopped tomato
1/8 tsp. ground turmeric
2 tbsp. ghee / oil
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. garlic paste (I didn't use it.)
1 tsp. finely chopped green chillies
1 tsp. grated ginger
3/4 cup, sliced onions
Salt to taste
2 tbsp. minced cilantro to garnish

Directions:
* Clean, wash and soak dals in enough water for a couple of hours and drain.
* Add the drained dals, tomato, bottle gourd pieces, turmeric and about 2 cups of water to a pressure cooker and cook for three whistles. When the valve pressure is gone, remove the lid and mash the dal well with the back of a ladle and keep aside.
* Meanwhile, heat ghee / oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. When they start to brown, add garlic, chillies, ginger and onion. Saute on low flame until the onion turns light brown.
* Add the mashed dals and salt to the pan and cook on medium flame for 3 or 4 minutes and turn off the stove.
* Garnish with cilantro and serve warm. 


This post is an entry for Blogging Marathon #101 under 'Cook 3 Side Dishes with One Ingredient' theme.

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Poricha Kuzhambu

I didn't realize until I started to plan recipes this week that I had picked back to back weeks of 'side dish' themes for the blogging marathon event. I had picked gravy curries theme last week and this week, it is going to be three different side dishes prepared using one ingredient. The word 'side dishes' did not register while picking the theme and I had assumed three different dishes using one ingredient. It was curries last week and so, I decided to go with legumes this time and 'pigeon peas / lentils' aka arhar dal or toor dal is going to be my star ingredient for this week's dishes. 

The first one in the series is going to be this gravy from the Tamil Brahmin kitchens called as poricha kuzhambu. The kuzhambu is a delicious gravy made with a combination of vegetables and dal, prepared using a spice and coconut paste. This is a no onion and no garlic recipe and quite a simple one to prepare. Moong dal can also be used to make poricha kuzhambu. Vegetales like brinjals, pumpkin, drumsticks. chayote, broad beans usually go into this kuzhambu recipe but I have used mixed vegetables here.

Ingredients: (Yield 2 to 3 servings)
1/2 cup toor dal / pigeon peas
2 cups mixed vegetables (I used beans, potato, chayote and carrots.)
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
1 cup water + extra as needed
1 tsp. oil
1 tsp. skinned black gram / urad dal (optional)
1/2 tsp. black peppercorn
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
2 or 3 dried red chili
A fistful of grated, fresh coconut (Frozen, shredded coconut can be substituted.)
Salt to taste
Minced cilantro to garnish (optional)

Ingredients for tadka / tempering:
1 tsp. oil
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1 pinch of asafoetida powder
A sprig of curry leaves

Directions:
1. Wash toor dal in two exchanges of water and drain. Pressure cook toor dal along with vegetables for 3 whistles, adding a cup of water and turmeric, When the valve pressure is gone, mash the dal well with the back of the ladle and keep aside. 
(Soak the dal in water for a couple of hours before using if the dal takes longer than 3 whistles to cook. Or the vegetables can be cooked separately.)
2. Meanwhile, heat a tsp. of oil in a small pan and add black gram, pepper corn, cumin seeds, and red chilies. When the dal starts to turn reddish, add the coconut and turn off the stove. Saute the coconut for few seconds and let the mixture cool. Grind the mixture to a thick, fine paste adding water as needed.
3. Add the ground paste and salt to the cooked dal from step 1. Add about 1/2 cup or more of water as well keeping in mind that the gravy need to be on the thicker side. Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer for a couple of minutes more.
4. Heat oil in a small pan for tempering and add the mustard seeds. when they start to sputter, add curry leaves and asafoetida and turn of the stove. Add this to the cooked gravy and stir well.
5. Garnish with cilantro if needed and serve warm with rice.


This post is an entry for Blogging Marathon #101 under 'Cook 3 Side Dishes with One Ingredient' theme.

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Mixed Dal Fry

Dal fry is one of the popular north Indian style dals and is quite commonly served in Indian restaurants and dhabas though the recipe of the latter versions vary. This simple yet delicious dal is usually made with pigeon peas aka toor dal / arhar dal though I made a mixed dal version, inspired by a TV show. Keep the dal to a medium to thick consistency. Replace the coriander and cumin powders in the recipe with garam masala, if you prefer it that way. The dal goes well with rotis / rice / jeera rice or mildly flavored pulao / biryanis. I had made a mixed dal version to serve with my Zafrani pulao, which made an awesome combo.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup pigeon peas / toor dal
1/4 cup split yellow peas / chana dal
1/4 cup moong dal
1 tbsp. oil / ghee
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1 red chili
1 sprig of curry leaves
1 tsp. minced ginger
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 sliced green chili
A pinch of asafoetida
1 onion, finely minced
1 tomato, chopped
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. coriander powder
1/2 tsp. cumin powder
1 tsp. kasuri methi / dried fenugreek leaves
Salt to taste
Lemon juice (optional)
Minced cilantro to garnish

Directions:
* Soak toor and chana dals for an hour. Rinse all the dals and drain. 
* Pressure cook them adding 1.5 cups of water for 3 whistles. Chana dal should still hold the shape after cooking. 
* Heat ghee / oil in a pot / pan and add cumin seeds, mustard seeds and red chili. When mustard seeds start to splutter, add asafoetida, curry leaves and stir. Add green chili, ginger and garlic and saute until raw smell leaves.
* Next add onion and fry until translucent. Add tomato and fry until mushy.
* Add turmeric, chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and salt and saute for seconds. 
* Next add the cooked dals and little water to adjust to desired consistency. Taste and adjust the seasonings if needed. Lightly crush the kasuri methi between palms and add it to the dal. Bring the mixture to a boil and turn off the stove. Add some lemon juice if desired.
* Garnish with minced cilantro before serving.

This post is an entry for Blogging Marathon #100 under 'Regional Side Dishes' theme.

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Brinjal Dalcha

I had made a score of biryani / pulaos and side dishes to go with them, last month for the mega marathon. This dalcha was one of those side dishes that I had made to accompany my Ambur biryani. 'Dalcha' was created in the Hyderabadi Nizams' kitchens and is said to be a modified version of a Persian dried lamb with beans dish. The original dish is of course a non vegetarian version that uses mutton and chana dal / split chickpeas along with the spices to flavor it up. This is a flavorful and simple vegetarian version dalcha made with eggplants / brinjals and pairs well with a biryani / pulao. Eggplants can be replaced with soy chunks or with mixed vegetables.
 
Recipe source: Here
Ingredients:
1/2 cup toor dal / pigeon peas
2 tbsp. chana dal / split chickpeas
1/8 tsp. ground turmeric
1 cup water
1 tbsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. ginger - garlic paste
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 small egg plants, sliced thinly
1/2 tsp. garam masala
1/4 tsp. cumin powder
1/2 tsp. chili powder
Salt to taste
Tamarind water to taste
1/2 cup water
Ingredients for tempering:
1 tsp. oil
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1/8 tsp. fenugreek seeds
2 dried red chilies, each broken into 2 or 3 pieces
1 stalk of curry leaves
2 pinches of asafoetida

Directions:
* Pressure cook toor dal, chana dal and turmeric adding a cup of water for 3 whistles or until the dal is softly cooked. When the valve pressure is gone, mash the dal well and keep it side.
* Heat oil in a pot / pan and add onion. Fry until translucent and add the ginger - garlic paste. Saute until the raw smell of the paste leaves.
* Next add brinjal slices, tamarind water, chili powder, and cumin powder. Mix well, cover and cook for about 5 minutes.
* Add cooked dal and salt to the pan. Stir and add about 1/2 cup or more of water. Cover and cook until the brinjal pieces are done.
* For tempering, heat oil in a small pan and add mustard seeds, red chilies, and fenugreek seeds. When mustard seeds start to sizzle and pop, add curry leaves and asafoetida. Turn off the stove and add the tempering to the dalcha. 
* Serve warm with biryani / pulao.



This post is an entry for Blogging Marathon #100 under 'Regional Side Dishes' theme.

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