Bhavra

I am going to post three 'chickpea flour / besan' based recipes this week and the first one is bhavra. Bhavra is a delicious chickpea flour / besan based snack from Bihar region and were a part of the Bihari thaali I posted last month. I came across this dish when I was randomly looking for regional snacks from that state and unfortunately that recipe link is no longer available online. Bhavra do not fall under the pakora / bhajiya category though a similar kind of chickpea flour based batter is used in the preparation of these tasty fritters. 

A batter of pourable consistency is prepared that includes black chickpeas as well. A ladleful of batter is poured into the hot oil and then shallow fried until it is golden brown. There is another variation that is prepared using fresh peas. These yummy bhavra can be a part of a festive meal or they make a perfect evening snack. They don't need an accompaniment to go with but can be served with some ketchup / chutney if desired.

Ingredients: (Yield 4 bhawra)
1/4 cup black chickpeas / kala chana, soaked overnight 
1/2 cup chickpea flour / gram flour / besan
2 heaped tsp. semolina / sooji (Rice flour is added traditionally.)
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder / haldi
1/2 tsp. carom seeds / ajwain 
2 tbsp. finely minced cilantro / dhaniye ke patte
1 tsp. grated or finely chopped ginger / adrak 
2 or 3 finely chopped green chillies / hari mirchi
1 small onion / pyaaz, grated or finely chopped
Salt to taste
Oil to fry

Method:
* Add all ingredients except oil to a bowl and mix to combine. 

* Add hot water as needed and form a batter with a consistency similar to almost a dosa batter. (I added about 6 tbsp. of hot water.)

* Heat oil in a pan on medium heat, for shallow frying. Pour a tiny drop of batter into hot oil and check whether it quickly swims to the surface. If it does, the oil is hot enough to fry. If not, heat the oil some more but do not bring it to a smoking point.
* Pour a ladleful of batter carefully into the hot oil. Pour the hot oil (in the pan) over the surface of the batter with a slotted spoon once or twice. Lower the heat slightly but do not go to the lowest setting as the oil needs to be hot while frying.

* When the bottom side turns brown, flip and cook until the other side turns golden brown as well.

* Remove the fried bhawra with a slotted spoon, draining as much oil as possible and transfer onto a plate covered with paper towels. Repeat the steps with the remaining batter.
* Serve them warm as it is or with ketchup or a chutney if desired. 

Comments

Chane Jaisalmer Ke / Dahi Chane Ki Subzi

This dahi chane ki subzi, that can be loosely translated as chickpeas curry in a yogurt based gravy is from Rajasthan as the title suggests. A rustic dish thru and thru and is a typical example of cooking based on the arid climate of the state. There are no fresh vegetables used, including onion and garlic which is typical to north Indian style cooking. It is a simple and quick dish to put together if one has boiled kala chana ready and goes well with rotis and rice.

Source: Tarla Dalal
Ingredients:
1/2 cup kala chana / black garbanzo beans
3/4 cup yogurt
1 tbsp. chickpea flour / besan
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder
1/2 tsp. green chili paste
1/2 tsp. chili powder 
Salt to taste
1 tbsp. oil
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1 tsp. cumin seeds

Method:
* Soak garbanzo beans overnight or for about 6 - 8 hours. Pressure cook the beans until they are done and soft.
* Combine yogurt, turmeric, green chilli paste, chili powder, salt, and about 6 tbsp. water. Whisk well to form a lump free mixture.
* Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When mustard seeds start to splutter, add the yogurt mixture, cooked garbanzo beans and salt to the pan. 
* Cook on medium flame stirring contionuosly for about 5 minutes.
Serve warm with rotis / rice.
 
This goes to blogging marathon #57 under the theme 'Side Dishes' and check here to find out what other marathoners are cooking today.

Comments

Happy Dasara and Steamed Green Beans with Moongdal & Senaga Guggillu

Happy Dasara to everyone. I prepared a simple neivedyam as Dasara (navarathri) began today. It included green beans koora, eggplant-tomato sambhar, puliyogare, semiya payasam and senaga guggilu. And today I am posting recipes for a couple of them. The first one is steamed green beans with moongdal.

Beans - PesaraPappu Koora: Green bean is one of my favorite vegetable and so is frequently cooked in my kitchen. I use them in various ways and here is one easier method to cook green beans.

Ingredients:
A fistful of moongdal
2 tsp. canola / peanut oil
2 tsp. oil
1 tsp. chana dal / split chickpeas
1 tsp. urad dal / skinned black gram
1 tsp. mustard seeds
1 tsp. cumin seeds
A sprig of curry leaves
4 dried red chilles (more or less to taste.)
1/4 cup shredded fresh / frpzen coconut
Salt to taste
Method:
* Wash and soak a handful of moongdal (skinned, split green lentils) in water for an hour or two. Then drain the water and keep the moongdal aside.
* Wash, trim the ends and chop the green beans into 1/4 inch bits. (String before chopping, if necessary. Usually the beans I find here, need no stringing.)
* Add the chopped beans and about 2 tbsp. of water to a pressure cooker and cook for 2 -3 whistles. When the valve pressure is gone, remove the beans and drain them in a colander.
* Heat oil in a sauté pan. Add chanadal, uraddal, mustard seeds & cumin seeds in that order. When the dals turn reddish, add red chillies ( broken into bits), curry leaves and sauté them for a few seconds. Then add the cooked beans, moongdal, salt and coconut to the pan. Saute them for about 3 to 4 minutes on low flame and turn off the stove.

Now the other recipe is for Senaga Guggillu / Kala Chana Salad. Guggillu / Usli / Sundal or what ever you call them depending upon where you live is nothing but a (South) Indian style bean salad. Dried beans are soaked, cooked till tender and then seasoned with spices and flavored with some shredded, fresh coconut and lime juice at the end. Senagalu - the brown chick peas are one of the favorite beans used to prepare the guggillu. Often served as prasadam at temples in Southern India, this is a fulfilling snack anytime of the day.

For 4 servings, wash and soak 4 fistfuls of dried, black chick peas overnight. In the morning, drain the water, wash the chickpeas twice and cook with about 4 to 6 cups of water in a pressure cooker. After the valve pressure is gone, remove the chickpeas from the cooker. Drain the water and wash the chickpeas with fresh water once or twice. Heat about a tbsp. of canola/peanut oil in a sauté pan. Heat about a tsp. each of chana dal / split chick peas and mustard seeds. When chana dal turns reddish, add a few curry leaves and two finely chopped green chillies. Saute them for about 30 seconds and add cooked chickpeas, 1/4 cup of fresh, shredded coconut , salt and a tbsp. minced cilantro. Saute them for a couple of minutes more. Remove and add juice squeezed from a lemon. Stir well and serve. Kitchen Tip: While buying green beans, make sure they look fresh and green and when bent, they snap with a crisp sound.

Other related posts:
Kala Chana Sprouts Salad
Carrot & Beans with Moongdal

Post a Comment:

Kala Chana Sprouts Salad

• A tadka of mustard seeds, chanadal, curry leaves and red & green chillies.
• Addition of a cup of kala chana sprouts, a finely chopped tomato & onion each, a grated carrot and salt to taste.
• Mixing & sauteing the ingredients for a couple of minutes.
• Adding a tbs of lemon juice or accordingly.

These simple steps would result in a protein rich snack / meal.

Post a comment

Kala Chana Sambhar

Though the South Indian Sambhar is associtated with toordal / lentils, other beans can be substituted to prepare this spicy side dish. Of course, using different beans means bringing their signature flavors and own oomphs to a dish. In this recipe, the star is the nutritious chana with an earthly flavor. I have gone with the kala chana - the dark complexioned sister of Kabuli chana (Garbanzo beans) for this wholesome, spicy dish.

Ingredients to serve 4 - 6:
2 onions, finely chopped
1 tomato, finely chopped
1/2 cup kalachana
1.5 tsp salt
Thick tamarind puree - 2 tbsp
Powdered jaggery - 1 to 2 Tbsp
1/4 cup fresh coconut (dry coconut / copra can be substituted)
Ingredients to fry:
1 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 one inch cinnamon pieces
2 small petals of raathi puvvu / stone flower / daagad phool (optional. I happen to use them while preparing all spice powders) 10 red chillies
Ingredients for tadka:
2 Tbsp oil, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds, a pinch of asafoetida, curry leaves

Cooking:

• Soak the kalachana over night or for at least 6 hours. They will swell and you would have about a cup of chana. Pressure cook the chana. Though they can be cooked on stovetop, it would take longer. Put the cooked chana in a colander and rinse them with fresh water.
• Fry all those ingredients mentioned in the list and keep aside.
• Take half of the cooked chana, fried ingredients, coconut and grind into a paste using water.
• Mean while, heat oil in a kadai / pan and add tadka ingredients in the order mentioned. When mustard seeds start to pop, add onions and fry till they turn translucent. Then add tomatoes and saute them till they turn mush. Then add chana, ground paste, tamarind, jaggery and salt to the onion- tomato mixture. Next add water. Adjust the quantity of water to get a consistency of sambhar. Also keep in mind that it thickens a little after cooking. Taste and adjust the quantities of salt, jaggery and tamarind if needed.
• Simmer the sambhar for about 10 minutes and turn off the stove.
• Serve hot with rice and a little ghee.

Recipe Source : Smt. Rajya Lakshmi, my beloved mother-in-law.

Post a Comment

Kala Chana Sprouts Subzi With Cabbage~Carrot

I frequently sprouts beans at my home and if you are new to sprouting, I will assure you that sprouting is not a daunting task as many consider. It is a lot easier to grow sprouts than chopping vegetables to cook. Sprouts are nutritious, healthy, easily digestible and taste excellent. You can add them to any soups, salads, stews or subzis. I had earlier posted how to sprout by this method . Here is one more easy way to sprout. All you need is some beans / seeds (or the ingredient) which you need to sprout and a loosely woven / breathable cotton cloth (like a very thin towel). Soak the seeds for a day or overnight with plenty of water. If sprouting dried beans, use a container bigger than needed as beans swell and double in their size and soak for 24 hours. Then throw away the water and place those beans in a cotton cloth, loosely covered. Keep moistening the towel 2 or 3 times per day or whenever it is dry. Sprouts would be ready in a couple of days. I usually stop when the sprouted root's length is almost same as the soaked seed. Placing the beans bundle in a colander helps to drain any excess water. To speed up the process, leave the beans bundle in an oven with the light on. I sprouted a handful of kala chana and had a cup of sprouts. I added them to this cabbage carrot subzi which was a palate pleasing experience. We liked it very much and I got a thumbs up even from my husband who hates kala chana. What you need: 2 Onions, finely chopped 1 Cup kala chana sprouts 2 Cups grated / finely chopped green cabbage 1 carrot, grated 3 Serrano peppers, finely chopped Salt For tadka: 2 tbsp oil, 1 tsp each of mustard seeds, chana dal, urad dal, cumin seeds, 1/4 tsp turmeric powder, a pinch of asafoetida Cooking: Heat oil in a pan and add all the tadka ingredients in the order mentioned. When the dals slightly turn to reddish brown, add the green chillies & onions. Keep frying on low flame till the onions turn translucent. Next add the grated cabbage, carrot, sprouts and enough salt and stir once. Cover the pan and keep stirring in between till the cabbage is cooked. Turn off the heat. It goes well with rotis or rice. This goes to JIHVA - Sprouts hosted by Dee of Ammulu's Kitchen. Post a comment Other related posts here: Red chori bean sprouts usli Greengram sprouts subzi