Dish 3

Green bell Peppers and corn

Ingredients : - 1 cup corn kernels, 1 small green bell pepper, 1 teaspoon ginger paste, 1 tablespoon flour,1 pinch cumin seeds, 1 green chilly, 1 cup milk, 1/2 teaspoon sugar, 1 pinch white pepper powder, 2 tablespoons oil/ghee and salt to taste.

Preparation time : - 15 minutes Serves : - 2

HOW TO PREPARE : - Cook the corn kernels and keep it aside. Finely chop the green bell pepper and the chilly and keep them aside separately. Take a frying pan and pour the oil. Bring to heat and add the cumin seeds and sauté till they turn golden brown. Add the green chilly and ginger paste and sauté till the raw smell leaves. Add the plain flour and fry. Simmer and cook for a minute. Add the green bell pepper and corn, pour in the milk. While pouring the milk ensure that you do it slowly and keep stirring and make sure that no lumps are formed. Simmer and cook till the curry thickens. Add the white pepper, sugar and salt to taste and serve.

Dish 2.

Sambar rice

Ingredients : - 2 cups cooked rice, 1 handful toor dal(split gram),1 small tomato, 1 carrot, 2 beans, few cauliflower florets, 1 teaspoon butter beans,1 pinch Bengal gram, 1 pinch coriander seeds, 1 pinch methi seeds(fenugreek), 1 pinch asafoetida, 1 pinch mustard seeds, few curry leaves, 5 pearl onions, 1 centimeter tamarind, 1 pinch turmeric, 1 teaspoon red chilly powder, 1 teaspoon sambar powder, chopped coriander 3 tablespoon oil and salt to taste.

Preparation time : - 20 minutes Serves : - 2

HOW TO PREPARE : - Wash the split gram and soak it for 15 minutes. Peel the pearl onions and wash them. Now wash all the vegetables and cut it into 1 centimeter pieces and set it aside. Soak the tamarind in half cup water and set it aside. Take a pressure pan and put in the onions, drained split gram and 1 cup water. Add the asafoetida and pressure cook it. Simmer and cook till you get two whistles. Remove from heat and wait for the pressure to be released and then open it up. Remove the ingredients and rinse the cooker with water and bring it back to heat. When all the water evaporates pour in the oil and heat it well. Then add the mustard seeds and let it crackle. Add the Bengal gram, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds and curry leaves and sauté. After a few second add the chopped tomatoes. Put in the turmeric, red chilly powder and sambar powder and mix it well. Cook till the oil begins to leave the edges of the cooker. Next drain the tamarind pulp from the water. Pour the water in and cook for a minute. Put in all the vegetable including the butter beans and cook for a minute. Then add the boiled split gram and onions and stir well. Pour half cup water, if it’s too thick add one cup water and bring to boil. When the water is boiling add the salt and stir well. Just before closing the pressure cooker add the coriander leaves. Cook on a low flame for one whistle. Slowly open the cooker and empty the sambar into a big bowl. Now add the cooked rice and set it aside for minute. Mix it up well and serve. If the sambar rice is left outside for too long the rice will absorb all the sambar and it will become dry and so mix up the rice and sambar just before eating.

Food - Easy to make??? Dish 1.

My son and his classmates have now moved to Pittsburgh to do their MS (IT) program.
For the benefit of those who need to cook for themselves - here are some receipes which may be useful.

Vegetable biryani

Ingredients: - 2 cups cooked basmati rice(long grain), 100 grams, cauliflower, 100 grams potato, 100 grams carrot, 100 grams French beans, 100 grams peas, 1 big onion, 1 green chilly, ½ teaspoon red chilly powder, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, ½ inch cinnamon, 2 cloves,1 pinch black pepper powder, 2 tomatoes, ¼ cup curd(yoghurt), 1 pinch mustard seeds, 2 tablespoons dry fruits, 2 tablespoons oil and salt to taste.

Preparation time : - 20 minutes Serves : - 2

HOW TO PREPARE: - Finely chop the onions, tomatoes and green chilly and set it aside. Wash the vegetables, drain them completely and then cut into thin long slices. Take a frying pan and keep pour some oil. Bring to heat and put in one vegetable at a time. Sauté each vegetable on full flame till it gets cooked. You can sprinkle a little water. Sauté continuously to avoid the vegetables from getting burned. Ensure that the vegetables retain their colour. If you pour too much water the colour will become lighter and so sauté and try to avoid water as much as you can. Then sauté the green peas. Now take another frying pan and pour 1 tablespoon oil. Now when the oil is hot add the mustard seeds, green chilly, cumin seeds and cinnamon. Let them all crackle first and then sauté briefly till they become golden brown in colour. Then add the cloves and black pepper powder and let it crackle too. Follow this by adding the onions and sauté them till they are soft and cooked. Add the red chilly powder, salt to taste and sauté well. Put the finely chopped tomatoes and cook it till the oil begins to leave the edges of the pan. Whip the curd in a blender just for 5 seconds so that is nice and fine. Pour this curd into the pan and stir well. Cook briefly and add all the sautéed vegetables. Put in the cooked rice and mix it very gently. Ensure you don’t break the grains or mash them up. Cook for five minutes on a low flame. Turn of the flame. Garnish the biryani with dry fruits and coriander leaves. Serve it hot with some onion and curd raita.