Karva Chauth is a traditional Hindu festival in some parts of India. Married women fast all day, wishing for their husband’s health and long life. In some cases, and for those who wish to make this holiday more modern, both husbands and wives may fast together. This is pretty new and I’ve seen this only occasionally! My elder daughter-in-law is very traditional and really enjoys this special festival. She takes pleasure in all the rituals associated with Karva Chauth. This year’s menu is simple but delicious. I plan on making Gatte ki sabji (which is a Rajasthani dish and my daughter-in-law’s favorite!), Aloo Methi, Puris, Rice, and of course Gulgula. It will be a satisfying meal for all of the fasting married women!
Masala Bell Pepper Curry, which is a Hyderabadi-style dish. Hyderabad dishes are very spicy and aromatic. For me, bell pepper curry represents these dishes well. I wanted to do a recipe for a side dish for a more formal get together. I happened to have some extra bell peppers in my fridge, so I decided to experiment with those.Since this is a dish for a party, I wanted the gravy to be spicy and rich. Of course, I had to try out variations of this recipe a few times to balance the flavor. This dish has a complex flavor. The nuttiness of the cashews, sesame seeds, and coconut blends perfectly together. The gravy for this dish is also very versatile. You can also make a variety of dishes with this gravy. You can try adding potatoes or paneer with this gravy base, comes out delicious. Bell Pepper Masala Curry is very aromatic and delicious, in addition to being vegan and gluten-free. If you enjoy hot and spicy food, indulge yourself with this dish! It pairs excellently with naan, puri, or plain white rice. Enjoy!Recipe will serve 4.
2medium size green bell peppercut into bite size pieces
Spice Mix
1tspoil
¼cupbroken cashews
1Tbspsesame seeds
1Tbspcoriander
1Tbspcoconut powder
Gravy
1 ½cupchopped tomatoI used 3 medium size tomatoes
1Tbspginger cut into small pieces
1Tbspchopped green chili
2Tbspoil
8fenugreek seedsmethi dana
1tspcumin seedsjeera
¼tspturmerichaldi
⅛tspasafetidahing
1tspred chili powderlal mirch
½tspsugar
1tspsalt
½tspgaram masala
Instructions
Cut the bell peppers in half and remove the core and discard and cut them in bite size pieces.
In a pan, heat 1 teaspoon oil. Add cashews, sesame seeds, coriander seeds, and on a low flame, stir fry them for about 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and add coconut stir together. After the mix comes to room temperature blend the mix using about 1/4 cup of water and make it into a paste and set aside.
Blend tomatoes, ginger, and green chili into a paste. Set aside.
Use the same frying pan, heat the oil on medium heat, oil should be moderately hot. Add cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds and asafetida stir for a minute add tomato paste. Add turmeric, salt, sugar, and red chili powder. Stir fry for about 2 minutes, oil will start separating.
Add the spice paste and cook for 2-3 minutes stirring. The spice mix will start to leave the oil. Add bell pepper stir and 1-1/2 cups of water and bring the gravy to boil.
Lower the heat to medium low and let it simmer for about 6-8 minutes. Until bell pepper is tender.
Gravy will thicken as it sits, if needed add more water.
Sprinkle the garam Masala and cover the pan.
Bell pepper curry is ready to serve. I like to serve this with Naan, or over plain rice.
Hello all! I hope everyone is doing well and getting used to our new normal. I know this year our holiday celebrations don’t feel the same. We are used to celebrating with large numbers of people and celebrating the festival season. I know it may not be ideal, but we can still make the most of the season by getting together in our backyards with small groups.
Some of our friends have planned to enjoy garba with three or four families. That way they can still enjoy dressing up in nice clothes. Of course, they plan on wearing masks and practicing social distancing. I don’t know about you, but I feel like masks have become a fashion statement and they are just a part of our daily life and just another accessory!
I would love to hear about how you all are celebrating the holiday season. Here are some of my suggestions for dishes to prepare for a Navratri feast:
After giving it much thought, I finally decided to get an air fryer. I checked out many of them and eventually decided to get the Air Fryer Convection Toaster Oven: it includes a toaster, oven, and air fryer all in one. Another reason I decided to buy this one is to save kitchen countertop space. I replaced the toaster oven with this air fryer. So far, I am enjoying it. As a toaster oven, it does a better job than any toaster or toaster oven I have used. I am very happy with the oven feature: it is big enough to bake a cake, small batches of cookies, and a medium size pizza. I don’t do much baking, but I have started baking more because the air fryer is easy to use and needs less time to bake it preheats in 2-3 minutes easily. It is also easy to clean.
When using it as an air fryer (the reason I purchased this new gadget), it so far has not produced very satisfactory results except in grilling vegetables, tofu, paneer, and roasting nuts. I also use this to dry roast poha (flat rice) and makhana (fox nuts) half the way and then finish roasting in a frying pan, which saves some time but more importantly because for both things you need constant stirring which becomes too much for my shoulder. I do make both items very often. I have tried making French fries, pakora, samosa, katchori, and salteen crackers. If you eat these items as soon as they come out from the air fryer, they taste just okay, in my opinion. Also, using the air fryer did not save any time and the items lost the flavor. One of my friends suggested she liked heating the frozen snacks like samosas, katchories. I decided to try this; I got frozen samosa and katchories from the grocery store, and yes they came out good when I heated them. The question is why I needed the Air Fryer for that since I could have done the same in the toaster oven or in a conventional oven.
I am looking for help and suggestions. If you have any vegetarian recipe you were happy with, I will try and do the recipe.
I will like you to share your suggestions. Thanks!
"Grilled Veggie Healthy Bowl" is inspired by my daughter-in-law, who enjoys light, fresh, and healthy meals. She suggested I do this video after trying my recipe out. It's hard to believe something this healthy makes such a delicious and filling meal! In this recipe, I grilled asparagus, broccoli, bell pepper, zucchini, and cherry tomatoes. I then toss the grilled veggies with spiced chickpeas and a homemade ginger dressing. The ginger dressing definitely adds a kick to the flavor. This bowl is also pleasing to the eyes as it's filled with colorful vegetables and the chickpeas add some texture, in addition to protein! This dish vegan and gluten-free. This makes for a great lunch. Or you can serve this as a side dish or make a wrap using tortillas or flatbread. Recipe will serve 2 people.
½yellow bell pepper quarteredseeds and ribs removed
6florets of broccoli
10asparagus trimmed
Use the vegetables to your choice
Dressing
1TbspvinegarI am using rice vinegar
1Tbsplemon juice
2Tbspolive oil
1tspsugar
½tspsalt
¼tspblack pepper
1Tbspginger juice
Instructions
Prepare the dressing mix all the ingredients together, vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, sugar, salt, black pepper, and ginger juice set aside. You can prepare the dressing even a few days earlier. This is my go-to dressing and I make this extra, so it is always ready.
Grilling the Vegetables: preheat the air fryer at 350-degree F. Spread the vegetables evenly on a tray, spray lightly with oil. Air fry for about 6 minutes. If you don’t have air fryer grill the veggies in the oven or on the stove.
Prepare the chickpeas, while vegetables are roasting, rinse the chickpeas few times changing the water. In a frying pan heat, the oil moderately, add chickpeas, stir fry for about 3 minutes. Chickpeas will catch some color. Add roasted cumin seed, black pepper, green chilies, ginger, and lemon juice cook and stir fry for about 2 minutes stirring occasionally, set aside. Chickpeas also can be prepared in advance.
Toss the vegetables and chickpeas together and drizzle the dressing.
Notes
Do not overcook the vegetables, otherwise the vegetables will become too soft or mushy and will lose the colors.
Keyword Air Fryer Recipe, Diabetic, Gluten Free, Grilled Vegetables, Healthy, Healthy Bowl, Healthy Lunch, Home Made, Low Cholesterol, Lunch Box Meal, Masala Chola, Refreshing, Salad, Spicy Chickpea, Vegan
Don’t you think it is true? Most of us have some story behind our favorite dishes. Most of the dishes I make have a story behind them. This may sound silly but this is the fact. My grand kids will vouch for me saying our dadima is full of stories.
We all have some dishes we have enjoyed and admired. It makes a difference where and with who we dined. The presentation can inspire you, and that becomes the story behind that dish.
I remember my first lentil dal I made: I used at least double the salt yet still my dad enjoyed it. I rolled my first roti into world map shape and my mom smiled and complimented it saying that was a piece of art. I gave the same compliment to my granddaughter when she rolled her first roti at five years old. She loved the idea of a world map. When my boys were young, I would make them puries; when they saw the puries being puffed, their eyes opened wide and they had so many questions. This happened every time they saw the puries, for I never came up with a good answer to satisfy their curiosity.
Bengali Rasgullas are my favorite dessert. They are made with homemade paneer: round paneer balls soaked in sugar syrup. This is a delicacy from the state of Bengal. I will say one can never go wrong with this dish. When I was first learning to cook Rasgullas, they would turn out hard, not the right shape, or break in pieces. I learned quickly how to fix this, making them into different desserts in whichever way the imperfect Rasgullas would allow. My friends would ask me for the recipe. I tried explaining, but no one believed me. I decided to serve them differently and each time they were a hit amongst my friends.
The bottom line is to enjoy your creation!
I think I take every incident in my life as a story. Life is easier and more beautiful that way for me. It puts a smile on my face. Many of my viewers will ask how to make a certain dish restaurant style, but I like and enjoy simple home-made food. I don’t even try to make restaurant style, but it does not mean I don’t get inspired when I see some dish that is eye-catching; I will always see how I can make such a dish in homemade style. That’s how I came up with the recipe for Taco Samosa: I saw it made in the restaurant and then I put my own twist to it.
A recent recipe I have cooked is Gulab Jamun Cake. My daughter-in-law wanted me to make it and asked me to add my own twist. I googled for the recipe; I was not happy with any of them, so I decided to create my own. After a few attempts to do so, I was very happy with the results.
Sorry! I am the last person who can follow the recipes. It is strange then that I want you to follow mine. I enjoy it when I read the comments where you have made your own changes to the recipe. When we go out for dinner, visit friends and family, go to restaurants or I see some magazine that has a beautiful looking dish that catches my eye, I want and will try to make it.
I think cooking is an art; instead of colors, you play with ingredients. Painters are inspired by something before they paint. I see cooking in the same way.
I have not been doing cooking videos lately. Why? I ask myself. Am I tired or had enough of it? No, I certainly still have interest in it. I have been making videos for a long time. It started as a hobby in December 2006 and has stayed with me all these years as something I always enjoy doing.
Maybe I needed a break and to revisit the videos at a later time with fresh thinking and ideas. I have missed not doing the cooking videos and I am ready and excited to start again. My family enjoys the simple and easy recipes I make. The dishes are quick to prepare and family and my grandkids help me prepare and eat the food. I will still cook recipes with traditional flavors and make them easier to learn by cutting down steps whenever it’s possible. Along with this, I will make more use of the instant pot and air fryer.
I am excited for you, the audience, to embark with me on this new journey!
Crispy delicious French Fries! Who doesn't enjoy French fries? It's the perfect comfort food! Homemade Fries, it’s actually quite simple and easy to make. In fact, this is a great snack for my grandkids when they come to visit me. My grandson will say very proudly my dadi (grandmother) makes the best fries.This recipe will serve 3
Wash and peel the potatoes, and slice potatoes into French fries, and place into ice cold water for at about 10 minutes. Soaking in water potatoes some of the starch will come out and water will look fogy. Remove them from water to clean kitchen towel and pat dry.
Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Put the fries into oil, don’t over crowed them. Notes: overcrowding fries will bring oil temperature to very low and fries can become very oily.
Turn the fries occasionally, fry until golden brown it should take about 6-8 minutes. Remove fries from oil with a slotted spoon to drain on paper towel. Sprinkle the salt and fries are ready to serve.
Notes
My family and friends enjoy the fries with tamarind chutney, this exotic sweet and sour chutney is a delicious condiment. I always have this in my refrigerator. My grandkids also like to have a lemonade or Mango lassi with French fries.
2017 ended with a gala celebration. We enjoyed our unforgettable 50th anniversary party with our friends and family. This beautiful event was planned by our sons and their wives. After the holidays and this lovely celebration, I knew it was time for me come back to work! I must say 2017 was a relaxing year.
I must confess that 2018 didn’t start out as I had hoped it would. I ended up sick with the flu! My elder daughter-in-law and her mother visiting from India also got sick. Finally we all are doing well after almost a month of recovery. We are all healthy and feel much better thankfully. Now that these challenges are over I am ready to take on 2018! I am bored and tired of resting. This is the first time I have felt well enough to think about what I can do differently for “Manjula’s Kitchen” from previous years. I know that I would like to get more comfortable with social media and use it more effectively. Stay tuned this year for more of the recipes and videos you love!
Chutney are a big part of the condiments that I serve and I always like to keep them handy since they have long shelf life. These chutneys are used as an extra source of flavor with many appetizers, snacks, and chaat (whether it be sweet, sour,spicy, etc.). They are great to have readily available, because it makes life so easy when preparing a large menu, especially when you are in mood to have something spicy or when you make a sudden plan to entertain family or friend for afternoon tea. You can easily take any kind of dry snacks that you have on hand, even boiled potatoes, chickpeas, or crackers and turn them into a mouth-watering treat.
These two chutneys, in my opinion, are a staple to every household preparing Indian food. I have their recipes on my website.
Tamarind Chutney
This chutney can be refrigerated for months. I like to make it thick in texture so that I can adjust the thickness of the chutney depending on what I am using it for. This exotic, sweet and sour chutney and can be called the ketchup of the east! This is delicious as a dipping sauce for French fries, as a spread over crackers, or even as a zesty addition to a rice dish. You really can never go wrong with it.
Cilantro Chutney
I prefer to prepare this in a large quantity in advance and freeze it in ice cube trays. You can store the frozen cubes in a zip-lock plastic bag. When you ready to serve, defrost as many cubes of chutney as needed. And after so many years, I have finally learned how to keep the vibrant green color of chutney. When blending the chutney, use crushed ice to blend instead of room temperature water; I was amazed by the difference it makes.
Keep looking out for my blogs because I will continue sharing the tips I have learned over the years. It might just solve the one problem you could not figure out.
The flowers are blooming, and spring is upon us! That means that one of my favorite holidays is fast approaching…yes Holi! I love the spirit of Holi with its fun, festive and colorful spirit. I especially enjoy playing with my grandchildren during this time. It keeps me young even though time is passing by quickly. Spending time with my grandchildren during this festive time really brings back a lot of fun memories from my childhood. My parents loved celebrating holidays and making it very special for us. It always makes me feel happy thinking of those times.
Of course, these wonderful holidays allow me to spend more time in my favorite place at home – the kitchen! These holidays and celebrations are not complete without delicious food. As a young child, I can vividly remember the whole neighborhood filled with delicious aromas in preparation for Holi. My mother would make a variety of finger foods because it was easy to share with friends and neighbors.
This year Holi falls on March 9th and 10th. In India, Holi is a time where people of all different backgrounds come together and celebrate. A bonfire is typically prepared the night before Holi. The next day family, friends, and neighbors play together with specially prepared colored powders. These powders are called “gulal” and colored water is playfully splashed on each other as well. Of course, this is my grandchildrens’ favorite holiday to celebrate!
In preparation for Holi, here are some of my favorite snacks to prepare:
Gujhias
Crispy Shakarpara
Nariyal Ka Ladoo
Nimki
Khasta Kachori
Kesar Peda
Here’s to wishing everyone a wonderful Holi this year!
Sweet, juicy mangoes are in season and always a favorite in my family.
Mangoes are my all-time favorite fruit. In fact, whenever we go grocery shopping, mangoes are almost always purchased! I always have a variety of mangoes on hand. There are many different types of mangoes and everyone has their favorite type. My childhood was filled with fond memories eating fresh mangoes. I think I have so many memories attached to eating mangoes that I enjoy them even more.
Mangoes, of course, are enjoyed as they come as fruit. They are especially refreshing on these hot summer days. They can also be used to make a variety of salads, desserts, drinks and of course mango pickle. My older grandson is always ready to enjoy a delicious cold mango lassi. I also enjoy preparing “mango laungi (relish)” which is a quick spicy sweet and sour relish, and also my older granddaughter’s favorite! I always make this relish when I think the mangoes are not as flavorful. This relish is a perfect dish to make and it can be refrigerated for up to a week.
These are some suggestions for some of my favorite dishes using mangoes:
Palak Paneer is likely the most popular paneer dish from North India. Creamy spinach with tasty paneer makes a delicious main dish. This recipe was one of my favorite. After so many years of cooking, my family has decided my cooking skills have improved! I wanted to do this recipe again as with modified cooking method. Also I will like to thank you to all of my viewers who have encouraged me over the years. You guys truly inspire me!
10ozspinachwashed and clean, about 6 cups packed spinach
1-1/2cupspaneercubed into bite size, about 1/3 pound of paneer
1tomatofinely chopped, this will make 3/4 of chopped tomato
1green chilichopped
1Tbspgingerchopped
1Tbspoil
1/2tspcumin seedsjeera
1/8tspasafetidahing
1tspcoriander powderdhania
1/4tspturmerichaldi
1/2tspred chili powder
1/2tspsaltadjust to taste
1/2tspsugar
1Tbspwhole wheat flour
1/3cupheavy cream
Instructions
First blanch the spinach, this helps to keep the spinach color bright. To blanch the spinach, boil about 6 cups of water in a saucepan, and let the spinach boil for one minutes. Drain the water and put the spinach in ice cold water for about two minutes. Drain the water.
Blend the spinach, ginger and green chili. Spinach should be creamy but not pasty.
Soak the cubed paneer in about three cups of hot water, for about 5 minutes or more. This helps to give the paneer soft texture. Set aside.
While cooking, spinach can splatter, use larger sauce pan. Heat the oil in a sauce pan, over medium high heat. Test the heat by adding one cumin seed to the oil; if it cracks right away it is ready.
Add cumin seed, and asafetida. After cumin seeds crack, add the tomatoes and stir fry for 1-2 minutes. Tomatoes should be tender not mushy. Add coriander, turmeric, red chili powder, salt, and sugar, stir and add the spinach.
After spinach comes to boil lower the heat to low, and let the spinach cook for about 5-6 minutes do not cover the pot. This helps keeping the green color of spinach.
Mix the flour to 1/2 cup of water and add to the spinach, also add the cream. Mix it well and let it cook for five minutes. If needed add little more water.
Drain the paneer and fold it gently with spinach and let it simmer for about five minutes.
One evening while playing cards with my husband, Alex, and my son’s mother-in-law, Alex suddenly asked for something sweet. I didn’t have any dessert prepared and all we had in the house was ice cream and some chocolate. Alex has always been super innovative with his food combinations, and this recipe is just that, a product of desperation. At first, my kids and grand-kids made faces when they heard what it was made of, but with a little bit of tweaking, it has become a simple dessert that our entire family has been preparing during this quarantine.When I say it only takes two minutes, I truly mean it. And it is so easy to make, that even my youngest grandchild can put it together in no time. The graham cracker pairs well with the creaminess of the cream cheese while still giving a nice crunch. The fruit adds natural sweetness and the drizzle on top of either chocolate or caramel is the perfect cherry on top. Just bring out the ingredients and everyone can help themselves. Today I have a very special guest star my grandson Shaan who is helping me out with today’s recipe. Behind the scenes, I also have my granddaughter, Rhea, helping to film the video. We will be making a Fruit and cracker dessert, that is kid friendly and simply delicious.For this recipe is quick and easy as there is no cooking involved, and the ingredient measurement I am providing only as a guide.Recipe will serve 2.
Spread the cream cheese over all the graham crackers
Next spread the slices of strawberries. Now cover them with another graham cracker to make them into sandwich.
Drizzle with chocolate ganache. And garnish with almonds, that gives a nice crunch and beautiful look.
Fruit and Cracker Dessert has nice crunch when it is eaten while making after 5 minutes crackers start getting soft.
Notes
This dessert can be made with any other fruits and toppings of your choice. I also love making these with bananas and kiwi, and I also like topping it off with caramel sauce. You can buy caramel sauce and chocolate ganache they are readily available. I generally keep homemade chocolate ganache and caramel on hand. They are easy to make and have a long shelf life.
Keyword 2 Minutes Dessert, Banana, Carmel Sauce, Chocolate Ganache, Cream Cheese, Crispy, Fun Dessert, Gram Crackers, Home Made, Hot Chocolate, indian sweet, Kid Friendly, Kiwi, Mango Cheese Cake, Mango Salsa, Quick And Easy, Strawberry, Sweet, Vegetarian
