Recipe world

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ We grow different kinds of vegetables in our backyard every summer. This year, while ordering seeds online, we also found Snap Melon seeds. Hence, after many years, we finally got to enjoy Mekkehannu payasa again! This fruit - also called Ibbudla or Kyakarike Hannu - gives a wonderful taste to the payasa. When it is still unripe, it tastes extremely bitter, but once it ripens and cracks open, it becomes soft and melts in the mouth. The kids really enjoyed watching this fruit split open on its own, and our little boy even calls it “Hatch melon”! Here is the recipe for this payasa, which can be prepared using just a few ingredients: Preparation time: 5 - 10 minutes Difficulty level: Easy Serves: 3 Ingredients: Snap melon (Mekke hannu) - peeled, seeds removed and chopped - 2 cups Sugar - 5½ tablespoons or adjust to taste Cardamom powder -  ½ teaspoon Cold milk - 1½ cups Sabja seeds / Kamakasturi seeds (optional) - 2 teaspoons (soak in water for 20 m...

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ.  Finger millet is one of the millets which I prefer to use in our daily diet in one form or the other, due to its health benefits. It can be included in preparing Indian foods like Dosa, idli, rotti, ragimudde, malt, etc.  Biscuits and cookies are typically made with maida or all-purpose flour, but I enjoy experimenting with healthier alternatives in my baking. A good combination of different flours gives the recipe a unique taste and texture.  Here is my version of healthy biscuits using Finger millet flour / Ragi hittu. These tasty biscuits are kids favourite too, a healthy treat to add to your kids lunchbox!  Preparation time: 35 minutes Refrigeration time: 30 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 20 - 22 biscuits of medium size  Ingredients:  Finger millet flour / Ragi hittu - 1/2 cup Wheat flour - 3/4 cup (see Tips)  Unsalted butter (at room temperature) - 100 gm  Powdered sugar / Icing sugar - 1/3 cup (s...

  ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ   'Burfi' is a very sweet which is prepared in Indian households. This sweet can be prepared using variety of ingredients. Since its made using very rich ingredients like ghee / clarified butter, sugar, cream, etc., it will have a rich taste too.  Here is the recipe of Carrot burfi to share with you all! Preparation time: 35 - 40 minutes Difficulty level: Difficult Serves: 20 - 25 pieces Ingredients: Grated carrot - 1 cup Grated coconut - 1 cup Semolina / sooji rava - 1 cup Sugar - 2 1/4 cup Ghee / clarified butter - 2/3 cup Fresh / whipping cream - 1 cup Cardamom and cloves powder - 1/4 tsp (optional) Recipe Instructions: Pulse grind the grated coconut in a mixie jar for 3 - 4 seconds to make even and fine crumbs.  Take a heavy bottom pan, add 2/3rd cup of ghee and allow to melt on small or medium flame.  Once the ghee melts, add 1/2 cup of sooji rava and roast it for 2 minutes.  Then add 1 cup of grated carrot and sauté...

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ   'Tambli' is a yogurt based gravy which is easy to prepare and has the health benefits too. When its summer, one or the other variety of Tambli is very common in Havyaka homes, to serve with rice. Here is a unique Tambli recipe which is prepared using Tindora which is known as 'Tonde Ele' in Kannada. Preparation time: 15 - 20 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 4 - 5 Ingredients: Tindora leaves - 5 or 6 Fresh grated / frozen coconut - 3/4 cup Thick buttermilk - 1 cup Cooking oil - 2 1/2 tsp (see Tips) Peppercorn - 4 Cumin seeds / Jeera - 2 tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Salt - taste Sugar - 1/4 tsp Lime juice - 2 tsp or to taste Recipe Instructions: Wash and clean the tindora leaves, chop them roughly. Take a small wok or frying pan. Heat it up by adding 1tsp of oil. Add 4 peppercorns and fry them for 2 minutes or till its nicely roasted.  Then add 1 tsp of cumin seeds. Saute it for a minute or till aromatic. Finally add the chopped t...

  ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ.   We had a huge crop of pumpkins this summer. Growing our own veggies during different seasons is not only pocket saver, its stress burster too, in my opinion. It needs a bit of regular maintenance, but seeing the garden brimming with flowers, fruits and veggies, it feels worth the effort.  Pumpkins last upto 6 months if they are harvested after ripening well. We enjoy pumpkin soup every now and then for our dinner during winter nights. Other dish which my family loves is Pumpkin Sambar. This Sambar won't need onion and garlic, its vegan friendly and tastes similar to the Temple style Sambar.  Here is the recipe for you all to try: Preparation time: 45 minutes Soaking time: 20 minutes Serves: 6 Difficulty level: Difficult Ingredients: Pumpkin (de-seeded) - 600gm Toor dal - 3/4 cup Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp Salt - to taste Jaggery - 1/4 tsp or to taste Water - as needed - For Masala Paste: Cooking oil - 2 tsp (see notes) Dry red chil...

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ   Majjige Huli / Paladya is one of the most common side dish in Havyaka households at my native place. When you are bored of eating same type of Sambar everyday, Majjige Huli makes the lunch or dinner more enjoyable. Different vegetables are used to prepare Majjige Huli. When made using every different vegetable, taste of this side dish varies. Also, we can make both sweet and savoury version of Majjige Huli with every vegetable! During our recent visit to Sydney, one of our family friends had kindly shared some home-grown Tondekayi / Dondakaya with us. It was long time since I prepared Majjige Huli using Tindora. We all enjoyed this sweet version of Tindora Majjige Huli, and here is the recipe for you all to try! Preparation time: 25 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 6 Ingredients:   Tindora / Tondekayi / Ivy gourd / Dondakaya - 15 nos Thick buttermilk - 1 1/4 cup  Salt - to taste Jaggery (or sugar) - 4 to 5 tea spoon (as per tast...

Kaayi Unde or Kaayunde is one of my favourite sweet snacks from childhood. As the name indicates, the main ingredients in this sweet dish are coconut and jaggery. To make it more tastier, nuts like toasted groundnuts or cashews can also be added.  Here is the recipe of Kaayi Unde for you all! Time required: 30 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 28 balls  Ingredients: Fresh grated coconut - 3 cups Jaggery - 1 cup (either powder or liquid)  Roasted groundnuts - 1 cup Cardamom powder - 1 tsp Recipe Instructions: Take the toasted groundnuts, peel off the skin and pulse them in the mixie or food processor into small chunks. Combine fresh grated coconut and jaggery in a wide pan, keep mixing it on medium flame.  Slowly, the water content in the coconut releases and the jaggery combines well with the coconut. If the mixture looks too dry, you can add 1 - 2 tablespoon of water to make it moist.  Keep mixing the mixture for around 20 minutes, till you see the mixtu...

  ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ   Just like every year, our summer veggie patch is on full bloom this year too. When there are so much home grown veggies, its very hard to choose the veggies for your cooking, when you don't want anything go waste! We are making a good use of home grown veggies in our daily cooking, sharing some with friends and also, preserving some in the freezer for the winter months.  A few of our white radish plants grew up taller, they didn't produce any bulbs, but we could see big bunches of radish beans on the plant. Then, I got to know from one of my friends that, radish beans are good for cooking curries and stir fries. I tried my hands on making 2 - 3 varieties of stir fry (Palya), and here is the one which was liked by all.. Preparation time: 25 - 30 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves - 5 Ingredients: Radish / Muli beans - about 3 cups Salt - to taste Sugar - 1 tsp Amchur powder - 3/4 tsp  - For Seasoning: cooking oil - 3 tbsp, Ur...

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ   Cucumber is one of those vegetables which is widely used in Indian cooking. Its summer here, and we are making a good use of cucumbers. My cooking style goes more towards my native style food when its summer; we enjoy preparing and eating native style curries like Hashi, Tambli, etc which are mainly yogurt based. But when the winter starts, we prefer more of soups, chapathi and curries. Hashi or Saasive is a yogurt and coconut based curry which is a good combination with rice. We Havyakas can prepare Hashi or Saasive using almost every variety of vegetables and edible leaves.   Today, I am going to share the recipe of Savatekayi Hashi (Sasive) with you all. When we were school age kids, we cousins were all very keen to watch how Amma / Aunty / Grandma chop the cucumber so finely using 'Ilige mane' or coconut scraper. We all loved that aroma which comes when the cucumber is chopped finely. And, we used to wait for that small leftover pieces o...

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ   Healthy food habits are good for everyone. Our daily food intake should have a balanced portion of pulses, dairy, fruits, nuts and other things. Being hard core vegetarians, I always try to serve the best food for my family. Today, I am sharing a healthy recipe with you all. These Energy Balls are so delicious to eat, and comes very handy while you are on a trip, hiking, sports activity and also for kids snacks. I have not used any nuts in this recipe since my kids love to carry them for school snacks, and nuts are not allowed in school. You can use any combination of dried fruits and nuts for this recipe. Preparation time: 20 - 25 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Yield: Around 23 balls of medium size Ingredients: Oats: 1 cup Desiccated coconut: 1/2 cup Pitted dates: 2 1/2 cup Chia seeds: 4 tbsp Cocoa powder: 2 tbsp Orange zest: 1 tbsp Coconut oil: 2 tbsp Recipe Instructions: Take the oats and make a coarse powder using a mixie or food processor....

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ.  Zucchini - this vegetable was originated from Italy and is popular in many countries. Look-wise its like cucumber, but tastes like ridge-gourd. Since zucchini won't have any strong taste or smell, it goes well with many other veggies in cooking.  It was during our initial days in Australia. Dear hubby had brought home a big box full of Zucchini, thinking they were cucumbers! I had no clue how to use zucchini in cooking. I had to look for zucchini recipes over the net, tried using using it in my style of dishes too. Finally, the box got over without wasting too much of them 😅 But now, I love to use zucchini in my day-to-day cooking and kids enjoy eating them. Zucchini is the most common veggie in our grocery list these days.  Today, I am sharing the South Indian style Akki Rotti recipe (Rice flour roti) using zucchini. Do try this recipe for your breakfast or dinner.  Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 35 - 40 minutes ...

Balekai or plantain is one of our family favourite vegetables. We get raw banana or plantains once in a while in the Indian grocery stores here. We love different dishes made using plantains in our native style.  I had brought raw bananas after a long time during my recent grocery shopping. My daughter requested to prepare Banana chips since its her all time favourite. Hence, I had to make some Banana / Plantain Chips for her. One dish we never want to miss is Plantain Palya / Poriyal / Fry / Thoran.  Here is the recipe of Havyaka Style Balekayi / Plantain Palya for you all! Preparation time: 20 -25 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 4 - 5 Ingredients: Medium sized plantains - 3 Grated coconut - 3 tbsp (fresh / frozen or desiccated coconut)     Green chilli - 1 (according to taste) Salt - to taste Sugar - big pinch Lime squeeze - 2 tbsp or to taste Curry leaves - 1 string Dry red chilli - 1 inch piece Urid dal - 1 tsp Mustard seeds - 3/4 tsp Hing / Asafoetida ...

We do prepare varieties of sweet dishes using different vegetables. Beetroot Burfi is one of those delicious sweets which I frequently prepare. My kids love to eat non - sticky sweets. This colourful burfi tastes divine and is the perfect Indian sweet for any occation! Below is the recipe of Beetroot Burfi / Beetroot Barfi for you all.. Preparation time: 30 minutes Difficulty level: difficult Yield: 12 pieces Ingredients: Grated beetroot - 1 cup Grated coconut (fresh / frozen) - 1 cup Sugar - 1 cup  Ghee / clarified butter - 3 tbsp Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp Recipe Instructions: Pulse the grated coconut in a mixie or blender for a few seconds to make it evenly course. Take a heavy bottom pan. Mix 2 tbsp of ghee and grated beetroot on medium flame for about 2 minutes or till the raw smell is gone. Add grated coconut and sugar to this mixture and keep mixing on medium flame till it thickens. It took me around 30 minutes to achieve this stage. If the quantity is more, you may need a bi...

 Broccoli is one of our family favourite vegetables. Kiddos love it because of the color and we, adults love it for its health benefits. I heard a few people won't like this vegetable for its distinct smell. But we love every dish prepared using broccoli.  3 years back, my Mum and Dad were here with us for a few months. During that time, buying vegetables was not that easy for us as many vegetables we get here are totally different from what they get in India. When we go out for groceries, mum eyes usually look for only those veggies which are available in hometown! To my surprise, they both liked broccoli and she used to prepare Broccoli Stir Fry (Palya) 2 - 3 times a week during their stay.  I would like to share the recipe of Broccoli - Potato Cutlet / Broccoli Patties with you all today. These patties are perfect for breakfast, snacks, starter and kids lunch box too. Below is the recipe of Broccoli - Aloo Cutlets: Preparation time: - 25 - 30 minutes Difficulty level: ...

Keeper recipes like Chutney, Thokku, Gojju are our family favourites. A few varieties of these preserves will always be there as part of our lunch and dinner. Not only there are tasty, they come very handy when I feel tired and can't make varieties of fresh curries. Here is a finger licking Thokku recipe which I learnt during my India trip last year. This Thokku goes well with rice, chapathi or dosa. Preparation time: 15 minutes Serves - 20 Difficulty level: Medium Ingredients: Mint leaves - 50gm Dry red chillies - 50 gm  Garlic peeled - 50 gm Tamarind - 50 gm Salt - to taste Jaggery or sugar - 1/2 tsp or to taste Water - 1/4 cup (if needed)  -  For seasoning: Oil - 5 to 6 tbsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Method: Grind together mint leaves, dry red chillies, garlic pods and tamarind into a fine paste. Add a few tablespoons of water if needed.  Heat oil in a thick bottom pan. Add mustard seeds to the hot oil and let it splutter....

Wheat flour dosa is popularly known as a fasting recipe. I was never a fan of Wheat Flour Dosas till I learn this recipe from my friend Maitri. Since then, Wheat Flour Dosa has become our family favourite breakfast. This is an instant dosa, and won't need any fermentation.  Below is the recipe of Wheat Flour Dosa / Paper Dosa / Tellevu / Crepe: Preparation time: 10 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 3 Ingredients: Whole wheat flour - 1 1/2 cup Sooji rava / Semolina - 1/3 cup Green chillies - 1 or 2 (depending on spiciness) Ginger - half inch Cumin seeds - 1 tsp Curry leaves - 5 to 6 leaves Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp Hing / asafoetida - generous pinch  Fresh grated coconut (or frozen) - 1/2 cup Salt - 1 tsp or to taste Water - to prepare the batter Recipe Instructions: Combine wheat flour and sooji rava in a mixing bowl.  Blend coconut, green chillies, ginger, cumin seeds, curry leaves, turmeric powder and hing into a smoot...

As a South Indian family, we love rice for our daily lunch. Hubby loves Roti / Chapathi and hence, I prepare Roti / Chapathi for our dinner. To ease the the cooking time, I plan to make any one side dish or sambar or dal to be suitable for both rice and roti! This reduces my time in the kitchen a bit. Here is one such Palya / curry which goes well with rice, roti / chapathi, dosa and poori. Do try this healthy and delicious Cabbage - Sprouted Green Gram Palya / Thoran / Masala Dry Curry and let me hear your feedback :) Preparation time: 15 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 3 Ingredients: Finely shredded cabbage - 3 cups Sprouted green gram / mung bean - 1/2 cup (can use more also) Salt - to taste Amchur powder / hulipudi - 3/4 tsp Sugar - 1/3 tsp Pav Bhaji Masala powder - 1 tsp Red chilli powder - 1/4 tsp (adjust according to spiciness)  - For Seasoning: Oil - 1 1/2 tbsp Dry red chilli - 1 inch piece Urid dal - 1 tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp ...

During our childhood days, Cake was a luxurious treat for us. Rarely we had a chance to eat the bakery products like cakes, so it felt like cakes were the most delicious food when compared with whatever Mum made at home with all the love! Gone are those days and now, many of us have ovens at home and its easy to prepare cakes or other bakery food whenever we feel like. I often prepare varieties of eggless cakes at home. When kids are at home, how much ever snacks I prepare, they all vanish so quickly! My daughter loves to eat cake for her evening snacks. Eggless Vanilla Cake and Eggless Chocolate Cake were here favourites before. And when we found this way of making Eggless Orange Cake, this cake has become her favourite now! I just tried to follow the technique of Hot Milk Cake while preparing my Eggless Orange Cake and the result was - Wow! My eggless loaf turned out to be the most delicious one with a soft, airy, moist texture. It tastes the same like Iyengar Bakery Plain ca...

Now, its the season of Jackfruits in India. Both raw and ripe jackfruit are great for cooking. Few food items are made using them which can be preserved till the next season. At my mum's place, they prepare raw jackfruit chips, preserve some raw jackfruit flesh in salt water and also, sundry the raw jackfruit pieces. So, its possible to prepare jackfruit dishes whenever they feel like. My Mum had packed some Sun-dried Raw Jackfruit pieces for us during our recent India trip. We are enjoying typical native style curries once in a while now! Below is the recipe of Sun - dried Raw Jackfruit Bajji or Raita. Click here to see How to make Sun - dried Raw Jackfruit Pieces . Preparation time: 20 minutes Soaking time: 20 minutes Difficulty level: medium Serves: 4 Ingredients: Dried raw jackfruit pieces - 1/2 cup Water - 3/4 cup Salt - to taste Lime squeeze - 1 tbsp or to taste Thick curd - 1 cup  - For seasoning: Oil - 1 1/2 tbsp Dry red chilli - half piece...

This year, we had planted some snow pea plants in our little backyard. Snow peas are easy to grow, they won't need much care and the yield is also pretty quick. Now, the winter has started and still we are getting enough crop to serve our little family. As they have a sweet taste, my kids love to pick the snow peas fresh from the garden and eat them as it is.   Here is the recipe of a side dish which my family loves to eat often. I use potato, snow peas, capsicum and green peas for this Subzi. But it should be ok if you skip capsicum and / or green peas. Preparation time: 25 minutes Difficulty level: Medium Serves: 4 Ingredients: Potatoes (big) - 2  Snow peas - 8 to 10 Capsicum chopped - 3/4 cup Green peas - 3/4 cup (I have used frozen peas) Kasuri methi - 1 tbsp Cumin coriander powder - 1 tsp Salt - to taste Pepper powder - 1 tsp or for taste  - For seasoning: Oil - 2 tbsp Fenugreek / Methi seeds - 1/4 tsp Method: Wash ...