Matki chi usal

Ingredients 

1. 1 cup(steel katori) matki (moth beans)
2. 1 small finely chopped onion
3. 1 small finely chopped tomato 
4. 1 green chili (add more if you wish to make the curry more spicy)
5. Few curry leaves 
6. 1 tbsp oil for tadka
7. ½ tsp mustard seeds 
8. ½ tsp turmeric powder
9. 1 tbsp cumin powder
10. ½ tbsp coriander powder
11. Pinch of hing
12. Salt for taste
13. 1 small piece of jaggery 
14. 2-3 Kokum or lime juice as required
15. 2 cups of water for making curry
16. Chopped coriander for garnishing 
17. Grated coconut for garnishing

Method 

1. Take 1 cup of moth beans, wash them under running water, drain the water & soak them overnight or more than 8hrs in boiling water, drain the water next day, spread the beans on a kitchen towel to dry, when the beans are dried completely add them in a maslin cloth and tie them loosely to make sprouts. This may take another 7-8 hrs.  Once the sprouts appear, add them to a vessel & pressure cook for 3 whistles.
2. In a deep bottom pan, add oil, once the oil has heated, add mustard seeds, turmeric, hing, curry leaves & green chilies, give it a quick stir, add the finely chopped onions & fry until they turn transparent, add the tomatoes & fry  them until oil is separated from the vegetables, add the cumin & coriander powder. 
3. Now add the cooked moth beans, salt, kokum, jaggery, water & bring the curry to a boil. 
4. Serve hot with chopped coriander & grated coconut
5. I make the usul dry but if you wish to make it watery or semi dry add water accordingly & adjust the spices too.

Karanjee

Karanjee is a fried dumpling with coconut & sugar filing prepared on Narali Pournima which is also obeserved as Rakhee Pournima. Sisters tie a sacred thread on their brother's wrist signifying the brothers responsibility to protect her all her life.This post is for my dearest brother Rohit. Hope you have a special day today & a special thanks to my artist friend Aparna for drawing the rakhee.

Ingredients

for filing

1. 1 grated coconut (approx 2 cups)
2. 1 cup powdered sugar 
3. 1 tsp cardamon powder
4. 2 tsp crushed poppy seeds
5. oil for frying

for dough

1. ½ cup all purpose flour (maida)
2. ½ cup semolina (rava)
3. 3 tsp Ghee (hot)
4. salt to taste
5. warm milk to prepare dough
6. warm water as needed

Method

for saran (coconut filing)

1. Mix the grated coconut & sugar, and cook it till it becomes dry,  after it cools add cardamon powder & crushed poppy seeds

for cover

1. Mix all purpose flour, semolina, pinch of salt and hot ghee and knead the dough with warm milk & water mixture. Keep aside for ½ an hour and then knead again for 10 minutes continuously, till the dough is soft & smooth.
   for preparing karanjees
2. Make small lemon size balls, roll each ball into puris. place 2 teaspoon of coconut filling at the center of the puri. Apply milk on the edges with finger to close the edges & to make a shape like a moon; press the edges gently and firmly
3. Place the raw karanjee in a soft wet cloth, keep aside until all the karanjee are ready to fry
4. Deep fry the karanjee's in hot ghee utill done on a very low flame
5. Karanjee's can be stored for 8-10days in a cool and dry place in an air tight container

Sheera

Ingredients

1. 2 cups rawa (semolina)
2. 1½ cup water
3. 1½ cup sugar (Add more if the sugar is less sweet)
4. ½ cup ghee(clarified butter) +3 tbsp ghee 
5. ½ cup milk (If the sheera become too dry add more)
6. 1 tsp cardamom powder 
7. 2 tbsp raisins
8. 2 tbsp almonds slices
9. pinch of saffron (soaked in water or milk)

Method 

1. In a non stick pan dry roast the rava in ghee until it changes its color, add the sugar, water, milk &cardmom powder.Stir well.
2.  Cook until dry and the ghee separates from the rawa. Add the saffron, almonds & stir well. Add the remaining ghee for the glaze & richness. Remove from heat.
   Serve hot

Puranpoli

Puran poli is a traditional sweet dish prepared during the festival of holi in maharashtra. Infact it is also prepared during most of the auspicious occassions like pooja, marriages in every maharashrian household. My mother makes it every year during holi and she makes the best pupo (as I fondly call it) in the whole world. 
As a child I don't remember ever eating puranpoli, but after my wedding & after we moved to Muscat I attempted making puranpoli for the first time ever and also had it for the first time.Since it's my husband's favourite & I had to make it for him. As they say "way to a man's heart is through his stomach" ;)
Over the years I think I have developed a taste for this wonderful dish started liking it. I can now proudly say I have can very well eat 2 pupo's at one go. That's not bad isn't it?

The ‪#‎BestKeptSecrets‬ E-book is released and my submission (Recipe of Puranpoli) made it to the top 10. Download it now at http://www.bawibride.com/go/download-bestkeptsecrets/
Once again a big thank you to those who have voted.Thank you!!
Cheers & Happy Cooking!

Ingredients

1. 2 cups Chana dal(yellowgram)
2. 2 cups jaggery
3. 1 1/2 cup wheat flour
4. 1/2 cup all purpose flour (maida)
5. salt to taste
6. 1/2 tsp turmeric
7. 2 tsp cardamom powder
8. 2 tsp nutmeg powder
9. Oil
10. Clarified butter (Ghee)
11. Milk

Method

1. Pressure cook 2 cups of chana dal in 6 cups of water.Strain all the water and keep aside to make "katachi amti"
2. Add jaggery to the dal and mix well, add the mixture in a heavy saucepan and cook till a soft lump is formed. 
3. Grind this into a very smooth paste and cook until the "puran" becomes thick and ready to cook. Add the cardamom powder & nutmeg powder after the puran  cools. This mixture is called Puran in marathi. therefore the name "puranpoli".
4. Mix flour, all purpose flour,turmeric, salt. Add water,oil and make a dough. the dough should be oily.Cover and keep aside for 1hr.
5. Take a ball of dough and spread with hand. Keep a ball of "puran" (chana mixture) and cover with the dough and seal the ends as shown in the picture.
6. Using a rolling pin make chappati using flour.Fry on hot tava till it gets golden brown colour using clarified butter(ghee)

 

Makes: 16 puranpolis

Serve with clarified butter or milk
enjoy!!

Methkoot

Occasionally I love having "garam garam tup meth methkoot bhat". I often use methkoot in the methi raita which is my all-time favourite. Whenever I visit Pune, I make it a point to carry readymade methkoot with me back to Muscat. Recently, I realised that the methkoot jar was almost empty, so I called up aai to share her methkoot recipe which came in very handy.Surely this recipe will be helpful for those who relish methkoot.Thanks aai for the recipe

Ingredients

2 cups bengal gram, split (Chana dal)

1 cup black gram, split (Udid dal)

1/2 cup raw rice

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp mustard seeds

1/2 tbsp fenugreek seeds

1 inch dried turmeric root (called 'halkund' in Marathi)

Or 2 tsp turmeric powder

1 inch dried ginger root or 1 tsp dried ginger powder (soonth)

3-4 dry red chilies or as per the taste

1 tsp asafoetida.

Method

Dry roast each item separately. Chop turmeric root before roasting.

Let cool all the ingredients and grind together into a very fine powder. 

Methkoot is ready. Store in an airtight container. 

Dal mooth

Ingredients

1/2 kg black masoor dal

1/2 kg zero no. shev 

1 tsp baking soda

chat masala

black salt

oil for frying

Method

Soak masoor dal over night in boiling hot water adding a pinch of baking soda, drain the water next morning, and spread the dal on a cloth to dry,( this should take aleast 5-6 hrs to dry complety).

In a sauce pan add oil for frying and fry the moong dal keeping it inside a strainer.

remove the dal on a tissue paper for excess oil to drain.let it cool.

Mix zero no. shev with the fried dal, add chat masala, and salt as required.

Store in a dry container with a lid.

Shankarpali

Ingredients
2 cups maida/ wheat flour
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup ghee
1 cup semolina
Salt to taste.

Oil for frying
Method
Boil the milk in a heavy-bottomed pan. Stir in the sugar. Then add the ghee and salt and mix well.
Remove the vessel from heat. Add maida and rawa (slightly fried) little at a time.
Knead the dough and keep aside for 3 hours to rest
Roll it as making a chappati with a rolling pin.
With a cutter make diamond shaped shankarpalis.
Deep fry these shankarpali in oil till brown.
Let the fried Shankarpali cool completely on a shallow dish. Then store them in a dry container with a tight lid.

Besan Ladoo

Ingredients

½ kg besan (chickpea flour)

1 bowl ghee (or as required)

1 small cup powdered sugar or as needed

Cardamom powder

A handful of cashewnuts

Microwave safe bowl

Method

Mix the besan and ghee in a microwave safe bowl.

Heat on high for 8 minutes (time may vary slightly for different microwave ovens).

Stir after a minute and continue heating.

Keep checking and stirring after every minute.

At the end of 8 minutes, the mixture will be a nice reddish brown and will have a nice aroma to it.The mixture should not look too dry, otherwise the ladoos will not hold up their shape.

Let it cool completely.

Once cooled, add the powdered sugar, cardamom powder and raisins. Mix well and then make small round ladoos out of it.

If you realize that the ghee is not sufficient once you start making the ladoos, just heat some ghee and add to the mixture.
(the above quantity makes 40 ladoos)

Shrikhanda

Ingredients
 2 kg curds

500 gms sugar (use as per the sweetness of the sugar)

1½ tsp cardamom powder (crushed with sugar)

few strands saffron (dissolved in water or milk)

Method

Tie curd in a clean muslin cloth overnight. Let all the water get drained.

In a bowl, add the hung curd, add sugar, mix.

Keep aside for 25-30 minutes to allow sugar to dissolve.

Add saffron into 3 tbsp milk for 5 minutes.

Beat well till sugar has fully dissolved into hung curd. you may use a hand mixer for this

Mix in cardamom powder and dissolved saffron

Chill for 1-2 hours before serving.
Enjoy with Puri.
This quantity is enough for a family with 4 adults & 2 toddlers.

Kheer

Ingredients

2 cup full fat milk
1 cup condensed milk
3 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp ghee
1 cup Vermicelli ( roasted)
1 tbspground cardamom
Few strands of saffrom
few pieces of dry fruits like almond,cashews ,raisins.
Method
Fry the Vermicelli in 1 tbsp of ghee on a medium heat in a pan.Keep aside.
Pour milk and heat the mixture till milk starts boiling.
Keep stirring till it becomes a little thick in consistency.
Add condenced milk and stir it.
Now add sugar and mix it well.Stir it regularly.
Add the roasted vermicelli
Finally add ground cardamom, saffron, pistachios and raisins.
Serve hot or cold.

Sabudana Khichadi

Sabudana ( also known as Sago or Pearl Tapioca) Khichadi is a popular Maharashtrian snack eaten during fast like Shivratree, Ashadi Ekadashi or religious functions like pooja or weddings. Many Marathi families like eating sabudana Khichadi for breakfast. It is eaten with curd mixed with cucumber or plain yoghurt. As Sabudana is heavy for digestion it is recommended to have curd along with it.

Ingredients

Sabudana- 2 cups ( raw sabudana)

drinking water to soak sabudana.

Roasted peanut Powder-2 cup

Green Chillies 3-4 or as per liking 

Potato (chopped) - 2 medium

Pure ghee - 5 tablespoon

Cumin seeds (jeera) - 2 teaspoons

Sugar - 1 teaspoon

Lemon juice - 2 tsp or as per liking 

Salt for taste

Grated coconut & Coriander for Garnishing.

Method

Soak the sabudana in  drinking water for 1 hr, water level should be just above the sabudana. 

After 1 hr press sabudana and see if it has become soft. if not keep it in water for another ½ hr. otherwise drain excess water by transferring it into a strainer. leave aside for 2 hrs or overnight if you want to make it the next day.

Boil the potatoes & roughly chop them OR Wash peel and cut potato in cubes

Heat ghee in kadai, add jeera followed by chopped green chillies and potatoes,

Mix it and cover it with lid till potatoes 90% cooked. (if you are using boiled potatoes skip this step)

Meanwhile mix sabudana, groundnut powder, sugar, salt & lemon juice in one large bowl.

Now add this mixture into kadai. 

Mix it well & Put a lid for steam.Cooking the sabudana Khichadi on a very low flame is important otherwise it gets burnt in the bottom. 

Serve hot & garnish with grated coconut and coriander.

you can also mix the coriander & grated coconut after you turn off the gas and mix in the khichadi.

Serve Khichadi with jeera curd. 

Ingredients for Jeera curd 

2 small bowls curd

2 tsp ghee

 ½ tsp jeera

1 very finely chopped green chilli

sugar and salt as per taste

coriander for garnishing

Method

Add jeera & finely chopped chilli to hot ghee, add this to curd and mix well.

Add salt and sugar and garnish with coriander.

Kakdi - for sabudana khichadi 

Ingredients 

1 cucumber very finely chopped

2 cups curd (well beaten)

Pinch of cumin seeds

1 small green chili chopped 

Salt as per taste

Pinch of sugar

Coriander for garnishing

1 tsp ghee

Method

Mix finely chopped cucumber, curd in a bowl.

Add cumin seeds & finely chopped chilli to hot ghee, add this to the cucumber & curd mixture, add the salt, sugar, garnish with finely chopped coriander 

Serve with sabudana khichadi.

Note: 

1. Over the years, I have noticed each company's sabudana takes different time to soak.

2. One trick for soaking sabudana is when you buy the sabudana from the shop soak a tablespoon of sabudana and note the amount of time it takes to become soft. 

3. It may differ from the regular brand you always use.

4. After the khichadi is done, add a tablespoon of ghee n give the khichadi a quick stir, this will give the sabudana pearls richness & shine.

More Recipes for fasting:
Sabudana Wada
Batata cha kess
Spiced Buttermilk
SweetPotato Kheer

Jowar Bhakri (Healthy Indian Bread)

Ingredients

2 handful of Jowar flour

Hot water

salt to taste

Method

Mix flour & salt as per taste with water and knead thouroughly to make a dough.

If required more water 

Divide the dough into small balls.

Flatten the dough into a cirucular shape on a floured surface using palms.

Place the roti on a hot tava/griddle and apply water on the top side of the roti (using a damp cloth)

Now turn the roti and roast for a minute and remove and directly put it on fire.

It puffs up immediately.

Remove and serve hot with Butter/Ghee

Same procedure can be followed for Bajra Bhakri (roti)

Ukadiche Modak

This recipe is very close to my heart- I remember as a child helping mom & my grandmother & lending a helping hand in making the modaks on the first day of Ganesh Chaturthi. All the family members used to gather at my grandfather's place to celebrate the festival, the ladies of the house used to make more than 80 modaks. Modaks is a rice dumpling made with coconut & jaggery filling and steamed, served with ghee (Clarified Butter). Ukadiche means steamed therefore this name. This is probably the only Maharshtrian sweet dish which I gorge on from the bottom of my heart & can never enough of it each time I make it. I'm still in the learning stage of make the perfect modaks but I'm sure will get the perfect shape someday. Dedicating this recipe to my beloved aaji (grandma) whom I miss, each time I make this delicacy.

(Recipe contributed by my mother, she makes the bestest Ukadiche Modak in this world. I don't think I can ever make modaks like hers)

Photographed By: Rohit Khadilkar

Find my recipe posted on SpiceWok, Pune http://www.spicewok.com/recepie_detail.php?id=334&cuisine=Ganapati%20Modaks

 

For the covering

1. 1½ cup Rice Flour
2. 1 cup Water
3. 2 tsp Ghee (clarified butter)
4. A pinch of Salt

For the filling

1. 1½ cup grated Coconut
2. 1 cup Jaggery
3. 1 tsp Poppy Seeds, roasted
4. 1 tsp Cardamom Powder

For the filling

1. Mix grated coconut & jaggery together and keep aside for 10 mins
2. In a pan add this mixture and on a low flame cook it until jaggery melts
3. Add cardamom powder and roasted poppy seeds
4. Filling is ready, keep aside to cool
5. For the covering
6. Boil 1 cup water, add ghee to it
7. Add rice flour to boiling water and mix well stirring continuously so that no lumps are formed
8. Add salt, mix well and cook covered for 2-3 mins
9. Remove from heat and knead well for 5-10 minutes into a soft flour when its hot
10. This dough is called Ukad and hence the name!

Method for making Modaks

1. Divide the dough into small balls
2. Roll each ball to size of puris
3. Place this on the palm and add some filling to it
4. Bring together the ends in form of plates and form a tip and seal. A perfect looking modak should form 7 plates.
5. Repeat the procedure for rest of the modaks
6. Put these modaks in a thin muslin & place this in a steamer/cooker without a whistle and steam for 15-20 mins.
7. Serve hot modaks with Ghee.

 

Kanda Pohe

"If you don't like Pohe, don't call yourself a proud Maharashtrian". I'm sure many of you will agree with this sentence. As far as my memory goes I must have eaten Pohe more than ten thousand times until now. It's a staple Maharashtrian breakfast item, a popular road side snack, which many people enjoy in almost all cities in Maharashtra. There are variations in making Pohe as some make Kanda Pohe (beaten rice with onions) & some make batata pohe (beaten rice with potatoes). Pohe is the quickest, simplest, easiest & healthiest option for breakfast or an evening snack. Often my non-marathi friends in Muscat used to come over to eat pohe at my place. Pohe are very easy to digest & goes very well with hot cup of tea. My mom often used to make kanda pohe. Here's her recipe.

Ingredients

1. 2 cups Pohe (beaten rice)
2. 1 large onion chopped
3. 5-6 green chillis
4. 8-10 curry leaves
5. 1 tsp mustard seeds
6. 1 tsp tumeric powder
7. Salt as per taste
8. Sugar as per taste
9. a Pinch of asafoetida
10. Oil for cooking
11. Juice of 1 lemon
12. chopped coriander for garnishing
13. Grated coconut for garnishing

Method

1. Heat oil , add mustard seeds, tumeric, asafoetida, green chillis, curry leaves & chopped onions
2. stir until onions turn brown.
3. Wash pohe with drinking water and keep it aside in a strainer until all water is drained out. Don't over wash it as it may become too mushy & break. 
4. Add the washed pohe and add salt, sugar & lime juice.
5. Keep a lit and let it cook for 5-10 mins on a low flame
6. Garnish with chopped coriander and grated coconut
7. Serve hot.

Pohe Chivda

Ingredients

500 gms pohe (beaten rice, thin)
100 gms puffed rice
½ cup peanuts
¼ cup cashewnuts5 green chilies (finely chopped)
4 bunches curry leaves
 2 tsp coriender seeds
 2 tsp sesame seeds
6-7 tsp oil2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp asafoetida
salt
sugar

Method

Roast pohe on medium heat until crisp or Microwave it for 2 mins stiring it at regular interval until they turn crispy.
Roast puffed rice on medium heat until cripy or microwave it for 1 min until they become crispy.
Add 4 tbsp oil in a pan and fry peanuts & cashew nuts until brown. Remove them and set aside
Again  the remaining oil in a pan. When it is hot, add sesame seeds, turmeric powder, asafoetida & coriander seeds. Then add curry leaves. Add chilies and fry again for some time.
Remove the vessel from flame.
Finally add pohe, puffed rice and all the fried ingredients together (peanuts, cashew-nuts) and mix.
Add salt & sugar and toss gently. spread it on a kitchen towel and let it cool
Delicious crisp chivda is ready.

Shev Batata Dahi Puri (SBDP)

As most of you, I love chaats, I am starting my blog with my mother's signature recipe "Shev Batata Dahi Puri" commonly known as SBDP in Pune.
I am also shaing these typical Maharashtrian recipes with all my non-marathi friends who often ask me to share these recipes with them.
Ingredients
Puris (flat puris)
1 / 2 cup cooked and chopped potato
1 / 2 cup finely chopped onions
Shev (Zero no.shev)
chaat masala
1 / 2 cup yogurt
Red chilli powder
Ingredients for chutney
Tamarind & Jaggery Chutney
250 gms tamarind (pre soaked)
5-6 tsp jaggery
9-10 dates (de-seeded and pre soaked)
Salt 2-3 tsp
Red chilli powder
2 tsp coriender powder
2 tsp cumin powder

Method
Soak tamarind & dates in water for abour 1 hr.
boil tamarind & dates pre soaked in water on a low flame until boils, keep aside and let it cool make a smooth paste of tamarind and dates in a grinder. strain it and keep aside.
To this mixture add jaggery, salt, red & chilli powder.
The chutney should not be too watery.
Green chutney
10-15 strands coriander leaves
7-8 green chilies
Salt
Method:
Grind all to a smooth paste.

Method
Take some puris on a serving plate
add some Onions and over it add potatos.
Spread shev on top.
Now top with a little yogurt, tamarind chutney & green chutney.
Sprinkle some chaat masala, red chilli powder
Garnish with fresh coriender