Mexican Rice Bowl:

One of the much-loved foods for my daughters is the Californian Burrito rice bowls. It is a healthy, balanced meal which has protein, carbohydrate, good fat as well as all the goodness of vegetables. As  rice eaters, it used to be our choice as a go to meal.

When my daughters asked me to replicate their favourite meal at home, I tried my best to attain the taste and it was turned into a super hit and it got a thumbs up from everyone. So, thought of sharing my recipe in my blog as well.

Here, I have teamed up garlic – celery flavoured rice , Red beans/ dry rajma , pan roasted capsicum – zucchini, Tomato – sweet corn salsa , Avocado guacamole, and healthy sour cream by mixing hung curd with little mayonnaise.

Let us see how I made this: For 4 servings

For Garlic – Celery Rice:

Rice – 1 ½  cup (small grain rice)

Butter – 1 tablespoon

Garlic – 6 ( sliced)

Celery greens with stalk – 2

Salt , pepper

Method:

-Wash rice, Boil 6 to 8 cups of water in a vessel , add little salt, 1 tsp of oil. When it starts boiling, add rice, cook for 7 to 8 min ( al dente ). Drain the starch , cool, and keep aside.

-For seasoning, take one wok, heat butter, add garlic, chopped celery, and toss until it is done. Add little salt, pepper powder, and mix in cooled rice. Adjust the seasoning.

For Dry Rajma/ Red beans:

Rajma/ Red kidney beans – ¾ cup

Butter – 1 tbl sp

Onion – ½

Tomato – 1

Garlic – 4 cloves (sliced)

Cumin powder – 1 tsp

MDH  curry powder – 1 tsp (or any other masala of your choice)

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp

Turmeric – ½ tsp

Salt

Chopped coriander leaves – 1 tbl sp

Method:

-Take a short variety of Kashmiri Rajma. Soak for 7 to 8 hrs. Cook soaked beans in sufficient water for 6 to 8 whistles in a pressure cooker. Remove the content and do the seasoning.

-take the cooker, add butter, fry garlic and onion, add turmeric, red chilli powder, Curry powder, cumin powder, salt and if you prefer add pinch of sugar as well,  fry for 2 min and add chopped tomatoes.

-When tomatoes become mushy, add cooked rajma, close the lid, switch off after the first whistle.

-Open the lid, keep it in a simmer to drain, remaining water content. When it is semi solid, garnish with coriander leaves and switch off.

For Pan roasted Capsicum – zucchini :

Capsicum – 2 (diced)

Zucchini – ½ (diced)

Onion – 1 (diced)

Salt , seasoning of your choice or red chilli flakes or slit green chilli

Olive oil or butter

Method: Heat oil or butter, if you are adding green chilli, add now. Then diced veggies and toss until it is half cooked, sprinkle salt and preferred seasoning.

For Sweet corn – Tomato salsa:

Cooked sweet corn – ½ cup

Tomato – 1 big

Onion – ½

Green chilli – 1

Salt

Lemon – ½

Chopped coriander – little

Method: Chop onion, tomato , green chilli into tiny bits ,add salt, lemon juice and mix. Garnish with chopped coriander.

For Guacamole:

Recipe is here 

For low calorie Sour cream:

Take a 2 tbl spoon of hung curd, mix it with garlic mayo and beat a little.

How to Assemble:

Take one wide bowl, serve 1 serving spoon of prepared rice, then beans, roasted veggies, salsa in a circular manner. Top it with Guacamole and sour cream and serve with couple of tortilla chips or without chips.

Fusion Veggie Wraps/Rolls:

Why do I call this a Fusion wrap? It has an Indian Roti with Mexican filling. This is a Colourful veggie wrap which can be served hot or cold. These wraps are filling and at the same time very healthy too. 

It’s ideal for kid’s / office lunch boxes.

 -Here I have used

1) Ragi/finger millet, whole wheat roti. ( you can use plain wholewheat roti as well.

2) Avocado dip which is mixed with chopped lettuce and used as a bottom bed.

3) Roasted veggie: here I have taken capsicum. You can use chopped and roasted mushroom or any other veggie as well.

4) Salsa: here I have taken tomato salsa, you can use any salsa like pineapple, mango etc.

First, we will see how to make Roti:

Ingredients:

Whole wheat flour-1 cup

Ragi /finger millet flour-½ cup

Water-1 cup

Salt

 Chopped dill leaves-1 cup (optional)

Oil -1 tsp.

Method: Take one cup of water, add oil, salt and boil. Now add Ragi flour and keep this for 2 to 3 minutes or until it cooks. Now remove from the flame and keep aside. When it is a little cool and ready to handle, add whole wheat flour and chopped greens, make a firm ball like Chapati dough. Cover and keep this aside 10 minutes for resting. Then start making little thicker Chapati than the regular Chapati and cook both the sides by applying some ghee or oil and keep it ready.

Secondly, we will see how to make Lettuce – Avocado dip:

Ingredients:

Avocado -1 large

Yogurt- ½ cup

Sugar – 1 tsp.

Green chilli -1

Garlic salt – to taste.

Cumin powder – ½ tsp.

Red chilli flakes- ¼ tsp.

2 to 3 table spoons –chopped coriander leaves.

Chopped Lettuce or Napa cabbage – as required 

Method:

-Remove flesh from the avocado and discard its seed.

-Grind green chilli, coriander at first, then add all other ingredients and churn these by putting all of them together and adjust the seasoning.

-you can serve this as a side dish, as a dip or dressing.

-This dip stays good for a week under refrigeration.

-Now Chop lettuce like long strips and mix this avocado dip according to the requirement. Now your second ingredient for the wrap is ready.

Thirdly, the Roasted veggie:

-Here I have taken capsicum. Wash, remove seeds and dice .Now take some olive oil, sauté this and sprinkle some garlic salt. Now your third ingredient for the wrap is ready too.

Fourth and last one is Tomato Salsa:

Ingredients:

 Tomato -1 finely chopped

 Onion- ½ finely chopped 

 Green chilli -1 finely chopped   

 Salt, sugar and lemon juice –according to your taste

 Coriander leaves –chopped

Method: add all these ingredients, mix and adjust the seasoning. Now your fourth and last ingredient for the wrap is ready.                             

Now we will proceed to make Fusion veggie wrap:   

          

-Keep everything ready and Take one roti, spread avocado and lettuce mix, sprinkle roasted veggie, lastly salsa. Now roll it and pack it in a lunch box or serve as a lunch or snack.

 

Raw Mango Pickle ( No oil version)

Mango pickle, who does not like it?! It is a perfect accompaniment to any Indian meal. As a south Indian, I need to have one piece of pickle with curd rice to end each meal of mine. 😉

Due to lockdown, I was thinking of not indulging in pickle making. But, around two weeks back, when I happen to see huge Mangoes which are specifically meant for the pickle, I could not resist. Picked up only one, which itself was weighing one kilogram. It is our coastal recipe, which does not need loads of oil nor any added preservative . It has freshly ground masala and if you wish, added seasoning to enhance the taste and  known as Adangai.

Now we would see the procedure-

Ingredients:

1 big mango – weighed 900 grams

Salt – 1 glass tumbler ( 150 ml)

Hing – ½ tsp (solid hing) If it is powder add little more.

For pickle masala:

Fenugreek seeds – 1 tsp

Mustard – 2 tbl spoons

Cumin – 1 ½ tsp

Byadagi red chillies – 20 – 25 (acc to taste)

Black pepper corns – 10

Method:

-Dry roast crystal salt and remove all the moisture. Cool.

-Wash mango, dry it out, chop into small chunks.

-Take one glass bowl or stainless-steel bowl, add roasted and cooled salt, mango pieces, hing. Mix everything, close and keep aside for 12  to 24 hours.

-Next day, dry roast methi until it is brown. Next, mustard until it splutters. Next roast red chillies, by adding 1 tsp of coconut oil   until crisp. Add pepper and roast for 2 minutes.

-Cool all these, make a powder. After that, collect the water, oozed out from the mango. Add into mixer jar and grind further to make a fine paste.

-Add the paste, marinated mango and mix together. Store it in a clean , dry glass bottle.

-If you want the seasoning – you can heat 2 tsp of coconut oil, splutter mustard, add hing and pour it over the ready pickle.

-Rest the pickle for at least ten days to absorb all the masalas , while doing so, in between give a stir by using dry spoon once in two days. It would fasten the marination process and pickle would turn out best by absorbing all the masalas.

 

Tri colour Capsicum Rice :

Capsicum flavoured one pot rice item, with added richness by coconut milk as well as lots of curry leaves and goes very well with any side dish of your choice. It is an absolute favourite at our office potlucks or any parties. It is rich in taste ,easy to make and nutritious too. I normally serve this with simple dhal fry .

I normally Use Basmati rice or small grain Jeera samba rice to make rice and all the three colours of capsicums.

Ingredients:

 Basmati rice – 2 cups

Onion – 1 big (sliced)

Green chilli – 1 (slit)

Ginger garlic paste – 1tsp

Ghee + Oil – 1 + 1 tablespoon

Bay leaves – 2

Cardamom – 2

Cinnamon – 1”

Clove – 2

Coconut milk powder – 2 tablespoons (I normally use Maggi brand)

To Garnish:

Red, Green and yellow capsicum – 1 each

Ghee or Oil – 2 tablespoons

Cumin – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – 2 springs

Green chilli – 1 (slit )

Method:

-Wash ,soak rice for 10 minutes and drain.

-Take one cooker, add ghee and oil, Bay leaves, cinnamon,  clove and cardamom.

-Add sliced onion, green chilli and fry until it is golden. Continue frying with adding ginger garlic paste.

– Add drained rice, coconut milk powder ,4 cups of water ,salt and cook for one whistle ,keep it in a simmer for 3 minutes and switch off. 

To Prepare capsicum garnishing – dice all the three-coloured capsicum.

-Heat ghee, cumin ,curry leaves and slit green chilli and fry.

-Add capsicum ,toss for a while and sprinkle some salt and when it is done, add the ready rice and mix with a light hand and serve with your favourite side dish or simple dhal fry.