festive cooking

Karjura Payasa/ Dates kheer:

December 5, 2022

I can’t believe it has been six years of blogging and four hundred-plus recipes since I started Shrikripa.in

At first, I intended to restore my recipes to my daughters, near and dear ones. Then, it gave me great learning opportunities, memories, growth, and many beautiful bondings with amazing people.

Today, I want to share our homely recipe of Karjura Payasa, which is nothing but payasam using dates, jaggery and coconut milk, which is a perfect way to end your meal!

Ingredient:

Thank you to all of my readers, who have stood by me, read my recipes, prepared and enjoyed with your near and dear ones, and made an extra effort to write back with beautiful feedback.

Dates – 1 to 1 ½ cups ( chopped)

Jaggery – ¼ to ½ cup ( according to the sweet level)

Coconut milk – 1 tin

Coconut – 1 (To extract milk)

-OR-

Thin coconut milk – 2cups

Thick coconut milk – ½ cup

Salt – ½ tsp

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp

Ghee – 1 tbl sp

Cashew – 1 to 2 tbl sp (Roasted )

Method:

-Take a thick vessel, add ghee and fry chopped dates until it is flavourful.

-Add jaggery, salt, thin coconut milk or plain water and boil the content until the raw smell of the jaggery vanishes.

-Add a thick extract of coconut milk or if you are using tinned coconut milk, add it now. Add powdered cardamom and give one boil and switch off.

-garnish with ghee-fried cashew bits and serve.

Chole Bhature (Chana Bhatura) and Alu subzi:

November 26, 2018

Do I need to introduce every one’s favourite dish? It is basically a deep-fried bread with the fermented / proofed flour dough which Is served with semi dried chick pea curry and potato dry Subzi. This is how we eat or were introduced to this loved-by-all dish.

To prepare we need –

For Chole:

Ingredients:

Chana / white chickpea – 1 cup (soaked and swelled)

Black salt – 1 table spoon

Amla powder / Anardana powder – 1 tea spoon

Oil – 1 table spoon

Ghee – 1 table spoon + 1 tea spoon

Onion – 1 (chopped)

Green chilli – 1 (slit)

Ginger – ½ inch (sliced)

Garlic – 4 (crushed)

Tomatoes – 2 (chopped)

Turmeric – 1 ½ tea spoon

Red chilli powder – 1 tea spoon

Coriander powder – 2 tea spoons

Cumin powder – 1 tea spoon

Garam masala – 1 ½ tea spoon

Kasuri methi – 1 table spoon

Salt

Coriander leaves – chopped

Method:

-Cook soaked chana with enough water, black salt and amla powder. It would take any where between 5 to 6 whistles in the pressure cooker.

-Take one tawa, Heat oil and 1 table spoon of ghee. Add onion, green chilli, garlic and ginger fry until it is transparent and light brown.

-Add in all the masalas, from turmeric to Kasuri methi and salt fry for a while. Add tomato, continue frying until tomato wilts. If needed sprinkle some cooked water from the chana and cook tomato well.

-Cool this mixture and grind this into a smooth paste by adding ladle of cooked chana as well. (it would help gravy to thicken)

-Now mix in this paste with cooked chana and start boiling until oil oozes out and garnish with chopped coriander leaves and 1 tea spoon of ghee.

Now we will move towards Bhature / Bhatura :

Ingredients:

Whole wheat – 2 ½ cups

Maida – 1 cup

Chiroti Rava – 1 cup

Curd – ½ cup

Water – ½ cup

Salt

Sugar – 1 tea spoon

Yeast – 1 tea spoon

Oil – 2 tea spoons

Method:

-Take Luke warm water- mix in curd, sugar, salt and yeast. Close the lid and wait until it proofs and bubbles.

-Dry mix all the flours or you can take only Maida as well. Make a dough by using yeast water and apply an oil and keep aside for 2 to 3 hours or until doubles the volume.

-When it is ready or time to serve, roll a small disc and deep fry.

Now one more dish, which is purely an optional item:

Alu Subzi / potato dry:

Ingredient:

Potatoes – 5 to 6

Mustard oil – 2 table spoons

Sun flower oil – 2 table spoons

Cumin – 1 tea spoon

Turmeric – ½ tsp

Coriander powder – 1 to 2 tsp

Red chilli powder – 1 to 2 tsps.

Amchur powder – 1 tsp

Garam masala – 1 tsp

Little Subzi masala – 1 tsp (optional)

Sugar – 1 pinch

Salt

Coriander leaves – chopped (to garnish)

Method:

-Cook potato in pressure cooker for 1 whistle. Peel the skin and dice.

-Take one tawa, heat oil, cumin, diced potatoes, all the powders and fry until masala is coated and becomes little crispy.

Garnish with coriander greens.

For deep fried chillies and Onions :

I normally slit the chillies, put a drop of lemon and salt inside and marinate. While frying bhature, deep fry and serve.

Half the onion, slice width wise and separate the layers by hand and sprinkle some salt and chopped coriander.

While plating, place Bhature, chana , potato, little onions and one chilli and serve with love 😊

Gujiya / Dry fruits Karanji/ Karjikai:

November 5, 2018

Deepavali aka Diwali is an important festival of India and is spread between three days. Indian festivals are incomplete without sweets and savouries. In India, each festival has its own significance in celebration as well as its menu. Gujiya is one of them and has a very important role during Diwali.

Gujiya is a deep-fried flour-based delicacy, with different fillings in different regions. It is known by a different name in each region. Outer cover will be the same and inner stuffing varies from Rava – sugar, coconut – jaggery, coconut – sugar, mawa (milk solids) with dry fruits or with only dry fruits are traditionally seen. Nowadays you get to see so many variations from chocolate to cheese filling as well as baked version.

In North India, after frying the Gujiya, they usually dip it in a sugar syrup and outer cover would be wet and shiny. In south India, we normally deep fry and serve as it is and it’s known as Karanji / Karjikai.

I used to follow Chef Sanjeev Kapoor and learnt so many recipes from him and this is one such recipe. Over the years, I tweaked it a little and adjusted it according to our taste and it has one added advantage of longer shelf life, due to the usage of milkmaid instead of khoya.

Ingredients:

For the outer cover / shell:

All-purpose flour – 2 ½ cups

Salt – ¼ tsp

Ghee – 6 table spoons

Water – As needed (normal water)

Oil – for Deep frying

For the stuffing /filling:

Desiccated coconut – 200 grams

Semolina – 2 table spoons

Almonds – ¼ cup

Cashew – ¼ cup

Raisin – ¼ cup

Cardamom – 1 tsp

Condensed milk – 1 tin (400 grams)

Method:

For the outer cover-

-In a bowl, add flour and pour ghee. Rub the ghee and flour by using your hand for 5 to 10 minutes.

-After a while, flour would resemble like a semi wet crumb.

-Now add required amount of water to make a firm dough.

-Cover the dough with wet cloth and keep aside for half an hour.

Note: Dough approximately holds ½ cup of water.

In the meantime, prepare the stuffing –

-Roast semolina in a low flame, switch off the gas. Mix in all the other ingredients from almond to condensed milk.

-Keep it until mixture is non-sticky while touching.

-Now comes the actual procedure. You can use three methods.

Use Gujiya mould.

2.Take a dough, roll into big thin circle, use cookie cutter to make small, uniform circle.

Take little dough, make small poori like discs.

Here I have followed the third method.

This quantity has yielded 28 Gujiya.

-Divide the dough, make roundels, fill the stuffing, close into half.

-Dip your hand in water, now, start folding the edges from one corner and go on folding like a half diamond shape at regular intervals until you reach the other end.

-Keep this ready, stuffed, yet to fry Gujiya to air dry.

-Repeat the procedure and finish off the filling work.

-Heat the oil for deep frying in low temperature.

-When oil is hot, drop one by one Gujiya, fry in a low flame to get good results.

-When everything is fried and cooled, store it in an air tight container.

NOTE:

To get a perfect Gujiya – these points are very important.

1- Rubbing the ghee + flour.

2-Frying in a low fire

Homemade Corn flakes Mixture / Corn flakes Chiwda:

November 1, 2018

Corn flakes is nothing but maize flakes, which is flattened maize. Indian savouries are an integral part of any festivities. When Diwali festival is around the corner each one would think about what to make. When it is an easy and super fast savoury you need, nothing like it than this recipe. It is very handy, when you have time constraints but still want to make homemade stuff and enjoy.

Maize flakes or Corn flakes or flattened maize is available in almost all departmental stores.

Ingredients:

Maize / Corn flakes – 500 Grams

Oil – to deep fry

Tamarind powder or Amchur powder – 2 tsp.

Salt – to taste

Sugar powder – to sprinkle.

Seasoning:

Oil – 4 tbl sp

Peanuts – 4 tbl sp

Mustard- 2 tbl sp

Cumin- 1 tbl sp

Hing – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – 7 -8 springs

White sesame seeds – 2 tbl sp

Turmeric powder – 2 tsp

Green chillies – 3 -4 Chopped

Dry Coconut bits – 3 tbl sp

Coriander leaves – 3 tbl sp

Method:

-Deep fry maize flakes by putting little by little at hot oil and drain the excess oil and keep it ready.

– When it is ready, keep everything ready for seasoning.

– Chop green chillies, curry leaves, coriander leaves.

– Slice coconut and make bite size pieces.

-Make sugar powder and keep aside.

-Now take one big kadai, put oil. When it is hot add peanuts.

-When it is half done, add mustard. After it splutters go on adding Cumin, hing, curry leaves and green chillies one by one.

-When curry leaves become crisp add coconut bits and fry a little.

-Lastly add chopped coriander leaves and fry nicely until coconut bits becomes brown.

-Now add all the powders- turmeric, salt, tamarind and sugar.

-Switch off the gas, add deep fried corn flakes and mix thoroughly until it holds all the masalas.

– Don’t put lot of pressure while mixing, if you do so, crunchy flakes will break and will not hold the shape.

-After mixing, cool and store this in an airtight container. This stays good for one month or more.

Enjoy homemade crunchy munch with evening tea.

Avalakkki/Poha Chiwda:

October 16, 2017

Chiwda or Chivda is an integral part of Diwali festival. It is nothing but savoury rice flakes or Poha. This is not the usual deep fried one. It is a melt in the mouth kind, is very low in calories and is a light snack. My mom used to make this with Nylon Poha or super thin Poha.

Chiwda main

This is how my mom used to make it-

Ingredients:

Nylon Poha /Paper thin poha – 500 Grams

Tamarind powder or Amchur powder – 2 tsp.

Salt – to taste

Sugar powder – to sprinkle.

Seasoning:

Oil – 4 tbl sp

Peanuts – 4 tbl sp

Mustard- 2 tbl sp

Cumin- 1 tbl sp

Hing – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – 7 -8 springs

White sesame seeds – 2 tbl sps

Turmeric powder – 2 tsp

Green chillies – 3 -4 Chopped

Dry Coconut bits – 3 tbl sp

Coriander leaves – 3 tbl sp

Method:

-In the morning keep beaten rice /Poha under the sun by spreading on a thin clean cloth.

chiwda 1

-If you want you can cover this Poha by using another thin cloth to avoid dust accumulation while drying.

-Keep this for two to three hours or until it becomes crunchy.

– When it is ready, remove from outside and keeps everything ready for seasoning.

chiwda 2

– Chop green chillies, curry leaves, coriander leaves.

– Slice coconut and make bite size pieces.

-Make sugar powder and keep aside.

-Now take one big kadai, put oil. When it is hot add peanuts.

chiwda 3

-When it is half done, add mustard. After it splutters go on adding Cumin, hing, curry leaves and green chillies one by one.

-When curry leaves become crisp add coconut bits and fry a little.

-Lastly add chopped coriander leaves and fry nicely until coconut bits becomes brown.

-Now add all the powders- turmeric, salt, tamarind and sugar.

-Switch off the gas, add sun dried Poha and mix thoroughly until it holds all the masalas.

chiwda 4

– Don’t put lot of pressure while mixing, if you do so, crunchy Poha will break and will not hold the shape.

-After mixing, cool and store this in an airtight container. This stays good for one month or more.

Enjoy this with evening tea.

NOTE: If you don’t have access to sunlight, you can roast this in kadai after doing seasoning. Keep it for some time in a low fire and make Poha crispy or use microwave for roasting before seasoning.

Genasale/Steamed rice cake with coconut jaggery filling:

September 30, 2017

Genasale is coconut and jaggery filled steamed kadubu or steamed rice cake, usually folded and steam cooked in banana leaves. Banana leaf gives beautiful aroma and a good taste to this Genasale. Genasale is prepared using few basic ingredients but the end result is mouth watering, everyone’s favourite dish.

In my ancestral home, Navaratri/Dasara is celebrated by worshiping Goddess Durga. This Genasale is the main offering to the Goddess during night puja. I still vividly remember waiting for this Genasale prasadam to be served, while having a scrumptious traditional dinner. Now let us learn how to prepare this Genasale or kayi kadubu (kayi = coconut).

pic main

Ingredients:

Dosa rice /white rice – 2 cups

Grated coconut – 1 cup

Grated Jaggery – ½ cup (to taste).

Ghee/ Clarified butter – 4 tsp.

Salt to taste

Banana leaves

Method:

-Wash Dosa rice and soak it for 2 to 3 hours.

– Grind soaked rice in to a fine paste with minimal water and salt.

–Batter should be a little thick but of spreadable consistency.

– Add 2 tea spoon of ghee and mix nicely, keep aside.

–Now prepare filling by mixing coconut, jaggery, and little ghee and mix everything nicely. keep it aside.

–Now take banana leaf, hold this on a gas flame (for wilting), then clean it with a wet cloth.

-Now take one spoon of rice batter, apply on banana leaf like a thin Dosa.

Ribbet collage 1

– Take one spoon of jaggery mixture and Spread it over the thin Dosa and fold the banana leaf like a pocket.

– Steam cook for 30 min.

Ribbet collage 2

– Serve this Genasale with dollop of Ghee and Enjoy.

Aviyal/Avial OR Avilu:

September 2, 2017

Aviyal is a mixed vegetable dish cooked in coconut gravy by adding some curd/yoghurt, Raw coconut oil and lots of curry leaves. It is an integral part of any festival cooking and It is believed that Bhima, one of the Pandava’s, invented this dish, during their exile period. Avial is a must dish during Onam Sadhya in Kerala. Aviyal is one of the favorite dishes of my family. I learnt this recipe from my mom-in-law. This is how we do this recipe in our family.

pic main Ingredients:

Ivy gourd – 250gms.

Brinjal – 1

Snake gourd -1

Raw banana -1

Yam -250 grams.

Ridge gourd-1

Yard long beans -250 grams.

Bitter gourd -1

Coloured cucumber – 1

Raw mango-1 or Hog plum -4

Fresh grated Coconut – From one coconut.

Butter milk – 1 cup

Coconut oil – 6 tsp.

Jeera/cumin -1 tsp.

Dry red chilli – 2

Green chilli -4 to 5

Red chilli powder – 1tsp.

Turmeric Powder – 1tsp.

Curry Leaves- 5 springs.

Salt

Procedure:

1. Cut all the above-mentioned vegetables in a matchstick manner (slightly big pieces). collage 1

2. Take all the vegetables and slit green chilies in a heavy bottomed vessel. To this add little red chilli powder, turmeric powder, salt and little water and cook till the veggies are done.

3. In the meantime, prepare coconut paste by adding grated coconut, jeera, dry red chilli in a mixer jar. Add little water, grind and keep it aside.

4.When veggies are cooked add this coconut paste along with butter milk. Mix nicely.

5.To this mixture add lot of curry leaves and pour raw coconut oil. Press everything using back of the ladle, close tightly using a plate and continue cooking till it boils nicely.

6.Once it starts boiling, switch-off the gas and delicious avial is ready to serve.

7. You can enjoy this Avial with rice, roti or Neer Dosa.

NOTE: -Try to add all the mentioned vegetables as much as possible.

– Usage of coconut oil will give the authentic taste.

Sheer Khurma/ Sheer Khorma:

September 1, 2017

Sheer Khurma is also known as Sheer Khorma. The term represents Milk with dry dates. It is Vermicelli kheer with lots and lots of dry fruits and dry dates. It is a traditional sweet dish, which is served during Eid Ul Fitr.

I wanted to try this recipe from so long. I took my house-help’s help to gather how it is made and she described to me how her mom used to make this on festival days. She guided me on how to chop all these dry fruits as well.

sheer ori

Ingredients:

Milk – 1.5 litres.

Ghee – 2 to 3 tbl spoon (to fry all the dry fruits)

Sugar – to taste (used almost ½ cup)

Dry dates – ¼ cup (sliced length wise)

Almond – ¼ cup (slivered)

Cashew – 2 table spoon (bits)

Pista – ¼ cup (chopped)

Raisins – 2 table spoons

Chironji – 2 table spoons

Vermicelli – ¼ cup

Saffron – 8 to 10 strands

Cardamom – ½ tea spoon.

Method:

-Take ghee in a thick bottomed kadai and roast vermicelli, remove and keep aside.

– Fry all the dry fruits one by one.

– Soak saffron in 2 table spoons of hot milk and keep aside.

– Take roasted vermicelli and dry fruits together in this same kadai and pour milk and boil.

– Cook this until you see a creamy texture and vermicelli is perfectly done.

– It takes anywhere between fifteen to twenty minutes.

– Now add in sugar and check for the sweetness and adjust the quantity and boil.

– Lastly add soaked saffron and cardamom powder.

– You can serve this as a hot dessert or chilled.

Badam Halwa / Almond Halwa :

July 5, 2017

Badam halwa, the name itself brings back so many fond memories of my two kiddos’ as well as of my late father in law. My memories go back to my delivery time. When my father in law heard about my twin daughter’s arrival, he celebrated his joy by preparing and distributing this sweet to our near and dear ones. While growing up, even my kids used to enjoy this sweet and used to refer to this as “Yellow sweet”. After so many years last weekend I prepared this to celebrate my hubby’s birthday and enjoyed every bit of the preparation by cherishing all these fond memories.

I Normally follow this age-old method-

Ingredients:

Almonds – 500 grams

Sugar – 750 grams

Milk – ½ to ¾ litre

Ghee – 1 to 1 ½ cup

Saffron – 1 tsp

Cardamom powder – ½ teaspoon

Method:

– Soak almond overnight.

– The next morning, peel the skin. Usually three fourth of the content will shed their skin, if you mash those swelled almonds inside the water, by using your palm.

– After removing the outer skin, put these in a mixer grinder jar, make paste by adding sufficient milk.

– Soak saffron in half cup of hot milk and keep aside.

– After grinding paste will look like idly batter with grainy texture.

– Put this paste into thick bottomed vessel and heat.

– Add sugar and boil for a while.

– When it starts bubbling, add ghee little by little at regular intervals until mixture becomes glossy.

– At this point, you can add saffron soaked milk and cardamom powder and proceed.

– When mixture starts to leave from the sides of the vessel and edges become dry and bubbly, switch off the fire and keep aside to cool.

– When it reaches room temperature, store this in a stainless steel or glass container.

Thondekayi Ele Geru beeja Palya / Ivy gourd with Tender Cashew stir fry:

April 12, 2017

Vishu is one of the important festivals of Kerala and our coastal region. It comes in April and usually on 14^th.Traditional rituals are followed to bring in prosperity and we (lady of the house) will assemble Vishu-kani at Pooja room. It comprises all the fresh crops, vegetables, rice, gold, money, flower and pot full of water and one mirror. On the festival day morning, after taking bath, family members will see this “Kani” and seek the blessings of the god and from the elders. Usually at this time of the year, fresh cashew crop starts and cashew is one of the main crops of our region. Only for this festival we pluck fresh raw green cashew and prepare either payasam or kheer with chana dal or cashew and ivy gourd dry curry. This particular side dish is a must in almost all the festivities and weddings. Which is a speciality of Mangalore region.

This side dish has no other masala’s other than green chilli and coconut flavour.

Ingredients-

Ivy gourd – 500 gms

Tender cashew – 100 kernels

Green chillies – 3 to 4 (slit)

Coconut oil – 1 table spoon

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Red chillies -2

Urad dal – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – 2springs

Turmeric – ½ tsp

Salt

Jaggery – ¼ tsp.

Method:

-At first we have to remove outer cover of the young cashew. Take one bowl, put all those young and raw cashew kernels into it, pour boiling water and keep it aside for 10 to 15 minutes by closing the lid.

collage

-When outer cover of the kernels swells, remove the outer cover and keep aside.

-Chop ivy gourd after washing it thoroughly. Make 4 lengthwise pieces of each gourd.

-Now take one thick bottomed kadai or clay pot, heat oil for the seasoning. Put mustard, when it splutters add urad dal, red chillies.

-When urad dal becomes red, add curry leaves and slit green chillies and fry a little.

-Next, add chopped ivy gourd and cashew kernels, turmeric, salt, jaggery and fry until it wilts a little.

-Now add one cup of water and close the lid and cook this in a low fire until it is done.

-Lastly add grated coconut and mix and cook until it is done.

Note:

– One pack of Young cashew, that we get in the market has 100 kernels. In Bangalore, I get these from the Mangalore Store (all Mangalore stores will have it when it’s the season)

-If you are using regular cashew, cook the cashew first by putting water and salt in cooker for 2 whistles, drain the water and then proceed as above method.