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Showing posts from February, 2018

Idlis and Sides

I might have died and gone to heaven. Our ancestors were really geniuses. How can such a "simple" meal be so satisfying? How could I have taken Idlis for granted for all my life? This meal was sublime, and made from scratch, and so worth it. Of course, there is no ways I could have done it without a plethora of gadgets and frozen and jarred stuff in my American-Indian kitchen. How did women accomplish this meal without them? Ok, enough drama. I got inspirations from too many internet sources (and a lifetime of exposure to south indian food), so won't list them, but here's exactly what I did: Friday afternoon (around 4 pm): - Wash and soak 1 cup of udad daal. - In another bowl, wash and soak 2 cups of khichdi rice + 1  tsp whole methi daana. Friday night (around midnight): - Wash and soak 2 cups thick poha(it needs about 10 mins to soften) - Drain most of the water from the daal and grind in vitamix (around 4-5 level) until the daal is very smooth. - Remo

Instant Pot Pakoda Kadhi

This really does make a very nice kadhi with very little effort/supervision. Perfect for those days when you get back home tired and need something comforting. In a mixing bowl, mix about 2 cups of yoghurt, 3/4 cup besan, salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, a pinch of amchoor, mix well. Add about 4-5 cups of water. Take a big red onion, slice half of it thinly, and dice the remaining half. Start the IP on saute mode. Add oil + ghee, add jeera, kalonji, methi, whole dhania seeds (crushed using your palms), hing, 2 whole red chillies, and the sliced onions. Also add some grated ginger. Saute till onion softens, and add the kadhi mixture. Stir and close IP. Set it on Soup mode (with pressure). In the same mixing bowl, mix the diced onion with more besan (about a cup), salt, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder, whole coriander seeds (also crushed by hand), a pinch of baking powder, a splash of oil, and water to make a batter. Make pakodas in an appe pan. It only