Veg manchurian.

I have made vegetarian manchurian balls in gravy before.They had become hard balls.They could be cut with fork & yet they were hard.So,I googled & came across this recipe here .

I made some changes.And the dish turned out better than last time.Yes,even my kid agreed that this time around,this was a good dish !

Ingredients :

For Manchurian balls :1/4 cup mashed boiled potato,1/4 cup grated cabbage,1/4 cup grated carrot,1/4 cup cornflour ,1 /4 cup  maida,1 tsp grated ginger,2-3 tbsp oil,salt to taste .

For gravy : 1/4 cup finely chopped & washed spring onion greens,1 tsp grated ginger,1 tbsp soya sauce,1tbsp corn flour,1 cup water,salt to taste.

Method :

Manchurian Balls: In a bowl mix all ingredients that is mix mashed boiled  potato,grated carrots,grated cabbage,ginger ,corn flour,maida & salt .Leave 1 tbsp maida asde to roll the veg balls in before frying them.

After mixing all ingredients nicely,shape small balls of the size of small lemons from the veg flour mix.Keep aside.

Start heating a paniyaram vessel.I prefer paniyaram vessel as it uses less oil.Moreover,I am afraid of spilling oil in large kadahis.Put oil drops in each of the inlets of the paniyaram vessel.Drop the balls -one each in each inlet.After sometime,turn the balls all upside down one by one.They will have browned bottpoms.After some time,check if the bottoms have browned.Sides may look light coloured & unfroed.Turn them around in the inlets so that they also get fried.In short,see that alls ides of balls are evenly fried.Put off the gas.Take out the balls & keep aside.

In another vessel,take 1tbsp corn flour & water.Mix nicely & start heating up the vessel.Add spring onion shoots & grated ginger to the vessel.Add soya sauce & mix.Keep stirring to see that no lumps are formed.Add salt to taste always remembering that soya sauce & balls both have salt in them.Add the veg balls that have been kept aside into this vessel.After it has boiled,put it off.If it is too watery,add more corn flour & boil it stirring constantly.If it is too thick,add more water & boil it once.

The veg manchurian is ready.This is a good side dish for veg fried rice as also veg hakka noodles .

Banana jaggery bread

I had tried making banana bread with jaggery & it had turned out well.So ,I googled for the recipe & came across one @http://panchamrutham.blogspot.in/2011/02/eggless-banana-bread-with-jaggery.html

I made some changes & here is my recipe.

Ingredients: 1 cup multi grain atta ,1 tspbaking powder ,1/4 tsp,baking soda,1/4 tsp cardamaom  powder,1/3 cup powdered jaggery,1 tbsp oil ,2 over ripe bananas, 1/4 cup dahi ( yoghurt ),a pinch of salt.

Method : Mix multi grain flour with baking soda & baking poder nicely.Add cardamaom powder.Mix nicely.Keep aside.

Peel off the banana skin & mash the bananas.Add powdered or grated jaggery to mashed bananas.Blend this mix in mixer or blender.Add dahi.Blend. Add oil & blend again.

Now ,add this banana puree to the multigrain  mix .Mix nicely with whisk.No lumps must remain.

Take a bowl or bread vessel ( a rectangular glass container ) & line it with butter paper.Pour the batter on to the butter paper .Bake in microwave for 8 minutes.Let it cool.Prick the bread with toothpik .If the toothpik is clean ,then bread is ready.Otherwise bake for 1-2 minutes.Cool for 5 minutes after putting off microwave.

Cool bread out of the microwave for another 15 minutes.Now put the vessel upside down on to a plate.The bread will drop down.If butter paper is sticking to bread ,please remove carefully.Cut into desired shapes & serve.

This turned out to be on the drier side-rubbery texture.Next time around ,I will add more dahi. Maybe, add 1/4 cup dahi more,making a total of 1/2 cup dahi so that consistency will be drop down consistency.This is because for microwave baking ,consistency has to be thinner than for electric oven.

Healthy Kabuli chana

My kid loves chhole.She eats only the chana & I eat the liquid curry  !

Ingredients : 1/2 cup kabuli chana soaked overnight ,2 onions,1-2 tomataoes,1 carrot ( optional ),1/2' grated ginger ,1-2 green chillies, a few sprig curry leaves,1 tsp garam masala powder,1/2 tsp haldi,1/2 tsp hing,2 tsp oil,salt to taste.

Method : Pressure cook the soaked  kabuli chana in cooker for 2 whistles.I throw the water in which it has been soaked & take fresh water which is enough to drown the chana.I add salt to the chana when I pressure cook.Pressure cook for 2-3 whistles.

Then lower the flame & let it cook on low for 10 minutes.Put off the gas.

Now roughly chop the onions,tomatoes,curry leaves ,green chillies &  carrots.Blend them all in a mixer - I mince the onions,curry leaves ,mirchi,ginger & carrot at one go .Later I add the chopped tomatoes to the onion -ginger carrot paste & run the mixer again to get a mixed veggie paste.

Take oil in a kadhai & put on the gas.Now add the garam  masala to it.Mix so that the oil & garma masala get blended.Now add the mixed veggie paste from the blender.Add haldi & hing.Let the mixed veggie paste start boiling .Add the cooked chana to it & bring to a boil again .Alternatively ,after chana has been added ,the contents can be transferred to another vessel which fits in cooker & pressure cooked for 2-3 whistles.

Serve chhole garnished with fresh dhania .Also a little lemon juice can be added before serving to make it tangier ! I add some whole masur sometimes,which has been soaked overnight along with chana in pressure cooker as the masur will add to the body of the curry.

Chhole is ideal for rotis as also rice !

I am sending this to Linking toCWS  hosted by Foodomania) & to Priya's page .