Ragi Dosa | Finger Millet Dosa

For the longest time I was apprehensive about introducing millets to our diets.Long back I tried making dosa with Sama/Barnyard Millet and it turned out to be a bad experiment.Maybe that is what kept me from trying out anything new but I kept hearing about its health benefits and wanted to try it out again.

Saw this video on YouTube(where else!)and it looked very simple and too good that I immediately purchased some Ragi and soaked it to try making Ragi dosa the very next day.The process is indeed simple and very similar to how we would soak and grind for regular idli/dosa.The batter fermented really well and the dosa too came out wonderful,light and crispy.

Paired with a coconut chutney it made for a delicious breakfast.I have also tried making Ragi Masala Dosa and that's just taking it a level up in taste department.Do try out this recipe and enjoy the health benefits of Ragi!

Ragi Dosa | Finger Millet Dosa

Recipe Courtesy - Skinny Recipes

Ingredients

Ragi(Whole)/Finger Millet - 1 cup

Urad dal - 1/4 cup

Methi seeds - 1 tsp

Cooked rice - 2 tbsp

Method

Wash the ragi,urad dal and methi till the water runs clear.

Soak for 2-3 hours.

In a mixer jar add the saoked and drained ragi,urad dal,methi along with rice and grind to a smooth batter adding enough water.

Ferment the batter overnight or for 8-10 hours.

Add salt to taste and loosen the batter if required with water to make dosa.

Heat a cast iron pan and make dosa with ghee.Don't skip the ghee as it helps to absorbs nutrients in the millets.

Step by Step Pictorial

Wash the ragi,urad dal and methi till the water runs clear.

Soak for 2-3 hours.

In a mixer jar add the saoked and drained ragi,urad dal,methi along with rice and grind to a smooth batter adding enough water.

Ferment the batter overnight or for 8-10 hours.

Add salt to taste and loosen the batter if required with water to make dosa.

Heat a cast iron pan and make dosa with ghee.Don't skip the ghee as it helps to absorbs nutrients in the millets.

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Maggya Koddel | Mangalore Cucumber & Jackfruit seeds curry

There are a few recipes which gets etched in your mind because of the stories associated with them.For me,this curry always reminds me of my mil's sister Vasanthpachi.It seems,she made such a fuss once when this curry was made without Jackfruit seeds in it.I always smile and think of her when I prep the jackfruit seeds/Bikkand while making this Koddel.

Koddel is a curry made with vegetables or pulses using a ground masala of coconut,red chilly and tamarind and finished with a garlic tadka.I always have a love-hate relationship with garlic.Having grown up without eating it,I wasn't quite fond of it except for maybe using ginger garlic paste without any problem.But now slowly,I'm open to the idea of using it in my regular cooking and also eating it without any issues.

Here I have made the Koddel with Magge/Mangalore Cucumber,Drumstick and Jackfruit seeds.You can use any combination of vegetables as per choice.I do have some Koddel recipes posted here a while back.

Kulitha Koddel

Kellya Koddel

Maggya Koddel | Mangalore Cucumber,Drumstick & Jackfruit seeds curry

Ingredients

Magge/Mangalore Cucumber - I used 1/2 of one medium sized cucumber

Drumsticks - 2,sliced into roughly 2' sticks

Jackfruit seeds - about 5-6,peeled and crushed

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Roasted red chillies - about 4-5

Tamarind - a small piece

Coconut oil - 1 tbsp

Garlic(with skin) - 10-12,crushed

Salt to taste

Method

In a pressure cooker,add magge/mangalore cucumber,drumsticks,jackfruit seeds and salt to taste.Add about a cup of water and cook for 2 whistles.(if you are cooking in a pan,cook till the vegetables are soft and tender)

Grind coconut,red chillies and tamarind to a smooth paste.

Add the ground masala to the cooked vegetables and bring to a boil.Simmer for about 5-7 minutes while you get the tadka ready.

For the tadka,add oil into a tadka pan and add the crushed garlic.

Cook till the garlic turns golden brown.

Add this to the Koddel and switch off the flame.

Step by Step Pictorial

In a pressure cooker,add magge/mangalore cucumber,drumsticks and jackfruit seeds.

Add about a cup of water and cook for 2 whistles.

(if you are cooking in a pan,cook till the vegetables are soft and tender)

Grind coconut,red chillies and tamarind to a smooth paste.

Add the ground masala 

and salt to taste to the cooked vegetables and bring to a boil.

Simmer for about 5-7 minutes while you get the tadka ready.

For the tadka,add oil into a tadka pan 

and add the crushed garlic.

Cook till the garlic turns golden brown.

Add this to the Koddel and switch off the flame.

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How to Roast Red Chillies | Kitchen Basics

During my initial days of cooking,while writing down recipes given by my MIL,I always wondered about the ingredient - roasted red chillies.At home,amma added red chillies as is to the coconut and made masala.But most recipes from South Canara(Mangalore side) used chillies in the roasted form.

MIL always has a big container of roasted chillies ready to be added to make chutney or any coconut based masala required for most of the curries in our cuisine.Initially,I roasted the required amount of chillies and used but that was tedious.So I started doing this.It is not actually a recipe or such.Just a method to keep the chillies roasted and ready to be used.

I use a mix of regular red chillies and Byadgi chillies.It gives the required spice and a lovely colour to the curry.You could use either chillies or a mix of both like how I am doing.

In a kadai add a couple of Tbsp of coconut oil and 

roast the byadgi chillies for about 5 minutes.

Then mix in the regular chillies 

and roast further for 10-15 minutes.The chillies become crisp and break when you crush it.That is the stage when you should switch off the kadai and let it cool down completely.Store in an airtight container.

Here are some recipes which use the roasted red chillies

Kellya Koddel

Palak and Vegetables Ambat

Alambe Saung

Ambya Gojju

Karaate Saglen

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Spiced Chapathi with Coconut Onion Chutney AND a GIVEAWAY!!!

I still remember the first time Ajay's amma made Chapathi for breakfast when I was a newlywed.Myself being an ardent Chapathi lover,I just couldn't wait to sink my teeth into it and it was smelling awesome.Btw,do you like the smell of chapathi getting done on a tawa?The smell of cooked atta and the ghee put on top of it just make me crave for it more and more.

The chapathis were soft and flaky plus sweet and spicy.I was too busy eating them and never asked her the recipe for it.But these are the only chapathis I make at home now.These are delicious on their own and can be had even without any accompaniment.Amma calls it 'Mammama's chapathi' because that's how her amma used to make it.

Usually Dal or Bhaji is paired with this chapathi but amma always made a coconut onion chutney and believe me,the pairing is awesome.Never thought a coconut chutney would taste so good with chapathi,talk of North-South fusion!

Spiced Chapathi with Coconut Onion Chutney

Ingredients

Whole wheat flour/Atta - 2 cups
Banana - 1,small
Green chilly - 2
Whole peppercorns - 8-10
Sugar - 2 tbsp
Salt to taste
Water as required
Oil - 1 tsp
Ghee as required
Ghee+Oil - for making the chapathi

Method

In a mixer jar add banana,green chilly,pepper,sugar and salt and grind to a smooth paste.
Add this paste to the flour and add required water to make a soft and smooth non-sticky dough.
Coat the dough with oil and let the dough rest for 20 minutes.
Divide the dough into equal sized balls.
Roll the dough into small sized chapathis and smear little ghee on top.
Fold the chapathi once into a semicircle and then fold again to form a triangle.
Roll the chapathi not to thick or thin.If you roll it too thick,it wouldn't cook well and if you roll it too thin,it wouldn't be flaky.
Cook on a hot tawa till done.One tip which amma gives is that,do not keep flipping the chapathi on the tawa.Once one side is cooked,flip and cook the other,that's it.Apply ghee+oil on top and serve.

Step by step Tutorial

In a mixer jar add banana,

green chilly,

pepper,

sugar and 

salt and 

grind to a smooth paste.

Add this paste to the flour and 

add required water to make a 

soft and smooth non-sticky dough.
Coat the dough with oil and let the dough rest for 20 minutes.

Divide the dough into equal sized balls.

Roll the dough into small sized chapathis 

and smear little ghee on top.

Fold the chapathi once into a semicircle and then fold again to form a triangle.

Roll the chapathi not to thick or thin.If you roll it too thick,it wouldn't cook well and if you roll it too thin,it wouldn't be flaky.

Cook on a hot tawa till done.

One tip which amma gives is that,do not keep flipping the chapathi on the tawa.Once one side is cooked,flip and cook the other,that's it.

Apply ghee+oil on top and serve.


Coconut Onion Chutney

Ingredients

Grated coconut - 1 cup
Green chilly - 2-3
Ginger - 1/2 ' piece
Tamarind - a small piece
Coriander leaves - 2-3 stalks
Salt to taste
Chopped onion - 1/2 cup
Coconut oil - 1 tsp

Method

In a small mixer jar add green chilly,ginger,tamarind,coriander leaves,coconut and salt to taste.
Grind to a smooth paste adding just about 2-3 tsp water.
Mix in the chopped onions and pulse for 3-5 seconds.
Add coconut oil on top.

Step by step Tutorial

In a small mixer jar add green chilly,ginger,tamarind,coriander leaves,

coconut and salt to taste.

Grind to a smooth paste adding just about 2-3 tsp water.

Mix in the chopped onions and 

pulse for 3-5 seconds.

Add coconut oil on top.

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--------Giveaway alert---------

Folks from Perfico.com were kind enough to send me personalized wine glasses of my choice and have offered to giveaway one set of the same to one lucky reader!!

As we are approaching the fag end of Mango season,I decided to make a Mango-Banana Smoothie and serve in these Wine glasses.All you have to do is comment what you would like to serve in these glasses and you could win one set which could be personalized to your choice!

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