chechu's kitchen turns one today!

Chechu's kitchen turns one today!

I am celebrating my first blog birthday! This day is more special to me and very happy to share my happiness with you all!

Happy pongal!

Wish u all a happy pongal!

aloo badami!

Ingredients :
To grind : Almonds (Badam): 10 Nos. + Grated coconut : 2 tbl spns
Whole Masala : (1 bay leaf, 2 cloves, 2 Elachis, little cinnamon & qtr tea spn fennel seeds)
Onion : 1 No. 
Green Chillies : 4 Nos. 
Coriander powder : 1 tea spn
Crushed pepper : half tbl spn
Mint leaves : 4 strings
Yogurt : half cup
Potatoes : 2 Nos. 
Peas : 3 tbl spns
Oil & Salt 

Method of preparation : 

Grind Almonds and Coconut into fine paste. Heat oil in a nonstick pan add whole garam masala in a min add finely chopped onions, chopped green chillies, mint leaves and fry a minute now add the ground masala and coriander powder and crushed pepper fry for a minute and add some more water, cubed potatoes, peas and salt. Once the potatoes are almost getting baked add curd.

Dum paneer

Ingredients

Paneer/Cottage Cheese - 200gm
Onion - one big size, chopped
Ginger-garlic-green chili finely chopped - 4 teaspoon
Cumin powder - 1 teaspoon
Coriander powder - 2 teaspoon
curd - 1 cup
Tomato - one, finely chopped
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Sugar 
Salt
Dry Red chili - 1 or 2
Bay Leave - 1
Cinnamon stick - 1 inch
Green Cardamom - 1 or 2
Clove - 1 or 2
cashew paste - 1/2 cupGaram masala powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Kashmiri Red chili - 1/2 teaspoon
Refined oil

Procedure

Cut paneer into square shapes and marinate with curd , chilly powder and salt and keep aside. Fry chopped onions until it becomes brown . Now grind this brown onion and make a coarse to fine paste. If requires  you can add little water while making the paste. Now heat oil in a pan and add dry red chili, bay leave, cinnamon stick, clove & green cardamom one by one. Next add choppedginger-garlic-chili  and followed by chopped onion . Keep on stirring the mixture. Add turmeric powder, coriander powder, Kashmiri red chili powder and cumin powder. It's time to add little water. After that add  tomato puree. Cook it for 2 minutes and pour half glass water. Let it boil and subsequently add paneer blocks. Now add garam masala powder and coarse pepper powder.atlast add the marinated paneer and boil. add cashew paste.Switch off the gas and you can also garnish with some fresh coriander leaves. This delicious side dish can be served with roti, naan, paratha or any other Indian Bread.

tomato corn pulav!

Ingredients :

1 cup long grain basmati rice

2 cups water

1 small onion diced

1 clove of garlic

1″ ginger piece

2 ripe tomatoes

1 cup frozen/ fresh corn

1″ cinnamon stick

1 sp red chilly powder

3-4 cloves

1 teaspoon cumin seeds/ jeera

2 tablespoons of oil

Salt to taste

Method:

Into a blender, add the tomatoes make it as a puree.  Puree this mixture without adding water. Heat oil in a pressure cooker.  Add,jeera, spices,  the onions and saute till translucent. Now add chopped garlic,the tomato puree and corn.after 2 mins add all masalas.Wash the rice thoroughly and add it to the pressure cooker. Boil the two cups of water separately or you can just use hot tap water.and add it the cooker. Add salt and cover the cooker.  Turn off the heat on the cooker after 2-3 whistles. 

If you don’t have a pressure cooker, simply cook the rice in your usual way. Use a frying pan to follow the same procedure. Add the cooked rice in the end and mix well.

Serve hot with any raita of your choice.

karthigai deepam!

        Karthikai Deepam is a traditional Hindu festival observed in South India.It falls in the month of Karthikai (mid-November to mid-December) as per Tamil calendar. This occurs on the day when the moon is in conjunction with the constellation Karthigai (Pleiades) and purnimai. This constellation appears as a group of six stars in the firmament in the shape of a pendant from the ear.
          Many legends and lyrical poetry have grown round this star. The six stars are considered in Indian mythology as the six celestial nymphs who reared the six babies in the saravana tank which later were joined together to form the six faced Muruga. He is therefore called Karthikeya, the one brought up by the Karthigai nymphs. Houses and streets are lit up with rows of oil lamps (Deepam) in the evening of the festival day. 

            Temples, houses and streets are lit with rows of oil lamps known as agal vilakku. This festival is grandly celebrated in Thiruvannamalai, located in Tamilnadu. It is celebrated for 10 days and on the 10th day Mahadeepam (a huge lamp) is lit on top of the Annamalai hill which is said to be visible around a radius of 40 km. Devotees from all over the country visit this temple where Lord Shiva has manifested in the form of fire (Arunachalam). This is perhaps the oldest festival in the history of Tamilnadu.

           For this kathigai deepam, We lit clay lamps in and around our house.I prepared maa vilakku for the well being of family members.we keep this lamp by praying god to bless our family with health, wealth and peace. i prepared sweet appam for this festival. 

      

capsicum majjiga pulusu!

Ingredients:
       Finely chopped capsicum - 1 cup
        Gram flour - 1/2 cup
         Rice flour - 1/4 cup
          Curd - 1 cup
         Green chilly - 2
          Red chilly - 2
           Mustard seeds and jeera- 1 top
           Turmeric powder a pinch
            Salt and red chilli powder for taste
            Oil to temper and fry

Method:
1. Mix chopped capsicum, gram flour, rice flour, salt , chilly powder an

d little bit of water and form a dough. Fry them as pakoras and keep aside.

1. 
2. Heat pan , add 2 sp of oil, add mustard seeds, jeera, red chilly, turmeric powder and salt.
3. Make a paste of curd, gram flour and salt. Add this mixture in the pan and add water to boil.
4. add slit green chilly to this to boil.
5. add fried pakoras to this and boil.
6. add curry leaves and coriander leaves .
7. serve it with hot  with rice.