Mooli ki dal(radhish cooked in non-spicy moong dal gravy)

Ingredients required

One cup of chopped radhish – 200 gm

One spoon jeera

One red chilli

4-5 garlic cloves

Half a cup moong dal

¼ cup chopped onion

(the green part in the cup pertains to the top of radhish(the head part)  which has spinach and is completely optional)

Method

Heat 2-3 tsp oil in a vessel and add a cup of radhish and onions.  Saute nicely

Then sprinkle water if necessary and wait for radhish to cook partially, later add moong dal which has been pressure cooked for one whistle with a pinch of turmeric.

   Later on when the dal is cooked  and radhish is completely cooked, add tempering of minced garlic cloves, one red chilli, jeera and 2-3 curry leaves (optional)

Finally add salt to taste and the divine gravy is ready to serve…

Classic pepper masala (base for gravy)

  One sunday previous month, i prepared this base in a hurry and served it with boiled crab, MUST TELL U GUYS, IT WAS EXTREMELY TASTY, and not only that it goes good with veggies too, so just try out and let met know.  This base can be stored in fridge for some six days, in case of storing so, just avoid to add milk powder and add all other ingredients

Ingredients required

One small milk powder packet, one ladle of khuskhus, one handful of pudhina, 1tsp of peppercorn(roasted and cooled), 1 tsp of jeera(roasted and cooled) , 1/2 cup coriander leaves, 2 red chilli, 1 green chilli, 1 tomato, 1 onion, 1 tsp ginger garlic paste, 1 tsp dhanya whole, 2-3 scrappings of tamarind, 2-3pieces of cinnamon, 2 cloves, 3 cardamom pods

At first, grind all dry ingredients together like cinnamon, clove, cardamom, red chilli, dhanya, tamarind, peppercorn, jeera, khuskhus, milk powder

 Now, you will get some mixture like this

 Then add onion, tomato, all other ingredients and grind to get a smooth paste like this

This is our base

You can

1. Store this and use as required (for 5-6 days)

2. Use this for non-vegetarian gravy preparations like chicken, mutton, crab.  I personally recomment it with crab since i have tried and got super result

3. For vegetarians can do so for tofu, mushroom , capsicum gravies.  This is not recommended for veggies that turn soggy soon like cauliflower, better use so for tougher veggies

For example, i used the base and added one cup of chopped mushrooms, and cubed capsicum, and cooked till mushroom got done, my mushroom masala dish is over without any delay :)

Add i served yummy mushroom pepper masala with sambhar rice, it went well :)

Saalna omlette

    We have heard of saalna served with parotta, this salna omlette is also a street side food, where the masala mixed with curry is folded into omlette(half boiled, but here i made it with full boiled)  and served as it is as a snack.  My husband told it was super delicious as he and his college-mate used to have this in T-Nagar street-side food shop.

    I tried this out and it came soooooo gooddd...Ladies, kindly try this ,, for am sure your respective husbands will luv to have it ...

    Ingredients required:

Basic masala (the one i used in masala omlette version, you can get this http://savaadhjevana.blogspot.in/2012/10/masala-omlette.html ), one egg, any curry (here i used my fish curry, you can see this in http://savaadhjevana.blogspot.in/2012/10/nethili-poondu-kolambu-anchovy-cooked.html)

  

Method

Break one egg in a large bowl, and add salt, pepper accordingly

Pour it in a hot tawa, rotate it

Now is the important step, place one tsp of basic masala, and then add two to three big ladles of curry

And then mix it, fold it four sides and serve

Note the difference between masala and salna omlette, for masala omlette, we place one big heap of masala, fold and serve.  But for salna, the inner content must be too watery (that s y called as salna), so one small tsp of masala combine with four large spoons of curry will help.

Cook n enjoy!!

Masala omlette

   Masala omlette is healthy accompaniment for curry rice or can be had as such with tomato sauce.  It can also be given as a evening snack for kids

Ingredients required

For the basic masala:

Half a tomato, 2 tsp chopped onion, 4-5 mushrooms, one egg, half a cup boiled veggies (like cauliflower, carrot, potato), half capsicum and spice mix( 2tsp crushed almonds,1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp amchoor, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp dhanya powser, 1/4 tsp garam masala, a pinch of turmeric powder), one egg

Guys, dont worry if you lack some veggies, you can always use ur veggie combo like bottlegaurd, cabbage or watever u have in ur refridegerator :) :) Almonds can also be replaced by peanut or pottu kadalai

Method

Finely chop onion, tomato, capsicum, mushroom

In a kadai, melt butter( i used low fat butter)

Add all finely chopped veggies, and add spice mix, let this cook for some 15- 20 minutes

After it is almost done, add the cup of boiled veggies

And mash them thoroughly , this is the basic masala for the omlette

In a large bowl, break an egg and mix with salt and pepper powder

Pour over hot tawa

 Turn around the tawa, to make it a circular shape

Spoon one large heap of masala into egg

Fold four sides of egg to parcel the masala like this

Flip it over other side, (if you want half boiled, you can have as like it is)

That is it, i served this with hot rice and nethili poondu kolambu

Really an awesome and healthy lunch!!!! Isnt it??

Authentic Nethili Poondu Kozhambu Recipe | South Indian Anchovy Garlic Curry

On a recent vacation in Chennai, surrounded by family and memories, I experienced a surprisingly delightful food moment that I still can’t stop thinking about.

My sister was secretly sipping something from a glass. Out of curiosity, I peeked in—and to my surprise, it was fish curry prepared by my aunt, Mrs. Sumathi Umashanker! I couldn’t stop laughing at first… drinking fish curry? 😄 But curiosity got the better of me, and I took a sip.

Oh my God… it was absolutely heavenly!

That one taste stayed with me. I immediately called my aunt and got her basic fish masala recipe. With that base in mind, I recreated this Nethili Poondu Kozhambu (Anchovy Garlic Curry) at home—and it turned out incredibly delicious!

🧄 Ingredients

For Basic Poondu (Garlic) Masala:

• 12 large garlic cloves
• 2–3 dried red chillies
• 1 tsp coriander seeds (dhaniya)
• ½ tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
• ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds (methi)
• ½ tsp chana dal
• 3–4 tbsp onion slices
• 4–5 tbsp grated coconut
• 4–5 peppercorns

Other Ingredients:

• 10 anchovy fish (nethili), cleaned
• 2 tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• Thick tamarind extract (4–5 tsp)
• Turmeric powder (haldi)
• Red chilli powder
• Coriander powder (dhaniya powder)
• Salt to taste
• Fresh coriander leaves for garnish

For Tempering:

• ½ tsp mustard seeds (rai)
• 1 dried red chilli
• Few curry leaves
• Oil

🍲 Method

1. Prepare the Masala Paste
   Dry roast chana dal, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, red chillies, and peppercorns until aromatic.
   Grind them along with garlic, onion, and coconut into a smooth paste.
2. Tempering
   Heat oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves, and red chilli.
3. Base Preparation
   Add finely chopped onions and sauté until soft and translucent (about 5 minutes).
   Then add chopped tomatoes and cook until mushy.
4. Add Tamarind & Spices
   Pour in thick tamarind extract. Add turmeric powder and salt.
5. Cook the Masala
   Add the ground masala paste and let it cook for about 15–20 minutes until the raw smell disappears and oil starts to release.
6. Adjust Taste
   Taste the gravy and adjust spice levels by adding chilli powder or coriander powder if needed.
7. Add Fish
   Once the masala is well cooked, simmer for 5 more minutes (as my aunt suggests), then gently add the anchovy fish.
8. Final Cooking
   Let it simmer for 3–4 minutes. Do not overcook, as anchovies cook quickly.
9. Garnish & Serve
   Switch off the flame, garnish with fresh coriander leaves, and serve hot.

🍛 Serving Suggestions

This spicy and tangy Nethili Poondu Kozhambu tastes best with:

• Steamed rice 🍚
• Idli
• Dosa