Citron Sweet and Sour Pachadi - Chutney

I was having a chat with my grand mom yesterday and she told me about this citron sour and sweet pachadi (chutney). Initially I was hesitant to taste it but once I tasted it I liked it so much. For people who like the flavor and taste of citron, this is a great receipe. It is easy and its so delicious. U can store this for many days and eat it as side dish for anything.

Health Benefits: 

It cleans the spleen and purifies blood in the body. Helps in digestion. Vitamin C content and hence fights against cold and flu. Also improves immunity.

Ingredients: 

Citron finely chopped - 3 - Medium Sized as seen in picture

Oil - 2 Tbsp

Jaggery - 1/2 Pound

Tamarind  paste - 3 Tbsp (or 1 lemon sized tamarind squeezed as thick paste)

Dhaniya (Corriander seeds) - 2 Tbsp

Channa Dhal - 2 Tbsp

Dry red chilli - 3 ( depends on individual spice level)

Urad Dhal - 2 Tbsp

Salt - one pinch

Take oil in a pan and sautee the cirton well untill it looses color. Soak the same in the tamarind paste for about ten mins. When the citron absorbs the paste well, cook it in a pressure cooker upto 3 sounds (the sounds depend on the cooker capacity to cook the citron). After the citron gets cooked, cool it and grind it to a thick paste. Now add jaggery to the paste and bring it to boil. Add a pinch of salt to it and let it boil until the mixture thickens. Now dry roast dhaniya, channa dhal, dry chilli, urad dhal to fine powder and mix it with the boiling paste. Let it boil for another 2-3 mins and turn off the heat.

Serve it with Chappathi, Poori, Adai, Curd rice. It tastes well with everything.

Meet you soon!!!!

I am sending this post to Suma's (Veggie Platter's) Ongoing event " Indian side dishes other than subzi / dals"

Natural & Healthy Hair Treatment

I used to have dry hair that never looked voluminous or healthy. It was my fault for being negligent. Finally i found a solution to my problem. Lot of people spend so much money on hair treatment though they gain very little. But i will give you a very simple but very useful home treatment that will change the texture of your hair. I used it and i have seen the results. Am sure you will all benefit from it.

Ingredients:

Amla Powder - 3 tsp

Henna Powder - 3 tsp

Eucalyptus -2 drops

Lemon Juice -1/2 lemon squeezed

Yogurt - 1 tsp

Tea Syrup - 1/4 cup

You can increase or decrease the quantity of the above mentioned ingredients based on requirement.

Mix equal amount of amla powder and henna powder in tea syrup. Add 2 drops of eucalyptus, squeeze half lemon, a tea spoon of curd. Mix well and let it stay for 3-4 hrs. Apply on your hair spreading evenly throughout. Wash it after it is completely dry. It is a great conditioner and a natural hair color. Hair shines and looks healthy. It not only is a good natual conditioner but it also helps in hair growth and prevents dandruff due to dryness. If this is done once in 15 day, you will see great results soon!

People who do not like yogurt can always do without it or you can add milk as substitute.

Masala Lassi (Butter Milk)

Summers are really hot everywhere and I am sure all of us take adequate precautions to keep ourselves cool. One way to keep away from heat is to drink lot of fluids. So we make fruit juice, lassi, vegetable juice, milk shakes etc. Here i thought of sharing a delicious masala lassi made with butter milk or yogurt, which will quench your thirst and keeps the body cool. Its very simple and i am sure all of us are aware of lassi. This one is also similar but has great taste.

Ingredients:

Yogurt - 1/4 cup

Water - 1 and 1/4 cup

Hing - 2 dashes

Jeera Powder - 2 - 3 pinches

Cilantro - Handfull

Salt - to taste

Green Chili (Jus for flavor)- 1 (I prefer without chili because i dont like to eat spicy during summer)

Blend all the ingredients in a blender until everything is ground and mixed well. Pour it in a glass and serve. Believe me its delicious and very good drink for summer. You can garnish with cilantro adn a dash of jeera powder. Hope you enjoyed it! Good day!

Buttermilk

Modern Podi Idly

Idly is the most famous food in Southern part of India. It is our breakfast dish. But to eat Idly often becomes really boring. My aunt and uncle had come to my place for thanks giving and we were thinking of a breakfast. When i told my aunt i had idly batter, she gave me this easy recipe. We all loved it.. Idly is no more a boring dish. We can have it as a snack too. So lets get started...

Dish for 2

Idly already made - 8

Idly Podi ( Molagai Podi) - 2-3 tbsp ( Depends on spice level)

Onion finely chopped - 1

Salt - To taste - Idly will already have some salt. So make sure you add salt to the correct taste.

For Seasoning:

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard - 1 tsp

Urad Dhal - 1 tsp

Corriander leaves - 3-5 leaves

Hing - 2 dashes

Jeera - 1 tsp

Cilantro - for topping

Heat oil in a pan and once it is hot enough, add mustard. When it starts to split, add urad dhal, corriander, hing and jeera. Add cut onions and sautee it till onions turn translucent. Cut each idly in 4 equal parts and add it to the pan.Add salt (if required)and mix everything well. Add molagai podi or the idly podi. Mix everything well again and keep in in medium heat for 2 mins untill everything is mixes well. Top it with finely chopped cilantro. Delicious modern podi idly is ready in no time.

Good luck and meet you soon!!

Home facial

Being a person who does'n use make up products, going to parties becomes a process to get myself dressed well. The most important thing is how to get a glowing face without makeup. I got a great recipe from my aunt and it worked out great on my skin. Everyone at the party were asking me the secret to my glowing skin.

Its simple, easy to make with available ingredients.

Ingredients:

Banana - 1/2

Sesame seeds (U can use tahini paste as a substitute) - 2 tbsp

Aloe vera juice - 100ml

Turmeric Powder - a small pinch

Grind all these ingredients into a fine paste. You can add more aloe juice to grind better or just water is also good. Apply it on the face and wait untill it dries. Scrub the face with the dried mask and wash. Pat dry and you will see the difference.

The ingredients can vary in quantity depending on individual needs.

Hope this secret works on you and you all can share it with your friends.

Meet you soon!!!!

Easy More Kozhambu

It was a sunday and I was too lazy to cook. But I made up my mind to cook something for lunch. My husband likes to eat authentic south indian food in the weekends as he is busy during weekdays and does not get much time to relish the food. Then i decided to make More kozhambu (Gravy made with Yogurt). When I started the preparation, i found i dint have coconut, green chili which are the main ingredients for this dish. Thats when i got the idea to make this EASY MORE KOZHAMBU. It tasted really good. My husband liked it very much and i think it is the easiest MORE KOZHAMBU ever in very less time!!!!

Dish for 2

Ingredients

Channa Dal - 1 Table spoon

Fenugreek (Methi Seeds) - 1 Tea spoon

Red Chili - 2 ( Depends on individual's spice level)

Yogurt - 1 cup

Salt - To taste

Turmeric Powder - 2-3 pinches

Oil - 1 tablesppon

Mustard - 1 teaspoon

Urad Dal - 1 tea spoon

Hing - Jus a pinch to season.

Corriander Leaves - 7-8 leaves. ( Depending upon the needs)

First, dry roast channa dal, fenugreek, red chili until they are golden brown. Keep aside to cool and then grind it to a powder. The powder must be well ground. Take yogurt in a bowl, add turmeric, salt, ground powder and mix well. Take oil in a pan, heat it and when it is hot enough, add mustard, urad dal, corriander leaves, hing. When the urad dal turns golden brown, transfer the contents to the bowl of yogurt mix. Mix well.

One important thing is we do not heat the more kozhambu. So if you feel like having it warm, you may microwave it for about 30 - 35 seconds. Just to make it warm. If heated for a long time, it will dilute and the essence of the thick gravy is gone.

You can make the powder at home and store it for few days. It will be useful if unexpected guests come home for lunch or dinner. To make it more authentic, you can add sauteed okra (lady's finger) or sauteed Bell pepper. It gives good flavor to the gravy.

Thanks for reading this recipe and hope to meet you again soon with more!