Idli Sambar and Tomato Chuntey

BASIC IDLI BATTER:

Urad dal	1 cup
Idli Rawa	2 cups
Rice flakes	1/8th cup
Salt	to taste
Water

• Wash and soak Urad dal, rice flakes and Idli rawa separately for 4-6hrs.
• In a mixer jar or grinder put washed urad dal, rice flakes and grind into fine paste by adding water till soft and fluffy.
• Wash rava and take hand full of rawa and squeeze as much you can. Combine both rawa and batter and mix well by adding salt to taste.
• Cover and keep the batter in a warm place overnight to let the idli batter ferment.
• Now batter is ready for making idli's.

SAMBAR 

Toor Dal	1/2 cup
Vegetables	Bottle gourd -       8 small pieces Carrot -                1 / 50 g (cut into sticks) Ladyfingers -        4 (cut into 2” size) Tomatoes  -          2 (diced) Shallots / small onions - 4 -6
Tamarind	small size (extract the juice)
Green chillies	4 split
Curry leaves	few
Coriander leaves	hand full
Salt	to taste
Turmeric	1/2 tsp
Jaggery	1 - 2 tbsp

Sambar Powder :

Urad Dal	1 tsp
Channa Dal	1 tsp
Coriander seeds	1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds	1/4 tsp
Red chilies	4 - 6

• Dry roast all the above ingredients.
• Cool it down and blend into fine powder.

Tempering Seasonings :

Urad dal	1 tsp
Mustard’s	½ tsp
Garlic pods	4 (flatten)
Fenugreek seeds	few
Curry leaves	one string
Oil	2 tbsp
Hing	1/4 tsp

• Pressure cook Toor Dal, till dal is cooked.
• Boil vegetables in salt and turmeric water.
• When vegetables are cooked add tamarind juice and boil till raw smell disappears.
• Add smashed dal, enough water to make it medium thick, salt to taste, coriander and few curry leaves. Cover and boil it for 5 minutes.
• Add sambar powder and Jaggery. Boil it for another 3-4 minutes.
• Off the flame and pour hot tempering seasonings.
• Garnish with coriander and 2 tbsp of coconut.
• Serve with Rice, Idli, Dosa, Wada....

TOMATO CHUTNEY 

Tomatoes - 250 gm
Green chillies - 8
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Tempering : Urad dal - tsp, cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp, red chilly - 2, curry leaves - few. 
Oil - 2 tbsp 

•  Heat tbsp oil. Add cumin seeds and green chillies. Cook for a minute. Add roughly chopped tomatoes and mix well. Cook for 3-5mins and off the flame. 
• Cool it down and grind into paste.
• Transfer to a bowl. Give tempering with remaining oil and pour it on chutney.
• Ready to serve.

 

Chicken - 65 (my version)

Chicken	1.25 kg (cut into medium pieces)
Ripened tomatoes	500 gm (mashed with fingers)
Ginger garlic paste	2 tbsp
Red chilly powder	3-4 tsp
Turmeric	½ tsp
Curd	1cup
Green chillies	6-8 (chopped)
Curry leaves	2 strings (chopped)
Coriander leaves	one bundle (roughly chopped)
Garam masala: (grind to fine powder)	2 tsp   (4 cloves, 1 cardamom , 2 inch size pieces - Cinnamon ,1 tsp - poppy seeds, Coriander seeds - 1 tsp)
Red food color	pinch
Ajinomoto	¼ tsp (to enhance the taste)

• Wash the chicken under tap water for couple of times. Then add ¼ tsp turmeric and tbsp of curd and mix well. Leave it for 5mins and then wash it with clean water and drain well. (this step is avoid the poultry smell)
• For marinating the chicken, take chicken into a mixing bowl, add ginger garlic paste, turmeric, red chilly powder, curd, mashed tomatoes (do not puree them), garam masala, food color,chopped green chillies, ajinomoto, curry leaves, coriander and salt. Mix well till all the masala is nicely coated to chicken. Cover and keep in the refrigerator for 2-4 hrs.
• Heat ½ cup oil in an non-stick pan.
• Add chicken and mix it. Cover and cook for 5-10 min on high flame.
• Remove the lid and mix it
• Cook on medium high flame till water evaporates and till gravy is nicely coated to the chicken. Mix it occasionally.
• Off the flame and garnish with onions, green chillies and lime.
• Serve with rice or sambar or rasam as side dish.

Bommidayalu Igguru (Andhra's famous fish curry) / Smelt Fish Curry

Bommidayalu / Smelt fish	½ kg
Onions (medium large in size)	2 (chopped)
Green chillies	4 (slit)
Curry leaves	few
Oil	4 tbsp
Red Chilly powder	2-3 tsp
Turmeric	1/4 tsp
Salt	to taste
Ginger garlic paste	2 tbsp
Garam Masala: (grind into fine paste)	Cinnamon - 2 (inch size pecs no.2) Cardamom - 2-4 Poppy seeds - 1 tbsp Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp Cloves - no.8 Cumin seeds - ½ tsp (optional)

For cleaning fish :

Cup buttermilk Turmeric Salt

• Clean and wash  the fish under tap water for 5-6 times. Now add cup buttermilk, turmeric and salt. Soak it for 5mins. Then finally wash for one more time with water. This step is to avoid fish smell.
• To washed fish mix ginger garlic paste , red chilly powder, turmeric and salt. keep aside.
• Heat oil in a wide pan. Add onions, green chillies and curry leaves. Fry till onion turns to pink.
• Then add marinated fish and arrange them. Allow to cook on medium heat for 2-3mins. Then turn the fish to other side and cook for 2-3 min.
• Now add 2.5 to 3 cups water. Keep the flame to high and allow to boil for 5 min.
• Add garam masala paste and mix carefully. Cover and cook for another 5 min or till the gravy thickens on medium heat.
• Off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves and cover with lid for 5 min.
• Serve with hot rice.

MUTTON BIRYANI

    Mutton Biryani , Chilly Eggs and Onion Tomato Raita

For this biryani we need Chitti muthuyala rice. This looks like small grain rice and it has amazing smell. But, I tried with regular basmati rice. The taste is very good. Cook accordingly as instructed below. Recipe courtesy : Cooking Show

Mutton	1kg
Basmati rice	2 cups / 400 g
Onions	250g (sliced)
Tomatoes	250g (sliced lengthwise)
Green chillies	6 - 8 slit
Oil	1/2 cup
Curd	1 cup
Red chilly powder	1 tbsp, plus 1 tsp
Coriander powder	1 tbsp
Salt	to taste
Turmeric	½ tsp, plus ½ tsp
Coriander leaves	1 cup
Ginger garlic paste	2tbsp, plus 1tsp
Garam Masala	1tsp
Dry Coconut powder (or) fresh coconut paste	2tbsp
Whole Garam Masala	Cloves - 8, Cardamom - 5, Cinnamon -no. 4 (inch size pieces) Star anise - 1,   Marati moggu- 1
Hot water	2 cups.

Mutton Preparation:

• Wash mutton and drain well.
• To this add 2 tbsp of ginger garlic paste, tsp of red chilly powder, ½ tsp of turmeric, salt and less than cup of water. Mix well and cover with lid.
• Pressure cook up to three whistles on medium high flame. Off the flame and allow pressure to release.
• Separate mutton from water. Reserve (mutton) water for cooking the rice.

Biryani Preparation:

• Soak Biryani rice for 20 minutes in water.

• Heat ½ cup oil in pressure pan. Fry whole garam masala spice's till aroma flavour comes out.
• Add onions and green chillies. Fry till onions are golden brown in color.
• Add tsp of ginger garlic paste and fry for few movements.
• Meanwhile, in a bowl mix tsp of chilly powder, 2 tbsp coconut powder/ paste and 1 tbsp coriander powder in little water. Add to onions mixture and fry it for couple of minutes.
• Add coriander leaves and fry it for another couple of minutes.
• Add tomatoes and stir well. Cover and cook till tomatoes are nicely cooked and mashed.
• Add curd and stir well.
• Now, add salt and garam masala powder and mix well.
• Add mutton (without water) and mix well. Cover and cook for 5 - 7 minutes.
• Add soaked rice and 2 cups of mutton water(see first point) or hot water. Mix and check the salt at this point.
• Mix and close with the  pressure cooker lid (do not put regulator/ weight valve) and cook on medium flame for 10 minutes or till water evaporates.
• After 10 minutes, place cooker on hot tawa and cook for another 15 - 20 minutes on medium high flame.
• Serve hot with raita.

In picture I served with Onion-Cucumber Raita and Chilly Eggs.