Beetroot pulao

Thinking of what to cook is always a big issue for all women and to satisfy everyone's taste buds are even more difficult. I go through the same struggle every day. But now I have decided that I would think about tomorrow’s menu in the night before bed so that I need not break my head in the mornings. And it has helped me a lot.

I had beetroot at home and was thinking to make something different. My kids love beetroot gravy and boiled egg. Even as a kid I loved the same. They also like beetroot rice. This time I made it differently by adding peas. My daughter doesn’t like peas, but I tried my luck 😉 you can add carrots as well.

It was a great treat to your eyes as its colours were beautiful and tasted good too. My kids and the adults loved it.

Beetroots are good for health as it has lots of nutritious benefits. Low in calories, keeps blood pressure intact and fights inflammation. This vegetable should be used in our meal once a week because of the health benefits. This can be made in sambar, salad, gravy, juice and rice.

 

 You will need

• 1 cup rice
• 1 large Beetroot cubed
• 1/2 cup Green peas
• 1 tsp Ginger garlic paste
• 1 tsp Red chilli powder
• 1 tsp Coriander powder
• 1/8 tsp Turmeric
• 1 cup Coconut milk thin
• Handful of coriander leaves chopped
• Salt As needed

To temper

• 1 tbsp Oil / Ghee
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1-inch Cinnamon stick
• 1 Cardamom
• 1 Clove

 

1.Soak rice for 10- 15 minutes. Heat a small pressure cooker with oil/ ghee, temper with the items given under ‘To temper’.  Add thinly sliced onions and fry till transparent.

2.Then ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute in medium flame. Add beetroot and green peas. Sprinkle little salt and continue frying for 2 mins in medium flame.

3.Add turmeric, chilli powder and coriander powder and mix well. Add thin coconut milk and a cup of water. Bring to boil, add required salt and rice. Mix well.

4.Boil briskly until 3/4th done, add sufficient water, then close the lid and cook up to 2 whittles in medium flame.  The number of whistles depends on the rice that you use.

5. Once done garnish with coriander leaves.

Omlette egg curry

Here is a different dish that many will wonder can I do this 😉 because that's what even I thought at first. We can make the egg omlette the way we want and add into the gravy. You can always keep the gravy ready and add in the omlette towards the end when your ready to serve.

We love eggs alot. Sometimes within two weeks we use 30 eggs. That's how much we love it. My daughter is an eggetarian😆 you can give her anything with egg and she will gladly eat it. She was the happiest with this gravy. 

I haven't added much masala in the gravy as I wanted my kids to eat. But u can make a masala curry as well.

This omlette curry will taste great with rotis and rice. In this recipe I have pureed the onions and tomatoes for the gravy. In order to get a thick consistent gravy.  

You will need 

For the omlette 

* 6 eggs

* 2 large onions chopped 

* 2 tomatoes chopped

* 2 green chillies chopped thin

* Salt to taste

* 1 tsp chilli flakes

* 1 tsp pepper powder

For the curry 

* 2 tsp oil 

* 2 onions pureed

*2 tomatoes pureed

* 1 tsp turmeric powder

* 1 tsp coriander powder

* 1 tsp garam masala

* 1/2 tsp chilli powder

*1/2 cup thick coconut milk

* Sprig of curry leaves

* Handful of coriander leaves

* 1tsp ginger garlic paste

*1/2 tsp mustard seeds

* 1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1. Whisk all the ingredients mentioned in the for the omlette section and make two thick omlettes. 

2. Once it's done put it on a plate and let it cool. Once cooled cut it into long or square shaped strips.

3. In a pan add the oil, let the mustard, curry leaves and cumin splutter. 

4. Add the ginger garlic paste and saute for few minutes till the raw smell is gone.

5. Now add the onion puree and saute further till it changes color. Then add in the tomato puree. 

6. Add the turmeric powder,garam masala, chilli powder and coriander powder. Mix all together and stir fry till oil seperates. 

7. Add the coconut milk and bring it to a boil. Once it's boiling simmer the stove and add the omlette and let it cook for 2 minutes. 

Garnish with coriander and serve it with rice or roti.

Bread upma

We Sri lanakan's love bread 😉 it's actually one of the staple food in Lanka. We have it with butter,jam, as sandwiches, sambol,milkmaid etc. One of my school teacher offered me this and I was surprised how good it tasted and how easy it was. I haven't tried making bread like this and I was veryich eager to make this fory family.

There was bread at home and instantly remembered this recipe so I made it. My mum in law was little hesitant about it but when in it was ready, oh boy nothing was left 🤪 My hubby said enough and still ate more 😆

I'm glad they liked it and it's an easy recipe to make if u wake up late in d morning on a weekend 😉

You will need 

* Bread – 8 slices

* Onion- 2 sliced thinly

* Tomato- 2 chopped finely

* Green Chilli-1 sliced lengthwise

* Chilli powder-1 tsp

* Garam masala powder-1 tsp

* Mustard seeds -1 tsp

* Cumin seeds -1 tsp

* Oil

* Salt to taste

1. Toast your bread slices in a tawa till browned. Remove it and cut into small pieces.

2. Heat oil in a kadai and add mustard and cumin seeds.Let it splatter.

3. Add in onions and green chillies and fry for 2 min.

4. Now add in tomatoes and mix well. Add in chilli powder,garam masala powder and salt. 

5. Add little water and cook this covered for 5 mins untill the tomatoes turn mushy.

6. When it's all dried add in bread pieces and mix well.

7. Cook it for 5 mins stiring occasionally. 

Serve it hot. It will taste better. 

Mango rice / chitranna

It's the season of mangoes and I love mangoes. I saw a friend of mine saying that she had made mango rice and I was literally curious because I had never had it before. If I have to be honest I haven't eaten proper indian or authentic indian food yet. I'm slowly trying them.

Out of curiosity I made mango rice didn't know how the taste would end up. To my surprise it tasted similar to lemon rice 😋 

 It's also called chitranna in Karnataka or South India and it's made with leftover rice adding some tangy and spice. This is an easy recipe to make and good for kids Lunch Box. 

I made it for lunch and we enjoyed it with some applam and pickle. Even my kids enjoyed.

I have used raw mangoes not riped. You can also add grated coconut to it. I did not have coconut at home so I skipped it. 

You will need 

* 2 tbsp oil

* 1 tsp mustard

* 1 tsp urad dal

* pinch of hing / asafoetida

* 1 tsp chana dal

* Sprig of curry leaves

* 3 tbsp peanuts / groundnut, roasted

* 2 raw mangoes, grated

* 2 green chilli, slit

* ¼ tsp turmeric / haldi

* 2 cup cooked rice

* salt to taste

* 2 tbsp coconut, grated ( optional )

* 2 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped

1. In a large kadai heat oil. Add in  mustard, urad dal and chana dal, pinch of hing and curry leaves.

2. Once they start to splutter add in roasted peanuts and saute for a minute.

3. Then add in 1 cup raw mango, green chilli and turmeric.

4. saute for a minute or till mango shrinks.

5. Now add in cooked rice and salt to taste.

6. Mix gently without breaking rice grains. Cover and simmer for 2 minutes or till rice absorbs flavours.

7. Then add in grated coconut and coriander leaves. mix well.

You can serve them hot with some pickle, raita , applam. Enjoy the simple and easy mango rice. 

Dalgona Coffee

Here goes the famous Dalgona coffee that has won over the social media. And it’s all over as a challenge. I saw the post in few places and I thought it must b time consuming but to my surprise it wasn’t.  

My friend Zareena also is an amazing food blogger and a good friend too. I saw her post this and I went through and noticed that it was very simple.  

It's a cold latte with a velvety coffee foam originated from Korea. This recipe came amidst the lock-down and all shops closed so it’s a good substitute for a coffee shop coffee. This can be made in different varieties like adding hot milk, chocolate powder, milo, bornvita  etc. as a choice of flavor.  

I’m a coffee lover, I enjoyed this. 😊 I asked everyone to make it . And it can be quiet addictive as well.  

You will need  

• 2 tbsp of instant coffee powder  
• 2 tbsp sugar  
• 2 tbsp hot water 
• 1 cup cold milk with ice cubes 

1. In a mixing bowl add the coffee, sugar and hot water. And blend it using a hand blender for about 5 minutes.  you can also whisk it with hand.  
2. It will become stiff and fluffy.  
3. Take 2 glasses and add few ice cubes and add the milk. You can also use hot milk. And top it up with the foamy coffee mix.  

I have tried adding chocolate chips as well and it was delicious too. The chocolate and coffee taste blended well.  

Peas poha

This is one of the traditional Indian breakfast recipes typically made in north karnataka, maharashtra, gujarat and telegana with flatten rice. It’s a simple and a healthy meal. There are different varieties of recipes to make poha and I decided to make it with peas. You can add potatoes as well. This can be used as an evening snack too.  

I have fond memories with this recipe as my neighbor who happened to be my friends now. 😊 I remember my friend making this for me with peas. And it was delicious. I have seen poha in the supermarket so many times but I never knew it could be such tasty meal.  

I have made this few times before. Recently my father in law reminded of it. I made it and it turned out yummy.  

There is one tricky thing that I have learnt in this is the way to wash the poha. As they come in different varieties. Its best that you stick to a particular brand so that you know how it can be washed.  

           You will need  

• 250 gm poha/ avalakki  
• Water for soaking  
• 3 tsp oil  
•  ½ tsp cumin seeds
•  Pinch of asafetida 
• Sprig of curry leaves 
• 1 tsp mustard seeds    
• 1 onion chopped 
• 1 green chilli finely chopped  
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
•  ½ cup peas  
• handful of coriander leaves
•  ½ lemon juice  

1. Firstly, in a large bowl soak the poha in water for about 3 – 4 minutes till it turns soft. Don’t add too much water as it can get soggy. Drain the water, add salt and keep aside. 
2. In a kadai add oil and splutter the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves and asafetida. 
3. Once it's done add onions and sauté till color changes. Add green chilies, turmeric powder and peas. Let it cook.  
4. Then add the poha and mix gently and leave to cook for 2 minutes. Taste the salt and add accordingly.  
5. Take it off from the stove, add coriander leaves and lemon juice.  

    

It's best to eat it when it’s hot as it tastes better. Enjoy your yummy and easy meal. 

Carrot salad

As a kid I loved carrots and my mother used to give it to us saying it's good for our eyes and skin. And I remember her making this easy salad. Many houses in Sri Lanka makes this carrot salad and they put grated coconut in it. I haven’t used coconut in my salad.  

In my house my hubby and father in law are not lovers of vegetables. Often, we need to find ways to give them vegetables. My father in law will eats vegetables in sambar. 😉 or in meat.   

When I made this salad, they were surprised to know that u can make salad with carrot. My kids love it too. At first my hubby made a fuss over it saying ‘what’s this?’ now when I make it guess who eats the most of it 😉 Its fresh and crunchy.  

      You will need  

• 2 carrots peeled 
• 1 medium sized onion chopped into small 
• 1 green chili chopped very small  
• ¼ tsp of pepper powder 
• ¼ tsp of lemon juice  
• Salt to taste 
• 1 small tomato chopped  

• 
  
• 1. Grate the carrots and add the onions, green chili and tomatoes and mix it well. 

2. 2. Now add the salt, pepper powder, lemon juice and mix everything together. 

You can adjust the salt and pepper taste according to your taste buds. It's that simple. It will hardly take 10 minutes. You also can add grated coconut into this. I haven't added because I want my kids to enjoy the salad too. Hope you enjoy it.