Mangalore Banana Buns (Deep fried Banana buns)

First ever Konkani Snack I prepared!

Thanks to my dear friend P who introduced me to these wonderful Mangalore Banana Buns.

So, I dedicate this to P & all my 50 followers!

It does not really require any special skills or much effort.

All you need to know is to prepare dough & deep fry.

Yeah! These buns aren't baked but fried.

You will need:

• Ripe Bananas - 1 cup
• All purpose flour/Maida - 3 cups or some more
• Cardamom - 3
• Sugar - 3 tbsps
• Curd - 2tbsps
• Baking Soda - a pinch
• Oil - for frying

Go for it:

In a large bowl mash the bananas with a fork. This is the best recipe to use up those over ripe bananas. Add sugar & mix it in to dissolve. You could use powdered sugar too. Put the curd & continue to beat them together. Add the flour, crushed/powdered cardamom & the baking soda. Work them together to form dough. You could add more flour if you feel it isnt coming together. Leave it overnight outside.

The dough will ferment & increase in quantity. Take lemon sized dough balls & roll them out round (it's okay if you cant get that shape right ;) ). I used some flour to dust the board & the rolling pin as the dough gets a little sticky.

Deep fry them one by one on medium flame. They will puff up. Turn sides & cook them well. You might have to lower the flame in between as the buns get browned easily. When done, transfer on paper towels to drain the excess oil.

If your buns are soft & smell sweet, they are ready to be relished!

You could enjoy these buns with butter/honey/tangy relishes/jams or just enjoy them plain.

Yes friends, you're all guessing it right. I indulged in these though my fitness trainer doesn't allow ;).

Note:

• Use up over ripe bananas
• You could also add crushed pepper, cumin seeds and some salt. I did not want that flavor so I did not add.
• Many eat these sweet buns with salty accompaniments

Oh So Yummy Stuffed Cheela Roll (Stuffed Gramflour Pancakes)

Hello Friends!

I am following a weight loss regime. No! I am not starving at all. I am just eating right & exercising at the gym. I have lost 3 kilos in 4 weeks which is not bad a start. What do you say? :)

I surely do get tempted when I have to cook for my husband but to gain compliments instead of that fat I am ready to sacrifice till I get fitter. Now, that does not mean I dont get to eat yummy food. All you have to do is think of the right ingredients & put them together for that yummy tummy filling food.

Friends! Here are some healthy tips which could help you lose that extra flab:

1. Do not starve

2. Include a good share of fruits & salads in every meal

3. Breakfast should have a fruit/milk/brown bread/oats/juice


4. Drink fresh juices & soups before you get hunger pangs


5. Drink lots of water but make sure you cut down on that oily food so that your body doesnt retain the water you just consumed (Oily snack will have salt which retains the water in your body)


6. If at all you crave to eat any of the following then have it during lunch only - curd/rice/paneer/1 poori/1 pakoda/1 fried papad/aerated beverage/1 sweet/1 portion of pizza/1 bite of that huge pastry/lassi etc. Having none of them or some of them only once in a blue moon is okay


7. Dont eat rice or roti for dinner. Instead have a bowl of any dal (lentil) with loads of salad. You may have 1 roti if you really want. Once in a while rice is okay which means twice a week at the max.


8. Try brown rice instead of white rice.


9.If you dont have a gym closeby then you just start skipping/running or climbing stairs




Some of my confessions:


1. I enjoy a portion of curd or raita during my lunch


2. I hate some fruits which I have to eat & love some fruits which I shouldnt eat


3. I enjoy aamras or a mango shake for breakfast on a Sunday (thatz just an excuse to enjoy mangoes)


4. I have not been able to develop taste for brown rice so once in a week, mostly on saturdays or sundays I eat a rice dish (My birthday yesterday served as an excuse to enjoy Rajma Rice...yummm)


5. After a few days your body feels much lighter & fresh


6. I also exercise at the gym & I am loving myself more & more each day


Cheela/Chilla is a very good option when you plan to lose your extra fat/flab. It is made with gramflour paste. Gramflour consists of dietary fiber & protein.


To enjoy this Oh So Yummy Cheela you need:


Besan (Gramflour) - 1 cup

Ajwain (Carom seeds) - 1/4th teaspoon

Asafoetida - tiny pinch

Red Chilli flakes - as per tolerance

Salt - As per taste

Oil - if reqd.

For the Stuffing:

French Beans  - 100 gms

Carrots - 100 gms

Pepper - for seasoning

Salt - as per taste

Olive Oil - a few drops

Method:

Wash & cut the tip & end of the french beans & keep aside. Scrape & wash the carrots & cut lengthwise.

Put them in a cooker with a cup of water & cook on medium flame till 1 whistle. Put off the flame now but do nto open the lid, let it now cook in the cooker steam. On medium flame, in a non stick pan add some drops of olive oil. Now, discard the water & add the vegetables to this. Saute, add crushed pepper & salt to it. Your stuffing is ready!

To make the cheela (pancakes), just add all the ingredients except oil. A dropping consistency is not too watery or very thick. You will know exactly what I mean when you make the first pancake. You can add more water or gramflour if the consistency isnt quite what you require. Take a ladle full of batter & sprad on the already hot pan. The pan should be on high flame & you should lower it as soon you have spread the batter. You may use a few drops of oil to turn it if required. Else turn it & cook till it is done.

On the cheela place some stuffing in the middle & roll it. Your Cheela Roll is all set! Ready to be Served & Savoured.

Note:

1. There are some variations to this cheela, like:

- You could add some shredded onions, tomatoes & capsicum to this cheela paste

- The stuffing can have more vegetables in it

- You could spread some honey on this cheela & then place the stuffing to roll & enjoy

2. It is best enjoyed with sweet or a tangy dip. I avoided it though.

Chilli Soya - Snack Healthy

When graduating from Delhi I lived in an all girls PG on rent.

As none of us could cook we, 'the already burdened half-dead freshers' looked out for all possibilities of feeding ourselves with some good food to stay alive.

We found out some numbers/visiting cards of the tiffin providers & zeroed-in on one of the most inviting visiting cards & called to place our very first mass order for dinner. We liked it. Though, the chapattis (flat breads) looked stale & half cooked, the dal was only coloured salty water, the curd had gone sour, the vegetable was covered with oil, yet we enjoyed it & decided to continue the service.

By the time we got back home for lunch the next day it was 3pm & we were famished. We found the tiffin boxes kept at the entrance & we happily picked it up & got ready to eat when I discovered that the vegetable had gone bad in that Delhi heat outside.

It was time to discontinue the tiffin service & engage a cook for fresh meals every day. She cooked good however took leaves without informing. But that did not put us off as those were the opportunities when we could demonstrate our culinary skills & experiment on each other & the food of course. 

On one such occasion a friend got this extremely dry scrubber like balls which she claimed to be edible & called it Soya. I could not believe it could be edible! But,  the vegetable pulao with the soya chunks just tasted fabulous. It was much softer, juicier & yummy. I then started developing the taste for Soya & have tried many dishes since then. One such dish is what I recommend to all those who like your food spicy yet healthy & that is Chilli Soya.

Ingredients required:

• Soya Chunks - 100 gms
• Shredded Onion - 3
• Thinly sliced Tomato - 1
• Ginger Garlic paste – 1 tbsp
• Green chillies - as per tolerance
• Soya sauce - as per taste
• Green chilli sauce - as per tolerance
• Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp
• Salt - as per taste
• Oil - 3 tbsps

Method:

Take water in a pan to boil the soya & add salt to it. When done take it off the flame & drain it in a colander. Let it cool down & squeeze out all the extra water out of the chunks. Keep aside.

Now, take a wok & pour oil in it. Keep this on high flame & as soon as it gets smoking hot put the shredded onions in it. Saute & add the ginger garlic paste to it when the onions turn pink.

Leave it to cook for 2 mts on medium flame & then add salt & red chilli powder to it.

Continue to sauté for another 20 seconds & add the thinly sliced tomato to this. Let it cook till the tomatoes get pureed.

Add the soya chunks to this & cook for 5 mts.

Lastly add the sauces to it & cover it with a lid for a minute or two & take it off the flame.

Get ready to serve this healthy snack.

Note:

• You could add some diced capsicum too
• If you require some gravy add a spoonful of corn flour to a cup of water then pour & stir for a minute
• If you don’t have green chilli sauce you could use red chilli sauce or just add extra slit green chillies to the dish. All this only if you could tolerate the taste
• The  chilli soya (gravy) is best eaten with fried rice
• The chilli soya (dry) can be added to plain noodles or can be eaten dry as a starter or for snacks

Spicy Aloo Parwal / Potatoes & Pointed Gourd in Gravy

Arrgh! Yet another gourd!?!

This is exactly how I exclaimed when I saw this dish cooked by my mother in law. But what a tasty dish this is!!!

Aloo Parwal is a famous dish & often made at home. Now, because I demand.

This dish can be made in 15 mts & is a part of the main course meal. 

It is one of those recipes which makes me drool & eat the potatoes which I try & avoid otherwise.

To be able to make this mouthwatering dish you need:

• Pointed Gourd (Parwal) - 8 nos.
• Potatoes - 4 nos.
• Cumin seeds (Jeera) - 2 tsp
• Whole red chillies - 3 nos
• Bay leaves - 2
• Oil - 3 tbsp
• Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
• Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Coriander powder (Dhaniya) - 2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 2 tsp
• Asafoetida powder - A pinch
• Salt - As per taste
• Sugar - 2 tsp

Method:
Wash & par boil the potatoes. You could pressure cook them till a whistle or two & take it off flame. Once they cool down peel off the skin & keep aside.

Scrape the pointed gourd to remove any dirt & wash them. Now cut them lengthwise & then into halves. So the pointed gourd are big chunks now.

Take a bowl & add all the masalas, salt & 1 cup of water. Prepare a watery paste.

Ready a pressure cooker on medium flame, pour oil & increase the flame to high. When the oil gets smoking hot put jeera, whole red chillies, bay leaves & sugar. Now, add the cut pointed gourd to the oil & let it cook on high flame till it starts changing colour. Lower the flame to medium now & add the potatoes.

Add the watery masala paste to the veggies & saute till oil separates. Increase the flame again now.

After a few minutes add another cup of water cover the cooker with its lid & let it cook till 2 whistles.

Once it cools down, transfer it to a serving bowl & garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

I break the potatoes with my hand which gives uneven chunks & makes the dish more enjoyable. All you need to do is hold a potato in your hand & apply pressure as if making a fist. This will break the potatoes.
It is fun. You could ask your child to help you with this. It is great fun for them.

Note:

• It is best eaten with rice & dal.
• You could increase or decrease the gravy according to your liking.
• If the gravy is more than required then take a potato out of the gravy, mash it well then mix it into the gravy to thicken it.