Showing posts with label Marathi Specialty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marathi Specialty. Show all posts

Thursday, April 4, 2019

Bhakri - Rice flour


I have explained what a Bhakri is in another post. We make these out of rice flour as well and they are made a little differently.
We make the dough using hot water. This makes the flour a bit sticky and easier to pat out the bhakris. And the bhakris do turn out super soft as an added bonus.

2 cups rice flour (try and get fresh flour when you want to make the bhakris)
2 cups boiling water
1/2 tsp salt
ghee

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan. Add the salt. When it comes to a full boil, take it  off the heat. Add the 2 cups of flour to the water and mix. Cover it and keep aside for 5-6 minutes.
Transfer the dough to a bowl and let cool. Knead well using wet hands if required till soft and pliant.
Either roll out the bhakris or pat them out on a rolling board.
To roast thee bhakris, heat a flat tawa to medium, lay the bhakri on the tawa, with the bottom side up. Put about 2 tsp water and spread evenly. Let cook till the water evaporates and the top is damp. Flip the bhakri over. Cook till that side is done. Then remove it from the tawa and flip it over an open flame till done and it puffs.
Smear with ghee and enjoy.

You can see the pictures of how the roasting is done on the other post where I have made jowar bhakris.
Rice flour bhakris are the easiest to make and go really well with seafood and eggplant bharit (more on that later)

Thursday, July 30, 2015

Pithla - Spiced chick pea flour

Pithla is the go to dish in most Maharashtrian households when you are pressed for time, or haven't been to the market to buy fresh vegetables. Unless, it was the house I grew up in, then we had pithla every week! My dad just loved this dish and asked for it every week almost. So dad, this post is for you. And what I really love is that Anagha loves this dish as much...and she actually asked for the recipe.

There are variations, you can use spring onions, radish, regular onions, or fenugreek leaves. You can make it dry, or semi-solid or even liquid like a thick curry. Its all in the proportion of water to chick pea flour. So feel free to experiment and adjust to your taste. The recipe I have put here is for a semi solid consistency. Kinda like mashed potatoes!

1 cup chopped onion
2 green chillies
6-7 curry leaves
1 cup besan (chick pea flour)
3 cups water
4 TBS oil
1/4 tsp hing
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric
3-4 garlic crushed
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
2 TBS chopped coriander leaves

Heat oil in a wide bottomed pan. Temper with hing, mustard seeds, garlic and turmeric. Add the chopped green chiliies, onion and curry leaves. Saute till the onion is soft. Add the chili powder and mix. Add the 3 cups of water, salt and sugar and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and add the besan, stirring all the time. Cover and let steam for 5-7 minutes. Garnish with the chopped coriander and serve hot with chapatis or bhakri.


Friday, May 1, 2015

Sabudana Khichadi - Fasting food

Fasting Food - Oxymoron if I ever have heard one- but yes. Fasting in India basically means we cannot eat certain types of food which includes any meat or fish of course, cereals and most vegetables. There are certain 'fasting' approved foods - which are so delicious - you would never know you were fasting.

Sabudana Khichadi is a replacement for the rice that we would normally eat. Sabudana is Sago. You can find it in grocery store.

1 cup sabudana (pre-soaked. explained below)
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup crushed peanuts (see note below)
1/2 cup diced potatoes (small dice)
1/4 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp sugar (for the potatoes)
3-4 green chillies chopped
1/2 tsp jeera (cumin)
2-3 TBS ghee
1 tsp salt
1 TBS sugar
2 TBS chopped cilantro leaves (just the leaves)
1 TBS finely chopped cilantro stems (only the tender part)
2 TBS fresh grated coconut.

To soak the sabudana.
Wash the sabudana and drain the water. Leave just about 2 TBS of water in the bowl and cover and keep aside. After about an hour check - if it is too dry sprinkle some water, mix it up and keep it covered. The sabudana needs to soak and soften completely. This takes about 2 hours. Best is to soak it overnight.
Do not soak it in standing water like we do with beans, it makes the final product lumpy.
Test it by squeezing the sabudana between your fingers, there should be no hard particle when you squeeze. Under soaking can result in a chewy final product.

To make crushed peanuts
Roast the peanuts in a pan till light brown, run them through a chopper to get a coarse chop. You want it a but chunky. And NO- please do not use peanut butter instead.

Once the sabudana is soaked, add the 1 tsp salt and 1 TBS sugar and the crushed peanuts to the sabudana. Mix well and keep aside. Keep it covered so it doesn't dry out.

Heat a saute pan, put in the ghee and when it is hot..not smoking ..add the jeera. Fry the jeera for about 30 seconds. Add the chopped coriander stalks and the green chillies. Add the diced potatoes, the salt and sugar marked for the potatoes, Saute for a minute. Lower the heat and cover and cook till the potatoes are tender.
Add the sabudana mixture and saute till the potatoes, ghee and sabudana are mixed together thoroughly. Test for seasoning, adjust if necessary. Cover and let it steam for about 5-6 minutes. Add the chopped coriander leaves and coconut. Give it a good stir.

Serve hot.








Friday, April 17, 2015

Methamba - Sweet and Spicy Mango Chutney

It's the start of the mango season. That means raw mangoes flooding the market. There are so many things you can make with them. In India you get mangoes only during the season , not like here in North America where we get mangoes year round - from somewhere on the planet.
So when mangoes start arriving in the market in India, it's just crazy!

This is a quick and easy chutney - make it and it will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks- if it doesn't get eaten before that.

1 cup peeled and diced raw mangoes
1/2 cup grated jaggery
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
2 TBS oil
1/2 tsp turmeric
3/4 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp hing
pinch of fennel seeds

In a saucepan, heat oil temper with mustard seeds. When they splutter add the fenugreek seeds and fry for about 30 to 40 seconds. Do not burn the fenugreek seeds, the entire dish will be too bitter if they burn. Add the hing, fennel and turmeric. Add the diced mango and saute. Make sure the mango pieces are coated with the tempered oil. Lower the heat, cover and cook till the mango pieces are tender. Takes about 5 minutes
Add the salt, chili powder and grated jaggery. Mix well. Cover and let cook on very low heat till the jaggery is all melted. At this point the chutney will be a little on the syrup side. Let the liquid cook down to the consistency you want.
Let cool completely before eating. Hot jaggery can burn really bad.

Serve with theplas, parathas, dal and rice or even with some buttered toast- in place of marmalade!





Wednesday, April 1, 2015

Bhakri - Breads galore

People always ask 'what is a bhakri?' So here is the wikipedia definition
Bhakri (Marathi: भाकरी bhākrī) is a round flat unleavened bread often used in the cuisine of the state of Maharashtra in India but is also common in western and central India, especially in the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Malwan, Goa, and northern Karnataka. It is coarser than a roti or chapati. It can be either soft or hard in texture, compared to a British biscuit with respect to hardness.
It is cooked in Marathi homes on a regular basis, and is much healthier than a wheat chapati. The grains used are jowar, bajri or nachani most commonly. In the coastal areas bhakri is also made from rice flour, especially when eaten with seafood.
The technique to making these is a bit different - we don't roll these out, we pat them out on the rolling board and then they are roasted, One flip on the griddle and second flip on the open flame.
When I moved to Canada I didn't have a stove with an open flame (Oh Canada, when will you grow up). But Indian ingenuity being what it is, people came up with a solution. You will see it in the pictures.

1 cup of jowar flour - sorghum flour (or any flour except wheat) - you can get this in bullk barn
pinch of salt
water

In a plate mix the salt and the flour. Make a well in the flour and add water. Form a loose dough. These flours do not contain gluten, so they don't form a neat dough like wheat.
Place the ball of dough on the rolling board and using the palm of your hand, and dry flour as required pat the dough, to form a roti...


Using a spatula carefully lift this and place top side down on a pre-heated tawa or griddle. Apply water liberally to the top of the bhakri and let cook. When the water evaporates and the edges begin to dry, flip the bhakri - wet side down on the griddle.


Let it cook on this side for a couple of minutes, then transfer - with a flip ....to the next burner - or on to the open flame if you have a gas stove. Please use tongs for this step.


Once the bhakri is cooked ...it puffs up...ideally. Remove it from the heat - apply some ghee on it if desired and - its ready to eat. 

Best of luck!


Monday, March 30, 2015

Palak chi bhaji- Spinach

Very simple preparation - quick, easy and nutritious. Eaten with the ubiquitous varan bhat or best with bhakri!


2 bunches fresh spinach leaves. Cleaned, trimmed and chopped. Should be about 5-6 cups of chopped spinach in all.
1/2 cup chopped onion
4-5 large garlic cloves crushed and chopped into medium pieces... do not chop too fine.
2-3 green chillies slit lengthwise
salt to taste
1/4 tsp sugar
2 TBS oil (for tempering)
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
pinch of hing
1/4 tsp turmeric.
1 tsp lemon juice

Best made in a wok or a kadhai or a wide saucepan...gives you room to saute.
Heat oil and temper with mustard seeds, hing and turmeric. Add the garlic and fry till golden...please do not burn the garlic. Add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes till it is translucent. Do not hurry this step or later on you will taste raw onion in the finished vegetable... remember spinach cooks very fast.
Once the onion is cooked and translucent, add the spinach and chilies. Saute well till the spinach and onions are well mixed. Lower the heat to minimum and cover and cook for 5 minutes. Add the salt and sugar. Make sure the spinach is cooked. Steam for a couple of minutes more if required.
Just before you take it off the heat, add the lemon juice.







Monday, March 2, 2015

Ambat Varan...CKP style Dal

You will find dal in every Indian household- each area- nay each house has it's own way of preparing dal. Ambat Varan- literally translated means Sour dal. This is due to the tamarind pulp we add to flavour the dal. This is a true panch ras (5 rasas or tastes) dish. Of course- me being a CKP- I make mine the CKP way...though dal any way is awesome
Ambat varan and rice - it's the ultimate comfort food in any CKP household.
Again - rule of thumb- 1 cup of dal will give you about 3 and half cups of the finished product..so check how much you need.
Tamarind pulp is extracted by soaking the tamarind in a bowl of warm water and squeezing out the fibrous part.
You can cook the dal in the pressure cooker- that's the easiest method. COuple of whistles and steam for 10 minutes and it's done. You can also cook it in a saucepan...just takes time.

For the dal:

1 cup tuvar dal
1/4 tsp hing
1/2 tsp turmeric

Cook the dal in a pressure cooker till done. Remove and blend till smooth - not with a blender- just a wooden spoon will work.

For the Seasoning

1 1/2 tsp salt
2 TBS jaggery
1 1/2  TBS tamarind pulp
3/4 tsp red chili powder

Add these seasonings to the cooked dal.

For the Tempering

10-12 curry leaves
5-6 cloves of garlic crushed
2-3 dry red chillies
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1/4 tsp hing
2 TBS oil

For the finishing

1 cup of water (or more if required)
2 TBS chopped coriander leaves

Heat oil in a saucepan, add the mustard seeds and hing. Add the garlic and fry till light brown...do not burn the garlic. Add the fenugreek seeds, red chillies and curry leaves and add the dal. Stir till the dal is completely mixed with the tempering.
Add 1 cup water- check the dal is at desired consistency- usually soupy - not watery. Recheck for seasoning...Garnish with the coriander leaves. Bring to a rolling boil and done.

Variations

You can use Kokum or raw mango for the sour ingredient instead of tamarind. It's a different flavour profile but equally delicious.
Serve hot over steamed rice - with anything else your heart desires!




Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Bharli Bhendi - Stuffed Okra

Okay so you need time on your hands to make this dish. You need a lot of time actually. Each okra has to be wiped dry, trimmed and slit lengthwise so you can stuff it with the prepared paste. But the end result is worth the effort. Try it one day - I promise you won't be disappointed.

1 lb (250 gms) of Indian okra - try and pick the smaller ones
5 TBS oil
1/2 tsp hing
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp chili powder
12-14 curry leaves

Wipe the okra dry with a paper towel, trim the ends and slit them lengthwise. Take care not to go all the way through or the stuffing will just fall out the other side.

For the stuffing

1 cup fresh grated coconut. (you can use the frozen variety just make sure it's defrosted)
1 cup coriander (cilantro)
1 TBS lime juice

Grind these 3 ingredients to a paste but not too smooth. Let it have a bit of coarseness. Try not to use water when blending. If needed add maybe couple of tablespoons of water.

3 TBS coriander seeds
1 TBS cumin seeds
1 TBS fennel seeds
1 tsp turmeric
1 1/2 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp amchoor powder
1/4 tsp garam masala
1 TBS sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt

Grind all the spices together to a fine powder using a spice grinder or a coffee grinder.
Mix the ground spices with the coconut paste.

Stuff each okra with the spice-coconut paste mixture.
In a large frying pan (I use a paella pan) add the oil, hing, turmeric and chili powder. Stir it together and wait till its just warmed through, do not heat it too much, we don't want to burn the chili powder.
Add the stuffed okra and cover and cook. Give it a careful stir every so often. I usually just shake the pan to move them around. Cook till the okra are tender. This will depend on the size but on average about 25 minutes or so. The okra will loose the green colour and turn kind of black when they are cooked. Add the curry leaves and stir them in, turn off the heat and let sit for a couple of minutes to let the leaves steam and release the flavour.

Serve with chapati or kadhi (http://mykitchenbyswati.blogspot.ca/2011/05/kadhi-yogurt-curry.html ) and rice.









Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Matkichi Usal

This is very very Marathi! Maharashtrians love sprouted beans- very good source of protein- and especially CKP's will cook these on the meatless days!
A very famous Marathi snack food is Misal Pav...basically Usal served with pao (bread) and sides like chopped tomatoes, onion etc...with amti- made with misal masala...details follow at the end of the recipe.

 

This is what matki (or moth or math) beans look like.

you need to soak the beans overnight- then pour out the water and place them- covered- in a warm place to sprout. So making this dish takes a bit of planning. 1 cup of dry beans will yield about 3 cups of sprouted beans.


This is what the sprouted beans look like. 

1 cup of matki beans (sprouted so you get 3 cups of beans)
1 cup chopped onion
8-10 curry leaves
4 TBS oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp hing
3/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin coriander powder
1 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 TBS gur (jaggery)
3-4 kokum
1/4 tsp garam masala
2 TBS chopped coriander leaves

Heat oil and temper with mustard seeds, hing and turmeric. Add the onion and curry leaves and saute till onion turns translucent. Add the sprouted beans, chili powder, cumin/coriander powder and salt. Add a cup of water and cover and cook till done adding more water if needed. 
When the beans are soft- NOT MUSHY- add the jaggery, kokum, garam masala and stir till the jaggery is melted. Stir in the coriander leaves. 





At this point you have the basic usal ready. Can be eaten as it is with chapati or pav- or with dal and rice- whatever takes your fancy.
If you want to serve usal pav...here you go

For the toppings

Finely chopped tomato
Finely chopped red onion
Chopped coriander leaves
Green chili chopped
Yogurt
Fresh grated coconut
Shev or farsan (only Indian will understand this ingredient- feel free to omit it :) )
Pav or dinner rolls

Serve the usal topped with whatever toppings you like....way better than a Big Mac!

Enjoy

Here is what shev looks like - seasoned chick pea flour is made into a dough and deep fried into crunchy sticks!


Saturday, February 14, 2015

Sol Kadhi (Coconut milk with kokum)

Kokum is a sour fruit available in the Western coastal regions of India. It is used in the cuisines of Gujarat and Maharashtra. It imparts a unique sour flavour to the dish. Used very often in fish dishes and coconut based dishes.
Sol Kadhi is coconut milk flavoured with kokum. This is usually an accompaniment to fish dishes and can be eaten with rice or just served as a drink. Very popular among Maharashtrians, there are of course multiple recipes for sol kadhi. But the basic ingredients remain the same.


1 cup of fresh shredded coconut. (you can use the frozen kind, but do not use the dry coconut.)
3 cloves of garlic
1 small green chili
6-8 large kokum
1 tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
1 TBS finely chopped coriander leaves
3-4 cups of water (room temperature)

Blend the shredded coconut, garlic cloves, chili, kokum, sugar and salt with 2 cups of water. Extract the milk and then blend again with the remaining 2 cups of water.
Taste for seasoning if required. Add the finely chopped coriander leaves before serving.

Serve with rice and fried fish!!!



Thursday, February 12, 2015

Cabbage stir fry (Indian style - Kobichi bhaji) - 2 ways

On request from Amruta. I am still puzzled as to when she started eating cabbage bhaji!
This is very basic vegetable to prepare- everybody cooks cabbage- in many different ways.
I make a quick veg using green chillies or sometimes add soaked chana dal or soaked moong dal to it - which take a little bit more time to make - and bit more prep time.
I use the regular cabbage - not Napa cabbage and not the red cabbage.

So the simple version first.

Simple Cabbage Stir Fry

2 cups of green cabbage - shredded.
3-4 Green chillies slit length wise
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
2-3 TBS oil
5-6 curry leaves
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp udad dal
1/2 tsp hing
1/2 tsp turmeric
1.2 tsp cumin-coriander powder
salt to taste
1/2 tsp sugar
1 TBS chopped coriander leaves


The best pan for this is a wok. Heat the oil, add the mustard seeds and  asafoetida (hing). Add the turmeric and udad dal- fry for 30 seconds. Add the curry leaves, ginger and chillies. Fry for less than a minute and add the cabbage. Give it a quick stir to make sure the cabbage is evenly coated with the seasoned oil. Lower the heat, add cumin-coriander powder, salt and sugar. Mix well and cover and cook for 4-5 minutes.
Try not to over cook the cabbage, this tastes best when the cabbage still has a bit of a bite to it.
Garnish with the coriander leaves to serve.

Note- make sure you drain the cabbage completely before you cook it. The best way is to spin it through a salad spinner or lay it out on a kitchen towel and pat dry. Wet cabbage will not cook up crisp and crunchy.





---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now the lengthy version!


Cabbage with chana dal (split chick peas)

3/4 cup soaked chana dal (soaked for at least 3-4 hours)
3 cups of chopped cabbage
10-12 curry leaves
1 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp cumin-coriander powder
3/4 tsp turmeric
3/4 tsp red chili powder
3-4 TBS oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp hing
salt to taste
3/4 tsp sugar
3-4 lime wedges
2 TBS chopped coriander



Heat oil - add the mustard seeds and asafoetida. Add 4-5 curry leaves and the soaked dal, turmeric and chili powder. Saute for a minute. Add 3-4 TBS water and let it come to a boil, lower the heat and cover and cook the dal till al dente. (should give when you press it with you finger but should not turn into a curry). Add the Cabbage, remaining curry leaves, ginger, cumin-coriander powder, salt and sugar. Saute till the dal is mixed with the cabbage. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes.
Garnish with chopped coriander and lime wedges to serve.










Monday, January 26, 2015

Kothimbir wadi - Cilantro leaf fritters


Eat with a cup of steaming chai - yummy!





  • 2 cups chickpea flour/besan
  • 3 cups chopped coriander leaves
  • 1 ½ cup water
  • 1 tbsp rice flour
  • 1 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp cumin-coriander powder
  • 8 garlic pods
  • 1 inch ginger
  • 8 green chillies
  • Oil
  • salt as per taste
  • 1 tsp sugar

  1. Wash the coriander leaves. Chop finely and keep aside. Make a paste out of garlic, ginger and chillies.
  2. Sift the chickpea flour, salt and rice flour together
  3. In a pan heat 3 TBs oil. Add cumin seeds, turmeric powder and ginger garlic chilli paste. Stir and add chopped coriander leaves. Sauté it for a minute. Add water and sugar and bring to a rolling boil. This is a good time to check for salt level. 
  4. Now add chickpea flour mixture and stir continuously. Stir until mixture becomes thick.
  5. Turn of the heat.
  6. Grease a cookie tray. Dump the steamed dough onto the greased cookie sheet and pat it down into an even layer with a greased ziploc pag (to protect your fingers- you can use any brand!
  7. Once it is cool, cut into squares.
     Heat oil in a frying pan and shallow fry the cut squares till nicely browned and crispy on the edges. 
     Serve with tamarind dipping sauce and steaming hot tea. 

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Koshimbir - cucumber salad with yogurt

This is a very typical Maharashtrian side dish. Always a welcome addition to any meal, it cools you down and the peanuts in it add a nice crunch and texture.

1 English cucumber (seedless variety) - grated and set aside to drain
1/2 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup grated radish
2 TBS chopped coriander leaves (cilantro leaves)
2-3 green chillies chopped
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp ghee (clarified butter)
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
2 TBS lemon juice

Grate the cucumber and place in a colander to drain for at least 30 minutes. Assemble the salad just before serving it.
In a bowl, mix the grated cucumber, radish and carrots. Add the salt, sugar and coriander leaves and mix. In a small pan heat the ghee and add the cumin seeds and chopped green chillies. Saute for 2-3 minutes. Make a little well in the grated veggies and pour the tempering in. Mix in the peanuts and the lemon juice. Serve right away.

Variation:

You can use yogurt in this koshimbir instead of lime juice. If adding yogurt, do not temper with the cumin and ghee.
Mix the grated vegetables, coriander leaves, chillies, salt, sugar, crushed peanuts and 1 cup of thick yogurt. 

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Aluchi Patal Bhaji - Colocasia Leaves

Oh this vegetable can be made in so many ways. Some people (like my family) blend it all in, some like to see the leaves in the curry, some add whole peanuts and some add them crushed....But every part of Maharashtra has it's own version.
There are 2 types of colocasia leaves, the thick leaves with the dark stems which are used to make aLuwadi or patra and the thinner leaves, lighter in colour and with green stems are used to make the vegetable. Simple reason is that the thinner leaves cook down faster and the thicker variety is able to hold up to the steaming and frying for the patra.
You can add peanuts, cashew nuts, chana daal, fresh coconut pieces or even radish pieces to this vegetable. 


Here is my version.



2 bunches of the lighter green variety of leaves. Cut off the thick part of the stems and wash thoroughly. Chop coarsely.

4 cups of the chopped leaves
1 TBS tamarind pulp
2-3 green chillies
2 TBS besan (chick pea flour)
1 TBS jaggery
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup skinned raw peanuts (soaked overnight)

Put the leaves in a deep pot with 2 cups of water and the chopped green chillies. Cover and cook till tender. Depending on the tenderness of the leaves it take anything from 20 minutes to an hour. A better way is to cook them in the pressure cooker, 2 whistles and 10-12 minutes of steaming.
 Add the tamarind pulp, jaggery, salt and besan to the cooked vegetable. Run the hand blender to blend everything together till smooth.
Adjust the water and seasoning, the consistency should be like a thick daal...Bring to a boil, add the soaked peanuts and simmer for 10 minutes.

We usually serve this with 'phodnicha tel' which basically means tempered oil. The oil is flavoured with garlic.

3 TBS oil
6-7 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1/4 tsp jeera (cumin)

Add the garlic and the oil to a pan and set on low heat. the oil should heat slowly and cook the garlic. If you add the garlic to hot oil, it browns quickly on the outside and the inside stays raw. If you try to cook it at temperature, the garlic burns. There is no worse taste than burnt garlic.
Let the garlic brown nicely on low heat, add the cumin and hing and remove from heat.

You can either add the entire oil to the curry or each person can add it to their own bowl as per taste.

Enjoy this taste of Maharashtra.




Friday, May 13, 2011

Kadhi (Yogurt Curry)

This is a very common dish in India and is made in all regions - of course with regional differences. Here is how I like it

2 cups yogurt
2 cloves garlic, 2 green chillies (or 1 if you don't like it too spicy), 1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger. This is to be put through the chopper or the blender..but it should be a little coarse.
1 TBS of gram flour (besan - chick pea flour)
salt and sugar to taste, chopped coriander (cilantro) for garnish
5-6 curry leaves
pinch of asafoetida, mustard seeds for tempering, 1/8 tsp turmeric.
1 TBS oil

Blend together the yogurt, chili/garlic/ginger, salt, sugar and gram flour.
In a non-reactive pot (use stainless steel or a non stick one) heat 1 TBS oil, add the mustard seeds, asafoetida, turmeric and the curry leaves.
Put in the blended yogurt mixture. Add about 2 cups of water and whisk till it becomes smooth. Keep on low heat. Taste - check if extra salt is needed after you add the water.
Stir continuously till the kadhi is heated through and starts  bubbling at the edges, add the chopped coriander. Do not let it boil...that will cause the yogurt to separate.

Enjoy with Khichadi!








Vangyache bharit... Hot

This is a different style of bharit. This is more common in the Nagpur region, where my father's family came from. It's my personal ...