Kabuli Biryani Recipe-Hyderabadi Chana Dal(Qabooli) biryani-Sunday Lunch Recipes Series - 18

Sorry for this week's delayed post.My younger sister Radha was here for the past week.We had a great time together after years by spending most of the time in chatting,shopping etc.So i gave a small break to my blog posts.Today’s Sunday biryani recipe is Hyderabad’s most popular qabooli biryani made using chana dal.I made this for my sister and she loved it a lot.When I heard about the title of this biryani,I wondered how come a biryani can be made just by using chana dal.But when I prepared it,I was really amazed with the flavor and taste.For any biryani,it’s the whole garam masala and spice powders that matters the taste.Even if u add vegetables,meat or make plain biryani,the right amount of spices is the key.For this biryani,Curd chutney is the best side dish that is served in Hyderabad,Andhra.So I made perugu pachadi/Curd chutney(Dahi chutney) by referring Preeti’s blog.For this biryani recipe,I watched Vahchef’s video and referred preeti’s recipe too.Friends,do try this kabuli chana biryani with curd chutney for your Sunday Lunch.Relish it with your family.

Kabuli biryani recipe

Hyderabad popular qabooli biryani recipe using chana dal

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Lunch

Serves: Serves 3

Prep time: 30 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 50 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Basmati rice - 1 cup( India Gate) Water - 6 cups Salt - as needed Whole garam masala - 1 each (cinnamon,cloves,cardamom,bayleaf) For masala Chana dal - 1/4 cup Cooking oil – 2 tbsp Ghee – 1 tbsp Whole garam masala( Cinnamon,cloves,cardamom,kalpasi and bayleaf) – 1 each g&g paste - 1 tsp Big onion – 1 no ( sliced) Green chilli – 1 no (slit) Mint leaves – a handful Red chilli powder – 1 tsp Dhania powder – 1.5 tsp Curd – 1/2 cup Lemon juice – few drops Big onion – 1 no to caramelize CURD CHUTNEY FOR BIRYANI Fresh thick curd – 1 cup Finely chopped green chilli – 1-2 nos Mint+coriander leaves – 2-3 tbsp Big onion – 1 no ( finely chopped) cumin powder- 1/8 tsp Salt – as needed

METHOD

Wash and soak the basmati rice and chana dal for 30 minutes. Slice the big onion and deep fry till it turns golden brown.Set aside. Boil 6 cups of water and some salt.Add the whole garam masala.Drain the excess water from the soaked rice.When the water comes to roll boil,add the rice and boil for 5-7 minutes in medium flame.Remove the rice when it is cooked till 90%.Let it cool.Do not drain the boiled water. In the same water,add the soaked chana dal and cook till its firm and soft.Drain the excess water and keep the cooked chana aside. Heat oil+ghee in a kadai and saute the whole garam masala.Now add the sliced onions,g&g paste and green chilli.Saute till onion turns transparent.Add mint leaves and mix well. Add the spice powders and salt one by one and mix well.Lastly add the curd and mix well.Add the cooked chana dal and give a nice boil till the gravy thickens a bit. Make sure there is little water and the gravy is not too dry. Once the gravy is done,layer the cooked rice and sprinkle some chopped mint leaves. Garnish with caramalized onions and add some lemon juice.Cover the kadai tightly with a lid and keep the flame low.Put in DUM for 15 minutes.Nice aroma will waft through.It shows your biryani is done.Remove and fluff it with a fork.Serve with curd chutney or mirchi ka salan.These two are meant to be the best side dish for this biryani. HOW TO MAKE CURD CHUTNEY Finely chop the green chilli,mint leaves,coriander leaves and onions.Take them in a bowl.Mix thick curd and salt.Beat well and serve. Enjoy !

Note

I saw some kabuli biryani using black chana. If you are using that,soak the chana overnight and then cook them in pressure cooker till done. Increase the quantity of green chilli for more spicy biryani.

Enjoy kabuli biryani with this simple curd chutney.It’s the best side dish !

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Vegan Potato Salad Dressed with Avocado

It's been an unseasonably hot spring this year in London, Ontario. Seems winter went and summer just kicked right in. That means more salads have been appearing on the menu. Potato salad always seems to be a popular choice and is especially suited to potlucks and picnics — especially this one that is made without eggs or a dairy-based dressing.

I've never been especially fond of mayonnaise and lately I have tried to replicate the creaminess that is often present in potato salads and coleslaws with fresh avocado. I have been delighted with the results and plan to try something different with my favorite Caesar salad next time I make it. The dressing here adds a tangy element to the salad that is not to be missed if you enjoy dressing up potatoes. It's super easy to prepare too, and the dressing can be made up while the vegetables are roasting. Roasting the potatoes is a fantastic way to prevent the potatoes from getting mushy and brings out their natural goodness while preserving more of the nutrients. As for roasted asparagus, it takes so little time if the asparagus is fresh. In this instance, the oven was already heated up with the potatoes and so it only made sense to skip steaming or pan-frying the asparagus.

Vegan Potato Salad Dressed with Avocado

Recipe by Lisa Turner Adapted from The Oh She Glows Cookbook: Vegan Recipes To Glow From The Inside Out Published on June 8, 2015 Golden brown roasted potatoes and tender roasted asparagus tossed in a creamy, tangy and zesty avocado and dill dressing — perfect for hot summer days Print this recipe Salad: 2 lbs (900 g) white potatoes, cut into 1/2 cubes or triangles 1 bunch (1 lb or 450 g) asparagus 1 tablespoon sesame oil 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper 2 green onions, trimmed and chopped Dressing: 1 avocado, pitted and peeled 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped juice from 1 lemon (3 tablespoons) 1 green onion, trimmed and chopped 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (optional) 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste Instructions: Preheat an oven to 425°. Toss the potatoes with half of the oil and transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, taking care to spread them evenly. Season with some salt and pepper. Roast for about 15 minutes, flip them, and roast for another 10 minutes until lightly browned and fork tender. Meanwhile, snap the woody ends off of the asparagus spears and chop the spears into 1-inch pieces. Push the potatoes to the side to make room for the asparagus. Drizzle the asparagus with the remaining oil and season with a bit more salt and pepper. Place the pan back in the oven and roast the vegetables for 10 minutes until the asparagus is tender. Transfer the vegetables to a large bowl and add the green onions. Let the salad cool to room temperature. To make the dressing, combine all of the ingredients in a small food processor until smooth. Add a little water if necessary. Toss the salad with the dressing and serve at room temperature or chilled. Makes 4 to 6 servings

I am sharing this with Jacqueline's Meat Free Monday event, and also No Croutons Required, a monthly event showcasing vegetarian soups and salad, alternately hosted by Jac and myself. Jacqueline is hosting the June 2015 edition.

More potato salads to enjoy this summer:
Indian-Style Potato and Pea Salad with Tamarind and Chat Masala
Mexican-Style Potato Salad With Avocado and Jalapeño
Creamy Herbed Potato and Green Pea Salad
Warm Baby Potato and Asparagus Salad

Audio: rain

Ginger Cardamom Tea Recipe-How To Make Indian Chai

The day of Indians never complete without a chai.Be it morning or evening,drinking a tea/chai makes us refreshing and energetic.Not just that,tea has many health benefits too.In my family,my dad and FIL loves to have tea both in morning and evening.My mom always makes tea with cardamom.Whereas my MIL adds ginger with cardamom to improve digestion.By watching my mom and MIL,I learnt how to make a good,flavorful tea.I love to attempt varieties of tea and shared Masala chai,Assam tea and ginger tea recipes already.In this post,I have shared a basic tea recipe adding ginger and cardamom for beginners.Hope it would be useful .Ok,Lets see how to make inji,elaichi tea now.

Indian Tea Recipe-Ginger Cardamom tea

How to make ginger,cardamom tea at home

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Cooking Basics

Serves: Serves 1

Prep time: 5 Minutes

Cook time: 5 Minutes

Total time: 10 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 200 ml Boiled Milk - 3/4 cup ( Thick milk) Water - 2-4 tbsp Sugar - 1.25-1.5 tsp Tea powder-3/4 tsp ( I use 3 roses brand) Ginger - 2 inch piece Cardamom - 1 no

METHOD

Wash and peel the skin of ginger.Crush it along with cardamom using a mortar & pestle.Keep aside. Take the boiled milk in a milk pan or bowl.Add little water.If u use thick milk add 1/4 cup of water for 3/4 cup of milk.If using thin milk,add just 2 tbsp of water. To this add sugar and tea powder.Add the crushed ginger & cardamom seed.Keep the flame medium and boil the tea for 2 minutes.The essence of ginger and cardamom would be absorbed well. Remove the pan and strain the tea using a tea strainer or cloth filter. Serve in a glass or cup.Enjoy !

Note

Add more sugar based on your taste.My mom always adds less sugar because the sugar should not supress the taste of tea. You can make this tea by adding ginger or cardamom alone. Tea tastes good only if water is added to the milk.So a tea should not be thick. If u want strong and nice colored tea,add more tea powder and allow it to boil for more time.

Try this easy and flavorful tea.Enjoy your evening time !

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Mananthakkali Keerai Kootu Recipe-Black Night Shade Recipes

I think about manathakkali keerai(Black night shade in English) only when we get mouth ulcers and inflammations .It gives a good cure for liver & other stomach related problems.Apart from these,there are many more health benefits.So I treat this keerai as a medicine mostly.I usually make Manathakkali thanni saaru using fresh leaves and Vatha kuzhambu with dried berries.Its been my long time wish to try kootu recipe with it.But I was afraid of its bitter taste.My MIL told me to add more dal and coconut to suppress its bitterness.I followed the same and the kootu came out very well.This time I followed an easy method and cooked it directly in the pressure cooker just like paruppu keerai.Its taste was very close to hotel ones.Here I have used moong dal.You can replace it with toor dal or chana dal too.Friends,do try this easy,healthy kootu.It’s a good side dish for Vatral kulambu rice.Lets see how to make this South Indian style manathakkali kootu recipe.

Manathakkali keerai kootu recipe

Manathakkali keerai kootu recipe-Healthy,easy one pot keerai kootu recipe

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Side dish for rice

Yields: 3

Prep time: 15 Min

Cook time: 15 Min

Total time: 30Min

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 200ml

Manathakkali keerai/Black night shade – 2 cups Mooong dal - 3 tbsp Salt & Water – as needed To Grind Grated coconut - 1/2 cup Rice flour - 1 tsp To Temper Cooking oil or coconut oil - 1.5 tbsp Mustard seeds -1 tsp Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp Small onion - 15 nos or Big onion - 1 no Tomato – 1 no Turmeric powder – 1/8 tsp Sambar powder - 1.5 tsp

METHOD

Remove the leaves from stalk and wash it twice.Chop them roughly and set aside.Chop the onions,tomato.Keep aside. Grind the coconut and rice flour to a smooth paste.Set aside. Heat oil in a pressure cooker base and splutter mustard seeds,jeera.curry leaves. Add onions, tomato and saute till transparent & mushy.Add the moong dal,saute for a minute.Now add the chopped keerai and saute until they shrink. Add 1 cup of water,sambar powder,turmeric powder and required salt. Cook it for one whistle in very low flame. After the pressure is released,add the ground coconut paste and boil the kootu for 5 minutes.Add some water if it thickens.Lastly add the coconut oil and switch off the flame. Transfer the kootu to a bowl aned close with a lid.

Note

For variations u can cook the leaves &dal separately and mix them as given in my keerai kootu recipe. Replace manathakkali with arai keerai,mulai keerai or palak and proceed as given above.

Healthy,One pot Manathakkali Keerai kootu is ready to eat with Kara kuzhambu & rice !!

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Beetroot Chocolate Brownies with Coconut

I've made beetroot cake in the past, but for some reason the idea of using beets for brownies had never occurred to me until I stumbled across a post by Margot of Coffee & Vanilla. As a result, I was at the grocery store the same day to pick up some beets and made a few adjustments to her recipe to suit my preferences. Usually when I made desserts or treats, they are raw, but leave it to me to bake on one the hottest days of the year so far. Not that I have any regrets, and apparently my husband didn't either — although it makes a large pan of brownies, they were eaten up quickly, for breakfast and for lunch. I did have a few little bites and shared some with my best friend Basil, but hubby got the lion's share.

These certainly are a treat and if you didn't know it, you probably wouldn't guess there were beets in the mix. At the same time, they add a unique sweetness, combined with fine quality dark chocolate, unsweetened coconut and coconut sugar. The first bites had a hint of spiciness, though there is no spice present. These cakey brownies are some of the best I have enjoyed in a while. They are fairly easy to make up, especially if you roast the beets the day before.

Beetroot Chocolate Brownies with Coconut

Recipe by Lisa Turner Adapted from Coffee & Vanilla Published on June 2, 2015 Lightly sweet brownies with roasted beets and coconut in the batter Print this recipe Ingredients: 2 medium beets 1 cup unsalted butter 10 oz (300 g) dark chocolate 3/4 cup coconut or brown sugar 3 large eggs, separated 1 cup unbleached white flour 2/3 cup dried grated unsweetened coconut 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon vanilla Instructions: Scrub the beets and roast them in a 400° oven until just fork tender, about 40 minutes. Let cool, then peel and grate. Lightly grease a 9 × 13 inch baking pan with butter. Line with parchment paper and then lightly grease again with butter. Preheat an oven to 350°. Heat the butter and chocolate in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-low heat until melted, stirring often. Set aside for a few minutes to cool. In a medium bowl, lightly whisk together the egg yolk and vanilla. Stir in the flour, coconut and baking powder until well combined. In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric hand mixer until frothy. Gradually add the sugar, and continue to beat for another 5 to 10 minutes until thick. Stir the flour mixture into the melted chocolate and butter to combine. Fold in the egg white and sugar mixture until well combined. Then fold in the grated beets. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let cool completely before serving. Makes 25 to 30 2-inch brownies

Other brownies recipes you are sure to enjoy from Lisa's Kitchen:
Vegan Black Bean Brownies
Brownies with Dried Fruit
Avocado Brownies
Peanut Butter Brownies

Spinach Biryani Recipe/Palak Biryani(Keerai Sadam)-Sunday Lunch Recipes-17

I tried this Chettinad style Keerai biryani recipe adding palak leaves after watching Captain TV Cookery show.It came out really well.We loved it.My daughter Raksha had a plateful of this biryani happily.As this was my first attempt of making a biryani adding greens/keerai,I was doubtful about its taste.So I made Drumstick poricha kuzhambu and Rasam along with it.But biryani bowl got emptied first.I am sure this would be a healthy choice for fussy kids who don’t eat green leaves.Here I have used spinach/Palak as it is easy to clean & chop.You can use Arai keerai,Mulai keerai(Amaranth leaves),Methi leaves as suggested in the TV show.Try this healthy biryani recipe for your kids and Husband’ lunch box.This recipe gets thumbs up from everyone in the family.Ok,Lets see how to make this Indian Palak biryani recipe in detail.

Please check my other biryani & pulao recipes here :)

Palak biryani/Spinach biryani recipe

Healthy,easy spinach biryani recipe - Sunday Lunch Recipes series -17

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Lunch menu

Serves: Serves 3

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Spinach/Palak leaves - 1 cup ( 1/2 bunch) Basmati rice - 1 cup ( I use India Gate) Salt - as needed Water - 1.75 cups To saute Cooking oil + ghee - 1 tbsp + 1 tbsp Cinnamon - 1 inch Cloves - 2 no Cardamom - 1 no Black stone flower/Kalpasi - 1 no Bayleaf - 1 no Big onion -1 no Small onion -5 nos Green chilli - 1 no Mint leaves – 2 tbsp Tomato – 1 no Curd – 1 tbsp Lemon juice – few drops To grind Red chillies - 3 nos Ginger - 1 inch piece Garlic cloves - 5 nos Pepper corns - 1/4 tsp

METHOD

Grind all the ingredients given under “to grind” to a smooth paste.Set aside.Wash & soak the basmati rice for 30 minutes. Wash and chop the palak leaves.Chop the onions,mint leaves and tomato into fine pieces.Slit the green chilli. Heat oil+ghee in a cooker base. Saute the whole spices and add the slitted green chilli and onions.Saute till transparent.Add the ground paste and saute till raw smell goes off. Add tomatoes and saute till it becomes mushy. Lastly add the mint leaves.Mix well and add the finely chopped palak leaves.Add rice,salt,curd,water and lemon juice.Give a boil.Mix well and close the cooker.Cook in very low flame for one whistle.After the steam is released,remove the lid and fluff the rice with fork. Enjoy !

Note

You can replace palak with Arai keerai,mulai keerai or vendhaya keerai/Methi leaves. Add more number of red chillies for spicy biryani. You can also powder the whole spices and add to this biryani for variation. Adding ghee gives a nice flavor.So don’t skip it.

Try this healthy,kids friendly Keerai biryani.You will enjoy it !

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