This is an Indian style burger which is a very popular street food in the state of Maharashtra, especially in Mumbai. Found almost in every street corners and in small eateries, people literally live on it throughout the day and it is a favourite lunch time meal for all office-goers and students. It can be served as a tea-time snack too.
This simple, humble and an equally yummy bun stuffed with a vada (dumpling) and served with green chutney, sweet chutney and spicy garlic chutney is sold like hot cakes. For some variation, try having it with a sprinkle of some grated cheese. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare it.
Vada -
- 1 large potato / 2 med. potatoes, boiled & mashed
- 1 tbsp. oil
- 1 tsp. cumin seeds
- pinch of asafoetida
- 1 tsp. garlic, chopped
- 1 tsp. ginger, chopped
- 2 green chilies, chopped
- 2 tbsp. coriander leaves, chopped
- salt to taste
Batter -
- 1/2 cup besan (Gram flour)
- salt to taste
- 1/2 tsp. red chili powder
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
- 1/8 tsp. baking soda
- oil to deep fry
Other Ingredients -
- Pav Buns as required
- tamarind sweet chutney to serve
- coriander-mint chutney to serve
- garlic chutney to serve
Vada - Heat oil in a pan and temper with cumin seeds. Saute for a few seconds. Then add the asafoetida, garlic, ginger, green chilies and salt.
Sauté till light brown. Add this tempering to the boiled & mashed potatoes. Mix well along with coriander leaves.
Form into equal size balls and refrigerate for an hour. Prepare a semi-thick batter with the besan, salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, baking soda and required quantity of water.
Heat oil in a pan. Dip each ball in the batter and deep fry them in batches till light golden in colour. Drain on a kitchen towel.
To assemble the vada pav - Take a pav bun, slit halfway and smear with the green chutney and the tamarind - sweet chutney on either sides.
Add some garlic chutney and place a vada on it. Drizzle some more of the chutneys and a sprinkle of more of the garlic chutney. Serve with green chili for a delicious snack.
Heat oil & temper with cumin seeds. Add garlic, asafoetida, ginger, salt
& green chilies. Saute till light brown.
Add tempering to mashed potatoes & mix with coriander leaves.
Form into equal sized balls. Refrigerate for an hour.
Make a thick batter with besan, salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder &
baking soda.
Dip balls in the batter & deep fry them ....
......till golden in colour.
Drain on a kitchen towel.
Smear some green chutney & sweet chutney on either sides of the pav.
Spread some garlic chutney.
Place a vada over it & some more of the chutneys.
Serve this yummy Vada Pav with some fresh green chilies.
This is a Mughlai style dal combining two types of lentils - Split Moong Dal & Tuvar Dal (Green Gram & Pigeon Pea Lentils). The end product was a rich, smooth and a creamy texture due to the addition of yoghurt, cashew paste and ground fried onion paste.
This delicacy can be served with any rice preparation like pulao, Plain Biryani or jeera rice and with any type of Indian bread. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare it.
- 1/4 cup moong dal (split green gram)
- 1/4 cup tuvar dal (pigeon pea lentil)
- 1 tbsp. oil
- 1 tsp. ginger-garlic paste
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp. red chili powder or to taste
- 1 tsp. roasted coriander-cumin powder
- 1/2 - 1 tsp. garam masala powder
- salt to taste
- 7-8 cashew nuts
- 1/4 cup fried onions
- 1/2 cup yoghurt
- 1 tbsp. ghee
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
- 1" cinnamon stick
- 2 green cardamoms
- 4 cloves
- 1 tsp. red chili flakes
- 1 tsp. lime juice or to taste
- chopped coriander leaves to garnish
Pressure cook both the dals in 1 & 1/2 cups water for 4-5 whistles. Whisk and keep aside.
In a small bowl, mix together ginger-garlic paste and all the dry spices with some water to form a paste. Keep aside.
Blend together the cashew, fried onion and the yoghurt. Keep aside.
Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a pan and sauté the spice paste till the oil separates. Now add the boiled dal and simmer on a low flame for 2-3 minutes.
Now add the ground cashew paste. Mix well and simmer for a minute or two more. Switch off the flame and transfer the contents to a serving dish.
Heat the ghee in a pan and temper with the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamoms and cloves. Sauté for a few seconds and switch off the flame.
Add the chili flakes and stir well. Pour this tempering over the dal and add a dash of lime.
Serve, garnished with coriander leaves. This goes well with rice or any Indian bread.
Make a paste of ginger-garlic & all dry spices along with some water.
Heat oil & sauté the spice paste till oil separates.
Add boiled dal and green chilies. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Blend together cashews, fried onion & yoghurt.
Add cashew paste to the dal. Mix & simmer for 1-2 minutes.
Heat ghee & temper with mustard seeds, cumin seeds, bay leaf, whole garam
masala & chili flakes.
Pour tempering over the dal & add a dash of lime. Garnish with coriander
leaves & serve either with rice or chapattis.
Shahi Malpuas are delicious sweet Pancakes, very popular in West Bengal and other Northern regions. There are many versions to this recipe where the ingredients differ from one region to the other. This is my family recipe that I am sharing.
In this recipe, I shallow fried them for a healthier option. They are then dipped in sugar syrup and topped with chopped nuts on a bed of rabdi (thickened milk). The rabri can also be drizzled over it while serving. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare it.
- 1/2 cup sooji (semolina)
- 1/2 cup maida (Plain flour)
- 1 1/2 tbsp. fresh grated coconut
- 1 tbsp. brown sugar for the malpua batter
- 1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
- milk as required
- 1/2 cup evaporated milk
- sugar to taste for the instant rabri
- ghee for shallow frying
- 3/4 cup brown sugar for the syrup
- 2-3 pinches of cardamom powder
- 4-5 cardamoms
- 1 tsp. chopped nuts
Batter - In a bowl, mix together sooji, maida, coconut, 1 tbsp. sugar, 1 pinch of cardamom powder, fennel seeds and required quantity of milk and prepare a batter. Leave aside for 30 minutes.
Sugar Syrup - In a pan heat together 3/4 sugar, 3/4 cup water and remaining cardamom powder. Simmer on a low flame till the sugar is dissolved and you have a slightly thick syrup. Keep aside.
Instant Rabdi - Mix together evaporated milk and sugar to taste. Keep aside.
To prepared malpuas, adjust milk and add more if the batter has turned thick. Heat a pan and add 1 tbsp. of ghee.
Pour a small ladleful of the batter and cook on both sides till light golden in colour. Make in batches of two or three.
Immediately soak in the sugar syrup for few seconds till it is well coated. Place on a serving dish and top it up with the instant rabdi and chopped nuts. Refrigerate if preferred and enjoy them hot or cold.
Note:
For the rabdi - you can go in for the lengthy process of thickening the milk till it is semi solid.
For the batter - You can combine, atta (whole wheat flour), khoya / mawa (Milk solids), milk powder instead of sooji and maida as per choice.
In a bowl, mix together sooji (semolina),
. .......maida,
Grind brown sugar along with cardamom into a powder.
Add ground sugar.
.....1 & 1/2 tbsp. fresh grated coconut.
Also add sugar & cardamom powder. Mix well.
Add required quantity of milk....
...and form a batter of pouring consistency. Set aside for 30 minutes
To make the sugar syrup, grind sugar and cardamoms.
Add this to the pan....
...along with water & cardamoms. Simmer till slightly thick. Keep aside.
Mix the batter well again. Adjust water if required.
The batter should be of pouring consistency.
Add fennel seeds & give it a mix.
Heat some ghee & pour two ladleful of the batter.
Fry on both sides till light golden in colour.
Transfer on to a plate.
Dip them into the sugar syrup for a few seconds till well coated.
Arrange on a serving plate & serve......
........topped with the instant rabdi & chopped nuts.
This is a classic Rajasthani dish of roasted papads cooked in a yogurt based gravy. It is a very easy and a simple preparation which obviously has many versions. Onions may or may not be added. In this recipe I have omitted it and made the gravy light with just a hint of ginger-garlic paste, crushed kasuri methi and all the dry spices.
Papad comes handy when you run short of veggies. But you need to be very careful with salt as the papads already contain the same. It is best enjoyed either with rice or chapatis. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare it.
- 3-4 masala papads, roasted or fried
- 1 tbsp. mustard oil
- 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
- 1 tsp. ginger-garlic paste
- 1 cup yogurt, beaten
- pinch of salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp. roasted coriander-cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp. red chili powder
- 1 tsp. kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves), crushed
- 2 green chillies, slit
- coriander leaves to garnish
Heat oil in a pan and temper with the cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Saute for a few seconds.
Then add the ginger-garlic paste and all the dry spices (excluding salt) mixed with some water, followed by the crushed kasuri methi.
Saute till the oil separates. Switch off the flame and add the beaten yoghurt and the green chilies. Put on the flame and keep stirring on a low flame for a minute.
Add 1 1/4 cups water and just a pinch of salt (adjust later as the papads already have salt in them). Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Add the papads, broken into pieces and mix well. Simmer for a minute more and serve, garnished with coriander leaves.
Heat oil & temper with mustard seeds & cumin seeds.
Add ginger-garlic paste & all the dry spices (except salt), followed by
crushed kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves).
Sauté till oil separates.
Add beaten yoghurt & slit green chilies.
Add water & a pinch of salt. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Roast 3-4 papads in the microwave or fry them.
Break them into pieces & add to the gravy. Simmer for another minute.
Garnish with coriander leaves & serve with rice or chapattis.
