Vegetable Bonda

I made this couple of months ago but did not find time to post it. Vegetable bonda reminds me of Janavasam tiffen. This one is sure to be present for the janavasam tiffen. Nischiyatharthan followed by Janavasam is done the day before the wedding. These days this one is  performed before the reception but whatever said and done bondas are definitely in the kalyanam menu at least for one velai. I miss attending weddings. I havent attended one for the past two years. During my next trip to India I will make sure that at least I attend one.  I know it is not a healthy snack since it involves frying hence I try to add other veggies too... (mainly people use potatoes for this) like beets, carrots and peas.

Now lets get to the recipe....

Ingredients:

For the Filling

4 Large Potatoes

1 Carrot

Few Strands Beans

1 Beetroot

1/2 Cup Frozen Peas Thawed (you may use fresh ones too)

1/2 Tsp Red Chilly Powder (the one I use is very hot so I use only half a tsp)

3/4th Tsp Salt

1 TBSPN Lemon Juice

For tempering - mustard, channa dhal, urad dhal, cashew, curry leaves

Cilantro

For the batter

3/4th Cup Besan Powder (kadala mavu)

1/4 Cup Rice Flour

Hing

Turmeric Powder

1/2 Tsp Salt

1/2 Tsp Red chilly powder

Water

Oil for frying

Combine all the ingredients mentioned for the batter (except water) and mix it well. Add water little by little without forming lumps. It should not be too watery. It should be like dosa/bajji batter.

Boil the veggies (Remember to drain the water - do not let the veggies stand in the water after boiling them for too long). Mash them well.

Take a Tsp of oil in a pan. Add the items listed for tempering. Add this to the mashed veggies. Add salt,

red chilly powder, cilantro and lemon juice. Make balls out of it.

Heat enough oil in a pan. Dip the veggie ball inside the batter and drop it in the oil. Take it out when the outer layer is cooked. Drain the excess water. Serve it with ketch up or chutney! Enjoy!

Kunukku (Rice and Dhal Pakoras)

Kunukku is very famous in Tamil Nadu. Not sure whether it is made in other parts of India. It is a nice evening snack in our household. I could not come with a better English name for it....hence simply calling it rice dhal pakoras. My patti used to make this all this time. You can also make Adai with this batter by adding water to it. Adai is made similar to dosas but would rather say it is closer to the way pesarattu looks. I am not a big fan of Adai so patti used to always make kunukku for me. Once my friends had come home for some dance practice for an inter school competition and patti prepared this for everyone and they all enjoyed it. As I write my mouth is watering....will sure make it once again sometime next week!

Ingredients:

2 Cups Raw Rice (you may use par boiled rice too). This time I used Idli Rava since I had this in my pantry
1/2 Cup Toor Dhal (it comes crispier if you add more of this dhal)
1/4 Cup Channa Dhal
1/4 Cup Urad Dhal
6 Red Chillies
1/2 Cup Grated Coconut
Hing
Turmeric Powder
Oil for frying

Soak the rice, red chillies and dhal for around 5 hours. I soaked the dhal and red chillies separately since I used idli rava. If you are using idli rava soak it water just enough for the rava - do not add too much water.

After 5 hours drain the water completely from the rice and dhal. You may also use a colander to remove the excess water. Grind it into a coarse batter.

Add salt, turmeric and hing and mix it well.

Take oil in a pan. After it gets heated drop small dumplings (balls) into the oil. Take it out once it starts turning slightly brown. Drain the excess oil using a kitchen towel. You may also add bell pepper or mint to this batter and make this snack. Serve this yummy crispy snack with chutney or ketch up...I love it "As Is"..
Enjoy!

Mangalore Bonda

This reminds me of my schools days when Patti used to make yummy "mangalore bonda"!! Miss those days!! This will be waiting for us "hot hot hot" when we get back from school. I wasn't a big fan of this but definitely tried it whenever she made it. My mom loved this more than I did. I haven't tried making it even once...this was my first attempt.

A friend of mine had moved to DC and she was visiting us after more than year and half or so and so sweet of her to visit all of us during her short visit and that too with 2 kids (a preschooler and an infant).... she called me in the afternoon and informed that she would visit us in the evening and I did not know what to make for them...so this was the one that came to my mind and she loves trying yummy stuff and the burfi I made on Wednesday came in handy..how much happy I felt after seeing her after such a long time....they could not stay for a long time since they had to meet other friends too during their short visit but I was so happy to see her....I was happy that all of them enjoyed mangalore bonda too...It reminds me of the days when we used to work together....miss those days...

They use sour curds for making this...I first thought of making it with normal curd....and when I was rummaging the refrigerator....found this secret ingredient and I substituted it with that instead...wondering what it could be...my favorite sour cream....was doubtful about using it but no one could tell the difference....it turned out yummy. One thing about this starter is you need to make it just before serving...it tastes good that way...otherwise it will turn soggy if you make it too much in advance.

Ingredients:

1 Cup Maida or All Purpose Flour
1/4 Cup Rice Flour
1/4 Cup Fine Rawa
1 Big Green Chilly Finely Chopped
2 Inches Finely Chopped Ginger
1 Cup Sour Yogurt (If you do not have sour curd then try this use 3/4th Cup Curd and 1/4 Cup Sour Cream)
Lots of Cilantro and Curry leaves
Salt to taste (if you are adding sour cream or store bought yogurt do not add too much salt...check the batter before adding salt)
Oil for frying

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients (except oil) and leave it for 4 - 5 hours.
2. You do not need water for mixing it. Just use the curd for mixing the above ingredients
3. Take oil in a pan. When the oil is heated, just take the batter by hand and drop it in the oil. You may drop 6 - 8 pieces (as shown in the picture) at a time depending on the size of your pan. It will start puffing and will start turning brown on one side. Now turn it and cook till the other side also turns golden brown.
4. The yummy snack is ready to be served...one good thing is you do not need to grind anything for this..the only thing is you need to make the batter well in advance....voila! yummy mangalore bonda is ready.

Corn Chaat

This is one easy starter cum  healthy snack!! Corn chaatwala's have sprung up in every nook and corner in Chennai...each and every mall has this one. I first had the masala corn in Abirami Mall long time ago!! It was awesome. I made some improvisation to the corn masala chaat and this is simple to prepare and loved by all my friends here. They do not get bored of it even if I prepare it every time we meet ...We all have corn in the freezer all the time and if you happen to have sudden guests at home ...serve them this chaat and they will love it!! I am not going to provide the method of preparing it by "OZ" or per "TBSPN"....the best thing about this is you make the way you want it...discover the joys of it by adding the things you like the best!!

Items needed -

Tostitos scoops (If you do not have this do not worry...but it is lot easier to eat when served with scoops)

Corn Frozen 

Tomatoes - cut into small pieces

Onion - cut into small pieces

Coriander Powder

Chilly Powder

Cumin Powder

Mint Leaves - finely chopped

Cilantro - finely chopped

Amchur Powder - a pinch

Fennel Powder - a pinch

Salsa

Salt

Lemon Juice

Microwave the corn for few minutes. Add all the ingredients listed above except the lemon juice and salt. If you are going to serve the corn immediately then you may add them all. But if you are just preparing it and  serving it at a later time then add the salt and lemon juice just before serving so as to avoid the chaat leaving water.

Serve it with tostitos scoops....If you are a person who can take spicier food then you may add Jalapenos or Banana pepper........as said earlier....make it, serve it and eat it the way you like it!! Enjoy!!