SHEV RASSA BHAJI

The recipe of spicy gravy with sev is called as Shev Bhaji in Marathi. When I make shev bhaji at my place I have to make extra chapattis. Many people are used to make this bhaji with readymade shev  but I like to make the shev at the same time which tastes awesome. I always make this shev bhaji in iron kadhai which gives a very nice colour to the gravy.  It’s spicy but feast for the spicy food fans. Shev Bhaji or Shev Rassa Bhaji is made in different ways in each part of Maharashtra.

If you travel in Maharashtra by road  you can find a nice spicy shev bhaji on roadside dhabas. If you want to make Dhaba style shev bhaji just increase the amount of oil, red chilli powder and garam masasla.

In Kandesh this spicy recipe is called as Shevachi Lal Bhaji. The curry masala is prepared with dry coconut, onion, garam masala and coriander powder. At my place I used to add the kala masala which is made for yearly purpose. You can use kolhapuri garam masala which is comparartively very hot as compare to kala masala or garam masala.

  To make shev bhaji healthy and tasty I have shared some tips at the end in Note section.

INGREDIENTS:

 For making shev:

1 Cup Besan Flour [gram flour]

1 teaspoon garlic paste

1 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder

¼ teaspoon Turmeric Powder

1 teaspoon Coriander Powder

Salt to taste

For the gravy:

2 tablespoon Coconut-Onion Paste

1 teaspoon Ginger-Garlic Paste

½ teaspoon Cumin Seeds

2 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder

¼ teaspoon Turmeric Powder

2 teaspoon Coriander Powder

2 teaspoon Kala Masala [garam masala]

Salt to taste

3- 4 Cups of Water

METHOD:

For making  shev dough:

STEP 1 – Add all ingredients for the shev and make a smooth dough. Keep this dough aside.

For making the gravy /rassa:

 STEP 1- Heat oil in pan and add cumin seeds to it.

STEP 2 – Then add fine paste of onion-coconut, ginger-garlic to it. Add a little salt and sauté it for a while. Saute it until oil start separating from masala.

STEP3 – Add red chilli powder and other spices and sauté the masala nicely.

STEP 4 – Now add water in the masala to make the rassa for shev bhaji. [add water in sufficient amount as the shev in the rassa will soak a lot of water.

STEP 5 – Let it boil on low flames for 4-5 minutes. Check the spices and adjust them if required.

STEP 6 – Now Put the gram flour dough in the shev maker and make the shev directly in boiling rassa.[I am used to make the shev like this. You can make this way or in shev maker.]

STEP 7 – Let  the shev cook in the rassa/ gravy for 2-3 minutes or till the shev are cooked completely.

Add fresh chopped coriander and serve the shev bhaji hot.

    Serve the shev bhaji with chapatti , bhakri or rice. Enjoy cooking and eating .....

NOTES: If using readymade shev then add less amount of oil for the gravy.

              If using readymade shev then add them at the time of serving, otherwise shev becomes very soft.

             If using readymade shev for the bhaji you can remove the oil from the shev first and then use them in rassa. Just add the shev in water for few seconds and then remove them and add to the rassa. By this method, we can remove extra oil in shev [in water]. This tip is for those who are diet concious.

DRY / SUKKA CHICKEN CURRY

Often people are under the contradiction that “curry” is a spice that often used in making all the delicious gravies and curries that abound in Indian food. However, a curry comprises of several ingredients and spices that are cooked together to actually create the final product. Dry chicken is one I have created in my kitchen, which is very easy and simple to cook. Here in this recipe of dry chicken masala is particularly good-bite-sized pieces of chicken cooked in a rich spicy gravy and reduced to a consistency where gravy is just about coating the chicken pieces. It goes great with rice and roti alike and absolutely delicious. Here is a recipe for simple dry chicken masala curry.

INGREDIENTS:

500 gm Chicken thighs [  one whole chicken]

2 Black Cardamom

1 Stick Dalchini [cinnamon]

1-2 Onion Chopped

1 Finely Chopped Tomato

2 teaspoon Ginger-Garlic Paste

1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder

1teaspoon Cumin powder

2 teaspoon Coriander Powder

Chopped Coriander

Salt to taste

Oil

½  Cup Water

METHOD:

STEP1 – Heat oil in a pan and add cardamom and cinnamon stick.

STEP 2 – Add chopped onion and sauté for about 3-4 minutes. Add ginger-garlic paste and chopped tomatoes in it and sauté well for 4-5 minutes.

STEP 3 – Add Chicken pieces and sauté and then add dry spices and mix well.

STEP 4 – Cook uncovered for about 15-20 minutes until the liquid dries a bit.

STEP 5 – Once all the ingredients are well combined and chicken is cooked thoroughly, garnish with chopped coriander and serve.

            Serve hot dry chicken curry with chapatti, naan or tandoori roti.

CHICKEN CURRY [WITH A CLAY POT]

If you have never tried cooking in a clay pot before, you may want to think about giving it a try. There are a lot of advantages including juicer meats and poultry, low fat cooking, and my favourite one-pot –meals that makes clean up easy.

One day me and my hubby were just roaming in the market place and just found this clay pot at a roadside vendor. We were just searching for this from last few days as we came to know that whole cooking clay set is available these days. We immediately bought it and then started to discover the recipes that can be prepared in clay pot. I initially learned about them when I received a clay pot. As the vendor advised to keep this pot immersed in water for three days and then ready to use.

Do you know clay pot cooking goes back thousands of years and was used by most of the early civilizations including the Romans and Chinese. You can find a variety of sizes and shapes of clay pots based on ancient designs still being used in Spain, France and North Africa.

Today, clay pots and one-pot cookery is making a comeback in the US and home cooks like us are rediscovering how easy they are to use and love the results they are getting. I haven’t had much experience cooking in clay pots but gathering the information how to cook in clay pot from internet and all, so I plan to do a lot more. Here is a cooking style that allows for cooking just about anything you like slowly and gently while retaining the juice and flavour.

As a porous material, the clay in a pot that has been saturated with water slowly releases steam from its pores during the cooking. Juices released by the food as it cooks cannot escapes from the pot. This seals flavour and keeps food from drying out, without the need to add extra fats or liquids. Along with the flavour, essential nutrients and vitamins are retained in the food.

Advantages of cooking in clay pots…

*More juicy and flavourful when cooking meats and poultry.

*Crispier crusts when baking dreads.

*Prevent ingredients from drying out.

*Meat can be trimmed of fat.

*Chicken can be cooked without the skin.

*One-pot meals- chicken or meat can be cooked together with rice or potatoes and vegetables together.

How to use a clay pot ?

*Soak clay baker in water for 2-3 days i.e. for about 42 hours. Completely immerse both top and bottom.

*Where can you find classic clay bakers ?

*There are a number of major cookware outlets that sell clay bakers. You can also search it on Amazon.com. There you will find a large assortment of clay bakers in all sizes and shapes as well as clay pot cookbooks and accessories.

*Finally, if you are looking for an alternative cooking method that’s both natural and healthy, you’ll want to explore the world of one-pot clay cooking.

INGREDIENTS:

500 gm Chicken, skinless

2-3 tablespoon Onion-Coconut Paste

2 teaspoon Ginger-Garlic Paste

3-4 Garlic Cloves Finely Chopped

4-5 Green Chillies [cut lengthwise]

1 Medium Onion Finely Sliced

1 Tomato Cut in Big Sized pieces

2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil

1 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder

½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder

Salt as required

2 teaspoon Garam Masala

2 teaspoon Dry Coriander Powder

1-2 Bay Leaf

1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds

1 teaspoon Mustard Seeds

5-6 Cashew Nuts

Fresh Coriander Chopped

Water

METHOD:

 STEP 1 - First wash the chicken pieces under a running water.

STEP 2 -  Put the clay pot over heat on a low flame. Add oil to it and then add cumin-mustard seeds and let them splutter.

 STEP  3 – Add onion coconut paste and ginger garlic paste and sauté for 1 minute and then add green chillis, cubed tomato and chopped onion, chopped garlic  and grated ginger to it and cook well for 3-4 minutes.

STEP 4 – Now add dry spices one-by-one and sauté well. Finely add chicken pieces, mix properly and cover for a minute or two.

STEP 5 – Add water sufficient water and cook. It will be cooked on low flame only, it will take almost 1 hour to cook properly. Do check and if done then add chopped coriander and after 1 minute switch off the flame and chicken curry is ready to serve.

           Serve the hot chicken curry with chapatti, bhakri or simply with steamed rice. 

NOTE: Keep the flame low while cooking. It may crack your clay pot on high flame so to avoid that keep the flame low.

MOONGODI CURRY

Today I am going to share the very tasty recipe- moongodi  bhaji. I absolutely love these nuggets as I love moong lentil and you can cook these with lot of different ways. Moongodi are sun dried nuggets made of moong dal/ yellow lentil. They can be made fresh by steaming or sun drying them for later use. Moongodi curry in other words called as protein packed side dish for rotis/ chapatties. If you don’t have any vegetable in your fridge as you can make a curry of only nuggets itself! These are very versatile and performs well wherever it gets added to. These are quite famous in North and Central India but the preparation of course is very different. The basic procedure for making Indian gravy is mostly similar, but they are unique in taste and texture. So thought of sharing it!

INGREDIENTS:

 1 Cup Small Moongodi / Moong Nuggets [moong vadi]

1 Small Chopped Onion

1 Small Tomato

1-2 teaspoon Ginger-Garlic Paste

2 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder

1 teaspoon Gram Masala

½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder

Salt to taste

½ teaspoon Cumin Seeds

½ teaspoon Mustard Seeds

1 Cup Water [as required]

Oil

Freshly Chopped Coriander

METHOD:

STEP 1 - Heat a kadhai with oil and sauté moongodi until crispy and slightly brown. Drain them and keep aside.

 STEP 2 - Heat another pan with oil in it. Crackle cumin-mustard seeds and then add ginger-garlic paste to it. Let it sauté for a minute.

STEP 3 - Then add chopped onion –tomato and sauté for about a minute or two.

STEP 4 - Add dry spices in it and roast for few seconds and then add moongodi and give a stir and mix well.

STEP 5 - Add sufficient water to get desired consistency and let them cook over a medium flame.

STEP 6 - Once cooked well add chopped coriander and serve hot.

           Serve moongodi curry with chapatti, Dal-chawal.