Sabudhana Vada



Crispy , tasty snack, straight from the Marathi Cuisine, here it is, the Sabudhana vada.

Ingredients: (Makes 10 - 12 vadas)

1. Sago or Sabudhana - 200 gms
2. Potatoes - 200 gms
3. Freshly grated coconut - 2 tbsp
4. Green chillies - 5 finely chopped
5. Ginger - A one inch piece, finely chopped
6. Roasted and coarsely ground groundnut - 100 gms
7. Garam masala - 2 tbsp
8. Red chilli powder - 1 tssp - Optional
9. Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
10. Salt - To taste
11. Finely chopped coriander leaves - A Handful
12. Oil - To deep fry


Method:

1. Soak the sago for 4 hours , or until they are completely glassy.If you use smaller size sago, have an eye, they should not soak up a lot of water. when you crush a soaked sago between your fingers, you know they are done, when they are really soft, with no sign of any coarse particles.

2. Boil and mash the potatoes into a smooth paste.

3. Add the sago, coarsely ground groundnuts, coconut, ginger, the dry masalas, salt, to the potatoes and mix them well.

Adding the roasted ground nuts gives an awesome texture to the vadas.

4. Add the chopped coriander leaves and give it a good mix until all the ingredients are well combined.

5. Make small balls out of the mixture and gently press in between your palm and fingers to form a small patty like vadas.

6. Deep fry them in oil until golden brown.

Traditional Brinjal Curry

A perfect blend of aromatic spices and softened brinjal combo , is always a hit among the Brinjal lovers. I am bringing this very simple dish to you from my Mom's cuisine

Ingredients:(Serves 3)

1. Brinjal - 300gms (Slice them into half inch thick piece)

2. Channa dhal - 1 tbsp

3. Coriander seeds - 1and 1/2 tbsp

4. Urad dhal - 1 tsp

5. Dry red chillies - 5-6(For medium heat. If you like it hot add upto 7-8)

6. Oil - 2-3 tbsp

7. Mustard Seeds - 2 tsp

8. Curry leaves - Few

9. Hing - a Pinch

10. Salt to taste

Method:

1. In a pan, add some oil and add the Channa dhal, urad dhal and coriander seeds. Once the dhal and coriander seeds, starts turning color, add the red chillies, Fry them well.

2. Once the lentils and chillies turn color and you start getting a nice aroma of the corianderseeds, take it off the flame and allow it to cool, and grind it into a Coarse mixture.

3. Add oil to a frying pan. Add mustard seeds and wait for it to splutter. Add the curry leaves and Hing.

4. After a couple of minutes, add the sliced Brinjal and some salt(This will help the Brinjal to cook faster)

5. Allow it to cook until the brinjal becomes soft, but still retains its texture. This might take several minutes.

6. Now keep the flame on high for 2 minutes and gently fry continuously. By this, the cooked Brinjal starts browning beautifully.

When the brinjal becomes crisp, add the ground powder.

7. Mix well, you can check for salt now. If required can add some more.

A small tip: The brinjal starts getting softer, once added to pan. make sure to fry or stir it gently, so that the pieces do not loose their texture.

Brinjal curry is ready to be served as sidedish with most of traditional kuzhambhu or sambhar varieties.