Pachai Payaru(Paasi Payaru) Sundal/Moong Bean/Green Gram Stir Fry Recipe

Now blogging is taking a back seat due to other personal commitments.I will try posting at least 2 posts a week from now on. Sharu as usual is busy with her school and other classes.Growing up kids generally need much energy than us especially protein in take should be on the higher side for kids to cope up with the education system today and the competition they face.Legumes form a major source of protein for people who do not eat eggs or non- vegetarian .In our house we generally prepare chicken or fish only on sundays and my kiddo is not a person who would have at least an egg a week mind it I said a week and not a day .So fussy is she with eggs so I had to find alternate ways of adding protein to her diet .One such easy as well as delightful ways is by adding sundals to our daily diet.(You see Sharu is very fond of sundals ).

Coming to today's recipe the paasi payaru sundal is one that does not require much planning as it requires less or at times no soaking time at all.I generally prepare sundal with sprouted moong beans which adds to the health quotient. Moong beans though small in size they are great with regard to health benefits. They are easy to digest and thus they play a very important role in Ayurvedic diet regime. It serves as a great source of protein to a vegetarian diet without adding much calories.

Pachai Payaru Sundal/Moong Bean Stir Fry Recipe- Ingredients

Moong beans/pachai Payaru -1 cup (soaked for 4 hrs or more)
Coconut - 2 tbsp(grated)
Salt - to taste

To Temper :

Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard- 1 tsp
Urad dhal - 1/2 tsp
Hing - 1 pinch
Red chilly - 1

Method:

1. Pressure cook the soaked paasi payaru with a pinch of salt and water for 2 whistles or till done (soft but not mushy).
2. Heat oil in a kadai add the items in to temper list followed by the cooked paasi payaru and a pinch of salt and saute well check for salt ,switch off the stove and add the grated coconut ,mix well .

My Notes:

• The same can be applied to prepare sundal with sprouted moong beans for a healthier version.
• You can omit the coconut if you do not prefer.
• You can even dry roast the moong beans till aroma arises and then pressure cook it with a soaking time of 1 hour.(Amma does this).
• I have tried pressure cooking moong beans without any soaking or roasting though it cooks well it does yield a lesser quantity.
• I always cook moong beans in a bowl placed in the pressure cooker with water.In this method you can avoid over cooking.See to it that the bowl with moong beans has water just to immerse the beans .This way you can avoid throwing the extra water while cooking moong beans.

Mochai Kathirikai Varuval/Fresh Limabeans and brinjal Curry Recipe

I love the pongal season/January as it marks the beginning of summer and you can get your hands on some of the fresh produce.It is only during this season of January /February that you can find fresh mochai/lima beans in TamilNadu.These our one of my favourite legume whether fresh or dried (I have not tasted the canned or frozen ones).This mochai is a must to be added to the pongal kuzhambu or it is prepared in some form or the other on pongal day.So I thought that this would be the right time for me to prepare and post a dish using mochai.

Lima beans /mochai are rich in protein.It is suitable for people on diet as it is rich source of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber .It also aids in detoxification.Lima beans serve as a very good source of anti oxidants and folic acid.These beans contain a good carbohydrate that helps in proper metabolism.So try to include these beans in your regular diet especially those who are planning to lose weight.

Mochai Kathirikai Varuval Recipe - Ingredients

Mochai/lima beans - 1 cup (boiled)
brinjal/eggplant - 5 (medium)(chopped to bite sized pieces)
Onion- 1 (chopped)
Tomato - 1 chopped
Redchilly Powder - 1.5 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste

To Temper:

Oil - 3tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry Leaves - 1 spring

Method:

1. Pressure cook the mochai with some salt and 1/2 tsp of chilly powder until soft (2 whistles).Heat oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds and once they splutter and the curry leaves.
2. Now add the chopped onions and saute it for 2 minutes ,add the tomatoes and saute till the tomatoes become mushy,now add the powders and toss it so that all the masala powders coat well.
3. Now add the cubed brinjal and mix well till the brijal changes color to brown , now you can close the pan and cook the brinjal in slow flame till they are cooked soft but take care not to over cook them.Now add the required salt.(remember that we have added salt to the mochai).
4. Add the cooked mochai to the brinjal and toss them well till the mochai is well coated with the masala. Swtich off the stove and serve the curry with rice and sambhar, rasam or curd you can also have as subji with your roti it tastes great.

My Notes:

• The mochai/lima beans has to be cooked soft and not mushy.
• You can add Fennel seeds powder gives a distinct aroma to the dish, or you can even use fennel seeds while tempering instead of the powder.
• Mine was mildly spiced you can increase the red chilly powder as per your taste.
• You can either slice the brinjal to thin circle or cube them .
• I have used fresh lima beans /mochai you can substitute with dried/canned or frozen ones.
• Chop the brinjal only when you are going to cook it ,or else keep the cut ones immersed in water as they tend to change color .Best to chop them in the last minute to avoid the brinjal turning bitter.

Rajma Masala - Sweet and sour Rajma Gravy without tomatoes Recipe

Rajma or kidney beans is packed with health benefits.In our house we prepare rajma curry or gravy at least once in a month.I read that the calcium,iron and folic acid content in rajma is higher than most other legumes.We usually consume legumes at least twice a week.So was always in the hunt for new recipes using legumes so that my daughter doesn't get bored of the same old dish every other week.Kids get bored easily with food stuffs and my daughter goes blog hoping and wants me to try new recipes everyday.Ha ha kids are kids so I should ensure that I prepare dishes that she loves to eat.She loves rajma in any form,especially gravy with her roti. This recipe I tried about 2 weeks back from a newspaper article.It sounded interesting , rajma gravy without tomatoes and garam masala so planned to try it out the next day itself.I had made changes to the original recipe to suit our taste.I did have qualms whether the dish may come out dry without tomatoes but to my surprise it was creamy.We loved the masala as it was a sweet and sour version.Now to the recipe

Rajma Masala Recipe - Ingredients

Rajma (Red Kidney Beans) - 1 cup (soaked overnight)
Onion - 1 finely chopped
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Red Chilly Powder - 1 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1 tbsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Tamarind Paste - 1 tbsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 tsp
Jaggery - 1 tsp (grated)
Coriander leaves for garnish
Oil - 2 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:

1. Pressure cook the rajma for 4 to 5 whistles or till they are soft yet not mushy.Strain the water and reserve for future use. Now heat oil in a pan and tip in the fenugreek seeds,now add the onion followed by the ginger garlic paste and fry till raw smell leaves.
2. Now add the powders and salt and saute well .Add the rajma alone (without water)and stir till all the masala coats well.Take a ladle full of the fried rajma and puree it after it cools down.Add the reserved water to the pan followed by the rajma puree and let it boil well.
3. You can add the tamarind paste now check for seasoning add the grated jaggery and let it boil till the gravy attains the required consistency.Garnish with coriander and serve with rice or roti.

My Notes:

• The original recipe called for mustard oil but I used sunflower oil.
• There was also an addition of kala namak which I did not add,may be should try adding this for a chaat like flavour.
• The success of this dish depends on the right balance of the tamarind and jaggery with a hint of spice.This balance depends on ones personal taste.
• I used the light red coloured rajma, you can used the red ones too,but the black ones don't cook as soft as the other two available in India.

Chana Masala(Dry) Recipe

I was reminded of my school days when this recipe came to mind. Mom used to make this specially for me. I would love to have it with any variety rice especially coconut rice this masala would add a spicy touch to the otherwise bland coconut rice. But somehow I totally forgot this recipe. Last week when I was breaking my head for an easy and different recipe to try with chana this recipe came to my mind.I immediately soaked the chana to try masala. This recipe is a dry version and quite different from the ones that use ginger garlic paste and garam masala. This is a SouthIndian version.It can be served with rice and also with roti. We had it with "Methi roti".It was a great combo. Try it yourself.

Chana Masala(Dry) Recipe- Ingredients

Kabuli Chana- 1 Cup(soaked over night or 8 hours)
Onion- 1 (finely chopped)
Sambar Powder - 1tsp(I used store bought)
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Green Chilly -1 (slit)
Salt to taste
Oil - 2tsp

Method:

1. Pressure cook the soaked chana in fresh water and a little salt for 3 whistles or until it is cooked soft but not mushy.Drain the chana form the water and reserve this water.
2. Heat oil in a fry pan when hot add the onion and saute with a pinch of salt till it turns pink, now tip in the Powders along with slit green chilly saute till the raw smell leaves.Now pour the water that we reserved. Let the masala and onions come together.check for salt.
3. Now add the boiled chana and toss well to coat the masala, switch off the stove after 2 minutes and your south Indian style chana masala is ready to serve with variety rice , roti or even as a snack.

My Notes:

• See to it that the boiled chana is soft yet firm and not mushy.
• The same recipe can be tried with black chana or any other legume.
• you can omit the onions and add grated coconut after you switch off the stove and try it for Navaratri.
• Adjust the amount of sambar Powder according to your spice level.
• Sqeeze a slice of lemon for a tangy taste.

Sprouted Peas Masala Recipe

Our doctor always recommends us to include sprouts in our menu everyday, so I keep looking for any chance to include it.This masala is easy and quick one provided you have dried or fresh peas sprouts on hand.You can even try this with unsprouted fresh peas or soaked ones also.The masala goes well with any variety rice or sambar rice and also with roti equally.Now off to the recipe.

Sprouted Peas Masala Recipe- Ingredients

Sprouted Dried Peas - 1 cup
Onion - 1 (finely chopped)
Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
Chilly Powder - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste

To temper:

Oil - 3 tbspn
Mustard seeds -1 tsp
Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp

Method:

1. Pressure cook the sprouted peas for 2 or 3 whistles(do not over cook)with salt and turmeric powder.
2. Heat oil in a kadai and the items in "to temper" list, then add the onions along with a pinch of salt, add the chilly and garam masala powders and saute till raw smell leaves.
3. Add the cooked peas and toss till the masala is coated well. Your sprouted peas masala is ready to serve with rice ,roti or even in your sandwich.

My Notes:

• Mine is a dry version you are free to add a tbsp of coriander powder while sauting and 1/2 cup of water to make a thin gravy.
• If you do not like biting on fennel seeds you can use fennel seeds powder.But I would recommend the use of fennel as whole or in powder form for this enhances the taste of the dish.