Kadai Vegetable Recipe

A lot of things happening in the personal front had guests during the weekend ,so was quite busy for the past 4 or 5 days, no time for blogging. Coming to this kadai vegetable it was prepared long back but somehow missed posting it, so thought that I would post it today.This dish gets it distinct flavor from the freshly ground spices instead of the powders available at home.This dish is quite power packed as all the veggies can be sneaked in and look colorful as per the liking of kids.This recipe is a kind of mixed one from various sources which I tweeked to suit out taste. As they say we first eat with our eyes then only the tongue gets a taste of a dish this one is a real treat to both the eyes as well as the tongue.Now off to the recipe.

Kadai Vegetable Recipe - Ingredients

Mixed Vegetables - 1 cup (cubed)(carrot,beans,peas,Red and green capsicum)
Onion - 2(1 finely chopped & 1 in large chunks)
Paneer - 1/2 cubed
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Tomato - 1 (pureed)
Kasoori Methi - 1/2 tsp
Coriander leaves for garnish
Oil - 2 tbsp
Jeera - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste

To Roast and Grind:

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Red Chilly - 4 nos
Jeera - 1 tsp
Pepper cons - 1/2 tsp (optional)

Method:

1. In a pan add the items under to roast and grind ,cool it and grind it to a fine powder and keep it a side.Pressure cook the cubed carrots,beans and green peas with some salt for just 1 whistle see to it that they are just cooked with slight crunch.
2. In a kadai heat oil add the jeera once it splutters add the finely chopped onions and ginger garlic paste and fry till raw smell leaves.Now add the tomato puree (ie grind one large tomato to a puree in the mixer),ground powder,salt and cook for few more minutes till the raw smell leaves.
3. Now you can add the cubed capsicum(red & green)and the cubed onions and saute for a while now add the cooked veggies ,paneer and give a quick stir,add the crushed kasoori methi and the check for seasoning bring it to a boil and switch off . Garnish with coriander and serve hot with rice or roti.

My Notes:

• The choice of vegetables is yours you can use potato,cauliflower,yellow capsicum etc based on availability.
• Addition of paneer is optional you can omit it or replace it with tofu if you are on a vegan diet.
• The roast and ground powder can be made and stored in larger quantity and used also but fresh one tastes better.
• Adjust the number of red chillies as per spice level required.
• See to it that the capsicum is cooked but still crunchy.

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.