Gutti vankaya fry

Ingredients:

• 10 brinjals / vankaya
• 2 medium sized onions
• ¼ cup coconut
• ¼ cup peanuts
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds
• ½ tsp cumin / jeera
• 1 ½ tbsp oil
• 1 ½ tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 1 to 1 ½ tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder 
• salt as needed
•  tamarind pulp as needed
• coriander leaves few

Method:

1. Dry roast peanuts until nicely done. Saute sesame, cumin and coconut in the same pan. cool them.
   
2. Saute onions until golden in 1 tsp oil. Saute also ginger garlic until the raw smell goes off.
   
3. Add chili powder, coriander or garam masala powder and salt. Cool all these and blend to a coarse paste. Add lemon juice or tamarind as desired and mix well. Taste it and adjust the salt and chili.
   
4. Wash and slit brinjals by keeping them intact towards the stem.
   
5. Stuff this mixture and set them aside.
   
6. Heat a pan with 1 tbsp oil and add these brinjals along with curry leaves. Toss them well to coat with oil. Cover and cook until done. Occasionally toss them or flip them to cook evenly.
   
7. When the eggplants are cooked completely, the skin wilts off. Sprinkle coriander leaves.Serve hot with rice and ghee.
   

Dondakaya curry

Ingredients:

• 250 grams ivy gourd / dondakaya 
• 1 to 1 ½ tbsp. oil
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• ½ tsp. cumin
• Pinch of turmeric
• 2 medium onions finely chopped 
• 1 large ripe tomato chopped 
• ½ tsp. red chili powder
• ¾ tsp garam masala powder adjust as needed
• Coriander leaves chopped finely
• Salt as needed
• 2 to 3 tbsp. Fresh grated coconut 

Method:

1. Nip off the edges and chop them to desired size.
   
2. Heat oil in a pan, crackle mustard and cumin.Add curry leaves.
   
3. When the curry leaves turn crisp, add onions and fry until they turn slightly golden.
   
4. Add tomato, salt and turmeric. Saute until they become mushy and blend well with onions.
   
5. Add ivy gourd and fry for 2 to 3 mins. Add red chili powder and saute for another minute.
   
6. Cover and cook on a very low flame stirring occasionally to prevent burning.
   
7. When the gourd is half cooked, add Coriander psaute for 2 mins.
   
8. Cover and simmer until cooked. Sprinkle coconut. Stir well. 
   
9. Serve dondakaya curry with rice or chapathi.
   

Mushroom Pakora

Ingredients:

• 1 cup besan
• half cup corn flour
• 2 cup sliced mushroom
• 1 onion finely sliced 
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp kasoori methi
• pinch of soda
• salt as needed
• oil for deep frying

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients except oil.
   
2. Heat oil, add the batter into the oil.
   
3. serve hot with tomato ketchup.
   

Drumstick Tomato curry

Ingredients:

• 4 drumsticks cut to finger length 
• 1 cup of finely chopped onions
• 1 cup of chopped tomatoes
• 1 green chili
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• pinch of mustard
• pinch of cumin
• 1 crushed garlic 
• 1 tsp red chili power
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• salt to taste
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 2 to 3 tbsps oil
• water as needed 

Method:

1. Add oil to a deep pan and heat it, add mustard & cumin. Allow them to splutter, add curry leaves and green chili and saute. 
   
2. Add onions, sprinkle salt and fry till golden.
   
3. Add drumsticks and fry for 2 to 3 mins to remove the raw smell from the drumsticks.
   
4. Add chopped tomatoes, some salt and turmeric. Fry till the tomatoes turn soft and pulpy. Do not cover and cook but fry in an open pan, since fried tomato gravy tastes better.
   
5. Add coriander powder and red chili powder and saute for a min.
   
6. Pour water just enough to cover the drumsticks  add garlic and cook on a medium flame till they are tender. Cooking the drumsticks on the lowest flame yields a tasty curry.
   
7. Serve with rice.
   

soya nuggets

Ingredients:

• 1 cup soya nuggets / meal maker
• half tsp garam masala
• half tsp red chilli powder
• salt as needed
• 4 tbsp of besan
• 2 tbsp rice flour
• half tsp ginger garlic paste
• half tsp carom seeds / ajwain
• A generous pinch of turmeric / haldi
• water as needed
• Oil for frying

Method:

1. Heat 4 cups of water to a boil. Switch off the stove and add the soya nuggets.Squeeze and drain off the water. Repeat rinsing twice in cold water and drain completely.
   
2. Add all the other ingredients to a bowl except water and oil. Add water little by little and make a thick batter.
   
3. Heat oil in a pan. When the oil is just hot enough, reduce the flame to medium. Drop the soya nuggets with spoon. Deep fry until golden.  Serve hot with chutney or tea.
   

Mutton curry

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. oil
• 1 lb mutton
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped tomato
• 2 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 inch cinnamon stick 
• 2 cloves
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 2 tsps meat masala 
• 1 tsp jeera
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 3 cups water
• salt as needed
• Coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan, saute cinnamon,jeera and cloves for 2 mins.
   
2. Add onions saute on medium flame for 3 mins. Add the ginger garlic paste and saute for 5 to 7 mins.Add tomatoes and saute until the raw smell goes away this  take 5 mins.
   
3. Add meat saute for 2 mins. Add red chili powder,coriander powder,salt,turmeric and meat masala and saute for another 2 mins.
   
4. Add water and cook for 11 to 13 whistles on a medium flame. 
   
5. When the pressure goes off.Serve with rice, roti.
   

Sorakaya pulusu

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of cubed bottle gourd/ sorakaya
• 1 cup onions 
• Tamarind pulp  (soaked in hot water)
• 1 tsp. red chili powder
• Salt to taste
• 2 to 3 tbsp. chopped coriander leaves
• 2 tbsp. Oil
• 1 sprig of curry leaves
• Pinch of methi seeds
• ½ tsp cumin
• ½ tsp mustard
• 1 tsp coriander powder

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard, cumin, methi, when they splutter add curry leaves.
   
2. Add onions,turmeric  sprinkle some salt and fry till they turn pink. Takes around 3 to 4 mins.
   
3. Add the sorakaya pieces and fry for another 3 to 4 mins.
   
4. Add red chili powder, coriander powder, salt and fry for a min.
   
5. Pour water just enough to immerse the pieces.Cook till sorakaya peices are soft cooked.
   
6. Add tamarind pulp. Mix cover and cook till the pulusu reaches the desired consistency.
   
7. Off the heat, add coriander leaves.serve with rice.
   

Idli Sambar

Ingredients:

for sambhar powder

• 1 tbsp chana dal
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• ½ tbsp urad dal
• ½ tsp cumin/jeera
• ¼ tsp methi seeds
• 3 red chilies (adjust as needed)
• 2 tbsp. grated fresh coconut (optional)

other ingredients

• ¾ cup toor dal
• 2 cups water to cook dal
• Lemon sized ball of tamarind
• Salt as needed
• 1 chopped onions
• 1 tsp red  chili powder
• 1 large chopped tomato
• ⅛ tsp turmeric
• handful of coriander leaves 
• 4.5 cups water 

tempering

• 2 sprigs curry leaves
• ¾ tsp cumin
• ¾ tsp mustard
• pinch of hing

Method:

1. Wash and pressure cook dal with 2 cups of water for 2 whistles or until soft. Mash it and set aside.
   
2. Soak tamarind in little hot water, squeeze and extract the pulp. Keep this aside.
   
3. Dry roast the ingredients for sambar powder as mentioned in the step by step instructions above. Cool them and powder. I used MTR sambar powder.
4. Add oil to a pot and heat up. allow cumin, mustard  to splutter. Add curry leaves and hing. When the leaves turn crisp.
   
5. Add onions and tomatoes and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. .
   
6. Add red chili powder, salt,turmeric  and sambhar powder and saute for a minute without burning.
   
7. Add  tamarind pulp and dal. Stir and bring it to a boil.
   
8. Add coriander leaves. When it begins to bubble. Switch off.
   
9. Serve hot with idli, dosa.