One Day At A Time!

Hi everyone! How's life in your part of the world? I hope all is well. The Hindu holy month of Shravan is here. I fondly remember how my mom used to pan-fry vegetables with semolina. Rava Fry is a common dish in Saraswat and Marathi cooking, and I'd love to share a recipe I made, inspired by her, in my Dallas kitchen. Ingredients: Taro Root/ Arbi /Arvi /Maadi - 4 medium Kashmiri Lal Chili Powder - 1 tsp Turmeric / Haldi - 1/4 tsp Tamarind extract / Chinch - about 1/2 tsp Salt - 1/4 tsp Coarse Rava / Semolina - about 3/4 cup Oil or Cooking Spray How to Pan fry Taro or Arbi with Semolina: Peel the Taro Root and chop into thick slices. Add salt, Tamarind, turmeric and red chili powder. Toss and set it aside for 10 - 15 minutes. Let it sweat and release some water. Mix well to coat the taro slices with all the seasonings. Coat the taro slices with semolina. Heat a cast iron pan. Lower the heat to medium and pour oil or cooking spray. Cook both sides of  the Taro slices covered wit...

Hello everyone! I wanted to start the new year off right with an easy Konkani breakfast recipe. This is a common dish in the coastal regions of India, where coconut and rice are staples. Hope 2025 is treating you well. Where I am, the mornings are sweater weather, but the afternoons are warm enough to ditch the sweater! Ingredients: Flattened Rice/ Thin Poha/ Phovu - about 3 cups Fresh or Frozen Shredded Coconut - about 3/4 cup Mustard Seeds/ Sasam - 1/2 tsp Fresh Green Chilies - 4 Curry Leaves/Kadipata - a sprig Asafoetida/ Hing - 1/4 tsp Jaggery or Sugar - 1/4 tsp Oil - about 2 tsp Salt Mixture or Farsaan or Shev How to make Konkani Kaloun Pho: Thaw the frozen coconut. In a mixing bowl, add coconut and flattened rice.  In a small pan, heat the oil for phann or tadka or tempering. Add mustard seeds, medium chopped green chilies, curry leaves and asafoetida. Turn off the heat when mustard seeds start spluttering.  Pour this tadka in the mixing bowl. Add salt and sugar. Stir wi...

Friday is here! Hope all is well in your world. I am back with a vegan gluten free snack. My Mom's Nachni Chakli recipe with potato and coconut milk. Fresh coconut milk is quite common in coastal Konkani cuisine. My childhood favorite Diwali snack. Now my 7 year old kiddo likes it. Hope you all love it too! Ingredients: Ragi/Nachni/Finger Millet Flour - 1 cup Boiled Mashed Potato - about 1 cup Besan/Chickpea Flour - 1/4 cup  White Sesame Seeds/Til - 2 tsp Carom Seeds/Ajwain/Owa - 1 tsp Kashmiri Lal/Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper - 1/2 tsp Light Brown Sugar - 1 tsp Coconut Milk - about 1/4 cup Olive Oil - 2 tsp Salt How to cook Nachni Batata Chakli: In a big mixing bowl, add ragi flour, besan, peeled mashed potato, sesame seeds, carom seeds, black pepper powder, chili powder, sugar and salt. Mix well. Now add coconut milk, little at a time and knead to make a soft, non sticky dough. Lastly, add oil and knead again for few seconds. Cover the bowl with plastic food wrap ...

Wish you all a very Happy Diwali! Hope you all are having a good time.  This year's festival of lights is special for us, its our baby's first Diwali.  I could not spend much time cooking Diwali sweets or snacks, but I managed to make a few. One of them is Atte ka Laddoo , which we Konkanis call as Churmundo or Gava Pita Ladoo . Ingredients: Wheat Flour/Atta - 1 cup Powdered Sugar - 1/2 cup Ghee/Clarified Butter - 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 2 pods Whole Cashews/Kaju - 4 (optional) How to make Wheat Flour or Atta Ladoo: Crush cardamom seeds in a mortar pestle to a fine powder. Heat 1/4 cup ghee in a kadhai or a pan. Fry cashew halves until slightly brown. Set it aside. If not cashews, you can use golden raisins or any other dry fruits of your choice. In the same pan, add wheat flour. Stir well and roast the wheat flour until it turns aromatic and color slightly darkens. This is the key step in making Atte ka Ladoo. You don't want that raw smell of ...

In summer, I don't feel like spending too much time cooking. All I need are some no fuss, no cook recipes. Today's dessert is a traditional Marathi Mango yogurt delight, well known as Aamrakhand or Mango Shrikhand. My Mom used to make Aamras Puri , Aamrakhand and many other mango delicacies for us every summer. This year I made it for my little girl.

The other day I was talking to Mom and she told me about Pachadi. Its a vegan salad with coconut, raw mango and protein rich chana dal. And now mangoes are available. So, here I am with a traditional Konkani side dish.

Puranpoli Sweets are always welcome at our place. And Puranpoli is one of our favorites. So far, you have read about Chana Dal Puranpoli and  Narala Ubbati (Coconut Puranpoli) . Let me introduce you to a third kind.. moong dal stuffed sweet flatbread - Moong Dal Ubbati or Puranpoli. Dough: Whole Wheat Flour/Atta - 1 1/2 cups Whole Milk - 3/4 cup Olive Oil - 2 tbsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Mung Dal Stuffing: Mung Dal - 1 cup Light Brown Sugar - 1 cup Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 2 pods Saffron/Kesar - few strands How to cook Moong Dal Holige: Make Dough: In a mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour, turmeric and oil or ghee/clarified butter. Mix well. Now add milk, little at a time, and knead well to form a soft dough. Cover the bowl with plastic food wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes. Using all purpose flour/maida will make the puranpolis more soft. Both milk and oil will help in softening the puranpolis. Food Mill for Puranpoli Make Moong Dal Stuffing: Soak moong ...

Since I brought a mini pancake pan, Appe has joined our list of breakfast menu. So far, I have posted savory recipes. You guys might have read about Udid Methi Appe   and also an instant version of Gluten free Appe .  Today I made God Appe for breakfast. Sweet appe or paddu or paniyaram are made either with rice or wheat. Wheat flour is the instant one as compared to the rice paddu. Hope you all like these sweet pancakes with bananas. Ingredients: Whole Wheat Flour - 1 cup Flattened Rice/Thin Poha - 1/2 cup Grated Jaggery/Gud/Gul - 1/2 cup Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1/4 cup Ripe Bananas - 2 big Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 2 pods Oil or Ghee/Clarified Butter How to make Instant God Appo: Blend flattened rice, grated jaggery, coconut and bananas to a slightly coarse paste in a food processor or a blender. If jaggery is not available, brown sugar is a good substitute. Based on the sweetness you like, add more or less jaggery. Crush cardamom seeds...

Lately, for some unknown reason, I haven't been able to blog about new recipes. But today, I managed to shrug off my laziness and cook something different. So, here I am with gluten free  Indian Rice Noodles or Vermicelli . In Konkani, we call this as Shevai and it is served with both sweet and savory accompaniments. Many of you might know this as Idiyappam or Shavige . Traditionally, Shevai is made by a lengthy process of soaking rice, grinding and stuff. As you know me, I look for the easier way. But, its equally delicious. Ingredients: Rice Flour - 1 cup Water - 1 cup Salt Oil How to make Rice Shevai / Idiyappam: In a mixing bowl, add rice flour and salt. Mix well. Heat 1 cup water in a small sauce pan. Turn off the heat when water starts boiling. Pour the hot water to the bowl and mix with a spoon. When it turns cold enough to handle, knead it well to make a soft dough. Divide the dough into 2 balls. Grease the idli plates with cooking spray or oil. ...

Anyone who is familiar with the whole elaborate process of making South Indian Dosa, knows about the importance of measuring ingredients, quite similar to baking.  But, Mushti Polo is traditionally made using fistful of ingredients. Mushti refers to fistful in Konkani. Cooking using fistful of this and fistful of that is slightly inconvenient for me. As usual, my Mom has her recipe for me, where fistfuls are substituted with measuring cups. Ingredients: Medium Grain Rice/Idli Rice - 1 cup Thin Poha/Flattened Rice/Avalakki - 1/2 cup Urad Dal/Split Black Gram - 1/4 cup Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1/4 cup Fenugreek/Methi Seeds - 1 tsp Salt Oil How to make Konkani Mushti Polo: Soak medium grain rice, urad dal and fenugreek seeds in plenty of water for 6 - 8 hours. Wash the soaked ingredients well. Grind soaked rice, urad dal, fenugreek seeds, coconut and flattened rice flakes, in batches,...

Some days, I forget to soak rice and dal for our regular breakfast - Idlis and Dosas. At times, cereal works just fine. Other days, I rely on such instant versions of South Indian breakfast items. We love such quick gluten free delicacies for lunch as well. Prep work involves chopping vegetables, but still its far more convenient. Ingredients: Idli Rava - 3/4 cup Urad Dal Flour/Split Black Gram Flour - 1/2 cup Yogurt/Dahi/Curds - 3/4 cup Carrots (finely chopped) - 1/2 cup Bell Pepper (finely chopped) - 1/2 cup Green Onions/Scallions - 1/4 cup Cilantro/Coriander/Kothimbir Leaves - few sprigs Baking Soda - 1/2 tsp Salt Oil How to cook Instant Appe / Paniyaram with vegetables: In a mixing bowl, add carrots, bell peppers, green onions, cilantro, salt and yogurt (preferably slightly sour). Make sure the veggies are very finely chopped, especially carrots. Or you can grate carrots as well. I have used full fat / whole milk yogurt....

When it comes to buying cookware, I am like a kid in a candy store. I love shopping for new kitchenware. But, my minimalistic nature sometimes stops me from picking unnecessary items. I don't like clutter in my kitchen. Anyways, this week I ordered a Danish pan online and here you are reading about a popular South Indian gluten free breakfast - savory mini pancakes called as Paddu or Paniyaram . In Konkani, these soft lentil and rice goodies are known as Appo or Appe . There are many ways of making Appe, both sweet and savory.  For today, lets eat Udid Methi Appe.

Many of us are familiar with the Gujarati Kadhi and North Indian Kadhi Pakora . These Indian Kadhi recipes with yogurt and chickpea flour as key ingredients, are globally popular. Today I am sharing a Konkani style Vegan Kadhi/Kadi made of coconut. Coconut is quite integral in Konkani Cuisine. As the name suggests, this kadi is spiced with cumin (jeere in Konkani) and whole black peppercorns (meeri in Konkani). Pretty simple, yet flavorful accompaniment with rice. Ingredients: Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1 1/2 cups Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1 tsp Whole Black Peppercorns/Kali Miri - 6 Green Chili - 1 Oil - 1 tsp Salt Tempering/Tadka/Phanna: Mustard Seeds/Sasam - 1/2 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Curry Leaves/Kadipata/Karbeo - 5 leaves Oil - 1 tsp How to make Konkani Jeere Meere Kadi: Pat the green chili dry and chop it into 2 pieces. Also, pat the curry leaves dry. Heat about 1 tsp oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds, whole peppercorns and green chilies. S...

Puranpoli or Holige , a lentil flatbread is an Indian traditional sweet made on the festive occasion of Holi. We Konkanis call it as Ubbati. My Mom used to make another version of this sweet delicacy, a coconut stuffed one, called as Narla Ubbati. I made a couple changes to my Mom's recipe, to save some time and to make it healthier. Here is a Whole Wheat version of Coconut Puranpoli . Dough: Whole Wheat Flour - 1 1/2 cups Milk - 3/4 cup Olive Oil - 1/4 cup Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Coconut Stuffing: Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1 1/2 cups Grated Jaggery/Gud/Gul  - 1/2 cup (tightly packed) Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 2 pods How to cook Coconut Stuffed Sweet Flatbread: Make Dough: In a mixing bowl, add whole wheat flour, turmeric and oil. Mix well. Now add milk, little at a time, and knead well to form a soft dough. Cover the bowl with plastic food wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes. Using all purpose flour/maida will make the puranpolis more soft. ...

Though the Konkani term 'Polo' refers to a breakfast dosa/pancake, Sanna Polo is a side dish served with rice. The key ingredient of SaNa Polo is tender Bamboo shoots called as Keerlu/Keerla in Konkani. I generally make these savory pancakes with the veggies available and not necessarily with keerla. I grew up eating two versions of this, one involves soaking rice, grinding and stuff, an elaborate one. I prefer the second one, my Mom's hassle free recipe.  Some day I'll share the rice version too.

Most of our weekend meals are special delicacies, loaded with calories.... high carbs, something cheesy, oily, fried. On Mondays, we crave for something simple, less spicy home cooked desi food. Such days, we like to relish good old Konkani food - Dal Rice, Upkari, Papad and Lonche (Achar).  Upkari is a simple veggie stir fry with a coconut flavor.

Chutney, an Indian condiment is well known all over. And the South Indian Coconut Chutney needs no introduction. As I have mentioned earlier, we love Idlis and Dosas for breakfast. Just like the variety of idlis and dosas, my Mom used to make a variety of coconut chutneys. If you are looking for something new and different, try these Konkani variations of chutneys and make your everyday breakfast more tasty. Ingredients: Shredded or Grated Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1 cup Phutane/Split Dalia/Roasted Chickpeas - 1 tbsp (optional) Tamarind/Chincham/Chinch/Imli Paste - 1/2 tsp Green Chillies/Tarani Mirsang - 4 Asafoetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp  Curry Leaves/Kadipata/Karbeo - a sprig Mustard Seeds/Sasam - 1/2 tsp Dry Red Chillies - 2 Oil preferably Coconut oil Salt How to prepare South Indian Coconut Chutney: Wash curry leaves and green chilies. Pat them dry. Make slits in the green chillies with a knife. Roast the green chillies with few drops of o...

Jackfruit or Phanas (as said in Konkani), both raw and ripe, is commonly used in Konkani coconut curries, steamed idlis etc. Even jackfruit seeds are relished. These sweet Jackfruit fritters, called as Phonsa Mulik  are similar to French Beignets or doughnuts, but are perfect for vegans and vegetarians. Ingredients: Jackfruit/Phanas - 8 pieces Grated Coconut (fresh or frozen) - about 1/2 cup Semolina/Rava - 3 tbsp Jaggery/Gud/Gul - 2 tbsp Green Cardamom/Elaichi - 1 pod (seeds only) Oil How to prepare Konkani Phonsa Moolik/Mulka: Crush cardamom seeds in a mortar pestle to a fine powder. Fresh jackfruit is the best any day. But I used a 565 gm tin of canned jackfruit, which had about 8 pieces. Drain all the liquid. Place the jackfruit pieces in a strainer for 15 - 20 minutes, so that most moisture is lost. Grind grated coconut to a coarse dry paste. I used frozen shredded coconut and a mini food processor. Water was not needed. Add very little water, if req...

Batate Song and Batate Wagh are the most popular Konkani potato delicacies.  Both traditional curries are extremely spicy. But I use mild Byadagi variety of red chillies for a medium spiced Saung. For Konkani food lovers, here is a Mangalore style Batata Saung. Ingredients : Boiled Potatoes/Batate - 2 big Onion - 1 medium Grated Coconut (fresh or frozen) - about 1 cup Dry Red Chilies (Byadagi variety) - 5 Coriander Seeds/Dhane - 1 tbsp Tamarind/Chinch/Chincham - 1 tsp Oil - 2 tbsp Salt How to cook Konkani Batate Saung: Heat about 1 tsp oil in a pan. Add coriander seeds and dry red chilies. Sauté at low heat until coriander seeds slightly darken and turn aromatic. Red chilies will turn crisp too. Grind roasted coriander seeds, red chilies, tamarind and coconut to a fine or slightly coarse paste. Finely chop onion. Peel the boiled potatoes. Dice potatoes into bite size pieces or just crumble them with your hands. I used a white onion and Russet potatoes. He...

Our morning breakfasts are commonly idlis and dosas - Cucumber Dosa , Oats Masala Dosa , Paan Pole , Dudhe (Pumpkin) Idli and so on. A nutritious breakfast including various types of grains and vegetables, is a good way to start your day. Today's Ragi and Urad Dal dosa is also one of those. My Mother-in-law's South Kanara Dosa Recipe. These gluten free crisp crepes with a curry are perfect for lunch or dinner as well.  Our family favorite is Ragi Masala Dosa , with a simple Coconut Chutney and Potato Bhaji . Ingredients: Ragi/Nachni/Finger Millet Flour - 1/2 cup Urad Dal/Split Black Gram - 1/4 cup Salt Oil How to prepare Ragi Dosa: Soak urad dal in water for 2 - 3 hours. Drain the water and wash the soaked dal well.  Grind urad dal to a fine, smooth paste adding water. In a bowl, add ground urad dal and add ragi flour little at a time. Stir well until ragi flour is mixed well. Add little water if required. Batter consistency is same as any crepe ...