One Day At A Time!

As a kid, I was a picky eater. Even as a teenager I had strong likes and dislikes about the veggies I ate. Radish or Moola was not on my favorites list. But these days, Moolachi Bhaji with crunchy peanuts is my go recipe for a weekday lunch.  This veggie side dish is ideal for foodies who don't like spicy food. Ingredients: Radish/Moola/Moolangi - about 4 cups Roasted Peanuts/Groundnuts - 1/2 cup Curry Leaves/Kadipata - 6 or 8 Green Chilies - 2 or 3 Coriander/Cilantro Leaves - few sprigs Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/8 tsp (optional) Jaggery/Good/Gool - 1 tsp Oil - 1 tbsp Salt How to cook Moolachi Bhaji with Peanuts: Peel the radish and chop it lengthwise into 4 parts. Thinly slice each quarter and place them in a bowl of water. Pat the curry leaves dry. Slit the chilies lengthwise. Finely chop cilantro. Grind the roasted peanuts to a coarse powder. You could make a fine powder if you like. Heat oil in a pan for making the...

Its been ages I cooked Dal Rice in our kitchen. Tadka Dal with a simple sabzi, Vegetable Raita is comfort food for me. Today's menu had Lauki, also known as Bottle Gourd. I like to cook Lauki with either Chana Dal or Cashews. You guys might have read about the Chana Dal version. Let me tell you about the nutty cashew recipe today. Ingredients: Lauki/Bottle Gourd - about 3 cups Raw Cashews/Kaju - 1/2 cup Cilantro/Coriander Leaves - few sprigs Curry Leaves/Kadipata - 6 Green Chilies - 2 or 3 Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Jaggery/Gud/Gul - 1/2 tsp Oil - 1 tbsp Salt How to cook Lauki Kaju Sookhi Sabji: Soak cashews (halved) in a bowl of water for about an hour. Peel the bottle gourd and discard the seeds. Chop the gourd into bite size pieces. Add the chopped gourd to a big bowl of water to avoid its blackening. Finely chop cilantro. Slit the chilies lengthwise.  Pat the curry leaves dry.  Just before cooking, discard the water and add the c...

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.

A simple stir fry of mixed vegetables with a mild coconut flavor and the natural sweetness of carrots. This stir fry does not require much oil and can be relished as a substitute for salad as well. Ingredients: Green Cabbage/Kobi/Pata Gobi - about 3 cups Carrots/Gajar - 2 big Green Peas/Matar - about 1 1/2 cups Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp Asafoetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Dry Red Chillies - 2 Green Chillies - 4 Curry Leaves/Kadipata - a sprig Coriander/Cilantro Leaves - few sprigs Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 2 tbsp Salt Oil How to cook Simple Stir fry with multiple vegetables: Thinly slice cabbage and carrots. Finely chop cilantro leaves and slit the green chilies lengthwise. Heat 1 - 2 tsp oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, asafetida, curry leaves and dry red chilies. When mustard seeds pop, add carrots and green peas. Sauté for about 2 minutes. Now add cabbage and cook the vegetables covered for about 2 minutes. Add green chillies, turme...

Upkari is a Konkani recipe of stir fry veggies like Green Beans , Ridge Gourd , Pumpkin  with a coconut flavor and a couple of spices. Tendli Bibbe Upkari is unique as it is made of raw tender cashew nuts called as Bibbe in Konkani and Ole Kaju in Marathi, available only during monsoon season. This stir fry when made solely with cashews is called as Bibbe Upkari . Nowadays, I prepare this by soaking dry unroasted Cashews and it tastes awesome too. This no onion garlic delicacy is especially made on festive occasions. Ingredients: Ivy Gourd/Tendle/Tindora - about 400 gm Cashews/Kajubi/Kaju - about 1/2 cup Shredded Coconut (fresh or frozen) - about 1/2 cup Dry Red Chillies - 2 Curry Leaves/Karbeo/Kadipata - a sprig (optional) Mustard Seeds/Saasam - 1/2 tsp Asafoetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Green Chillies - 2 (optional) Jaggery/Gud/Gul - about 1/2 tsp Salt Oil   How to cook Tendli Bibbe Upkari: Soak dry cashews for 5 - 6 hours. Raw, unroasted cashews would be the bes...

Simple stir fries are quite common at our place. Everyone loves them and I like the ease at which such veggies are cooked. Not much prep work. Today I cooked sautéed asparagus with garlic and Cajun Seasoning. Ingredients: Asparagus - 1 pound Garlic - 2 big cloves Black Pepper Powder - 1/2 tsp Cajun Seasoning - 1/2 tsp Olive Oil - 1 1/2 tbsp Salt How to cook Asparagus: Wash asparagus well. Discard the thick woody part of asparagus and dice it into about 2 inch pieces. Finely chop garlic. Since Asparagus is a local American vegetable, I have no idea what its Indian names are. Heat 8 - 10 cups water in a big vessel. Bring it to a boil. Add diced asparagus and cook for about a minute or so. Drain the water. Heat olive oil in a skillet and add garlic. Sauté for few seconds and add half cooked asparagus. Add salt, Cajun seasoning and freshly ground black pepper. Sauté for about a minute or two. Cook for few more minutes if you like asparagus softer. Serve Cajun spiced Asparag...

We Konkani foodies love coconut in every dish. Today's post is a simple yet flavorful vegetable stir fry with coconut. Ingredients: Ridge Gourd/Ghosali - 300 gm Green Chilies or Dry Red Chilies - 4 Grated Coconut - about 1/2 cup Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Grated Jaggery or Sugar - 1/4 tsp Oil - 1 tbsp Salt How to cook Konkani Ghosale Upkari: Wash and peel the ridge gourd. Dice the ridge gourd into bite size pieces and place them in a bowl of water. Pat the green chilies dry and slit them lengthwise. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, asafetida. When mustard seeds pop, add diced ridge gourd and mix. Cook it covered. No need to add water.  After about 5 minutes, when ridge gourd gets cooked, add salt, coconut, green chilies, jaggery. Cook for 5 more minutes or till water (from ridge gourd) gets evaporated. Serve Ghosale Upkari with steamed rice.

Ingredients: Collard Greens - 250 gms Chana Dal/Split Bengal Gram/Split Chickpeas - 3 tbsp Red Onion - 1 big Garlic - 4 big cloves Coriander/Cilantro Leaves - few sprigs Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper/Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/8 tsp Chat Masala or Aamchur - 1/4 tsp Garam Masala or any other spice mix - 1/4 tsp Salt Oil Method: 1. Soak Chana dal in water for about an hour. 2. Finely chop onions and cilantro.  Crush the peeled garlic cloves.  Chop washed collard greens medium or fine.  Discard the tough mature stems of the greens. 3. Heat 1 - 2 tbsp oil in a pan and add cumin, crushed garlic.  Saute for a minute or two.  Add onions and saute till onions turn soft.  Now add soaked chana dal and a cup of water.  Cook it covered for 15 - 20 minutes.  (Alternately, soaked chana dal can be pressure cooked as well.)  Add more water if required. 4. When chana dal is cooked well, add chopped ...

Ingredients: Cauliflower/Gobhi - 200 gms Potatoes - 2 medium Onion - 1 big Ginger - 1 tsp Garlic - 1 tsp Green Chillies - 6 Coriander/Dhania Seeds - 1 tsp Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1 tsp Turmeri/Haldi - 1/2 tsp Salt Oil Method: 1. Heat about 3 cups water in a pot.  Add little salt, cauliflower florets and bring it to a boil.  Turn off the heat and drain the water after 5 minutes. 2. Peel the potato skin and dice it into bite sized pieces.  Place the diced potatoes in a bowl of water.  Medium chop the onions and green chillies. 3. Coarsely grind cumin and coriander seeds. 4. Heat 1 - 2 tbsp oil in a pan or a kadhai.  Add grated ginger, garlic, chopped green chillies and saute for a minute or two.  Add onions and saute till onions turn soft. 5. Add diced potatoes and about 1/2 cup water.  Mix and cook it covered at low flame.  When potatoes turn soft, add cauliflower florets, ground cumin coriander and turmeric. ...

My Mom used to make Val Papdi Bhaji in a simple way with few ingredients. This is the first time I gave it a try here in my US kitchen. This stir fry does require little more oil, as no water is added for cooking. Dal Rice tastes great with this sauteed Papdi.  I tried this Bhaji once with frozen Surti Papdi and I was not happy with the result. I prefer fresh Papdi for this recipe, which I can only find in the local Indian store. I am not sure if Val Papdi is called as Navy Bean or Fava Bean in English.

Green Kohlrabi called as Navalkol in Marathi and Navilkosu in Kannada, belongs to the cabbage family.  My Mom used to make this stir fry very often.  Just like cabbage, this vegetable in available in two colors - green and purple.  I was quite hesitant about the purple one, as I haven't seen that back in India.  Anyway, I picked the green bulbs and Navalkohl Bhaji with Chana Dal was part of our healthy vegetarian meal today.

I am sure everyone likes potatoes.  We do too.  I like to cook potato with a combination of different vegetables, especially fresh greens.  Aloo (Potato) Methi (Fenugreek) is one of our favorites with soft phulka.

Acorn Squash is similar to Pumpkin/Lal Bhopla/Kadoo in taste. Few months back I had blogged about Duddhe Upkari or Lal Bhopla Bhaji . This recipe is similar to that, but with acorn squash and minus coconut. Ingredients: Acorn Squash - 2 cups Green chilies - 8 Curry Leaves - a sprig Cilantro/Coriander Leaves - few sprigs Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Jaggery or Brown Sugar - 1 tsp Salt Oil How to cook Acorn Squash Bhaji: Peel the squash skin and discard the seeds. Cut it into bite sized pieces. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a kadhai/wok and add mustard seeds, asafetida and curry leaves. When mustard seeds splutter, add squash pieces and lengthwise slit green chilies. Cook it covered. When squash gets cooked and soft, add salt and jaggery. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add chopped cilantro and Stir fry Squash is ready.

Some might dislike  Okra/Lady's Finger/Bhindi  for its sliminess.  But in my family, everyone loves Bhendi. Every time I visit our local Indian store, I definitely pick fresh Okra. We relish Bhindi in a variety of ways - a Konkani style coconut curry  Bhenda Ghash , spicy North Indian  Masala Bhindi , stuffed Okra Bharwa Bhindi or this quick stir fry. If you are an Okra fan too, you must give this simple recipe a try.

We all are told greens are good for you. I try to include it in our everyday diet. More than spinach, I like Dill leaves, Fenugreek leaves. If you are looking for greens other than Palak, try this Konkani style Shepuchi Bhaji.  Dill is known as Shepu in Marathi and Sabasgi Soppu in Kannada . Dill has a peculiar aroma. This is the way my Mom makes and I love it with Bhakri. Ingredients: Dill/Shepu/Sabasgi - a bunch Chana Dal/Split Chickpeas - 1/4 cup (optional) Onions - 2 medium Cumin/Jeera Seeds - 1/4 tsp Green chillies - 6 Garlic - 5 cloves Salt Oil How to cook Shepu or Dill leaves Bhaji: Soak chana dal in water for 20 - 30 minutes. If you soak it longer, it will take lesser time to cook. You can also use Mung Dal instead of Chana Dal. If you are not a fan of lentils, use diced potatoes. Potatoes blend well with any other vegetable. Crush the garlic cloves and medium chop the onions. Pick the dill leaflets and tender stems. Wash them well. Roughly chop ...

Every Konkani delicacy has coconut and today's recipe is no exception. Upkari is a mild stir fry of vegetables with fresh coconut. Ingredients: French Beans/Farasbi - 300 gms Green Chilies or Dry Red Chilies - 5 Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Asafetida - 1/4 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - a pinch (optional) Grated Coconut - about 3 tbsp Jaggery/Gud/Gul - about 1 tsp Oil preferably Coconut oil Salt  How to cook Beans Upkari: Heat about 1 tbsp oil in a kadhai/wok, add mustard seeds and asafetida. After mustard seeds pop, add chopped beans. Sauté for a minute and lengthwise slit green chilies.  Stir and cook it covered at low flame for 5 - 10 minutes. Keep stirring after every 2 minutes. You can add water if you like. When beans turn soft, add salt, jaggery, grated coconut and turmeric. I generally use frozen shredded coconut. Cook for 5 more minutes and its ready to serve with dal rice or chapati.

During festivals, auspicious days, I try to follow my Mom's customs to cook food with no onion garlic. One of my Mom's recipes I love is this stir fry Pumpkin or Lal Bhopla or Kadoo ... with lots of chillies and jaggery. In Konkani, we call this Lal Bhopla Bhaji as Duddhe Upkari. Ingredients: Pumpkin/Kadoo/Lal Bhopla - 250 gms Curry Leaves/Kadipata/Karbeo - a sprig Green Chilies - 5 Grated Coconut - 2 tbsp Cilantro/Coriander Leaves - few sprigs Mustard Seeds/Sasam - 1/2 tsp Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Jaggery or Brown Sugar - about 1 tsp Oil preferably Coconut Oil How to cook Lal Bhoplyachi Bhaji: Peel the pumpkin skin and cut it into bite size pieces. Wash the curry leaves, green chilies and pat them dry. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a kadhai/wok and add mustard seeds, curry leaves and asafetida. After mustard seeds pop, add pumpkin, turmeric and lengthwise slit green chilies. Stir and cook it ...

An easy and quick, less spicy stir fry cabbage recipe with chana dal or split chickpeas. Ingredients: Green Cabbage/Kobi/Patagobhi - 250 gms Chana Dal/Split Chickpeas/Gram - 2 tbsp Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Green Chilies - 4 Turmeric/Haldi - 1/4 tsp Asafetida/Hing - 1/4 tsp Cilantro/Coriander Leaves - few sprigs Salt Oil How to cook Kobichi Bhaaji: Soak Chana dal in water for 15 - 20 minutes. Meanwhile, wash curry leaves and green chilies. Pat them dry. Finely chop cabbage, cilantro leaves and medium chop green chilies. Wash the soaked dal well. Heat about 2 tsp oil in a kadhai/wok and add mustard seeds, curry leaves, asafetida.  When mustard seeds pop, add washed dal. Add about 1 cup water and cook it covered until dal softens.  Now add chopped cabbage and green chilies. Saute for 2 - 3 minutes. Lastly, add salt, turmeric and chopped cilantro.  Mix and cook it covered at low flame. Keep checking after every 2 minutes.  ...