Baked Masala Vadai

When it comes to Vadai, Masala vadai is my all time favorite. Usually I deep fry them in oil, but my baking addiction these days told me to try a baked version. These days its snowing here and on one such days I was craving for Masala Vadai. Soaked the dal and grinded. Decided to try baked version but was little worried about the texture, so instead of making the full batch took half of the batter and started baking it. Preheated the oven and took baking tray and I realized I was out of parchment paper. I thought is this sign telling me not to bake, but I greased the tray with extra oil (compare to my usual quantity) and baked. Oh man I didn’t believe the taste. My husband didn’t believe that its baked, but after seeing the second batch from the oven he accepted:-)

Its snowing today as well and my mind has started thinking about snacks. I am sure I will end up cooking some snack today but for time being this crispy baked Masala Vadai is for my lovely readers.

Check out my other Indian baked snack

• Baked Bread Tikki
• Gobi 65 Baked
• Baked Rice Cracker
• Baked Healthy Mixture
• Baked Thattai
• Baked Uppu Seedai
• Baked Idli Fry
• Cracked Wheat Savory Cake
• Tofu and Grape Tomato Tikka
• Kaima Idli
• Baked Onion Pakoda
• Baked Besan Bonda
• Baked Plaintain Chips
• Baked Bread Rolls
• Baked Masala Vadai

Ingredients:

Onion –  1, big finely chopped

Coriander Leaves – few, chopped

Curry leaves – few

To grind:

Channa Dal – 1 cup

Rice flour  – 1 tbsp

Fennel Seeds(Sombu) – 1 tsp

Red Chillies – 2

Garlic – 3 pods, peeled and choped

Ginger – 1 tsp, peeled and chopped

Baking soda – a pinch

Sugar – a pinch

Salt – as needed

Pam Spray/ Oil – to grease (I used Oil)

Method:

• Wash and soak channa dal for 2 to 3 hrs. Drain the water completely and keep aside. Grind together with other ingredients listed under “To grind” with 1 – 2 tsp of water into a coarse mixture (less water helps in crispy vadai texture. Avoid using too much water)

• Transfer the mixture to the mixing bowl and add onions, curry leaves, coriander leaves and mix well

•  Preheat the oven to 400 degree Fahrenhait. Take the baking tray and brush the oil
• Take small portions of the mixture, and flatten them using your palm (thinner vadai yields crispy vadai)
• Place them in the greased tray and brush  the top portion of each vadai with little oil to avoid drying out and of course for the crispy finish

• Bake the vadai for 11 – 15 min, till they have browned the underside (adjust time according to your oven) . Carefully flip them and bake again for another 11 – 15 minutes. Remove and serve immediately. Serve with chutney/ ketchup.  I generally love to finish them without any sides

My Notes:

• The key for the perfect baked vadai is batter with less moisture (water) and greasing generously with oil/ spray
• If the vadai is thick outer portion will cook fast and inner will remain uncooked, and baking for more time may lead to to rubbery vadai
• Just like the fried ones – these are best served the minute they are made. If can’t eat the vadai immediately, switch off the oven and keep the vadai tray back in the over till you eat. Make sure you keep the vadai back in oven after 10 minutes as the oven will still be hot. Though the crispness won’t retain for hours together but for 30 – 45 minutes it works perfect.  After that I haven’t tried
• Instead of rice flour rava can also be used

Paneer Tikka Masala

Recently when I had buffet in Indian restaurant I tasted Paneer Tikka Masala. It was delicious, I could taste paneer butter masala flavor along with paneer tikka taste. I tried to combine my tofu butter masala and tofu tikka recipe; prepared this Paneer tikka Masala and happy with the results:-)

Preparation Time : 15 mins | Marination time : 2 hours | Cooking Time : 45 mins

Recipe Category: Side dish

Ingredients:

For Tikka:

Paneer – 1 packet (225 gram)

For marination:

Hung Curd/Sour Cream – 3 tbsp +1 tsp (I used Sour Cream)

Pepper Powder – 1/4 tsp

Turmeric powder – a pinch

Garam Masala powder – 1/4 tsp

Tandoori Masala  – 1 tsp

Chat Masala – 1/4 tsp (optional)

Lemon juice – 1 tsp

Ginger garlic paste – 1/2 tsp

Oil – 1 tbsp

How to make hung curd:

Hang 1/3 cup curd in a muslin cloth or any thin cloth for an hour to make the required hung curd.

For Gravy:

Onion – 2

Tomato – 3

Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp

Garam Masala powder- 1 tsp

Chilli powder – 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp

Cumin powder – 1/4 tsp

Heavy Cream – 3 tbsp

Turmeric powder – 1/8 tsp

Cinnamon Powder – 1/4 tsp

Salt – as needed

Butter – 1 tbsp

Method:

• Preheat the oven at 400 deg F
• Cube the Paneer and keep it aside. In a separate bowl Mix the ingredients listed under ‘for marination’ and keep aside. Mix paneer with the marinated ingredients and keep refrigerated for 2 hours (minimum an hour). Take it out and arrange the Paneer in the baking tray

• Bake them for 15-18 mins, turning over in between for even cooking. Paneer tikka is ready

• Boil onion and tomato in hot water and strain the water. When it comes to room temperature, blend them into fine paste

• Add butter to the pan. Add ginger garlic paste and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the blended tomato and onion puree and cook for 3-5 minutes

• Add garam masala, coriander powder, cumin powder, chilli powder, turmeric powder and allow it to cook for 2-3mins

• Add heavy cream and cook till it starts boiling. Add paneer tikka and cook for 2 minutes and switch off

My Notes:

• Instead of fresh cream you can add 1/3 cup of milk and cook for 5-8 minutes till the gravy become thick
• If you are using a cinnamon stick, add it while tempering
• Can marinate capsicum and onion along with paneer while preparing tikka and use it
• This gravy goes well with any variety rice like fried rice as well as with naan/rotis
• I boiled the onions and tomatoes, blended them, instead can sauté them in oil and grind them

Tofu Butter Masala

As I had mentioned in Kadai Tofu and Tofu Tikka, though I love paneer, I am afraid of the calories it adds. Happy that Tofu can satisfy my taste buds in the same way as paneer. Couple of days weeks back I had prepared Malai Kofta with paneer. I was craving for paneer dish again, and this time, tried a side dish with tofu instead of paneer.

Tofu is similar to paneer, except that it is made with soy milk, which is said to be protein rich. My version of Tofu Butter Masala:

Tofu Butter Masala

Preparation Time : 10 min | Cooking Time : 25 mins | Serves : 4

Recipe Category: Side dish

Ingredients:

Firm Tofu – 1 packet (225 gram)

Onion – 1 big

Tomato – 2

Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp

Garam Masala powder- 1 tsp

Chilli powder – 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp

Cumin powder – 1/4 tsp

Milk – 1/3 cup

Turmeric powder – 1/8 tsp

Cinnamon Powder – 1/4 tsp

Salt – as needed

Butter – 2 tbsp

Method:

• Boil onion and tomato in hot water and strain the water. When it comes to room temperature, blend them into fine paste

• Add butter to the pan. Add ginger garlic paste and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the blended tomato and onion puree and cook for 3-5 minutes

• Add garam masala, coriander powder, cumin powder, chilli powder, turmeric powder and allow it to cook for 2-3mins

• Add the Tofu and salt. Saute well for 2-3 minutes

• Add cinnamon powder and milk and let it cook for 3-5 minutes

My Notes:

• Instead of milk, you can add 3 tbsp of fresh cream
• If you are using a cinnamon stick, add it while tempering
• This gravy goes well with any variety rice like fried rice/ pulao as well as with naan/rotis
• I boiled the onions and blended them, as it will save time while cooking blended onion. Instead, you can also sauté the onions
• For vegan version, instead of butter, you can add oil and use coconut milk to try Tofu Butter Masala:-)

Stuffed Brinjal

I love the masala powder my Amma prepares for Vaangi Bath. I always wanted to cook brinjal with that powder as a stuffing. Have added additional ingredients, and prepared a new version of masala for stuffing. Loved this way of stuffed brinjal 🙂 If you get small brinjals, both stuffed brinjal and Ennai Kathirikai Kuzhambu are great dishes to try.

Stuffed Brinjal

Preparation Time : 10 min |  Cooking Time : 25 min

Recipe Category : Side Dish

Ingredients:

Brinjal/Eggplant/Aubergine – 15 medium sized

Salt – as needed

Stuffing:

Onion – 1, roughly chopped

Garlic – 2 pods

Coriander seeds – 2 tbsp

Bengal gram/Chana Dal – 2 tbsp

Red chillies- 3 ( Adjust according to your spice level)

Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp

Pepper – 1/2 tsp

White Sesame seeds – 1 tsp

Peanut – 3 tbsp

Grated coconut – 2 tbsp (Optional)

Oil – 1 tsp

To Temper:

Sesame Oil – 2 tbsp

Mustard – 1/4 tsp

Curry leaves – 1 spring

Method:

• Wash brinjals and make 2 slits to form a cross, leaving the stalks intact. Put the brinjals in water to avoid them turning black
• Add oil to the pan. once the oil is hot, add onion and garlic, and saute till the onions are cooked. Add remaining items listed under “Stuffing” and saute till they are golden brown. Cool them and blend them into a paste by adding little water

• Add oil to the Pan, when the oil is hot, add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add  brinjals and curry leaves. Cook on low flame

• When the brinjals are half cooked, add the stuffing paste and mix gently. Cover the lid and cook. Sprinkle some water if required. The stuffing goes inside the brinjal slits, and also coats the outside

My Notes:

• Can add tamrind/ tomatoes if you want it to be tangy
• Instead of grinding onions, you can also saute them directly

Whole Moong Bean Paniyaram

When I was thinking what to prepare for breakfast next day, I saw a fresh pack of whole moong bean in the kitchen. Usually I do pesaruttu with whole moong bean for breakfast. Thought of doing something else this time, and my Tamilian roots thought about paniyaram. Previously I did Adai paniyaram with lentils and rice, this time wanted to skip rice.

Whole Moong Bean Paniyaram:

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Soaking Time : 4 hours | Cooking Time : 10 mins | Serves : 3

Recipe Category: Breakfast

Ingredients:

Whole Green Moong bean/Mung Bean –  1 cup

Toor dal – 1/4 cup

Channa dal – 2 tbsp

Onion – 1 finely chopped

Cumin Seeds – 1/4 tsp

Green Chilli – 1

Ginger – 1/4 tsp

Hing – a generous pinch

Oil – 2 tbsp

salt as needed

Method:

• Soak the three lentils together for about 4 hours (I soaked in warm water)
• Drain the water, and Grind into a coarse paste, along with green chillies, cumin seeds and ginger, by adding water
• Mix with onion, hing and salt. If required add some more water for the batter

• Heat the paniyaram pan. Add a little oil to each hole. Spoon the batter into the pan

• After one side is cooked well, turn the paniyaram and cook the other side. Serve with any chutney

 

My Notes:

• Instead of oil you can even use cooking spray
• If you do not have kuzhi paniyaram pan, you can deep fry them in oil or make dosage
• You can add any veggies of your choice
• Instead of green mong bean, yellow moong dal can also be used

 

 

 

Bhindi Masala

I had never tried Bhindi Masala at home, but whenever I go to Indian restaurants, I mostly see Bhindi Masala in the buffet menu. Hubby likes Okra very much, so thought of trying this at home. I actually liked this version of Bhindi Masala and started preparing this frequently as a side dish for chappati

Bhindi Masala

Preparation Time : 10 min | Cooking Time : 30 mins | Serves : 3

Recipe Category: Side dish

Ingredients:

Okra – 250 grams

Onion – 1 big, finely chopped

Tomato – 2

Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp

Garam Masala powder- 1 tsp

Pav bhaji powder/Chilli powder – 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp

Cumin powder – 1/4 tsp

Curd / yogurt – 1 tbsp + 1 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1/8 tsp

Coriander leaves – as needed to garnish

Cinnamon Powder – 1/4 tsp

Salt – as needed

Oil – 2 tsp

Method:

• Add 1 tsp of oil, spread the oil all through the pan and sauté the okra till they become slightly crispy

• Add 1 tsp of oil to another pan. Add ginger garlic paste and sauté for 30 seconds. Add onions and saute till onions are cooked, and add tomato after the onions are cooked.
• Add garam masala, coriander powder, cumin powder, pav bhaji masala, turmeric powder and allow it to cook for 2-3mins

• Add the sautéed okra and salt, cook for 5 minutes. Add curd and mix well, and cook for 3-4 minutes

My Notes:

• If you need Bhindi masala as a gravy, add the required amount of water.
• To get crispy okra, wipe the okra dry before cooking. If you do not have time to wipe it dry, keeping it in the microwave for a minute would help.

Thenga Aracha Kuzhambu

Thenga Aracha Kuzhambu (Ground Coconut Gravy) is a recipe originally from my Aunt’s mom, which was passed on to me through my aunt and my mom. This is a great accompaniment with rice, and also tastes good with any tiffen item. Being a South Indian, rice is our main food, so preparing accompaniment for rice is such a big deal. More than cooking, to think what to cook is a big task. Whenever I ask Hubby gives a one word answer always – “anything”, and that is something I hate to hear. Last week the same thing happened and I was thinking what to cook, and I flipped some pages from my Amma’s book, so that I can get some idea. Found this recipe and quickly checked my fridge to see if I had the veggies to cook this. I am not sure whether this is how it should be cooked, but I love my Aunt’s version.

Thenga Aracha Kuzhambu

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Soaking Time: 15 minutes |  Cooking Time : 20 mins | Serves : 3

Recipe Category: Rice Accompaniment/Side Dish

Ingredients:

Drumstick – 1, cut into finger sized pieces

Mixed Vegetable –  1 cup (I took brinjal, carrot, ladies finger and potato)

Tamarind – A gooseberry size ball

Turmeric Powder – ¼ tsp

Curd – 3 tbsp

Salt – as needed

Jaggery – 1 tsp

For the spice paste

Urad Dal – 1 tbsp

Fenugreek seeds – 1/2 tsp

Rice – 1/8 tsp

Dried Red Chilli – 3 – 4 (According to your spice level)

Shredded Coconut – 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp

For Tempering

Coconut oil – 1 tbsp

Mustard Seeds – 1/8 tsp

Fenugreek – 1/8 tsp

Curry Leaves – few

Method:

• Soak the tamarind in warm water for 10 – 15 minutes and extract the juice from it, by adding 2 cups of water
• Dry roast the urad dal,  fenugreek seeds, rice and red chillies till it becomes golden brown. Once it comes to room temperature, add coconut and little water to make a  paste

• Add oil to the pan. When the oil is hot, add mustard seeds and fenugreek. Once it splutters, add the chopped vegetables, turmeric powder and saute for 5-6 mins till its half cooked

• Add tamrind puree and salt. Cook till raw smell goes and vegetables are cooked. Add the ground paste and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add curd and switch off. We had it with Rice and Vazhakkai Podi Curry

 

Potato Tikka

When we were in London, one of our friends invited us for lunch, and prepared potato tikka. Till then, when I have potato, I always prepared dry curry or put it in some gravy, but never tried potato tikka. Now I started preparing potato tikka regularly, sometimes as a starter and sometimes as a side dish.

 

Potato Tikka:

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Marination time : 2 hours | Cooking Time : 20 mins | Serves : 2

Recipe Category: Appetizer

Ingredients:

Potato – 1 cup + 1/2 cup (Baby potatoes preferable. As I didn’t have them handy, I used diced

potato)

Hung Curd/Sour Cream– 3 tbsp (I used Sour cream)

Pepper Powder/Chilli powder- 1/8 tsp (I used pepper powder)

Turmeric powder – a pinch

Garam Masala powder – 1/2 tsp

Tandoori Masala  – 1/2 tsp (optional)

Chat Masala – 1/2 tsp

Lemon juice / Amchur Powder – 1/4 tsp (I used Amchur Powder)

Ginger garlic paste – 1/4 tsp

Oil – 1 tsp

How to make hung curd:

Hang 1/4 cup curd in a muslin cloth or any thin cloth for an hour to make the required hung curd.

Method:

• Par boil potatoes (I microwaved potatoes for 5 mins) and mix the rest of ingredients and keep refrigerated for 2 hours (minimum an hour)

• Preheat the oven at 400 deg F and arrange the marinated potatoes in the baking tray and grill the potatoes for 15-18 mins, turning over the potatoes in between for even cooking

My Notes:

• If you are having as a starter, serve it with green chutney
• Instead of oven you can even cook it in a skillet
• If you are using wooden skewers, immerse them in cold water for 15 min to avoid browning

Checkout my other tikka recipe,

Tofu and Grape Tomato Tikka

Masala Paniyaram

During our childhood days, whenever we get bored of idli/dosa, kuzhi paniyaram  is an immediate alternative Amma prepares with idli/dosa batter. For preparing this dish, Kuzhi paniyaram  stand and left over idli/dosa batter is all that’s needed. I tried savory version. If you don’t have kuzhi paniyaram pan, try frying it in oil to enjoy quick snack 🙂 For a variation you can Aldo check Adai paniyaram

Masala Paniyaram (Savory Rice Ball):

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Cooking Time : 10 mins | Serves : 3

Recipe Category: Breakfast

Ingredients:

Dosa/Idly batter – 2 cups

Idli Podi – 1 tsp

Finely chopped Onion – 1

Grated Carrots – 2

Hing – a generous pinch

Curry leaves – few, roughly chopped

Ginger – 1/8 tsp (optional)

Coriander leaves – Handful

Oil – to cook

Method

• Add onion, carrot, Idli podi, coriander leaves, curry leaves, hing and ginger to the Idli batter

• Heat the paniyaram pan. Add a little oil to each hole. Spoon the batter into the pan and cook for 2 minutes on one side

• After one side is cooked well, turn the paniyarams and cook the other side. Flip carefully and cook until it is done

• Serve with any chutney

My Notes:

• Green chilli can be used instead of Idli podi
• Can add 2 tbsp of wheat flour for a soft texture

Check my other recipes using Idli/Dosa Batter,

Idli Fry

Idli Upma

Kaima Idli

Masala Idli

Vegetable Waffle Dosai

Adai Paniyaram – Savory Lentils & Rice Balls

Adai paniyaram is a different version of Kuzhi Paniyaram. Normally we make masala paniyaram with left over idly batter, for a change I tried Panniyaram with leftover Adai batter for breakfast. Adai batter is a mixture of rice and various lentils with flavors of ginger and red chillies. With this batter we generally make Adai Dosai.

Adai Paniyaram:

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Soaking time: 4 hours | Cooking Time : 10 mins | Serves : 3

Recipe Category: Breakfast

Ingredients:

Boiled Rice (Boiled Rice used for making Idli/Dosa) – 1/4 cup

Raw Rice  – 1/4 cup

Moong dal –  1/4 cup

Toor dal – 1/4 cup

Channa dal – 1/8 cup

Onion – 1 finely chopped

Red chillies – 3

Curry leaves few

Ginger – 1/4 tsp

Coriander leaves a small bunch

Hing a generous pinch

Oil – 2 tbsp

salt as needed

Method:

• Soak the rice and the lentils together for about 3 hours
• Drain the water, and Grind into  course paste along with red chillies and ginger. Add required amount of water
• Mix with onion, coriander leaves, curry leaves, hing and salt.  Adjust the qty of water as needed
• Heat the paniyaram pan. Add a little oil to each hole. Spoon the batter into the pan

• After one side is cooked well, turn the paniyaram and cook the other side. Serve with any chutney / jaggery / aviyal

My Notes:

Instead of oil you can even use cooking spray