Mamidikaaya Aavakaaya/Mango Pickle

India is famous for its spices as we all know that, Indians are famous for making Pickles. During the Mango season all are busy making the Mango pickle is different styles from different states. In Andhra we call this pickle as Mamidikaaya Aavakaaya,In karnataka they call Maminikaaya uppinikaai,In north they call Aam Ka Achar, I would like to know what other states people call this pickle, if u could share with us that would be great. TO know more about this pickle see Andhra Aavakaaya .
Mango slices,salt,red chilli powder
Oil,turmeric powder,mustard powder,fenugreek powder
Mix all the Ingredients together

Ingredients:
4 cups sliced raw mango pieces.
1 cup salt.
1 cup red chilli powder(If u want to make it mild u can first add half cup and later u can add more to it.)
3/4 cup turmeric powder.
1/4 cup mustard powder.
1/4 cup fenugreek powder.
2 cups seasame oil.
10 garlic cloves crushed.

Method;

First wash the raw mangoes, well and wipe it nicely with a colth and let it dry for a minute. Meanwhile we can prepare the mustard powder and fenugreek powder, to make this powders we have dry roast the mustard and fenugreek seprately and grind them into fine powders. Now slice the mango into 2 inch slices and measure. Add this slices into a large bowl.

Now take the oil in a bowl and add the turmeric powder to the oil and mix well, later dip the mango slices into this oil mixture(by doing this the pickle will not spoil and it will stay for longer period). When ur done dipping the mango slices in the oil, now add chiili powder, salt,mustard powder, fenugreek powder and mix all together nicely later add the crushed garlic and remaining seasame oil and keep this aside remember not to use any wet containers or wet hands while making this pickle.

After mixing all the ingredients set this pickle aside covered in a safe place and let it marniate the pickle for 3 to four day so that the spice mixtures is well mixed with the mango slices. After 3-4 days mix the pickle nicely and taste it and check weather salt is correct or not if u feel its less add some more to it(If salt is not enough the pickle will get spoiled very soon so we should see that the salt is perfect in this pickle. Now store the pickle in a air tight glass jars or procliam container and store them. This pickle can be preserved for more than a year.

This recipe is my contribution for Indira's Jihva.

Mango Lassi/Mango Yogurt drink

Another cool cool drink for the summer evenings to serve the dear one:). Its very easy and healthy for the kids. we can use fresh fruit or even canned mango pulp also tastes good.

Ingredients:

1 Cup ripe mango pulp.
3 cups plain yogurt.
1 cup water.
1/2 cup sugar.
1 tspn roasted cumin powder.
pinch of chat masala(optional).
ice cubes.
mint leaves to garnish.

To make the Roasted cumin powder, Take a fry pan and heat it, later when the pan is warn enough add the cumin to it and dry roast the cumin without adding any oil. When the cumins starts leaving the aroma remove from the stove and leave it aside for the cumin to get cold. Later when the cumin is cold enough grind the cumin to a fine powder. This powder can be used for raitas, chats, Dahi wada( north indian style) and can also use in gravy curries to add extra flour to the dish.

Method:

Take the blender jar pour the first four ingredients and run the blender till everything mixes well, later add the roasted cumin powder and run once again the blender for a second. Remove the lassi for the jar and serve it with ice cubes and mint leaves garnished. Enjoy the yummy taste of the mango lassi with ur family and friends.

Chat masala can also gives the lassi a different flavour if u want to give a try.

MANGO PUNCH

Summer is on its way, when we think of summer we remember the hottest fruit of summer yummy Mango. In India we have the mangoes first on the day of Ugadi fest
We consume mangoes from that day in many different ways.

In Andhra we use raw mangoes for making Avvakaya, which is our most famous pickle there is no house that does not do this pickle. I have been watching my mom and grand mom since all these years to make this pickle they do all the hungamaJ. The Kids enjoy eating raw mangoes dipping the slices in the salt and pepper mixer. If we talk about mangoes we have a long list coming on so let stop it here.

As INDIRA started the JIHVA and she has decide this month’s topic about Mango. So I want to have this week as mango week. Here is the first posting on Mangoes.

Ingredients:

1 Cup Mango plup.
2 Cups Ginger-ale (Even Canada dry also can be used).
Pinch of cardamom powder for flour.
Ice cubes.
Mint leaves to garnish.

Method:

Take a large bowl, mix the first three ingredients and serve with ice cubes and garnish with mint.

PERUGU CHARU/SPICY YOGURT

This dish is prepared during summer to cool the hot temperature. This dish is from coastal andhra the place I came from. May be other regions are also famous making this dish,If so I would like to know what they call this dish.

My grand mom and mom used to serve this every other day during summer even today they do this dish. I have changed their version a little. Here is my version for this dish. Its very simple not much to cook.

Here are the Ingredients used for this:

2 cups plain yogurt.
1 onion sliced.
salt to taste.

For tempering:
2 tblspn oil.
3-4 green chillie sliced very fine.
1/4cup peanuts(optional)
1/4 cup chana dhal(spilt chick peas).
1tspn mustard.
1/4 tspn turmeric powder.
curry leaves.
2 whole red chillies.
1/4 tspn hing ( asafeotida).
fresh coriander to granish.

How to make the tempering:

Take a saute pan and heat the oil, when the oil gets warm add whole red chillies and fry for a second, later add mustard seeds and allow the mustard to crack. Then add channa dhal and peanuts and fry till golden, later add turmeric powder, hing and curry leaves and fry. Last but not the least add the finely chopped green chillies and fry well. Add this mixture to the yogurt.
Take plain low fat yogurt in a bowl
In the yogurt bowl add sliced onions and salt
Now add the tempering mixture to the yogurt

After adding all these mix well and serve it with plain rice or u can serve this dish with rotis or even with any type of fried rice items. I even like to have this dish with minappa garelu(urad wada).

AVOCADO PACHADI/CHUTNEY

Hi friends the guess work was good at last here is the recipe.I wanted to give my family ever day a AVACADO its very good for health , I wanted to try some thing like this and see how it turns I remembered my dad teasing my mom everyday saying u make pachadi out of everything is their any veegie or fruit left whith out making pachadi. I got inspired by his words and thought of making this. My family loved this dish. Hope even ur family will love it give a try and see.
Here is the recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

2 Small ripe Avacado's.
5-6 green chillies.
small lemon size tamarind.
salt to taste.
1/4 tspn cumin seeds(jeera).
1/2 cup yogurt(optional).

For tempering:

2 tspn oil.
1/4 mustard seeds.
1/4 tspn hing (asafeotida).
1/4 tspn turmeric powder(optional).
5-6 curry leaves.

Method:

Take a fry pan add few drops of oil and warm it and add green chillies and fry till chillies gets tender. cut the Avacado and remove the pulp from it . Take a blender add Avacado pulp, green chillies fried, salt, tamarind, cumin, U can even add some garlic cloves to it, I could not add garlic to it as I had a friend for lunch who never take garlic in her food. blend them nicely to a fine paste dont add too much water when u blend just a few drops if u want .

Take a fry pan add oil to make the tempering, when the oil gets warm add mustard seeds, when the mustard seeds starts cracking add hing, and curry leaves to it and fry for few seconds and add tempering to the avacado pachadi serve it with hot rice I even tried it on my sandwich as a spread.

MUSHROOM MAHARAJA/MAHARANI:)

Like the name of this curry, the curry is rich in taste, I had this version of mushroom curry in a restaurant in Canada I could not stop myself from asking the cook for the recipe, And here is the result in front of u.Now in kids list this is one of their fav I don’t need to call them for dinner or lunch by the time I set my table I see them sitting like good kids. Like my kids I feel u all will enjoy this curry

INGREDEINTS:
Mushrooms 2 lb.
2 onions sliced and half fried.
1 tomato boiled.
2 tspn sea same seeds.
2-tspn kajju (cashews).
1 tspn ginger garlic paste.
½ tspn garam masala powder.
1 tspn red chilli powder.
¼ tspn turmeric powder.
Salt to taste.
Curry leaves.
½ tspn shahjeera (it looks like jeera cumin family).
Oil.
Fresh coriander for garnish.
Before u start making the curry we have to get prepared with some grinding things here are they. First cut the onion and fry them using very little oil until half cooked to avoid the raw smell from onions. And by frying the onion before making the paste the curry will have rich gravy.

Secondly boil the tomato before u make the paste. When the onions are fried and tomato boiled u ready to grind the paste for the curry.

To make the paste we need fried onion, boiled tomato, seasame seeds, kajju, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala powder, salt to taste, blend all these ingredients together and make a paste like this.

METHOD:
Here comes the final part of how to make this dish. First take a sauce pan and add 1 tblsn oil and warm it, when the oil starts sparkling then add shahjeera and when the shahjeera starts cracking add curry leaves and fry for a second, later add the paste which we made grinding all the ingredients and fry for a minute later add ginger garlic paste and fry nicely until the gravy leaves oil in the sides. When the gravy is finely cooked add the mushrooms (In this dish they use whole mushrooms as my kids like cut mushrooms I used sliced mushrooms) and mix well with the gravy and cook, when u add the mushrooms u can see how thick the gravy is, if u want to make it more gravy type add some water to it and let it cook well until the mushrooms are cooked. Later remove in the serving dish and garnish the dish with fresh coriander.

This dish goes well with fried rice, plain rice or roti, kulcha, Nan any type.

SREE RAMA NAVAMI SHUBHAKANKSHALU

Sree Rama Navami Is one the festival that comes after Ugadi, As like other Festivals these Festival has a historic story. This Festival is celebrated in Andhra in a grant style during these days people gather together and arrange a marriage mandap which is called pandiri in telugu, we see all the glowing faces of people moving around and doing preparations for the grant wedding of Lord rama and Devi sita, In my place back home ever year a couple sits for the puja and perform this grand wedding. After the wedding they distribute the prasadam which will be panakam which is only made during this festival. As a tradition in every marriage function the girl’s family give this drink to welcome the boy’s family.

Here a small article on Sree Rama Navami:

Sri Rama was Lord Vishnu's seventh avatar (incarnation) on earth. Sri Rama was portrayed as being the ideal man, and his wife Sita, was the ideal woman. Sri Ramanavami is the birth of Sri Rama on this earth. This festival usually occurs between March or April in the Christian calendar. The festival is celebrated on the ninth day of the bright fortnight of the Hindu month of Chaitra. In some parts of India, it is a nine-day festival, coinciding with the Vasanta Navaratri.
Ramnavami occurs in the month of March on the ninth day Chaitra Sukla Navami (the ninth day of the bright half of Chaitra). Celebrations begin with a prayer to the Sun early in the morning. At midday, when Lord Rama is supposed to have been born, a special prayer is performed. In northern India especially, an event that draws popular participation is the Ramnavami procession. The main attraction in this procession is a decorated chariot in which four persons are dressed up as Rama, his brother Laxman, his queen Sita and his disciple Hanuman. The chariot is accompanied by several other persons dressed up in ancient costumes as work by Rama's solders. The procession is a holy affair with the participants shouting praises echoing the happy days of Rama's reign.
Surya - The Sun was recognised as the source of light and heat even in ancient times. Many royal dynasties potrayed symbols of virility like the Sun, Eagle, Lion etc. as their progenitor. Rama's dynasty considered themselves to have descended from the Sun. This could have led to the tagging on, of Rama's birthday to a festival devoted to the sun.
On the face of it Sri-Ramnavmi appears to be just a festival commemorating the reign of a king who was later deified. But even behind present-day traditions there are clues which unmistakably point to the origin of Ramnavmi as lying beyond the Ramayana story.
Sri Ramnavami occurs at the beginning of summer when the sun has started moving nearer to the northern hemisphere. The Sun is considered to be the progenitor of Rama's dynasty which is called the Sun dynasty (Raghukula or Raghuvamsa, Raghu means Sun and Kula or Vamsa mean familial descendant). Rama is also known as Raghunatha, Raghupati, Raghavendra etc. That all these names begin with the prefix Raghu is also suggestive of some link with Sun-worship. The syllable Ra is used in the word to describe the sun and brilliance in many languages. In Sanskrit, Ravi and Ravindra mean Sun. The hour chosen for the observance of the lord's birth is that when the sun is overhead and is at its maximum brilliance. In some Hindu sects, prayers on Ramnavami day start not with an invocation to Rama but to Surya (sun). People keep a fast throughout the day, breaking it only at midnight with fruit. Public gatherings called satsangs are organised to commemorate the birth of Rama. Excerpts from the Ramayana, extolling the glory of Rama and his holy marriage with Sita are recited. People of all castes and creeds participate in these gatherings to listen to the stories and their explanations offered by the learned. The ritual of Ramayana is concluded with prasadam of 'vada pappu' (soaked lentil) and panakam (sherbat made of jaggery dissolved in water to which pepper powder and cardamom powder are added).

SreeRaamaRaamaRaamethi
RameRaameManorame
SahasraNaama Thatthulyam
Raama Naama Varaanane
Aapadaamapa Harthaaram
DaatharamSarvaSampadaam
LokaabhiraamamSreeRaamam
Bhuyo Bhuyo Namaamyaham

The birthday of Sri Rama, indeed, signifies an event worth of remembrance by every one, whatever his country or race or religion, who cherishes the time honored sublime values of human culture and civilization.

Foodblog Meme from around the world

Hi Friends,
I am happy to take part in this Meme. This is my first Meme.Karthi tagged me for this meme, Thank u karthi for tagging me. Here comes my Meme….

1.Please list three recipes you have recently book marked from foodblogs to try:
a) JunnuArjuna's Cuisine.
b)Indira's Soymilk
c)Karthi's Appam

2. A foodblog in your vicinity
Baker's

3.A foodblog located far from you.
SAILU
and many more blogs.

4.A foodblog you have discovered recently (where did u find it)
Menu
Tony
Priya


5.Any bloggers who would like to tag with this meme.
Shilpa's
Anitha's
My Dhaba
Arjuna's
Meena's
Lakshmi's
Saffron hut

KALA CHANNA FRY

This recipe is very simple and healthy, It can be served with rice as a side dish or with roti, if not have it directly as chat.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Pack of frozen kala channa (If not frozen soak the kala channa overnight).
1 onion sliced.
3-4 curry leaves.
Salt to taste.
1tspn red chili powder.
½ tspn jeera (cumin).
2 tblspn oil.
Fresh coriander to garnish.

METHOD:
If u r using fresh kala channa, in telugu we call nalla channagalu, in English its black chick pea, soak the kala channa overnight and pressure cook them by adding some salt to it.

In these busy days of work I mostly prefer to get frozen ones, which save some time for us. It’s available in Indian grocery stores.

First take a sauce pan and heat it up, Later when the pan is hot enough add oil and let the oil warm up, when the oil is ready add jeera to it and fry till the jeera turn its color to liter golden then add curry leaves if u want to make it some spicy u can add whole red chilli at this time and fry. Then add onions sliced and fry till golden brown. When the onions are well fried later add the frozen kala channa or the fresh one u cooked. And mix it well later add red chilli powder and salt and fry for 5 minutes, ur kala channa fry is ready to serve. Remove it in a serving bowl and garnish with fresh coriander.

JUNNU

This recipe is fromArjuna's Cuisine. una.blogspot.com/I make this dish in a different method but arjuna method was easy so I gave it a try it has come out great here is the result. Thanks for the receipe arjuna.

EGG FRY

As I was busy with work and home so could not post any new receipes will be back soon with this receipe and some more.
INGREDEINTS:

2-3 boiled Eggs.
2 onions sliced.
4-6 green chilli (paste).
½ tspn ginger paste.
¼ tspn turmeric powder.
4-5 curry leaves.
½ tspn mustard.
Salt to taste.
Oil to make the curry.
½ cup fresh coriander leaves .

Method:

First take a sauce pan and heat it up, when its hot add oil to it and warm it, when the oil starts sizzling add mustard, curry leaves and fry till the mustards cracks. Then add onions to it and fry till the onion turn golden brown. Later add turmeric powder, green chilli paste, ginger paste and salt to the onion mixture and fry till the aroma raises. When the onion mixtures is well cooked add the boiled eggs and fry for a mnt later add fresh coriander leaves and serve it hot with rice or roti.