Sunday 29 November 2015

Vegetable Biriyani

Vegetable Biriyani Recipe

Ingredients
1. Onion - 2
2. Green chillies -6
3. Carrot - 3
4. Green peas
5. Potato -2
6. Tomatoes -2
7. Beans

8.Kasuri methi
9. Ginger


To Grind
1. Coconut
2. Garlic- 4
3. Coriander leaves
4. Green chillies

Method

1. Cut all the vegetables to small pieces.

2. Grind together the ingredients to a smooth paste

3. Fry onions and green chillies in little oil and ghee. Add the chopped veggies carrot, beans, potato, green peas. After few mins add tomatoes.

4. Add the coconut paste, little soil to it and fry for 5 mins.

5. Add water, salt and when it boils add kasuri methi.
For i cup rice, add 1.5 cup of water

6. Add biriyani rice and crushed ginger,patta, cinnamn and cloves.

7. Wait till 3 whistles(This depends on the rice)

8. Add coriander leaves.

This is a recipe which takes just half an hour. Serve this with a cucumber salad and pickle.




Monday 9 November 2015

Let us clean the mirror and light the inner light

On diwali, we see people decorating their houses, cleaning the homes, lighting the lamps,dressed up in new dresses everywhere.

The beginning of a new year is welcomed in a very beautiful manner. Let us also pause, rethink and clean our inner self and lit the lamp in our inner mind too.

Let us evaluate and analyse our prejudices, thinking patterns and do a beautiful tranformation.

Let us smile inwards and approach world with much enthusiasm. Let this be our journey from darkness to lightness.

Let us stop complaining and be stronger with all challenges in the world. Let us be aware that are less fortunate people in this world and be aware of all the blessings that life offers us.

Let us clean the dirty mirror and see how beautiful the outer world is than we imagined.

Let us be aware of all the negative emotions that conquers us and makes our life complicated.

Let us stop judgments and start loving the people around. Let us stop assuming we are Mr or Ms Perfect and correct our mistakes as and when we realise it.

This year I have lost three persons whom I loved a lot. Let us love and care everyone so that we later have no regrets.

Nothing is permanent in this world. So let us throw all the emotional bagagges, get rid of all the grudges.

Let us stop comparing with others. Let us be the best version of ourselves.

Let us live and let others live happily.

Wish everyone a  very happy Diwali.


How to make ghee at home

How to make ghee at home

The aroma of home made ghee is really tempting. My grand ma used to prepare butter, and ghee at home.

The process is really simple. These days we get fresh milk from cow and so thought of preparing ghee at home.


1. Daily collect the cream from the milk after boiling and store in  a  small glass bottle. Keep it in fridge.

What I usually do is, boil the milk and keep in fridge. After 6 hours, I take the cream from it. This way I get a lot of cream, Add a little curd to it.

2. Water will be found at the bottom of the bottle.

3. After collecting for 10 days or so, In a mixer,add cream, add some water and whip it just 5 mins.
Repeat process till butter separates from butter milk.

 Butter will be separated after this process. Collect butter using  a spoon and wash it.The left over butter milk can be used for drinking.

4. In a thick bottomed pan, keep the butter in gas stove on medium heat.

5.After few mins, butter will start melting. Bubbles will be seen. Lessen the heat. Heat till clear ghee is formed.

4. Using a clean cloth or strainer,filter the clear ghee and store in a glass container.


Gooseberry pickle(nellikka achar)

This is gooseberry season. They are a rich source of vitamins

Recipe to prepare tasty gooseberry(nellikka) pickle which is very easy.

Wash, clean and dry nellikka( 1 kg).

Heat sesame oil and fry gooseberry. Remove from fire and cut into pieces when it cools down.

In a pan, splutter mustard and curry leaves. Add chilli powder(5 spoons), fenu greek powder(1 spoon), hing powder snd heat for a few seconds.

Mix fried gooseberry and salt. Store it in  clean air tight container.

Wednesday 4 November 2015

Why do we vote?

Elections are now a days no more filled with vibe to bring in a change,  Earlier we were optimistic about our leaders.

We now  have  come to an extend where we are left with an option like none of these ( similar to mcq's we learn at school level), even  being one  of the biggest democratic in the world,

Only question is that " do we still have faith or belief in the people we elect" or is just to have a change we elect  different candidates..in either ways it can be only be concluded that ..the right and ambitions of a common man is never going to be fulfilled..

Election though being a right of every citizen has become  another day to celebrate as its a public holiday.

We hope and pray that atleast in the future our nation will be in the hand of "Young, igniting, innovative minds who aim to make the nation a developed one rather the leaders making their party and well wishers develop...

Hence elections are now just a day to relax and spend time with family than to elect a good leader..
Hope in future we will have leaders as we had long ago who gave every thing to built upon a strong future..

Are we still independent? We still  have guttered roads, people breaking the rules for their own interests, corruption everywhere.

Tuesday 27 October 2015

Pineapple pachadi

Pineapple pachadi

This is a very tasty side dish for rice and easy to prepare.

Chop pine apple(half of a pine apple) to small slices.

In a pressure cooker, cook pine apple with turmeric powder and salt till 3 whistles.

Grind 1 cup coconut,4 green chillies, jeerakam to a smooth paste.

Add the paste to cooked pine apple and boil till it mixes well. Now add whisked curd and mix it and remove from gas.

Heat oil, add mustard, curry leaves, red chillies and fenu greek and add it to the pachadi.

Thursday 2 July 2015

A little care can make them feel special

She is childless and a widow. Whenever I see her she is cheerful and tells a lot of stories in a single breath. No regrets, no complaints nothing. What she needs is just someone to be by her side and tell all what she has to tell. She has stocked a box full of chocolates to all the kids who visit her.

These days in our day to day chores and busy life we fail to spend time with elderly. We had a period where kids grow up with the grand mas, hear a lot of stories with them. Now everywhere kids go to play schools.

We used to seek blessings of our elders before an exam, interview, marriage etc.

After retirement, many elders feel they are being treated as burden.

We can learn a lot from the elders.They have years of experience and wisdom.

These days many elders are being abandoned by the children. They tend to forget that we all will be becoming old one day .If we don’t treat our parents well,  what can we  expect from our children.

I have seen many parents tend to lack care and affection in their old age.  What they need is the presence of the children and not their money. The loneliness they feel in a big empty house is a terrible feeling for them.

Many would like to enjoy the warmth and joy of family life. But their circumstances prevent that. Elderly people should be treated as blessings

Tuesday 30 June 2015

Ada Dosa

Ada Dosa

1. Raw Rice - 1 cup
2. Ponni Rice - 1 cup
3. Uzhunnu - 1/2 cup
4. Toor dal - 1/4 cup
5. Kadala Parippu - 1/4 cup
6. Cheru Payar - 1/4 cup
7. Pepper -1 spoon
8. Hing - a pinch


Soak the ingredients overnight. Grind it with 4 small onions and curry leaves and 2-3 red chillies in the morning. Make tasty and nutritious dosa with the batter. 

Thursday 30 April 2015

Dried prawns fry recipe - Unakka Chemmeen Varuthathu

Dried prawns fry recipe - Unakka Chemmeen Varuthathu

1. Fry prawns for 5-10 mins till it becomes brown in a nonstick pan
2. Wash it and then remove the head and tail
3. Cut small onions and crush in a mixie
4. Crush 2-3 red chillies, ginger and garlic
5. In pan, add little oil and add crushed onion and fry till it becomes brown
 color
6. Add crushed ginger garlic, curry leaves and little salt
7. Add chilly powder
8. Add roasted prawns and fry in low heat till it becomes brown