Super Delicious "Guilt-free" Dahi Vadas

Super Delicious "Guilt-free" Dahi Vadas

The thought of dahi-vadas reminds me of growing up in Delhi and enjoying countless varieties of chaats.....out of which dahi-vada was my absolute favorite! One thing that I miss living in the USA is the ability to just go out there and have any kind of street food, whenever you want!

Being a mom and a working professional, time is always a luxury. There are never enough hours in the day to get your work done. And cooking dishes that require you to stand by the stove-top for hours is not my idea of spending my weekends! Add to that the fact that I am unable to stand the smell and taste of fried things (not sure why!), forces me to try out my favorite dishes in a way that they are healthier and not so time consuming. 

So, I had been craving these dahi-vadas for a looong time and finally decided to bake them and see what happens. I was not sure if the texture will be good or not. So I decided to make a trial batch with just one cup of urad dal. The results was amazing!!!! I am in love with this recipe that recreates the traditional recipe with just one change- it replaces the frying with baking! SO here we go:

Ingredients: 

Urad Dal- 1 cup
Grated ginger- 1 teaspoon
Baking soda- one pinch
Yogurt- 3 cups

To Taste:
Red chili powder
Cumin powder (fresh roasted)
MDH Dahivada Raita Masala (optional- you can also make your own mix of kala namak, dhaniya powder, jeera  powder, if you don't have this particular masala mix)
Tamarind-Date Chutney (store bought)
Sugar-1/2 tablespoon
Salt

Oil- About 1/2 tablespoon to coat the muffin pan.



Process:

1) Wash and soak the dal in cold water and keep it overnight.
2) Next day, drain the water and grind it to smooth paste using a food processor or grinder.
3) Add the grated ginger and salt to the batter.
4) You can refrigerate this mixture if you are not making the vadas right away.
5) Make sure the batter is at room temperature when you are ready to make the vadas.
6) Preheat the oven to 350F.
7) In the meantime, take a muffin pan (I used a non-stick mini-muffin pan to get the desired shape) and coat each mould with oil.
8) Now add a pinch of baking soda to the mixture, mix well with a spoon and drop a spoonful of the the mixture into each mould. Make sure to not completely fill the mould. I filled each mould to about half-way to ensure the vada cooks well. 
9) Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes- till you see a golden color on the vadas. Halfway through, in about 25 minutes, flip the vadas over so that the other side gets browned as well. Insert a skewer into a vada to ensure that it is cooked before taking it out of the oven.
10) Whip the yogurt well with salt, raita masala, chili powder, sugar. Taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly.
11) Just when you are ready to serve, take a bowl of drinking water and dip the vadas in int for a few minutes.
12) Take them out, squeeze gently to get the excess water out. Place 3-4 vadas in a serving plate,  pour the spiced yogurt on top.
13) Drizzle the tamarind chutney and sprinkle a pinch of roasted cumin powder and chili powder.
14) Enjoy!!

Protein Packed Kebabs!!

 Protein Packed Kebabs!!

Who wants to have a delicious, melt-in-your mouth vegetarian kebab?? Everyone in my family!!:-) It is perfect for a after school snack, an appetizer for a party or a complete meal if used as a patty for a burger!

So presenting my recipe of a very simple preparation using boiled kala chanaa and potatoes-that's it!!! Sounds simple? For sure it is-let's take a look at the recipe. 

Ingredients:

Boiled Kalaa Chanaa- 2 cups ground coarsely. 

Boiled Potatoes- 3 medium

Red Chilli Powder- 1 teaspoon or according to taste

Dhaniya Powder- 2 teaspoons

Chaat masala- 1 teaspoon

Black salt- 1 teaspoon

Garam Masala- 1 teaspoon

Chopped Mint leaves- handful

Chopped Coriander leaves- handful

Process:

1) Soak the kalaa chana overnight. The next day, cook the kalaa chana till soft but not mushy. I cook it in a pressure-cooker. Allow it to cool completely and drain all the water. I usually refrigerate the chanaas and make the kebabs the next day or so. This was you can be sure that they are completely cool and dry when you are ready to prepare the kebabs.

2) Boil the potatoes on stove-top or microwave and allow to cool.

3) Coarsely grind the chanaas in a mixer. Make sure the texture is coarse and not a complete paste. 

4) Add the boiled potatoes to this mixture. 

5) Add all the spices mentioned above and mix well. Taste and adjust salt or spice according to taste. 

6) Heat a non-stick pan and make medium size patties/tikkis of the mixture. 

7) Smear a little bit of oil on the patties/kebabas and taws-fry till they appear golden on both sides. 

8) Transfer on a serving plate and sprinkle some chaat masala. Serve with ketchup, tamarind chutney, raita, onion rings or other condiments of your choice.

9) Enjoy!! (The above mentioned ingredients will make 8 medium sized kebabs). 

Vegetable Seekh Kebab!!

Vegetable Seekh Kebab!!

 The onset of summer means fresh air, chirping birds, blooming flowers and of course grilling and outdoor cooking! We are vegetarians and I love to grill marinated veggies in tandoori dishes, grilling corn etc. But those are recipes for another post.

Today I would like to share my take on the delicious veg seekh kebab! I saw several recipes online by many food bloggers and Tarla Dalal and came up with a mix of all those recipes. My recipe is full of all the richness of your favorite vegetables and moong dal-cooked in very little oil and grilled on open flame.

So, let's get to the recipe!

Note: If you don't own a grill, you can still make this recipe in the oven or on the stove.

Ingredients:
Mixed Vegetables: 2 cups of chopped vegetables- carrots, corn, green beans (I used a 16 oz bag of frozen veggies).
Ginger- 1 medium piece grated into a paste
Garlic- 4-5 cloves grated into a paste
Onion- 3 small
Lemon- 1 medium
Potatoes- 3 medium- boiled and grated or mashed smooth.
Moong Dal (cooked)-  about 2 cups
Bread Crumbs- 2-3 table spoons for binding

Spices:
Jeera- 1 tablespoon
Haldi- a pinch or two
Red Chilli Powder- 2-3 teaspoons or to taste
Tandoori Masala- 3-4 teaspoons or according to spice level
Chaat Masala- for sprinkling on top.
Salt- to taste


Process:

1) Boil the moong dal (add a little haldi during cooking) till soft and mushy in consistency. You can keep this ready the day before you plan to make the kebabs. The dal should be dry when you make the kebab.
2) Take a thick bottomed pan and add 1-2 tablespoons of oil. Once the oil is heated, add the jeera and haldi.
3) Once the jeera starts spluttering, add the ginger-garlic paste and let it fry for a minute or two.
4) Next, add the onion and let it cook.
5) To this mixture, add the vegetables and tandoori masala.
6) Once this gets cooked,  add salt and red chili powder. Make sure to not overcook the veggies, otherwise the mixture will be too moist to roll into kebabs. Let this mixture cool down.  Squeeze 1 lemon, taste the mixture and adjust salt and spice level according to taste.
You can prepare this mixture a day before as well.

(Special tip-Coarsely grind the prepared veggie mixture so that you do not bite into any big pieces of veggies. Take care, though, not to make it a paste.

7) Once the veg mixture, cooked dal and boiled potatoes are cool, mix them all the together with the bread crumbs. Again, check the taste and add salt if needed. If the mixture seems too moist, you can add one more boiled potato or more bread crumbs for binding.
8) Take your wooden skewer and roll the kebab mixture on it. Keep all your skewers ready.
9) Once your grill is hot, brush each skewer with a little bit of oil and grill on both sides. Once you see golden brown color on the kebab, you know it is done.
11) Sprinkle chaat masala.
12) Serve with tamarind-date chutney, mint chutney, ketchup, onions or any other condiment of your choice!
13) Enjoy!

Note:
1) If you don't have skewers, or a grill, you can shape the kebabs into a tikki and pan fry it on the stove as well.

Spicy Masala Peanuts

Spicy Masala Peanuts- with a healthy twist!

This is a perfect teatime snack-without the guilt! I found a couple of recipes online, but really wanted to make one with out frying the peanuts. So here is my recipe-the baked version! Please provide feedback in the comments section below and let me know how it goes for you!

Ingredients:

2.5 cups peanuts
1.5 cups besan (chickpea flour)
2 tbsp rice flour
1-1.5 tbsp red chilli powder (according to taste)
1 tbsp garam masala
Jeera powder or chaat masala (optional) to taste.
salt to taste
2-2.5 tbsp oil (enough to coat the peanut mixture)

Preparation:

1. Dry roast peanuts. Let it cool.

2. Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Start adding water (little by little) to help coat the peanuts with the mixture. Do not add too much-it should just be enough to coat the mixture evenly. 

3. In a flat tray, bake in the oven at 350 F for 20 minutes.

4. Check to make sure they are not burning. Give it a mix and keep in the oven for another 15-20 minutes.

5. Once you get the desired texture of crunchiness, remove from the oven and let it cool before storing in a air-tight container.

6. Sprinkle chaat masala or jeera powder to taste. Enjoy!

(Note: If you looking for an original fried version, here is the one recipe that I liked: 

http://www.cookingwithsiri.com/2012/04/indian-spiced-peanuts-fried-masala.html)