Mixed Vegetable Hyderabadi

Mixed Vegetable Hyderabadi is yet another spicy, rich coriander-coconut sauce that envelops sweet green peas and beans. The carrots add color and potato and cauliflower add more flavor. The rich taste of assorted vegetables tossed in with flavors of spices like cardamom, cinnamon and cloves leaves you craving for more.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves: 3-4 people

Ingredients	Quantity
Cloves	2
Peppercorns	3
Cinnamon stick	½ inch
Bay leaf	1 small
Cardamom peels	3-4 peels
Onion (1 grated and 1 sliced)	2 small
Tomato pureed	1 medium
Ginger garlic paste	½ tbsp.
Garam masala powder	1 pinch
Mixed vegetables	1 bowl
Coconut Milk	½ cup
Cream(optional)	to garnish
Ghee or oil	1tbsp
Grind together
Mint leaves	½ cup
Coriander leaves	½ cup
Green chilies	2-3 or to taste
Curry leaves	2-3

Method

Grind together all the ingredients mentioned in the list above to a fine paste.

Heat ghee in a pan, add cardamom peels, pepper, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and cloves when they sizzle, add grated onions and fry till soft. Add tomato puree and fry till soft, add ginger garlic paste and fry till raw smell goes. 

Add sliced onion fry till it is half boiled. It should be crunchy not soft. Later add mixed vegetables and fry well for a minute. Add pinch of garam masala. Add coconut milk, ground masala and bring to a boil. Don't boil much to retain green color.

Serve hot with roti or rice.

Points to remember

• It is best to remove all whole garam masala before adding sliced onions otherwise your gravy becomes very pungent.
• The mixed vegetables I prefer to use are french beans, carrots, cauliflower, green peas, and potatoes.

MLA Pesarattu

Pesarattu is a delicacy from Andhra Pradesh. It’s basically a crepe made from green gram. It is very easy to prepare and it is also very nutritious. Pesarattu served with upma is known as MLA pesarattu. It can be combined with different kinds of chutneys like Onion Chutney, Peanut Onion Chutney or plain Coconut Chutney. It tastes best when hot and crispy.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Soaking time: 4-5 hours or overnight

Cooking time: 5-10 minutes

Serves: 4-5 people

Ingredients	Quantity
Whole Green Gram	½ cup
Split Green Gram (skinless)	½ cup
Rice (Dosa variety)	½ cup
Ginger	1 inch piece or 1 tsp
Green Chilies	3-4 or to taste
Coriander Leaves	½ bunch or ¼ cup
Water	¼ cup
Salt	to taste
Oil	2-3 tbsps.
For filling
Onions (finely chopped)	½ cup
Red Chili Powder	to taste
Lemon Juice	to taste (optional)

Method

Wash whole green gram, split green gram and rice thoroughly and soak in enough water for 4-5 hours or overnight.

Drain the water from the soaked dals and rice. Grind both the dals and rice to a coarse paste. Then add ginger, green chilies, salt, water, coriander leaves and grind till you get a smooth batter.

For filling:

Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan, add the finely chopped onions, ¼ tsp salt and cook till onion is soft. Add chili powder stir for a minute. Turn off heat and transfer to a bowl. Add lemon juice and mix well (this it totally optional).

Allow the batter to ferment in a warm place for 1 hour if you like a crispy dosa. Once the batter is ready, check for the salt.

Heat the pan on medium. Grease the pan with few drops of oil. Sprinkle water and wipe off with the paper towel.

Add two ladles of batter and spread in a circular motion till you get a 5 inch diameter round thin crepe. Take off the excess from the top to make the dosa thin. Add few drops of oil. Sprinkle onion on the crepe.

Look for the brown spots on the bottom side of the dosa, then release the dosa from the edges and serve it hot with upma.

Serve immediately with chutney.

Points to remember:

• The cup measure is the standard measuring cup used for baking etc.

Bagara Baingan

Bagara Baingan is a popular side dish served with Hyderabadi Biryani. Brinjals are shallow fried and then added to the simmering gravy. It is also called as Nune vankaya kura in Telugu. To make the gravy taste nutty and delicious, ingredients like peanuts, sesame seeds and coconut are used. Since brinjals are fried, they turn soft and mouth melting. When simmered in the nutty, spicy gravy, they absorb all the flavors and taste delicious.

I have tweaked the recipe to suit my family’s taste by adding some potatoes and capsicum and making the gravy thick. I have also used a different type of brinjal called as gulla.

Gulla is a favourite vegetable in the Konkani community. Udupi is famous for its unique brinjal known as Mattu or Matti gulla. It is a very delicate vegetable and starts melting if you overcook.

Bagara baingan can be served with biryani or bagara rice also known as bagara chawal (plain biryani). This curry can also be served with pulao, roti, paratha.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves: 3-4 people

Ingredients	Quantity
Brinjal(gulla)	1 big
Potato	1 small
Capsicum	1 small
Ghee	1 tsp
Cumin Seeds	1 tsp
Coriander Seeds	1 tbsp
Peppercorns	5 nos.
Sesame Seeds	1 tsp
Cloves	3 nos.
Cinnamon Stick	½ inch
Kashmiri Red Chilies	2-3
Grated Coconut	¼ cup
Onion(finely chopped)	1medium
Groundnuts	2tbsps+ 1 tbsp
Oil	2 tbsps.
Tamarind Paste	1 tbsp.
Salt	to taste

Method

Wash, wipe and chop the capsicum into 1 inch cubes. Discard the seeds.

Wash potatoes, peel and chop into inch cubes. Drop them in a pot of water and bring to a boil. Turn off the gas, cover with a lid and let it stand for 4-5 minutes. Then strain and keep aside. If you slide a knife into the potato it should go in easily without and resistance.

Wash brinjal and chop into 1inch cubes.

In a non-stick pan heat ghee and add cumin seeds, coriander seeds, peppercorns, sesame seeds, cloves, cinnamon stick, Kashmiri red chilies and fry till the chilies are crispy. Transfer to a plate, keep aside to cool.

In the same pan heat 1tbsp of oil, add chopped onions and fry till they are soft. Add grated coconut, fry for a minute. Add the groundnuts and fry till the oil separates. Transfer to a plate, keep aside to cool.

In the same pan heat remaining oil and turn the heat to high, add the capsicum keep stirring, add the brinjals and keep stirring, add the potatoes and keep stirring on high heat till small brown specs start appearing on the skin of capsicum and brinjal and on the potatoes. Add ½ tsp salt cover the lid and keep cooking for a minute on high heat. Be careful not to burn the vegetables. Open the lid stir once close lid and simmer the flame and cook with lid covered for 2 minutes. Make sure all the vegetables are cooked well. Then transfer it to a different bowl to cool slightly and keep the lid closed.

You might think this step is too lengthy but it’s important to seal the edges of the vegetables so they don’t start melting when you boil in the gravy. Traditionally, the brinjals are deep fried in oil. But I use this method which gives it the same taste but not the excess oil.

In a large mixer grinder dry grind the roasted spice, once they and coarsely ground, add the onions and grated coconut, dry grin, then add water little at a time to grind it to a fine paste.

In the same pan heat 1 tbsp. oil, add the ground masala and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the tamarind paste and bring to a boil. Add the vegetables. And stir well. Add water little at a time. Adjust salt and consistency using more water if required.

Close lid and cook on low flame for 8-10 minutes.

Serve hot with rice or roti.

Mirchi Ka Salan

Mirchi Ka Salan, large green chilies cooked in tamarind and fresh Indian spices in Hyderabadi style. It’s a Hyderabadi delicacy, which is generally made as an accompaniment for Biryani. It can also be served  with roti, rice and dosa.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serves: 5-6 people

Ingredients	Quantity
Green chillies big(not too spicy)	10-12
Cooking oil + to fry Chillies	2 tablespoon
Sesame seeds (White til)	2 tablespoon
Coriander seeds	2 tablespoon
Cumin seeds	1 teaspoon
Peanuts, roasted	1/2 cup
Ginger, roughly chopped	1 inch piece
Garlic	6-8
Mustard seeds	1 teaspoon
Curry leaves	8-10
Onion, grated	1 medium
Turmeric powder	1 teaspoon
Tamarind pulp	2 tablespoon
Salt	to taste

                                               

Method

Wash, wipe and slit green chilies lengthwise without cutting the chilies into two.

Heat sufficient Cooking oil in a kadai (wok) and fry for one minute. Drain and place on absorbent paper and set aside.

To make masala paste, dry roast sesame seeds, coriander seeds and cumin seeds. Cool and grind them to a paste along with peanuts, whole dry red chilies, ginger and garlic.

Heat two tablespoons oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, let them splutter and add curry leaves. Sauté for half a minute and add onion. Keep stirring continuously, till onion turn golden brown. Add turmeric powder and mix well. 

Add masala paste and cook for three minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in one and half cups of water and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook for ten minutes.

Add tamarind pulp (dissolved in half a cup of water, if it is too thick). Add fried green chilies and salt and cook on low heat for eight to ten minutes.

Serve hot with biryani.