Milagu Vendakkai / Black pepper stuffed ladies finger or okra

 

This easy recipe was given by my dad to me. I think he read it in some magazine. My dad was the first person to encourage my cooking expeditions :). Whatever dish I prepare he just loved it. I am not sure whether he liked the dish or the fact that it was prepared by his daughter. Sometimes when my mom says  to him that I prepared a particular dish (eventhough I haven't ) he appreciated it whole-heartedly and vice versa :). So I am sure that the love for his daughter made him appreciate the dishes prepared by me. But those appreciation s helped me to grow better and better :). I would love to dedicate this blog to my loving and caring dad. Try this recipe. It is very simple, very tasty and very healthy way to enjoy ladies finger.

Ingredients :

Vendakkai / ladies finger / okra- 6 nos  (select fresh, green and tender ones) 

Freshly ground black pepper powder- 1 tspn

Salt- 1/4 tspn

Oil- 3 tspns

Method :

Make a longitudinal slit in vendakkai as shown in picture. Mix black pepper powder and salt. Apply a thin coating of the above said mixture inside the slitted ladies finger. Heat 3 teaspoons of oil in a pan. When the oil gets hot simmer the flame and place the vendakkai on hot oil. Turn ladies finger more often until they get brown tints all over their outer skin. The pepper stuffed vendakkai will be ready to be relished.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe :  Instead of cooking them in a pan you can grill them. Before grilling spray a thin coating of oil. This pepper stuffed vendakkai will be loved by everyone in your grill party. Happy cooking !!!

This entry goes to Tasty apetite's I love my dad event. Thank you Jay for hosting this lovely event.

Vendakkai, verkadalai varuval / Bendakaya, palli vepudu / Okra or ladies finger stir fry with groundnut kernels

 

My husband's favourite vegetable. Groundnut is also his favourite. If I serve them together he just loves it. This dish is inspired by a ladies finger and groundnut deep fry recipe which my in-laws prepare often. (I will share that recipe later). That dish tastes awesome and is served in wedding  parties or other grand functions. I like  that dish but I feel guilty to deep fry this green, beautiful veggie. I love the rich green colour of vendakkai. When I got these fresh looking ladies finger I asked Rajender what to do with it. He asked for that deep fried dish but I wanted to try this healthy version. This turned out to be very good. If you love ladies finger and groundnut you will definitely enjoy this dish.

 

Ingredients :

Ladies finger- 1/2 kg

Groundnut- a handful or as much as you wish

Onion- 1 no

Green chillies- 5 nos

Curry leaves- handfull

Mustard and jeera seeds- 1 tspn

Jeera powder- 1 tspn

Oil- 3 tbspns

Salt to taste

Method :

Wash and wipe the ladies finger well. Now cut them into small pieces as shown in picture. Cut onions and green chillies into small pieces. Heat oil in a pan. When the oil gets heated add mustard and jeera seeds. When they splutter add the onion pieces, green chillies, curry leaves, enough salt and groundnut kernels. Saute well until the onions turn translucent. Now add the okra pieces and saute on low flame. Before removing from fire add jeera powder and mix well. Remove from fire when the okra is cooked. This tasty, healthy stir-fry is a great accompaniment for rice and chappathi.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe : The main thing is to retain the real taste of okra. Do not overfry them. Let them retain their original colour and flavour. Use small groundnut kernels for better taste. Here I don't get them. If you like you can add chilli powder too instead of green chillies. If you like the groundnut to be crispy deep fry them in oil and add to the ladies finger at the end of preparation. Happy cooking !!!

Vendakkai finger chips / Ladies finger chips / Bendakaya vepudu

 

A very simple recipe with the gorgeous ladies finger. It will suit people who dislike its gluey nature. Children will absolutely love it. I loved it the first time I made it and finished it within no time.

  

Ingredients :

Ladies finger / Vendakkai- 250gms

Gram flour / besan- 2 tbspns

Rice flour or corn flour- 2 tbspns

Red chilli powder- 1 tspn 

Jeera powder- 1 tspn

Pepper powder- 1 tspn

Salt to taste

Oil- 4 tbspns

Method :

Mix besan, rice or corn flour, red chilli powder, jeera powder and pepper powder with enough salt and make a thick paste using water. Now cut the vendakkai as shown in picture. Apply a thin coating of this flour mixture to vendakkai. Heat oil in a heavy bottom pan and slowly roast the marinated ladies finger until they become crispy and golden brown in colour. It makes a tasty, fiber rich snack or it goes very will with dhal and rice.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe : Make a thick paste with the ingredients. Do not make a thick coating  of batter on ladies finger. Make a very thin coating. Slow roast the ladies finger to get the desired consistency. If you do it on high flame the ladies finger for sure will get charred. Happy cooking !!!

Vendakkai pulikuzhambu/ ladies finger or okra in tamarind based gravy

 

This is one of the best way to cook ladies finger. Tastes very yummy and this kind of preparation totally removes the gooiness from this vegetable. In united states and here in Germany they call this veggie as okra. In India we call it as ladies finger (ofcourse a very beautiful name !!!). Its scientific name is Abelmoschus esculentus. I am very surprised to know that in some part of the world even the leaves of ladies finger are routinely used for making certain dishes or eaten in the form of salad. Do we use it? Any information is appreciated. This veggie is a very good source of dietary fiber. It is also a good source of protein, riboflavin, niacin, phosphorous, pottasium, zinc and copper. It is very low in saturated fat and cholesterol. A popular conception (mis!!!?) in my native place is, if you eat ladies finger you can get the ability to perform mathematics very well :). Unfortunately, for a 'mandu' like me nothing worked out in front of mathematics. For me mathematics is always a book of unnecessary 'problems' :). So, how did I make this dish?

Ingredients :

Ladies finger (Vendakkai, okra)- 250 gms

Onion- 1 no (preferably red one)

Tomato- 1 small

Green chillies- 4 nos

Curry leaves- 20 leaflets

Coriander powder- 3 tbspns

Chilli powder- 2 tspns

Tamarind- size of a small lemon (soaked and juice extracted)

Fenugreek, jeera and mustard seeds- 1 tspn each

Asafoetoda- few pinches

Turmeric- a pinch

Oil- 4 tbspns

Salt to taste

Method :

Cut vendakkai as shown in picture. Cut onions and tomatoes into small pieces. Slit green chillies and cut them into half. Heat oil in a pan. When it gets heated add fenugreek seeds. When they turn brown add mustard and jeera seeds. When they splutter add onions, curry leaves and green chillies. Add also a pinch of turmeric, few pinches of asafoetida and salt to taste. Saute well until the onions turn translucent. Now add the tomatoes and saute them until they turn soft. Now add the cut vendakkai pieces. Saute well until they obtain brown spots on its skin. Now add coriander and chilli powder. Saute for a minute and then add the extracted tamarind juice. Allow the mixture to boil well. Check once again for salt and adjust accordingly. Simmer the puli kuzhambu until oil seperates on the top. Flavourful and tasty vendakkai puli kuzhambu will be ready to serve.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe : Saute vendakkai well in oil so that their slimy nature is removed. Tamrind removes the remaining sliminess. Adjust the salt and spiciness according to the sourness. Hope you too will enjoy it.....Happy cooking!!!

Mor kuzhambu

When I am young I hated this mor kuzhambu. 'Why on earth you have to eat this simple dish when there are lots of spicy, mouth-watering dishes around', that is how I thought about it.  But as you age your taste changes. And sometimes your stomach will really ask for something simple and satisfying rather than the routine spicier ones. I make this mor kuzhambu when  I really need a pleasant change for my taste buds. Silky, simple, satisfying and very tastier too. You can add a variety of vegetables to your mor kuzhambu. But ladies finger is my favourite,since it imparts a nice flavour to the dish. I have heard people say that poosanikai or ashgourd tastes the best in mor kuzhambu but unfortunately I didn't get a chance to taste poosanikai mor kuzhambu until now.  Need a change from the routine dishes? try this, you will like it.

Ingredients :

Toor dhal- 1 tbspn

Rice- 1 tspn

Jeera seeds- 2 tspn

Dried red chillies- 4 nos

Garlic- 1 pod

Coconut- 2 big pieces of  it's meat

Curd or yoghurt- 1 cup (3.5 % fat)

Ladies finger- 10 nos

Green chillies- 3 nos

Turmeric- 1/4 tspn

Asafoetida- a pinch

Fenugreek, jeera and  mustard seeds- 1/2 tspn

Urid dhal- 1/2 tspn

Curry leaves- some 15 leaflets

Oil- 2 tbspns

Salt to taste

Method :

Soak toor dhal and rice for half-an-hour. Then grind together coconut pieces, jeera seeds, red chillies, garlic, soaked toor dhal, rice and turmeric to form a smooth paste. Cut vendakkai into 1/2 inch pieces. Cut green chillies longitudinally into two pieces. Now saute the ladies finger and green chillies with a teaspoon of oil until the ladies finger is cooked well. Now take a cup of thick, sour curd. Dilute the curd with a cup of water. Add the ground paste to the curd and mix well. Add the sauteed ladies finger and green chillies to this curd mixture. Now you have to temper this curd mixture. Heat oil in a pan. Add fenugreek seeds. When it turns brown add urid dhal, mustard and jeera seeds. When they splutter add curry leaves. Then transfer the curd mixture to the pan. Continue heating until froath forms on the top. Remove from fire. Add enough salt and a pinch of asafoetida. Mor kuzhambu will be ready to be served.

Tatse enhancing tips for this recipe : The main important thing is  mor kuzhambu should not be allowed to boil. When it froaths on the top remove from fire. If you add vendakkai saute well and then add to mor kuzhambu. It removes the stickiness from the ladies finger. If you add any other vegetable boil the vegetable with green chilles in little water. When the vegetable is cooked add to mor kuzhambu. At the end add a tspn of coconut oil to this dish. It greatly enhances the flavour. If the curd is not sour enough you can try adding little tamarind juice. Happy cooking!!! and enjoy your week end!!