Thakkali saadham / Tomato rice

 

I brought some attractive, reddish, juicy and ripe tomatoes. They looked very beautiful, I enjoyed clicking them :). I have two people in my home who love tomatoes crazily- my mom and my hubby. My mom's vegetable shopping is never complete without buying tomatoes and so is Rajender. Both of them love dishes made with tomato too.

The scientific name of tomato is Solanum lycopersicum. It is also called as love apple (!!!). Tomato plant is grown world-wide for its edible fruits.  There are 7500 varieties of tomatoes (surprising isn't it ?). Tomatoes are rich in lycopene which is a powerful anti-oxidant. The lycopene in tomatoes are better absorbed by our body when they are cooked or preserved. Lycopene offers protection against neurodegenerative diseases and some forms of cancer. Tomatoes are also rich in vitamin C and vitamin A. 

The tomato rice I prepare will be more like a biriyani. I love the version without much spices too. Actually this recipe is very easy and can be prepared in a few minutes time.  Try this one-pot dish for a healthy, easy and enjoyable meal.

Ingredients :

Tomatoes- 4 nos

Onion-1 no

Basmati rice- 2 cups

Garlic- 4 pods

Ginger- 1/2 inch piece

Green chillies- 4 nos

Cardamom- 2 nos

Cloves- 3 nos

Cinnamon- 1/2 inch piece

Fennel seeds- 1/2 tspn

Red chilli powder- 1 tspn (adjust according to your taste)

Oil- 3 tbspns

Salt to taste

Method :

First grind half of the onions, green chillies, ginger, garlic and fennel seeds into a paste. Heat oil in a pressure cooker ( I prepared it in a pressure cooker, you can use rice cooker too). When the oil is hot add  cardamom, cinnamon and cloves. When they emit a nice aroma add the onions and saute well. Then add the ground paste and chilli powder. Saute until the raw smell disappears. Now add the cut tomatoes and saute till they become soft. To the above mixture add rice and mix well. Then add enough water  and salt to taste (I add 3 cups water for 2 cups of basmati rice). Close the pressure cooker and cook for 3 minutes after the first whistle comes. Remove from fire and open the cooker after 10 minutes or after the pressure is released.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe : Quality of toamto is very important. Look for ripe but firm, red tomatoes. Do not add too much spices. Very little will give a nice aroma and taste. The dish will be much tastier if the tomatoes are a bit sour. Happy cooking !!!

Tomato, potato and capsicum curry

 

Before, Rajender used to prepare this gravy very often. Actually you give him tomato and any other veggie, he can make a curry out of it. He loves tomatoes. He taught me this. He used to say that his friend's sister taught him this curry. I just love it. This curry tastes excellent with hot rice and goes very well with chappathis too. The flavours of capsicum, potato and tomato mingled together in a colourful gravy will make anyone drool. This is one of our comfort dish. Try it you will love it for its simplicity and flavour.

Ingredients :

Tomato- 4 nos

Potato- 2 nos

Capsicum (green)- 1 no

Onions- 1 no

Green chillies- 4 nos

Curry leaves- some 20 leaflets

Chilli powder- 1 tspn 

Garam masala powder- 1 tspn

Turmeric powder- a pinch

Channa dhal- 1 tspn

Mustard, and jeera seeds- 1/2 tspn each for tempering

Oil- 4 tbspns

Salt to taste

Method :

Cut tomato, potato and capsicum into bite sized pieces. Heat oil in a pan. When the oil is hot enough add channa dhal. When it starts to brown add mustard and jeera seeds. When they splutter add minced onions, green chillies, curry leaves and a pinch of turmeric. Saute well until the onions turn translucent. Now add potato and capsicum pieces and saute well for few minutes. At this stage add enough salt, chilli powder and tomato pieces. Mix well and allow the tomato to become soft. When the tomato is cooked well  adjust salt once again. Before switching off the stove add a teaspoon of any garam masala powder and mix well.  Serve hot with rice or chappathi.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe : You can add a teaspoon of ginger-garlic paste when sauting onions. Adding fresh coriander leaves at the end of the recipe preparation adds much flavour to this recipe. The sourness of tomato should be balanced with enough salt and chilli powder. Use sour tomatoes for this recipe. Happy cooking !!! and have a wonderful week ahead!!

Tomato gravy with fried bengal gram dhal flour/ thakkali gravy with pottukadalai maavu

 

If you are searching for a tasty alternative to potato curry for pooris here it is. My mom taught me this and my periyamma taught my mom :). This gravy is very good for diabetic people and people who would love to avoid potato because of its high carb content. Whenever I tell mom that I am making pooris she will start appreciating this gravy and her sisters cooking. So after few such episodes I decided to taste this tomato gravy which my mom is in all praise for. I should accept that what she told is very correct. Definitely it is better than the usual potato curry. Because of the addition of pottukadalai maavu, it is also high in protein content and has very low carb content. You will definitely gulp in a few more pooris or chappathis if you make this side-dish, so be careful :). It is very, very simple and easy to prepare.

Ingredients :

Tomato- 2 nos (big, firm, ripe ones)

Onion- 1 no

Fried bengal gram dhal (potukadalai)- 1 cup ( fry this and ground them to a powder)

Fried bengal gram dhal powder (pottukadalai maavu)- 4 tbspns 

Red chilli powder- 1 1/2 tspn

Turmeric powder- a pinch

Green chillies- 3 nos (mince them) 

Curry leaves- 10 leaflets

Mustard, jeera and urid dhal- 1/2 tspn (for tempering) 

Salt to taste

Oil- 3 tbspns

Method :

First fry the pottukadalai until it acquires a light brown colour and gring them to a smooth powder. Heat oil in a pan.  Add urid dhal, when it turns brown add mustard and jeera seeds. When it splutters add the cut onions, minced green chillies, curry leaves and turmeric powder. Add enough salt to taste. Saute the mixture until onions turn translucent. Then add the cut tomatoes. Saute well until they turn soft. Now add pottukadalai maavu  (fried bengal gram dhal flour, which you have ground already) and chilli powder. Mix well and add 1 cup of water. Let it boil. Since you have added the fired bengal gram dhal flour the mixture thickens very fast. Simmer for 2 or 3 minutes and remove from fire. Very tasty side-dish for poori or chappathi will be ready. 

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe :  Adjust the fried gram dhal flour (pottu kadalai maavu) according to the amount of gravy you need. Store the remaining pottukadalai maavu in an air-tight container. If you  like you can also add a teaspoon of garam masala at the end of preparation. Happy cooking !!! and have a beautiful week ahead!!!

Thakkali-ellu chutney/ tomato chutney with seasame/ ramulakaya-nuvvulu chutney

 

 

The origin of this chutney is an interesting story. When I was doing PhD in India we (our labmates) went to a stem cell conference in Hyderabad. That was my first visit to AP and I had no clue at that time that I will marry a person from AP :). The conference was arranged in a five star hotel so there were lots of delicious food. We really had gala time and till now I have never attended such a posh conference. But the dish that mesmerized me was not from that five star hotel. We stayed in a  very normal hotel and in the morning we used to buy idlies from a nearby shop. With that idlies they served a tomato chutney. All the 3 or 4 days we stayed there I would eagerly wait for the breakfast because of that particular chutney. I could never forget that taste. I always had that tomato chutney in my mind. One day I wanted to make that chutney myself by remembering that taste and imagining the ingredients and that is how this chutney originated. Do try it. You will also get caught by its taste. 

Ingredients :

Tomato - 2 nos (ripe and firm ones)

Onion- 1 no 

Garlic- 5 pods

Urid dhal- 1 heaped tbspn

Black seasame seeds- 2 heaped tbspns

Dried red chillies- 6 nos (adjust according to your taste, I like it spicy)

Curry leaves- some 10 leaflets

Turmeric powder- a pinch

Tamarind- size of a small gooseberry (optional) ( If your tomatoes are not sour enough use it when grinding)

Salt to taste

Oil- 2 tbspn

Method :

Heat a pan. Fry urid dhal, black seasame seeds, red chillies and curry leaves until the urid dhal turns brown and emits a nice aroma. Remove from fire. Cut onions and tomato. Peel the garlic pods. Add oil in a pan. When the oil gets heated add a pinch of turmeric, onion, tomato and garlic. Saute them until the onions become translucent and the tomato pieces becomes soft. Now add all the items together in a mixer grinder including the required amount of salt and grind them into a paste. Tasty, tasty tomato chutney will be ready to serve. Tastes wonderful with idly, dosa and even with curd rice.

Taste enhancing tips : Do not use white seasame seeds. Use the black one. Take care not to burn the ingredients when frying. Onion, garlic and curry leaf  adds taste to this dish. Happy cooking!!!