Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Mustard greens with lentils/mustard greens dal

Mustard greens are a tad bitter & I used to mix them with spinach to make palya/stir fry or saag/curry. Mustard greens are rich in Vitamins & very low in calories. They have the properties to detox our body & prevent cancer. I used to get these greens easily at Singapore & after moving back to Bangalore, I could not find it. Now, after moving here, I get these greens in abundance. This time made a dal/thovve types with mustard greens & my family loved it.


Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 30-40mins
Serves: 3 people

Ingredients:
For cooking the lentils:
Toor dal/Pigeon peas/Arhar dal/Thogaribele: 1 cup, washed
Turmeric: a big pinch
Salt: 1/2 tsp

For tempering 1:
Oil: 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp
Onion: 1 no, finely chopped
Green chillies: 3 nos, finely chopped
Tomato: 1 no, (optional)
Mustard greens: 3 leaves, yielded around 2 cups of chopped greens.
Coriander powder: 1 tsp
Turmeric powder/Haldi: 1/8th tsp
Salt: Adjust to taste

For tempering 2:
Ghee/Clarified butter: 2 tsp
Cumin seeds: 1 tsp
Asafoetida: 1/8th tsp or a big pinch

Before serving:
Lemon juice: 1 tbsp
Coriander leaves/Cilantro: 1 tbsp finely chopped


Method:

  • Wash the toor dal 3-4 times in water. Add 2 cups of water, turmeric, salt & cook in a pressure cooker for 3-4 whistles.  Let it cool.
  • Meantime, wash the greens, tomato. Finely chop the greens & dice the tomato.
  • Heat oil in broad pan. When oil is hot, add cumin seeds. When seeds turn brown, add green chillies followed by onion. Saute till the onions are translucent.
  • Add the tomatoes, salt, turmeric, coriander powder & saute till the tomatoes are soft.
  • Throw in the finely chopped greens & cook till the leaves are tender(Around 4-6 mins).
  • Mash the cooked dal & pour the dal to the greens mixture. Add 1/2 cup of water & adjust the salt.
  • Cook the mixture on a medium heat for another 10-12 mins. Turn off the heat.
  • Prepare the tempering. Add ghee to a small pan, when ghee is hot add cumin seeds. When seeds turn brown turn off the heat & add asafoetida. Pour the tempering over the dal prepared & cover it. Do not disturb for 2-3 mins, let the flavors soak in. 
  • Just before serving, add lemon juice, coriander leaves & mix well. Serve it with rice or roti.


Notes:
Addition of garlic could add a nice twist to this dal.
Since the mustard leaves are a tad bitter, it is better to add lemon juice at the end.
Toor dal could be replaced with split green gram/moong dal or mixture of 2-3 dals. 

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Grilled Eggplant Burger

This is inspired by one of the sandwiches I had recently. I looked for the recipe & found one.
You are sure to like this if you like grilled eggplants!


Makes: 7 small burgers
Preparation time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 15 mins

Adapted from: Simplyrecipes

Ingredients:
Burger buns: 7, small ones
Big purple eggplant: 1 no (around 1/2 a kg)
Beefsteak tomato/ Large sandwich tomato: 1 no
Onion: 1/4th cup (cut into 1 inch slices)
Mozzarella cheese: 7 thin slices

Dressing1:
Olive oil: 2 tsp
Balsamic vinegar: 2 tsp
Salt: According to taste

For grilling the eggplant/Dressing2:
Olive oil: 3 tbsp
Apple cider vinegar: 2 tbsp
Italian spices: 1/2 tsp
Salt: According to taste
Pepper: 1/4th tsp

Method:
Preparation for the burger:

  • Cut the eggplant into 1/4th inch slices. Arrange them on a kitchen towel. Sprinkle salt on both sides & allow it to ooze out water. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
  • Meantime, mix the olive oil, balsamic vinegar & salt. Mix them gently with a fork. Dressing1 is ready.
  • Slice the tomato. Roll the sliced tomato over the the dressing 1 prepared above. Remove the tomatoes & add in the onion to it.
  • Add all the ingredients mentioned for grilling the eggplant in a large bowl. Gently fold in. Dressing2 is ready.
  • Squeeze out all the water from the eggplant & brush the dressing 2 on both sides of the eggplant & grill* them for 3-4 minutes on each side. 

Arranging the burger: 
Cut the burger into half.
Place 3-4 slices of grilled eggplant.
* I do not own a grill, hence roasted the eggplant using the griddle.
Follow it with tomato.

Then the onions along with some of the dressing1.

Finally add in the cheese slice & cover the burger with the other half.
I had my burger with some homemade salad. It was heavenly!


Note:
This is a great lunch box meal too. I have already packed it twice for the office.

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