Tomato Pappu

Andhra Pradesh is always known for a variety of delicacies. The famous tomato pappu is one among them and has always been a rice lover's favourite. 

You need:

1. Toor Dal (pigeon peas) - 1 cup
2. Riped tomotoes - 4
3. Green chillies - 5-6
4. Dry red chillies - 2
5. Curry leaves - 8-10
6. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
7. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
8. Asafoetida/Hing - 1 pinch
9. Jeera/Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
10. Garlic - 6 cloves
11. Chilly powder
12. Oil
13. Salt

All you need to do is:

1. Cook toor dal with salt in a pressure cooker until 5-6 whistles. Let it cool.
2. Take a frying pan, put oil, mustard seeds, hing, turmeric powder, jeera, dry red chillies, finely chopped garlic, green chillies, curry leaves and finely chopped tomatoes.
3. Add a little water and let the tomatoes cook well.
4. Now add the cooked toor dal, chilly powder, salt and mix well. Let it boil for 5-10 minutes. Serve hot with rice. 

Tips:

1. You can also add ginger with garlic if required. 

Vegetable Momo (steamed)

Vegetable momo is a healthy dish originated in Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan borders. This is the easiest and tastiest dumpling to be made. 

You need:

1. Flour/Maida - 1 cup
2. Spring onions
3. Carrot
4. Cabbage
5. Pepper powder
6. Soy sauce - 2tsp
7. Garlic
8. Oil
9. Sugar
10. Salt

All you need to do is:

For the dough:

1. Take maida flour, add salt, 2 tsp of oil and mix well using water to make it like a poori dough.
2. Cover the dough and leave it aside for an hour.

For the filling:

1. Finely chop all the vegetables and keep it aside. 
2. Take a frying pan, add oil, garlic, chopped vegetables, sugar, pepper powder and salt.
3. Fry until the vegetables are cooked. Add soy sauce, mix and put the stove off.

To steam:

1. Make the dough flat and round like pooris. 
2. Take the above mixture and place it in the center of the poori.
3. Cover it from all sides so that it looks like in the above picture or better. ;)
4. Steam the momos in a pressure cooker for 5 minutes. Serve hot.

Tips:

1. Garlic and tomato dip is a great combination with momo.
2. You can make the momo in any shape as per your wish. 

Vetha Kolumbu

Vetha Kolumbu is a Tamil Nadu specialty recipe. It was my grandparents' favorite dish. When mixed with rice, the great combination of tamarind and jaggery gives a tangy taste to your taste buds. 

You need:

1. Tamarind - Size of an orange
2. Jaggery 
3. Small sambar onions - 250 g
4. Rice flour - 1 and 1/2 tbsp (optional)
5. Curry leaves
6. Dry red chillies
7. Mustard seeds - 3 tsp
8. Urd Dal - 2 tsp
9. Fenugreek/Methi seeds - 1 tsp
10. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
11. Asafoetida (Hing) - 1/2 tsp
12. Sambar powder - 2 tsp
13. Oil
14. Salt

All you need to do is:

1. Soak tamarind in water for half an hour. Make it a paste while you remove seeds, if any. 
2. Take a frying pan, put 3 tbsp of oil and heat for half a minute. Add mustard seeds, hing, turmeric powder, urd dal, methi seeds, curry leaves and dry red chillies. Allow the mustard seeds to splutter. 
3. Add small onions. Fry until golden brown. 
4. Now add, tamarind extract, sambar powder, salt and jaggery as per your taste. Add a little water and let it boil. 
5. Boil the vetha kolumbu until the quantity reduces to a 3/4th. 
6. Add rice flour if you want the vetha kolumbu to be thick. Serve hot. 

Tips:

1. You can use tamarind paste/extract available in the market instead of manually extracting it. Decide the quantity depending on how strong the paste is.  
2. You can substitute any other vegetable for onion, which does not require to be cooked in a pressure cooker.
3. Vetha kolumbu should be taken in small quantities with rice as it has a sour and tangy taste. 

Aloo (Potato) Bonda

Aloo Bonda is a South Indian evening snack and everybody's favorite. It can be made with the ingredients which are mostly available at home.

You need:

1. Potatoes - 5-6
2. Gram flour - 250 g
3. Rice flour - 50 g
4. Turmeric powder
5. Red chilly powder
6. Baking soda (optional)
7. Green chillies
8. Coriander leaves
9. Ginger - 1 inch
10. Mustard for seasoning
11. Lemon - 1 big
12. Oil to fry
13. Salt

All you need to do is: 

For the filling:

1. Cook the potatoes with salt in a pressure cooker.
2. Mash the cooked potatoes and keep it aside. 
3. Take a pan, put a little oil, add turmeric powder, mustard seeds, finely chopped ginger and green chillies, fry for a minute. Add the mashed potato and mix well.
4. Put the flame off, add coriander leaves, lemon juice and mix. 

Batter:

1. Take gram flour and rice flour in a bowl, add water, salt, red chilly powder, baking soda and mix well without forming lumps. 
2. The mixture should be thick enough to stick to the filling. 

To fry:

1. Take a frying pan and heat oil to deep fry. 
2. Make the cooked potato into small balls and dip it in the batter and put them in the oil.
3. Deep fry the bondas until they turn golden brown. Serve hot. 

Tips:

1. Serve the aloo bonda with coriander chutney. 
2. Use tissue paper in order to remove the excess oil from the bonda. 

Moong Dal Masala

Moong Dal Masala is a very simple and tangy chaat which can be easily made by anyone. Kids will enjoy making this snack as it does not require the usage of stove or oven. 

You need:

1. Fried Moong Dal (split green gram) (available in the market) - 250 g
2. Onions - 2
3. Tomato - 1
4. Carrots - 2
5. Coriander leaves 
6. Green chillies 
7. Chaat masala powder
8. Lemon - 1 big
9. Black pepper powder (optional)
10. Salt

All you need to do is:

1. Take the fried moong dal in a bowl, add grated carrot, chopped onions, tomatoes, coriander leaves and green chillies.
2.  Mix well and add salt, chaat masala, pepper powder and lemon juice. Mix well and Serve. 

Tips:

1. This snack should be served immediately after it is made, as the dal might become soggy. 
2. You can also deep fry the moong dal at home.

Mosaru Kodubale (Curd Kodubale)

After thoroughly enjoying the Karnataka's snack Kodubale, this is your time to try  a variant of the same. This tasty and mouth-watering crispy snack can be made for your guests to surprise them.

You need:

1. Curd - 2 cups
2. Rice flour - 1 cup
3. Green chilly paste
4. Coriander leaves
5. Oil to fry 
6. Salt

All you need to do is:

1. Take the curd in a vessel, add salt, chilly paste and coriander leaves. Keep it on the flame.
2. After boiling it for 5 - 8 minutes, put off the flame, add rice flour and knead well while it is still hot. 
3. Make kodubales from the mixture (as shown in the pic.) and deep fry them. Serve hot.

Tips:

1. If the mixture is very hot, you can put it into a plastic cover and then knead. 
2. Mosaru Kodubale can be served best with Coriander & Onion chutney. 

Pudina Onion Pakora

One of the most famous evening snacks of South India, hot and crispy pakoras are loved by all. Here's one of the most simple and easy to cook evening snack.

You need:

1. Pudina (mint) - 1 bunch
2. Onions - 3-4
3. Green Chillies - 4-5
4. Coriander Leaves
5. Curry Leaves (optional)

Batter:

1. Gram Flour - 2 cups
2. Rice Flour - 1/2 cup
3. Chilly Powder
4. Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
5. Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
6. Coriander Powder - 1/2 tsp
7. Baking Soda (optional) - 1 pinch
8. Salt
9. Cooking Oil 

All you need to do is:

1. Chop Onions thin and long and separate mint leaves from the stock. Chop coriander, curry leaves and green chillies finely. Keep them aside.
2. For the batter take gram flour, rice flour, baking soda, chilly powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, 1 tbsp of hot cooking oil and salt. Add water little by little and mix well to make it a fine batter neither too sticky nor too watery.
3. Put the onions, mint leaves, green chillies, curry leaves to the batter.
4. Heat oil and put the pakora mixture in spoon. Fry until it turns golden brown. Serve hot.

Tips:

• Serve the pakoras hot with tomato sauce or mint leaves chutney.
• Use tissue paper to put the fried pakoras so that it absorbs excess oil.