Ghaas Mando - A Konkani Sweet Dish

This is a typical Konkani Sweet Dish that gets made during festivities. One of our aunt's mom was an expert in making these. They are the melt in your mouth kind and bite sized. Just pop one into your mouth and experience the bliss. I can never eat just one. I had absolutely forgotten about this sweet until recently I saw it in The India Food Court. The author Prathibha has given a beautiful step by step pictorial for making it. She made it appear so simple, so I had to give it a try... 

For the dough:

Maida - 1 cup

Chiroti Rawa / Fine Suji - 2 tsp

Melted Ghee - 1 tsp

Water - Around 1/2 cup

Salt to taste

Method:

Mix all the above ingredients and knead into a firm but pliable dough. Keep it covered for about half an hour.

For the filling:

Thin poha / beaten rice - 2-3 cups

Sugar - 1 cup

Green Cardamom - 8-10

Method:

1. Dry roast Poha in a Pan so that it crimples and turns crispy.  Ensure that it does not change its colour. Keep aside

2. Dry roast sugar in a pan till it begins crystallizing. Keep aside. Once cooled, grind together poha, sugar and cardamom into a coarse powder.

Method for assembling the final dish:

1. Heat oil in a pan for deep frying.

2. Pinch a small ball from the dough and roll it to a thin disc (1mm thickness) 

3. When the oil is hot, just add the disc into it, fry on both sides for not more than 30 secs.

4. Remove it from pan. Add a tsp of the sugar-poha powder.

5. Fold it in a semi circle. Again sprinkle little more powder on it and fold into a triangle.

6. Roll this in the powder once and keep aside.

7. Once the Mandos come to room temperature, they may be preserved in an air tight container.

Note:

1. In the original recipe, the discs were folded in the oil itself. I tried doing it. But I guess I need more practice and expertise for that. So I did all the folding only after removing the disc from oil.

2. If you are rolling the discs ahead before frying, make sure you don't pile them one on top of the other. Place them separately and covered.

Crab Ghee Roast

As I seem to be on a draft-clear-off spree, here's yet another one. I had seen Paneer Ghee Roast on Divya's blog which led me to the recipe source. The author Kudpi Raj and his wife have recreated the flavours of Chicken Ghee Roast of Hotel Anupama. The pics of Prawn Ghee Roast had me drooling and wanting to dive into the plate. The comment section also was flooded with people sharing their success stories with this recipe. I had the urge to make it ASAP and hence substituted prawns with crabs which I had on hand. The outcome was liked by all of us.

Ingredients:

Crabs  - 1 Kg, cleaned

Refined vegetable oil - 30 ml (I reduced both oil and ghee quantity, started off by a little and added a bit more as I went by)

Pure Desi Ghee - 30 ml

Chopped Coriander leaves - A handful
Lemon wedges - To garnish

For marinating:

Juice of 1 lemon
Curd - ½ cup
White Pepper powder - 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

For masala - grind together:

Red long chillies - 30 roasted (I had only 1 variety and used the same)
Red short chillies - 8 roasted
Coriander Seeds - 1 tsp roasted
Cumin Seeds - ½ sp roasted
Fenugreek Seeds - ½ tsp roasted
Garlic flakes - 12-16
Tamarind - Cherry size ball soaked in 2 tbsp water

Method:

1. Marinate crabs with ingredients called for in the marinade section.Keep it marinated for 8-24 hrs in the refrigerator.
2. Heat oil in a shallow pan. Roast the marinated crabs till they cook. Drain and keep aside.
4. In the same oil, roast the ground masala till oil leaves the sides and raw smell disappears. Add salt to taste, the marinade and the cooked crabs. Mix well and keep for 2-3 mins on slow fire. Add ghee, mix and cover. When the masala gets thick, transfer to serving dish, garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with lemon wedges.

Egg Curry with Coconut Milk

This was my Grandpa's favourite. Amma used to prepare this along with Ghee Rice. It was a combo to die for. I hardly make this egg curry because Abbas is too fond of Bong Egg Curry and also Ma is allergic to coconut. Now that she is not here, I am preparing most of the coconut based dishes and loving it. I prepared this curry along with Bong Mishti Pulao and the combination worked well. Since I used instant coconut milk powder, the curry got done with minimal efforts and time. In my attempt to further reduce the effort of de-shelling eggs, I delegated the task to Mantam only to see that I got uneven scrambled eggs mixed with petty pieces of egg shell. Sigh!

Ingredients:
Eggs - 3-4, hard boiled, de-shelled and halved
Onion - 2 medium sized, finely chopped
Tomatoes - 2 medium sized, finely chopped or pureed
Ginger-garlic-green chilli paste - 3 tbsp
Coriander leaves - a handful, finely chopped
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Coconut milk - 1 cup thick milk, 1 cup thin milk
Oil - 3 tbsp
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions. Saute till they are translucent.
2. Add ginger garlic green chilli paste and saute till oil separates.
3. Add chopped tomatoes and keep pressing them against the pan using a spatula. Let them turn mushy and oil has to separate again.
4. Add turmeric powder, coriander powder and salt. Combine.
5. Add coconut milk and give a brief stir. (I generally switch off the flame and add coconut milk due to the fear of it curdling. Then switch on flame on sim and slowly increase.)
6. Bring it to boil, place the halved eggs, add coriander leaves and let it simmer for 6-8 mins.
7. Let the gravy stand for atleast 30 mins before serving. With time, the taste of this curry enhances like with most non veg curries.

VaaLi Sukke - Malabar Spinach cooked in Spicy Coconut Paste

Due to unavailability of VaaLi or Malabar Spinach, this dish laid back in my memory which used to be my favourite. Whenever Amma brought VaaLi home, it was mostly Vaali Ambat. I used to make frequent requests for this Sukke also. It's so easy to make and finger licking good. I can have a couple of bowlfuls of this dish and easily skip a meal given an option. Recently most of the supermarkets have this on offer and I am a happy girl. During last visit, I bought two bunches and they were undiscriminatedly divided to make a Bong Side Dish with Hilsa fish head (which is like a classic) and the next day I make this dish.

Ingredients:
VaaLi / Malabar Spinach - 1 punch
Coconut - 1/2 cup, grated
Red chillies - 8-10 (or as per spice tolerance)
Tamarind - a marble sized ball
Salt - to taste
Coconut oil - 2 tbsp
Garlic cloves - 10-12

Method:
1. Chop leaves of spinach and cut the tender stems in 1" pieces. Pressure cook for 2 whistles.
2. Grind together coconut, red chillies, tamarind and salt together with a little water.
3. Add this masala to the cooked spinach and boil well till well blended. Adjust any salt required. Keep aside.
4. Heat oil in a pan. Add the garlic cloves and saute on low flame till they are uniformly cooked on all sides.
5. Pour this tempering on the spinach mixture.
6. This is served as an accompaniment with rice.

Sending this to Priya's Veggie/Fruit A Month - Coconut

Vison Masala Fry - Seer / King Fish Fry

Vison is called Brahmin fish. You know why? The fish has a single thin line on its body which resembles the thread that Brahmins wear as per religious customs. Vison to Konkanis is what Betki is to Bong if I may say so. In Kannada, this fish is called Arakozhi (Ara meaning half, Kozhi meaning Chicken) because of minimal bones and texture is close to chicken. Back home we used to fry fish by marinating in masala and rolling in semolina. But since my Bong family does not prefer semolina coated fish, I have begun coating in rice flour which turns out yummy too.

Ingredients:
Seer Fish - 3-4 slices, medium sized
Ginger-garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Red chilli powder - 2 tsp or as per spice tolerance
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Salt - to taste
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Rice flour - 2-3 tbsp
Coconut Oil - 4 tbsp (I prefer coconut oil, any other cooking oil can be used)

Method:
1. Marinate fish pieces with ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, salt and lemon juice. Keep aside for atleast half an hour.

2. Roll the marinated fish in rice flour so that it is well coated on both sides.
3. Heat oil in a frying pan, place the fish pieces in the pan and on low flame let it cook for about 5 mins. Invert the fish pieces. Once the fish pieces are cooked, increase flame and let it get roasted well on both sides.
4. It can be served with lemon wedges and onion rings.

VaaLi Ambat - Malabar Spinach in Lentil based Gravy

I can survive on only Ambat and Rice for months together. Amma used to make an array of Ambat for lunch back home. For the non Konkanis, it is a preparation of lentils cooked with veggies or greens, blended with coconut and spice paste and concluded with varieties of tempering. We would have our lunch on banana leaves and the flavour that these leaves impart to any hot dish that is poured on them is unique. Having your meal on banana leaf is an art in itself and it is a hearty experience. Especially I never miss pouring ladles of Ambat on my banana leaf / plate and by just using my fingers pick the gravy and quickly suck it in with a distinguished ‘Srrrrrrrrr…..’ sound. Mmmm, this sure is the best part of my meal. In Konkani we call this act as ‘Burkuche’ and I sure am a Burkofying freak!

This particular ambat is made of a variety of Spinach called Malabar Spinach. It is called ‘VaaLi’ in Konkani and ‘Pui Shaag’ in Bengali. Pui Shaag has a respectable designation of its own in Bong cuisine as it is widely cooked with Bengal’s most sought after fish Hilsa. We never spotted Malabar Spinach anywhere after leaving Kolkata. Recently when one of my dad’s aunts visited us, she brought these for me. It had to be Ambat as my VaaLi deprived thirst had to be quenched.

Ingredients:

Toor Dal – 1/2 cup

Malabar Spinach – 1 bunch

Salt to taste

Onion – 1 large, diced

Onion – 1 large, finely chopped

Oil – 2 tbsp

For the masala:

Coconut – ½ cup grated

Red chillies – 7-8

Tamarind – 1 marble sized ball

Method:

1. Separate the spinach leaves, cut tender stem into 1” size pieces. Avoid using hard stems. Wash thoroughly.
2. Grind red chillies, tamarind and coconut together.
3. Pressure cook dal, spinach leaves, stem and diced onions along with salt for 2-3 whistles.
4. Mix the ground masala along with cooked dal and add enough water to achieve desired consistency and let it boil for 10 mins. It should neither be runny nor too thick. (Adjust salt at this stage)
5. Heat oil and add finely chopped onions. Let it brown on low flame. It will take time and its better done on low flame. Once onions start turning brown, pour the seasoning on cooked dal. Immediately cover and set aside.
6. Serve with steamed rice.

Pathrade Phodi - Fried Palak Pinwheels

Remember this Palak Pathrado I had posted sometime back? I had kept aside a couple of rolls and frozen it. After a couple of days, I simply removed them from the freezer, thawed, cut into thin pinwheels. (Cutting through was perhaps easy because they were frozen) Coat these pin wheels in semolina or rice flour and fry them. You could either deep fry or fry on a dosa griddle by sprinkling oil and turning them over to ensure both side are cooked well.

Valval - Amchi Vegetable Stew

Valval is a Konkani version of Vegetable Stew. It’s white coloured coconut milk based gravy stands for its purity. By purity, I mean that there are no onion-ginger-garlic like the usual curries or no garam masala or any other spices. Its just veggies cooked in coconut milk and a light tempering! A bowl of Valval is simply a bowl of goodness, nevertheless tasty.

I was a very picky eater and would hunt for cashews only in this stew. So my Amma would at times prepare Valval with only cashews just for me. Hmmm… Now that I have become an Amma, I like my kids to have all veggies. (Do I hear someone saying "How mean!!") And I am no more a picky eater coz my kids learn by following me. (Being a parent actually makes one a better person. I have even begun brushing my teeth before sleeping just so that my kids do it too)

Well, Valval is generally prepared during festivals. My Annamma (Grandma) would sit and scrape atleast 25 coconuts on such days at a stretch. She sure is a super woman. She is the best grandma any child can have and the best MIL in this world too. About being the best MOM, I doubt??? Coz all her children call her Honnie (meaning Bhabi in Konkani) and she never corrected them. Strange isn’t it? It was her birthday this month and she just completed 82 years. I love you Annamma from the bottom of my heart and miss you so very badly.

Each household might have a different Valval recipe. The basic outline should be the same but the choice of veggies and tempering might vary. This recipe is my version:

Ingredients:

Pumpin – cut into cubes

Ash gourd – cut into cubes

Beans – cut into an inch long pieces

Carrot – cut into cubes

Cashew – a handful

All the veggies together should amount to about 2 cups

Coconut Milk - 1cup think milk and 1 cup thick milk– I used Maggi Coconut milk powder sachet

Green chillies – 1 or 2

Salt to taste

For tempering:

Ghee – 2 tsp

Cumin seeds – ½ tsp

Curry leaves – 10-12

Asafoetida – a pinch (optional)

Method:

1. Cook all the veggies along with slit green chillies and salt in a pressure cooker or in a sauce pan. I added 2 tsps of coconut milk powder in the water. (Ideally veggies are cooked in thin coconut milk)
2. Now Add the thick coconut milk (I mixed rest of the of the coconut milk powder with a little more than half cup water) and give it a boil. (Adjust salt if required)
3. Heat ghee in a pan. Add cumin seeds. When they splutter, add asafetida and curry leaves. Pour the tempering over the prepared stew.

Palak Pathrado

Pathrado is one of the favourite sides on an Amchi platter. Having it along Rice and Dali Toy (Amchi Dal) is a heavenly experience for me and I believe for most Amchi population.

After marriage, I really missed this dish as I never saw Taro leaves in Kolkata. I couln’t even explain to my folks what it was as there are some varieties which are not edible. One day I googled Taro leaves for images and was showing Ma if she could identify it.  Sudden outburst from my kids’ nanny, Savitha at the sight of these leaves. “Didi, eigulo to kochu pata. Eigulo khao na ki?” (She could identify those and she wondered if we ate those?) I confidently (and proudly) announced, “Yes, we eat them. Do you know where these are available?” She said skeptically “There are so many near my home. I can get them for you. But… How …can you … eat …them?” Due to my persistence, she brought them for me and I jumped out of joy. I did not have a steamer with me then. So I made my Amma’s Phanna pathrado in pressure cooker. We had unexpected guests that day during lunch time. They too got to taste these and were stunned that something so delicious could be made out of Taro leaves! And Savitha would bring Taro leaves whenever she found fresh ones coz she too was hooked on to the taste!

Well, that was about Kolkata. Ever since we moved out of Kolkata, I never got to eat Pathrado. Never found Taro leaves in Chennai or in Bangalore. Had bumped into Divya’s Palak Pathrado some time back. Made those to subside my Pathrado craving. I must say they were yummy to the core. Didn’t miss Taro leaves at all. And the best part is that there is no fear of throat itching that occurs as after effect with some Taro leaves. The masala that I use is a bit different from Divya’s though. (I also drizzled drops of mustard oil instead of coconut oil to see if Abbas would like it. But as usual he didn’t like it. God Bless the Pathrado deprived soul!)

Ingredients:

Spinach leaves – 1 bunch

Rice flour – 2 tbsp (add little more if the masala turns runny)

Coconut oil – 1 tsp

For the Masala:

Grated coconut – 2/3 cup

Red chillies – 7-8 or as per spice tolerance

Tamarind – 1 small marble sized ball

Fenugreek seeds – a pinch

Turmeric poweder – ¼ tsp

Hing / Asafoetida – a pinch

Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash the spinach leaves well and keep aside.
2. Grind together the ingredients called out in the ‘For the Masala’ section with a little water. Add rice flour and mix. The masala must have spreadable consistency. If it is too runny, add little more rice flour.
3. Take the biggest spinach leaves of the lot and place separately on a platform. Smear the masala over them. Place next smaller sized leaves over them and repeat the process of layering for about 6-8 times atleast. Roll gently and secure the rolls by tying them with a thread.
4. Steam in an idli steamer for about 20-25 minutes or till well cooked.
5. Serve hot right out of steamer with coconut oil drizzled on top. (And ofcourse do not forget to remove the thread tied around the Pathrados before serving.)

This recipe goes out to Bookmarked Recipes Every Tuesday hosted by Priya and Aipi.

When Raju stuffed Shrimps down his belly - Shrimps stuffed Mackerel Fry

I love surprises especially when I’m not at the receiving end. Frankly speaking, I’m glad Abbas seldom throws me surprises. Reason?

1. His tummy tickles itself till he blurts out to me.

2. He wouldn’t want the surprise to turn out as a shock!

Even today, the child in me gets excited at the sight of ‘Jack popping out of boxes’. What if the Jack hides in my food… The idea struck me as I was planning to make Mackerel Doddak. I had a few shrimps lying in my freezer and the quantity was too meager to make a stand alone dish out of ‘em. That’s how this idea was born. I initially wanted to bake the stuffed fish but later ended up shallow frying on a griddle by coating them in rice powder. The fish fry was good but I loved the shrimp masala more…

Ingredients:

For Shrimp masala:

Shrimps – ¾ cup, deshelled, deveined and cleaned

Salt to taste

Coconut oil – 1 tbsp

For the masala:

Grated coconut – ½ cup

Red chillies – 5-6 (increase or decrease as per spice tolerance)

Tamarind – 1 small marble sized ball

For the fish fry:

Mackerel / Bangda / Raju – 8 nos

Red chilli powder – 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder – 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Juice of half lemon

Rice powder – to coat

Oil – for frying

Method:

1. Grind the ingredients called for masala with little water if necessary. Mix with salt and shrimps. Saute this masala in coconut oil for 3-4 mins till it is dry and can be stuffed inside fish.
2. Make a huge slit in mackerel sideways and clean it well. Also, make some light slits all over the body.
3. Marinate with Red chilli powder, turmeric powder, salt and lemon juice.
4. Stuff the shrimp masala and keep in refrigerator for atleast 10-15 mins.
5. Roll the fish in rice powder and shallow fry on a tawa by covering for some time Flip the fish so that both sides are well cooked. I used coconut oil to fry.
6. Serve with lemon wedges and chillies.

Geeta Baliga | Amchi Food | Sprouted Masoor Dal Ambati

Ingredients:

Masoor dal - 1 cup sprouted (soak masoor dal in water over night, remove from water and keep for another 12 hours till it gets sprouts)

Garam masala powder - 1 tsp (optional)

Onion - 1/2 cup finely chopped

Salt to taste

Grind together:

Grated coconut - 1 cup

Red chilli powder - 1 tbsp

Tamarind - 1 small piece

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp roasted in 1 tbsp heated oil till it turns brown

Method:

1. Cook the sprouted masoor dal in pressure cooker till 1 whistle.

2. Add ground masala in the cooked masoor dal adding garam masala, salt and little water according to ur consistency.

3. Simmer for few minutes

4. Season with chopped onion and serve with rice or roties .

Geeta Baliga | Amchi Food | Kuvale Puli Kodhel - Ash Gourd Curry

This is one of the delicacies relished by Konkanis

How to make?

Ash gourd - 3 or 4 cups, thick skin peeled and cut into 1" cubes

Jaggery powder - 2-3 tbsp

Curry leaves - 10-12 sprigs

Tamarind - marble sized ball (or 1tbsp tamarind pulp)

Salt to taste

Cook with ash gourd cubes very little water along with jaggery powder, curry leaves, tamarind and salt. (Do not cook fully )

 

For the masala:

Grated coconut - 1 cup

Chilli powder - 2 tsp

Turmeric powder - a pinch

Urad Dal / Black Gram Dal - 1 tabspoon roasted 1 tbsp oil ( it should b brown )

Grind in to coarse paste. Add this masala in the cooked ash gourd cubes and simmer for few minutes till the pieces are fully cooked. 

For tempering:

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Asafoetida / hing powder - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - 10-12 sprigs

When the curry becomes thick, season this with oil, mustard seeds, asafoetida / hing powder and curry leaves.

Serve with rice and dal.

Geeta Baliga | Amchi Food | Sungta Hinga Udka Randayi - Shrimp Asafoetida Curry

Sungta Hinga Udka Randayi literally transaltes to Prawn Asafoetida Water Curry which simply makes Amchi's mouth water... One of my favourites


Ingredients:

Shrimp - 1/2 kg, deshelled, deveined and cleaned
Coconut gratings - 1 cup
Red chilli powder - 1 tbsp or according to ur spice tolerance

Asafoetida/ Hing - 1tbsp (use LG Hing according to ur hing tolerance)

Tamarind - 1 small marble sized

Salt to taste

Coconut oil - 2 tbsp

Method:

1. Grind together coconut, red chilli powder and tamarind to a fine paste.

2. Simmer this masala for a few minutes .

3. Add the washed shrimps in the simmering masala adding very little water because the water leaves out as soon as the shrimps r added. Simmer till the shrimps are cooked.

4. Add salt to taste and asoefotida powder. Drizzle coconut oil in the simmering masala.

5. Stir well and serve withe rice. Yummy...

Geeta Baliga | Amchi Food | Vison Doddak - Baked Sear Fish

This dish is a renowned dish of Geeta Pachhi's and the picture says it all!

Ingredients:

Sear / mackarel fish - 4-5 big pieces wash and ,apply little salt and keep aside

Coconut gratings - 1 cup
Red chilli powder - 4 tbsp (according to ur spice taste can add more or less)

Tamarind - marble size ball
Salt to taste
Teppal / Sichuan pepper - 1 tbsp, deseeded

Method: 
1. Grind coconut, red chilli powder,tamarind and salt into a paste adding little water (should not b watery)

2. While removing,  add the tepal  and grind for a few minutes till the teppals are crushed a little bit.

3. Apply this masala over the fish on both the sides. (If using mackarel, stuff the masala inside the fish)
4. Line a baking tray with aluminium foil or banana leaves applying little coconut oil on it.

5. Spread the stuffed fish layer by layer on this foil or banana leaves. Cover the fish again with foil or banana leaves.
6. Keep this in the oven at 450 degrees first and slowly reduce the heat as and how the fish gets cooked and the masala turns light brown in color.
7. Baking time will be one hour or more.

Note:

Some people may not be knowing teppal or sichuan pepper. In that case, instead of teppal, after the masala is done add the chopped onion + chopped ginger + chopped garlic +chopped green chillies (add less chilli powder to the masala ) to get the flavour for the masala and apply this masala over the fish and bake it.

Batate Phodi - Potatoes coated with Semolina and Tawa Fried

I can eat any number of these any given time... They take long time to be made as they are slow cooked on tawa but they disappear in no time. This is one of my comfort foods when served with Rice and Dal, even on its own straight off the hot tawa. My Bong family opine that this can't be had as a side with Rice. But we amchis like anything fried with Rawa coat!

Ingredients:

Potatoes - 2, sliced

Turmeric powder - a tsp

Red chilli powder - as per taste (optional)

Asafoetida powder- a pinch

Salt - to taste

Rawa / Suji / Semolina - required to coat the potato slices

Oil - 2-3 tbsp

Method:

1. Marinate the potatoes with turmeric powder, red chilli powder, asafoetida and salt.

2. Coat the potato slices with rawa and place on hot tawa. (on low flame)

3. Drizzle oil all over and cover with lid.

4. After 3-4 mins, invert all the potato slices and drizzle little more oil.

5. Remove from tawa when the slices are cooked.

This goes out to Veggie / Fruit a Month: Potato hosted byDivya originated by Priya

Geeta Baliga | Amchi Food | Sungta PhaNNa Upkari - Shrimp Red Curry

Yet another dish from Geeta Pachhi's kitchen that's sure to tingle tongues and win hearts!!!

Ingredients:
Shrimp - 1 kg 

Chilli powder - 3 tbspn 

Onion - 2 big onions, sliced 

Garlic cloves - 3, mashed 

Tamarind pulp - 2 tbspn 

Oil - 5 tbspn (preferably coconut oil) 

Method:
1. Peel the shrimp and devein them.Wash thoroughly in the water 5 to 6 times. 

2. Add the shrimp heads cleaning them thoroughly (optional). Keep aside.

3. Heat oil. Add chopped onion, mashed garlic and fry till they become brown in color.

4. Add the chilli powder and tamarind pulp and stir for 1 minute.
5. Add the washed shrimps. After a while the shrimp gets cooked and the water comes out from the shrimp , add salt to taste.

6. Simmer till all the water evaporates and the curry becomes dry.

7. Serve with rice and dal

Note:
Chilli powder is mentioned as 3 tbsp as Byadgie (less spicy) chilli powder is used here. If using a spicy chilli powder, add as per spice tolerance.

Geeta Baliga | Amchi Food | Sear Fish curry

Another mouth watering sea food delicacy from Geeta Pachhi. Let's straight away dive into the recipe without further ado...

Ingredients:

Sear / King fish - 1/2 k.g (6 to 7 small pieces)

Grated coconut - 1 cup 

Chilli powder -2 tbspn * 

Green chillies - 3, slit

Onion - 1, chopped 

Ginger - 1" piece, chopped
Salt to taste

Tamarind  - 1 small marble size ball
Coconut Oil - 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Wash fish thoroughly in water 

2. Apply  some of the chopped onion, chopped ginger and salt to the fish pieces.

3. Grind coconut with chillipowder and tamarind to a fine paste.

4. Remove from the grinder and add rest of the chopped onion and ginger to it and simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Add water according to ur consistency and salt to taste.
6. Add fish pieces in the gravy and simmer for a few secs . 
7. Add coconut oil top after removing from flame.

Note:
1. Instead of tamarind, add 2-3  Kokum (Garcinia Indica) while simmering the masala.
2. Chilli powder is mentioned as 2 tbsp as Byadgie (less spicy) chilli powder is used here. If using a spicy chilli powder, 1 tbsp would be sufficient.
3. Fish curry can be made with Teppal (Sichuan Pepper) also. In that case, onion and ginger must be omitted. Instead 12 to 13 Teppals should be added when you are about to remove the masala paste from the grinder. Simmer this Teppal masala fro some time with sufficient water and then add fish. cook till the fish is cooked. Drizzle coconut oil on top after removing from flame. 

A Guest Post from an Evergreen Inspiring Lady!!!

I'm very elated to have the first guest post of my blog. I just asked her once if she could pass on a recipe of hers to post on my blog? She was so liberal to let me choose any dish from her collection of pics posted in FB. I chose the Amchi Crab Curry without any second thoughts. Her enthusiasm and passion in life is an ideal example for us to look up to. I have only met her once in person but in touch with her through FB. I'm very grateful to you Pachhi for being so kind in sending the recipe and also letting me publish your clicks of the dish. Hope to have more from you in this space.

Introducing 'The Evergreen Inspiring Lady' - Geeta Baliga:

Over to you Pachhi -

Hello, my name is Geeta Baliga. Seema Kamath invited me to blog about my special recipes. First, let me tell you about myself. I was born in Chennai and grew up in Calicut, Kerala. I was the 12th  of 12 children of my parents Vinayak and Sushila Kini. I got married at the age of 21 to Mr. Mohan Baliga and moved to Hubli. I have 2 daughters and a son. I was an entrepreneur and ran a very successful pre-school called Rose Bud in Hubli for 35 years. Now all my children are gown up and settled in North America. I now have 5 adorable grand children, the oldest being 19 and youngest 7. I have now moved to the US to stay closer to my family. My passion for cooking was inspired by my mother-in-law, Rukmini Baliga, who made fantastic and authentic Konkani food. Konkani cuisine is known for great fish curries and other seasonal delicacies like "Kadgi Chako" and "Keerla Sukhe"etc etc My husband's family was also large (10 children) and we constantly had family visiting us for whom I helped cook barrels of curries, chakkulis and ubbatis, phenories, shevai, thile undo, halvas etc. While in Hubli I had friends from all parts of India - Panjabi, Marasthrian, Sauzi and Lingayat (Hubli locals), from whom I learnt to make other types of cuisines. Over time my reputation grew as the best cook in the family and circle of friends, particularly for seafood.

So, here is my first recipe... Crab Curry. Enjoy.


Ingredients:
Medium size crabs - 6, if they r too big cut it into half
One half of full big coconut - grated
Green chillies - 6, slit
Red chilli powder - 2-3 tbsps
Tamarind - a small ball
Ginger - 2" piece, finely chopped
Turmeric powder - a pinch


For seasoning:
Oil - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 5-6
or
Onion - 1 medium sized, chopped


Method:
1. Grind coconut with tamarind and red chilli powder in to smooth paste. Keep aside.
2. Wash the crabs 4 to 5 times. Remove the yellow stuffs from its shell while washing.
3. Cook crabs adding little water with chopped onions, chopped ginger, slit green chillies and salt.
4. Add the masala paste and simmer. Don't add too much water to avoid becoming too much watery.
5. Then season with mustard seeds and curry leaves or season it with chopped onion. That's all.

Paan Polo alias Neer Dosa alias Coconut Dosa

I like my Dosas 'Size 0' in thickness, crisp and fiery hot right off the tawa. Post marriage, my in-laws wanted to try out Nayi Naveli South Indian Bahu's 'Dhosha' (thats how Bengalis pronounce it and I scream in my mind on hearing the mis-pronunciation. One of the reasons why I always knew my kids' names would begin with any alphabet but S or A, S would become Sh and A would be O, Phew!) The tawa they had was not anywhere near to the traditional flat Dosa tawa. It was the one in which they made Roti which was steep in between. The batter would go and settle in the centre as if in an Appam Kadai. Well then one of my closest friends got a Dosa Tawa shipped for me all the way to Kolkata and it is now one of my prized possessions. It always yields me fool-proof Dosas and earns me showers of appreciations.

Neer Dosa is very easy to prepare. I generally prepare it with Batata Song. You may also serve it with grated coconut + melted Jaggery combo, or simply melt some Jaggery and serve as a dip with the Dosa. Also another best accompaniment would be previous night's left over chicken curry. Yummm!

Ingredients
Raw rice - 1 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Salt to taste

Method

1. Soak the raw rice overnight.

2. Grind it with coconut to a smooth batter.3. Add salt to taste and water if required.4. The texture should be a little more thinner than the regular dosa batter.
5. Once the dosa tawa is fuming hot, sprinkle the batter using a ladle all over. Add enough oil. Reduce flame to sim and close with lid. No need to roast on both sides. Open the lid after a minute or two. Increase flame and remove using a spatula (My daughter pronounces Pakula)