Thakkali kichadi

Kerala`s Thakkali kichadi is a tomato - yogurt curry with coconut paste. Its a mildly spicy dish and its nothing like the north Indian 'Khichadi'. It is served as a side dish as well as main curry by varying its consistency.  I am doing a Thakkali (Tomato) kichadi that has a flowing consistency.

Preparation time: 20 mins

Aloo Matar gravy

Aloo matar is a mildly spicy Punjabi dish. Aloo (potato) & matar (green peas) do make a perfect pair.  I am gonna try a creamy curry version of this traditional aloo matar.  This goes well with any Indian flat bread or rice items.

Preparation time: 30 mins
Servings: 4 nos

Basic vanilla sponge cake

If you are a beginner in baking then this is the first cake that you will try. There are thousands of ways to make this. Here goes the basic vanilla sponge cake recipe that worked for me :)

Preparation time: 1 hr

Green Peas Masala Kerala style

Origin of this dish is unknown.. but its awesome. For a long period of time, this Green peas masala was my favourite side dish for roti. Green peas is not an easy-to-find vegetable in Kerala, but still peas masala is a favourite item in Kerala restaurants. It is a mildly spicy dish. This peas masala can be served with Indian flat breads like chapati, roti, Nan, appam, etc and ghee rice and other mildly spicy pulavs.

Preparation time: 30 mins

Basic Veg Pizza

This is a simple and easy Pizza recipe. I have used all-purpose-flour instead of bread flour as I like a little less crispy base. This recipe will be enough for two 10-inch pizzas. Have a happy pizza time....

Preparation time-40 mins

Homemade Pizza Base/ Crust

Who doesn't like Pizzas? Let me share a simple and easy Pizza crust recipe with you. I have used maida or all-purpose-flour instead of bread flour as I like a little less crispy base. This dough will be enough for 2 10-inch pizzas

Preparation time-30 mins

Chicken biriyani

A Kerala cook book is incomplete without chicken biriyani recipe.  In India you can find many varieties like hyderabadi biryani, Thalashery biriyani, kashmiri biriyani, Sindhi biriyani, karachi beef biriyani etc etc. Originally, it is a Persian dish, Indians adopted during the time of Mughal rulers. Making a Biriyani can be a controversial issue when it comes to the ingredients that goes in. A large no of spices along with pineapple, rose water, cashews, raisins, saffron .. etc etc are used. Today I am preparing the simplest among the many recipes I have seen, with a biriyani masala that you get from stores.

Preparation time- 60 mins

Baigan Bhaji

Baigan or Brinjal is a popular vegetable in North India. Bhaji is a batter fried snack item. Brinjal or Aubergine or egg plant.. whatever it is, this purple beauty is not my fav except for this snack. So I can tell, you wont be able to find the great Indian "Baigan Bartha" recipe here. This vegetable if added to a dish make the gravy more thick. It is a very healthy veggie. So here goes Brinjal bhaji.

Preparation time- 15 mins

Varutharacha Kozhicurry

Kerala's own cuisine - Varutharacha kozhi curry is a traditional chicken curry with  roasted coconut. Again different variants are there but this is how my Amma cooks it. It is time consuming, becoz of roasting and grinding, but lets make it easy by using our microwave and grinder. I am trying the easiest way to get the authentic taste. It can be served with ghee rice, chapati, boiled rice, kerala paratha, appam, idiyappam etc

Preparation time- 45 mins

Vellarikka Pulinkari

Vellarikka or Cucumber Pulinkari is a curry that has n number of varieties through out Kerala. In some places in Kerala they add jeera, others add shallots, some add dal etc etc. I am preparing my mothers own Kottayam style Pulinkari with only Cucumber. For this authentic  Kerala dish you need to use the round fat cucumber not your salad cucumbers. For easy cooking am preparing it in Pressure Cooker.

Preparation time- 25 mins

Vendakka mizhukkupuratti/ Lady`s finger fry

Vendakka mizhukkupuratti is a dry side dish served with boiled rice. It is a Kerala style preparation.  It is spicy and crispy. I am preparing it in microwave initially and for the final frying moving it to a frying pan.

Preparation time- 15 mins

Gajar ka halwa or Carrot Halwa

Gajar (Carrot) Ka Halwa is a north Indian Sweet served along a traditional meal. It is basically from Punjab, though many variants are there in other regions. The process involves slowly cooking of grated carrots in milk, sugar and ghee until it becomes thick. Sweet, Juicy and tender carrots are excellent for halwa. The famous red carrots that you get in north or the small Ooty carrots are good choices.The traditional way of cooking takes more time so today I am gonna try cooking it in Pressure cooker. 

Preparation time: 30 mins
Servings- 2

Kerala Egg Roast

Kerala egg roast is serving hard boiled egg along with a caramelized onion curry. Caramelized onions are best way to bring flavor to a curry.This is a spicy roast. You can make it milder by adding Coconut milk. Kerala egg roast goes best with Puttu and Appam. It can be served along with other Indian flat breads also.

Preparation time- 25 mins

Servings- 2

Egg Chapati

Egg chapati is something I fell in love with, at my "ex-office-snack-corner". This can be a perfect 4-O'clock snack or quick breakfast. Its quiet simple & my toddler loves it :). It is egg on chapati. You can also try this when you are lazy to make a curry for Chapatis.

Preparation time- 10 mins

Palak Paneer

Palak Paneer is a traditional vegetarian cuisine from Punjab. It is Indian cottage cheese in palak or spinach puree. Palak paneer does not contain many spices or masalas like other Indian currys. Paneer is lightly cooked to preserve its rich green color and nutrients. It has high iron content.It can be served along with Indian rice or Flat breads like chapati, nan, roti etc. I am a spinach hater so i used very little spinach in this dish.

Preparation time- 20 mins