Beerakaya Kura - Andhra Style Ridge gourd Curry

It is a delectable Andhra style ridge gourd cooked in a tomato based gravy.The result is a delicious curry that has a slight sweet favour and goes very well with rotis and rice. It is a simple, healthy & quick to make this delicious vegetarian curry. Do not omit the jaggery and saunf (aniseed) because they both give this curry a savory yet sweet flavor. 

Ridge gourd curry goes best with rotis but tastes equally good with rice.  It is spicy and colorful. Ridge gourd is low in saturated fat, cholesterol and calories that aids in weight loss. Ridge gourd juice is used to heal jaundice and to strengthen the immune system against any infection. 

You can try other ridge gourd recipes on my blog like

Ridge gourd Peel Chutney

MORE GRAVY RECIPES ARE LINKED BELOW

Sprouted Moth bean (matki curry)

Soya chunks Aloo kurma

Mushroom kurma

Spicy mushroom

Prep  time	Cooking time	Serves
10 mins	20 mins	4  persons

Recipe Course: Side dish

Recipe type: South Indian cuisine

Ingredients Ridge gourd – 4 no’s Onion -1 no Tomato – 3 no’s Garlic – 5 cloves Red chilli powder -2 tsp Coriander powder -2 tsp Turmeric powder -1 tsp Methi seeds powder – ¼ tsp Jaggery powdered -1 tsp Fennel seeds – 1 tsp Salt – to taste Coriander leaves -5 sprigs Seasonings Cooking oil – 1 tbsp. Mustard seeds – ½ tsp Cumin seeds  -1 tsp Curry leaves -2 sprigs Dry red chilli -2 no’s Hing – pinch

Method

1.Peel ridge gourds using a peeler, wash and chop into small pieces. 

2.Chop onion, coriander and keep other items aside.

3.Heat oil in a pan on medium flame, add mustard seeds and let it crackle.Add the asafetida powder, curry leaves and red chilli and let it splutter. 

4. Now roughly pound the garlic cloves using a pestle and mortar and add it to the pan and sauté until the garlic turns golden.Add the finely chopped onion and sauté until it turns translucent. 

5. Add the chopped tomatoes and sauté well. 

6. Now, add the cubed ridge gourds, mix well and let the ridge gourd cook in its own juices for 5 minutes.

7. Once the ridge gourd is cooked, add the jaggery, fennel seeds and roasted fenugreek seeds powder and mix well.

8. To this add the red chilli, coriander, turmeric, season with salt and sauté until the oil separates out.

9. Adjust consistency of the gravy to suit your needs. I usually like to make it on the thicker side. 

10. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Stir well until well combined, cover with lid and cook again for 2 minutes over medium heat.

11.Let it simmer for another 5 minutes, once the gravy becomes thick switch off the flame. 

Serving suggestions

Pulkas or parathas 

Steamed rice

Notes

• Adjust spice levels to suit your taste.
• If you do not have roasted methi powder, you omit it OR add 1/4 tsp of kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) when sautéing the onions.

Bhindi Pepper fry

One more quick healthy and yummy recipe which is easy to make. It is crispy and served as a side dish for rotis, rice or dal. This South Indian style Vendaka Milagu kari is cooked with a few masala ingredient that can be had with plain rice.

You can try other bhindi recipes on my blog like

Spicy okra masala fry

Bhindi Raita

MORE DRY CURRIES RECIPES ARE LINKED BELOW

Cabbage Senagapappu Vepudu
Zucchini Sabzi
Spring onion palya

Prep  time	Cooking time	Serves
10 mins	5 mins	2 persons

Recipe Course: Side dish

Recipe type: Indian cuisine

Ingredients Ladies finger(washed, dried and cut into 3 to 4 pieces each -500 gms Oil – 50 ml Jeera powder – ½ tsp Black pepper powder -4 tbsp. Garam masala powder – 1 tsp Turmeric powder – ½ tsp Salt -1 tsp

Method

1.Wipe and chop ladies finger into small pieces.

2.Now mix all the masala ingredients in a separate bowl.

3.Mix both bhindi and masala powders together and put them on a microwave safe bowl.

4.Microwave the ladies finger for at least 10 minutes, with very little oil, but make sure you keep stirring.

5. You will find the major difference by the shrinkage of bhindi (wow. It’s getting cooked).

6.Remove from the microwave carefully and serve it hot to enjoy the delicious pepper fry.

Serving suggestions
Plain rice and Dal 
Roti 

Notes

Do not add too much of spices, it will spoil the taste.

Cabbage Rice - Lunch Box Recipes

A delicious dish made with cabbage, onions is quick to make It is flavorful and delicious which is a perfect way to use any leftover rice or get the kids to eat cabbage. 

Ideal for office lunch, school lunch or for a weekday dinner. Depending on how much time you have, you can make it without any other veggies (except the cabbage, of course) and it will still taste great!

You can try other cabbage recipes on my blog like

Cabbage Egg podimas

Cabbage Raita

Cabbage (Purple ) Vada
MORE LUNCH BOX RECIPES ARE LINKED BELOW

Cabbage Egg podimas

Cabbage Raita

Cabbage (Purple ) Vada

Prep  time	Cooking time	Serves
15 mins	10 mins	4 persons

Recipe Course: Main course

Recipe type: Indian cuisine

Ingredients Cooked rice - 1 cup Chopped Cabbage – ¾ cup Sliced onion -1 no Green chillies – 2 no’s Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp Fennel Powder (saunf) – 1 tsp Lemon juice – ½ to 1 tsp Coriander leaves –few sprigs Salt – to taste Seasonings Oil/ ghee – 1 ½ tsp Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp Broken urad dal -2 tsp Hing –pinch Curry leaves –few Cashew nuts -1 tsp(optional)

Method

1. Heat oil in a pan at medium heat. Splutter mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal, curry leaves and cashews. 

2. When they turn light golden, add hing. Stir for a few seconds. 

3. Add onion, and green chilies.When the onion turns transparent, add the chopped cabbage turmeric powder, fennel powder. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Add the cooked rice and salt. Reduce flame and stir well to mix. 

5. Switch off the flame and add lemon juice. 

6. Garnish with fried cashew nuts and coriander leaves.

Serving Suggestions

• Pickles
• Potato fry
• Fryums 

Notes

• The dish comes in handy when you are tired and want to make something fast that tastes good and is also on the healthy side.
• The cabbage should be chopped evenly. This dish will be a favorite staple in your kitchen.
• Add other veggies like carrots and spring onions just for variety sake.

Sprouted Matki or Moth Beans Salad

Moth Beans are used in the form of sprouts in this salad. A tasty and unique salad goes perfectly with the meal. I simply love this salad because it makes raw mango so delightful. It's always my favorite for lunch or during evening tea time. 

This is other version of salad with steamed sprouts and they are extremely nutritious which is high in fiber, low in fat and rich in vitamins and minerals. We generally make it a point to have at least some type of sprout legumes in a week. Matki salad is the easiest to make, tastes amazing and very healthy. 

June Shhhhh Cooking Secretly Challenge Theme

During the month of June Shhhh Cooking Secretly Challenge, “Summer Salad” theme was suggested by our co blogger Kalyani Sri who owns a lovely and fantastic blog. She is blogging at www.sizzlintastebuds.com

Check out some of Kalyan Sri recipes like
Microwave pineapple kesari
Arachuvitta Sambar

This month I have paired with Jayashree Trao who is really an amazing blogger at www.evergreendishes.com. She gave me two lovely secret ingredients Raw Mango and Salt. 
I gave two secret ingredients as Lemon and Black Channa for her. Wow …….She made a wonderful and lovely salad with my secret ingredients too.

Check out her awesome recipes like

Sel roti
Chocolate and floral cookies
Spicy chitpotle chilli corn soup

Try out other raw mango recipes on my blog like

Raw mango rasam
(Raw Mango) lemon rice 
Raw mango Pappu

MORE SALAD RECIPES ARE LINKED BELOW

Kachumber
Papaya Cucumber salad
Carrot kosambari

Prep  time	Cooking time	Serves
15 mins	10 mins	3 persons

Recipe Course: Salad

Recipe type: Indian cuisine

Ingredients Sprouted Moth beans (Matki) – 2 cups Onion – 1 no Tomato -1 no Raw mango – 1 cup Green chilies – 1 no’s Lemon juice -2 tsp Red chili powder – ½ tsp Jeera powder – ¼ tsp (optional) Chaat masala-1 tsp Coriander leaves – ¼ cup Black Salt or Salt– to taste

Method

Preparation of sprouts

1. Ensure Moth Beans are clean and free of small rocks or any foreign objects. Put Moth Beans in a large bowl and add enough water that rises well above the Moth Beans. Keep the bowl covered for 8-10 hours.

2. After 10 hours, uncover the bowl.Matki should have soaked all the water. Next day, drain water and place them in a clean cloth. Tie and keep the cloth in an open vessel. Sprinkle water on cloth 2-3 times or when it looks dry. 

3. Moth beans sprouts a tail next morning. If not, wait for few more days till bean sprouts or keep them in warm place. Sprinkle water 2-3 times daily. Wash sprouted moth beans properly. Drain excess water. Keep aside.

Preparation of Sprouted Moth Bean –Matki Salad

1. Cut all the vegetables and keep all the masala powders ready. 

2. Steam the sprouted beans with salt for 10 mins. 

3. Allow the beans to cool for few minutes.

4.Transfer the matki in a serving bowl followed by chopped raw mango. 

5.Add chopped onions, tomatoes and green chilies.

6. Now add black salt (salt), red chilli powder, Chaat masala and lemon juice. 

7.Mix everything well and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

8.Serve immediately. Sprouted Moth Beans Salad is ready. 

Notes

• Add some salt to sprouted moth beans and rub it with hands to coat well. 
• Rinse well with cold water. 
• This will remove the foul smell.
• Refrigerated sprouts last well for 10-12 days.  
• If you wish to store sprouts for more than 2 weeks, then you must deep freeze it.