Dosakaya Pesara pappu (Yellow cucumber in Moong Dal)

In region of Andhra Pradesh, people love to eat moong dal than toordal. . A simple and easy dish to make. It tastes very nice and can consume with rice. My mom used to fry tender green chilies in little oil and season it with salt and other spices... These fried green chilies are our best combo for moongdal. Pappu is very tasty and highly nutritious recipe especially when bored and tired of making regular dal recipes. . It requires very less ingredients and also less time to cook. Really a very simple dish and tummy friendly also. 


September month Shhhh Cooking Secretly Challenge, have discussed an interesting topic which is purely based on Andhra Cuisine.This month I have paired with Priya Mahesh,blogger at at200 deg who gave me two secret ingredients Yellow cucumber and moong dal.

Dosakaya or Yellow Cucumber is a very healthy vegetable we can make different varieties with it like pappu, pulusu, pickle and chutney. It is good for digestion. Yellow Cucumber tastes a bit sour, sometimes they come in bitter taste also.  Do not use the bitter ones, throw them.Lets get onto the recipe,

Prep time	Blending time	Serves
5 mins	20 mins	3 -4  persons

Recipe type: Kulambu varieties

Cuisine: Andhra Cuisine

Ingredients Yellow moong dal – ½  cup Yellow cucumber – 1 big Green chilies – 2 no’s Onions -2 no’s Tomatoes -1 no Red chili powder -1 tsp Turmeric powder – 1 pinch Water -1 ½  cups Seasonings Mustard seeds -1/4 tsp Cumin seeds -1/4 tsp Dry red chillis -2 no’s Hing –pinch Ghee -1 tbsp. Curry leaves –few sprigs

Method

1. Wash moong dal and soak for 5 mins and keep aside. In a heavy bottom pan heat ghee and Dry roast them on low flame till aroma comes out then add water Keep the lid of the pressure cooker and then weight.In mean time peel the skin of yellow cucumber, scrape its skin and cut in the middle and remove the seeds cut into pieces. 

2. Check for the taste, if it is lite bitter then remove seeds and use only the pieces .If it is too bitter then throw it away and take another one.Chop 1 small onion and 5 small green chilies. The most important thing is dal should be in its original texture u should not mash it.This is the perfect cooking of moongdal with veggies. 

3. Heat oil in a other pan add mustard seeds let them popup then add urad dal,crushed garlic, cumin seeds, broken red chilies and then curry leaves and let them fry till light brown color and add this to dosakaya pappu and mix well. Add salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder and mix it well, add chopped coriander leaves and cook for a couple of mins on medium flame.

4. On top of it add fresh curry leaves and coriander leaves.The final consistency of dal should not be too thick or too thin. It should be medium consistency.Now dosakaya pesara pappu is ready, transfer into a serving bowl 

Serving suggestions

Enjoy this mild dal with rotis/rice.

I love to have this dal with rice and fried chilies.

Serve hot with rice, ghee and avakaya...... delicious

Notes

We should not make dal to lose its original texture. . If u over cook dal and veggies then cucumber melts in the dal and even the dal gets mashed up.

If you want to cook this in a pressure cooker fry dal in the ghee and add water and vegetables and salt chili powder, turmeric powder and cook for 2 whistles switch off and let it cool then open the lid.

Lima Beans and Dill Sabzi

We were lucky enough to get fresh lima beans in Bangalore.It goes well with both rice and roti (Indian flat bread). I added some lima beans to Dill for some crunchness to the sabzis. Coming to this particular recipe, the secret ingredient  is definitely the dill leaves which has a very unique flavor. Adding garlic and use of mustard oil raises the spiciness level. You can add chilies as per your taste and enjoy this winter with a lovely dish.

Prep time	Blending time	Serves
10 mins	15 mins	3 -4  persons

Recipe type: Poriyal varieties

Cuisine: Karnataka Cuisine

Ingredients Dill leaves  - 3 cups Fresh lima beans – ¾ cup Mustard Oil -1 tbsp Cumin seeds -  ½ tsp Onions -2 nos Green chillies -2 nos Garlic cloves -6  nos Turmeric powder -  ½ tsp Red chilli powder -1 tsp Hing -pinch Salt –to taste

 Method:

1. Wash and chop the dill in the meanwhile Make a coarse paste of chilies, garlic and little salt and keep it aside.Heat the pan with oil, add cumin , mustard seeds , hing, above prepared paste and fry for 2-3 minutes on medium heat.

2. Add dill leaves and lima beans ,fry for few minutes or till they turn soft. Add crushed garlic, turmeric powder and salt and cover the pan with a lid. Turn the flame low and cook for 10 mintues or till they are almost cooked.

3. Cover tight and cook on low heat for about 20 minutes till the till the veggies are cooked well and turn a little brown.(Do not add water unless you absolutely have to and if so just a tablespoon.) Add water and salt ,cook till  everything is tender. (let all the water evaporate )

Serving Suggestions

Chappati

Rice and dal.

Notes

Garlic Oil also can be used instead of mustard oil.

Mixed Fruit Salsa

Fruit salsa is  a delicious and healthy snack the whole family will enjoy It has wonderful taste and texture and it’s super easy to make The easiest and healthiest way to add flavor to any food is to have some salsa with it. This fruit salsa is great on its own or as a dip with tortilla chips, Monaco biscuits or Nachos. 

The mild tasting onions, minimal heat from the jalapeno went hand in hand with the sweet mangoes so well. I made a small batch of the salsa at first and having loved it so much, made a huge batch. It went well with all of them, in fact it was perfect accompaniment to Spicy flavored Nachos which was little hot for us and this salsa managed to counter balance its effects superbly.  

Fruit salsa is really simple to make! You pick out the fruit, chop and peel it as needed then mix it together with lemon juice and honey/sugar in a large bowl. Serve within two hours for the best result. Kiwi is also a colorful addition to the dish. Peel the outsides with a knife and chop finely for a gorgeous green hue in your sweet fruit salsa. Mango is a hidden gem here! I absolutely love mango. It’s my favorite fruit next to watermelon and it adds a delicious tropical flavor to this fruit salsa.

I had a great time with Eastern Condiments on the particular event day.My friends and family were enjoying the event conducted by the Eastern condiments.My friend Aveta took great effort to organize the event in a wonderful way.Thank you dear for all the support you have given to me during the event.

Prep time	Cooking time	Serves
15 mins	20 mins	3 -4  persons

Recipe type: Snack recipes

Cuisine:  Continental

Ingredients Big Fresh mango  - 2 no’s Pineapple   -1 big Banana  -4 no’s Kiwi -5 no’s Papaya -2 no’s Tomato  7 no’s Onions -2 no’s Pudina leaves -1 cup Jalapeno -3 tbsp. Eastern Chaat Masala -2 tbsp. Chopped fresh Basil   -2 tbsp. Monaco biscuits  -4  big packets Nachos –al flavored packets Lemon Juice -2 tbsp. Brown sugar -1/4 cup Salt   -2tsp Extra virgin Olive oil -1 tbsp.

Method

1.To make the fruit salsa, peel and chop all of the fruit in small pieces. 

 

 2. In a large bowl combine mango,pineapple,papaya,kiwi and banana.Stir everything for even blending.

 

3. Now add tomato and pudina to the bowl for extra flavour.Give a quick toss and leave aside.In a small bowl combine the lime, salt, extra virgin olive oil and jalapeno, Stir in a large bowl and  and mix to combine.

4. Now add Eastern Chaat masala powder and basil leaves.Arrange all the biscuits and Nachos properly for the preparations.

5. Brush Nachos with Olive oil. Cover and chill for 2-3 hours. You'll add the basil right before serving.

 

 6. Taste and season with additional salt, if desired.

 

Notes
Feel free to adjust ingredients to your own liking.If you prefer a spicier salsa, use more jalapeno or don't discard all of the seeds serve with fruit salsa. 
 

Set in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. This helps the flavor to mingle well.