It’s raining recipes

With the sun and the clouds playing peekaboo for the last one week, staying cosy in the warmth of our homes seems like the ideal plan.
It’s raining recipes

CHENNAI: With the sun and the clouds playing peekaboo for the last one week, staying cosy in the warmth of our homes seems like the ideal plan. Add to that a cup of piping hot tea and crispy treats, voila, we’ve got the perfect recipe for all the rain-soaked evenings. Catering to your cravings, Vaishali Vijaykumar curates eight monsoon munchies that are meant to govern your appetite this season. 

Potato croquettes by Aarthi Satheesh

Ingredients
Oil: 1 tsp + for deep frying
Onion: 1 medium size, chopped finely
Curry leaves: A sprig, chopped finely
Green chilli: 1, chopped finely
Ginger-garlic paste: 1 tsp
Chilli powder: 1 tsp
Coriander powder: 2 tsp
Garam masala powder: 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Potatoes: 2 large boiled, peeled and mashed
Corn flour/cornstarch: 1/4 cup
Maida: 1/2 cup
Bread crumbs: 2 cups

Method
Heat oil in a pan. Add onions, curry leaves, chilli, salt and saute for a minute.
Now, add all spice powders and toss well.
Add this to the mashed potatoes and mix well. Divide it into equal portions.
Take a small portion, roll it into a cylinder. Do this for all croquettes.
Take corn flour in a bowl, add some water and make into a paste.
Take one croquette, roll it in some maida. Dip it in the corn flour mix and roll it in bread crumbs.
Repeat this for all potatoes. Refrigerate the balls for 15 minutes.
Heat oil for deep frying. Drop balls in, and fry till golden.

Potato and onion laccha pakoda by Selva Sunitha

Ingredients
Potato: 1
Onion: 1
Green chillies: 2
Fennel seeds: 1/2 tsp
Salt as required
Oil to deep-fry
Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
Asafoetida: 1/4 tsp
Ginger: 1/2 tsp finely chopped
Gram flour: 3 tbsp

Method
Grate potato and add it to a bowl of cold water to remove excess starch. Squeeze the grated potato and add it to a mixing bowl.
Add thinly sliced onion, finely chopped green chillies, ginger, salt, asafoetida, fennel seeds, turmeric powder and gram flour. Mix well.
Add water only if required. Potato and onion will release water, which will help other ingredients bind well.
Heat oil in a kadai. Drop the mixture in the hot oil and deep-fry until crispy.
Garnish with fried green chillies and curry leaves. Serve hot with spicy mint chutney.

Cabbage dhokla by Sumithra Rajesh

Ingredients
Cumin seeds: 1 tsp
Chopped cabbage: 200 g
Chopped onion: 1/4 cup
Grated ginger: a handful
Grated garlic: a handful
Chopped green capsicum: 1/4 cup
Green chilli: a handful
For dough
Wheat flour: 1 cup
Semolina: 1/2 cup
Rice flour: 1/4 cup
Carom seeds: 1 tsp
Chilli powder: 1 tsp
Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
Chilli flakes, oregano for seasoning
Coriander leaves
Fresh curd: 1 tsp
Baking soda and lime juice: 
1 tsp each 

Method
In a pan, heat oil, crackle some cumin seeds. Add onions, garlic, ginger. Sauté together and add cabbage, green chilli and capsicum. Add salt and sauté until the mixture 
is cooked.
In a bowl, mix wheat flour, rice flour and semolina. Add chilli powder, turmeric, chilli flakes, oregano, coriander and the cabbage mixture to it.
Add fresh curd and mix everything together into a smooth dough. Add baking soda and lime juice and mix well.
Now, take a small round cake pan and grease it with butter. Spread the batter evenly and steam it in a steamer for about 15 to 20 minutes. 
Insert a toothpick to check if it is done. If it comes out clean, it means the dhokla is ready.
Cut into rounds or squares using a cutter and serve it with mint chutney.

Chicken fritters by Selva Sunitha

Ingredients 
Boneless chicken: 100 g
Coriander leaves: 4 tbsp
Maida: 2 tbsp
Egg: 1
Salt as required
Oil to shallow fry
Ginger-garlic paste: 1 tsp
Grated cheese: 5 tbsp
Mayonnaise: 2 tbsp
Cayenne pepper powder: 1 tsp

Method
Cut boneless chicken into small pieces and add it to a mixing bowl. 
Add coriander leaves, mayonnaise, egg, cheese, salt, cayenne pepper powder, ginger-garlic paste and maida to the chicken pieces and mix well. Let it marinate for minimum 30 minutes.
Heat oil in a tawa. Scoop chicken mixture and place it on tawa.
Let it cook for three minutes on one side and then flip and cook it for another three minutes on medium flame.
Serve hot with garlic aioli or tandoori mayonnaise.

Crispy bread bajji by Aarthi Satheesh

Ingredients
Wheat flour: 1/2 cup
Gram flour: 1/4 cup
Rice flour: 1/4 cup
Baking soda/Cooking soda: a pinch, salt to taste
Chilli powder: 1 tsp, carom seeds: 1/2 tsp
Chaat masala powder: 3/4 tsp, ginger-garlic paste: 1 tsp, water as needed
Bread slices: 4-5, oil for deep frying

Method
Cut bread into small cubes or as you wish. Heat oil for deep frying.
Make a thick batter by mixing all ingredients. 
Now, dip the bread pieces in batter and deep fry them in hot oil till golden and crisp.
Serve hot with ketchup.

Crispy onion rings with peanut sauce by Nausheen Yusuf

Ingredients
For the batter
All purpose flour: 1 cup
Room temperature milk: 1/2 cup
Salt: as per taste
Pepper powder: 1/2 tsp
Garlic herbs or any other dried mixed herbs: 1 tsp
Finely chopped coriander leaves: a handful
Baking powder: 1/4 tsp

For coating
Corn flour: 1 tsp
Bread crumbs: 1 or 2 tsp
For the peanut sauce
Tomato: 2-3
Dried chillies: 4-5
Garlic cloves: 2-3
Roasted peanuts: 1/4 cup
Salt: to taste

Method
For the onion rings
Cut the stem end and remove the peel. Then trim the root end.
Cut a thin slice off the end of the onion to keep it from rolling while you slice it.
Finally, place the onion flat side down and cut crosswise into thick slices and open up each ring.
Coat the onion rings with a little bit of corn flour and set aside.
In a mixing bowl, add flour and the other ingredients.
Make a thick batter enough for coating your rings. The batter shouldn’t be too thick or too thin.
Dip the onion rings in the batter and then coat it with bread crumbs and deep fry in hot oil on medium flame to get maximum crispiness.
Once fried, remove it over a absorbent sheet/tissue.
You could sprinkle cheese powder over the hot onion rings to get maximum flavour.

For the sauce
Slit the tomatoes into two halves and blanch them along with chillies and garlic. Once blanched, remove it and allow it to cool.
Then transfer it into a mixer jar. Add peanuts and salt and blend it into a smooth sauce.
Serve the onion rings with the sauce.

Idli batter bonda by Aarthi Satheesh

Ingredients
Idli batter: 1 cup
Rice flour: 1/4 cup
Onion: 1, chopped finely
Green chilli: 1, chopped finely
Coconut: 3 tbsp
Curry leaves: A sprig
Salt to taste
Oil for deep frying

Method
Mix all ingredients, except oil, till you get a thick batter.
Heat oil for deep frying. Drop batter in and fry till golden. Drain and serve hot.

Bread cheese bites by Aarthi Satheesh

Ingredients
Bread slices: 2
Cheese slices or grated cheese: as needed
Corn flour/cornstarch: 3 tbsp
Water: 1/4 cup
Bread crumbs: 
1/2 cup
Oil for pan-frying

Method
Place cheese slices over the bread slices. Cover with another slice of bread.
Cut it into bite size pieces
Mix corn flour with some water. Dip the bread in the corn flour mix and coat with bread crumbs.
Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the bread slices till they turn crispy. Strain and serve with ketchup.

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