Going out to buy vegetables has become a risky business during this lockdown. You not only have to face endless queues, but might get caught by the police too. Given this scenario, it is time to look at pulses and the humble potato differently. The side kicks like tamarind and gram flour might become the superstars of your meal. Have a look at these recipes and cook your blues away
Pachi Pulusu
Ingredients
Tamarind 50 gm
Medium-size onion 1
Green chillies 5-6
Jeera powder 1 tsp
Coriander leaves
Curry leaves
Jaggery 10 gm grated
Turmeric 1 tsp
Dry red chilly - 1
Mustard - Half tsp
Jeera: Half tsp
Process
Wash tamarind and soak in water for half an hour.
Take tamarind pulp in a bowl. Add one and half glass of water to it.
Put onions, salt and green chillies in a vessel and mix well.
Add tamarind juice. Adjust consistency according to your liking.
Add coriander powder, turmeric and jaggery.
Take 1 tsp oil in a pan and heat it.
Add cumin and mustard seeds. After they crackle, add red chilli and curry leaves. Add this tadka to the tamarind juice and garnish with coriander.
Bangala Dumpa Ulli Karam
Ingredients
Potato - Half kg boiled
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Jeera powder, turmeric powder - 1 tsp each
Dry red chillies - 10
Big onions - 2, Oil - 2 tbsp
Curry leaves
Coriander leaves
Salt to taste
Process
Cut the boiled potatoes in pieces and set them aside.
Take red chillies, jeera powder, ginger-garlic paste and onions in a mixer jar and make a fine paste.
Take the oil in a pan and add curry leaves.
Add potatoes and fry for three minutes. After that, add ground paste, turmeric powder and salt.’5. Mix well and fry till the masala clings to the potatoes.
Add coriander leaves and switch off flame.
Kandi podi
Ingredients
Toor dal: 1 cup
Dry red chillies: 10
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Chana dal: Half cup
Garlic: 7-8 cloves
Salt to taste
Method:
Take a pan and roast Toor dal. Keep it aside.
In the same pan, dry roast red chillies, jeera seeds and garlic till you get a nice aroma.
Roast chana dal for a few minutes.
Let all these cool.
Take the roasted ingredients in a mixer jar and make a smooth powder. Store it in an airtight container.
Kadhi Pakoda
Ingredients
Curd - 500 gm
Gram flour - 200 gm
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Red chilly - 2
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric, cumin powder, coriander powder - half tsp each
Oil: 250 ml
Salt to taste
Method
Make a semi-thick batter with gram flour (100 gm) and water. Add chilli, cumin and coriander powders. Add salt.
Take bite-sized quantities of the batter and half-fry them in oil. Be careful not to fry them fully.
Take the pakodis out and immediately immerse in cold, salted water In a vessel, take curd, water and gram flour. Leave it to simmer on low flame. Don’t put it on high flame, otherwise flour will separate from curd.
— Kakoli Mukherjee
kakoli_mukherjee@newindianexpress.com
@kakolimukherje2