Raw Mango and Bottle Gourd Dal Recipe | Khatta Meetha Lauki-Aam Dal

Learn how to make Raw Mango and Bottle Gourd Dal or Khatta Meetha Lauki-Aam Dal ~ Sweet and sour, creamy raw mango and bottle gourd lentil soup tempered with spices and curry leaves

What is summer without mangoes? Nothing, there is nothing in this world that screams summer to me like looking at the king of fruits. Be it emerald shaded raw mangoes and the rich golden hued mangoes, their sour and sweet flavour is unbeatable. It is and it will always be mangoes that rule my world and my childhood memories. Forget all exotic fruits; pineapple, peach, kiwi, plum, berries; nothing can ever come quite close to magnificent Mangifera Indica in flavour, taste or aroma. It’s a same story every year. Just one look at them and I start reminiscing about the Mango Season, the season of the king of fruits, back home in India.

Come summer and it meant only one thing for me and my siblings, long vacation at paternal and maternal granny’s home. The memories of those sunny, glorious summer days of endless fun, pranks and digging our teeth into succulent mangoes warm my heart even today. Granny’s house was just like many other beautiful tiled-terraced houses (or more like mansion) in my native village in southern India. Surrounded by acres of greenery, the white house with red tiles stood tall and proud with wide porches running around the house. Polished to perfection red oxide floors would gleam with intricately carved thick rosewood pillars supporting the roofs. The trees around the big house served as the compound walls and the beautiful water stream flowing right next to the house was its gate. Magnificent tall jackfruit, tamarind, coconut trees competed against each other for the title in the backyard.

No-Churn Mango Ice Cream Recipe | Simple 3 Ingredients Eggless, No-Churn Ice Cream Recipe

Learn how to make Eggless, 3 Ingredients, No-Churn Mango Ice Cream ~ Simple and easy eggless mango ice cream recipe without ice cream maker

We are back from our week long holiday in Morocco and I have tonnes of photos and stories to share. But all that have to wait as this is the last week of 6 weeks long summer holidays and I want to spend as much time as possible with LD doing, well, nothing! Yes, nothing!

When I was young, I remember my parents leaving me to entertain myself by reading a book, going for walks in the hills and woodlands with my friends and siblings, creating little pots and pans with clay, lying under the mango trees and waiting for the mangoes to fall down, and then they let me get bored! It was during this time of boredom I would sit in the balcony outside my room and look at the random things and build a story around the subjects. The floating cloud was looking desperately for a friend, the man with a long, thick moustache was the president of world moustache federation, the girl with a long thick braid was actually wearing a black cobra which hissed if I tried get too close to check it, the cat sitting on the fence would change its form to a mighty tiger in the night etc, etc. I was a child with vivid imagination who loved to spin stories during this time of boredom and it’s only much later time in my life I realised how my parents deliberately let us get bored to activate those imaginations and creative cells. While I was spinning tales of this land and far beyond, my sister got busy with colours, creating vibrant paintings and the baby brother created havoc and got into mischief by scribbling stick mans and hundreds of eggs in our school note books and walls! :) And this is what I want to pass on to LD, a legacy of boredom which I call an ‘art of doing nothing’.

Aam Papad Recipe | Mango Fruit Leather Recipe

Learn ho to make Aam Papad ~ Mango Fruit Leather recipe two ways

Last few days have been absolutely crazy with festive school performances, school trips to the local church, volunteering, Christmas shopping, signing hundreds of cards, product and recipe testing in the kitchen and a mountain high load of never ending things! I am not exaggerating! If that was not enough to bring the whole house down, I have LD hanging upside down holding on to my apron strings moaning he is bored every 5 minutes. Bored 5 years old?! Like, seriously?!!! I can’t wait for the school to reopen in a fortnight! Just kidding. :)

We are off to meet our friends up north in Yorkshire for the Christmas and then travelling to London for the New Year. There will be a lot of partying, eating, cooking, shopping and activities planned for the week long fun filled holiday season. I have been busy sorting out the presents, packing our bags, going through the truck load of laundry, ironing never ending pile of cloths, dusting and cleaning every nook and cranny, answering to dozens of emails, running around the energetic 5 year old, and god knows what else! In between the entire hullabaloo, I decided to make some edible presents for friends! I tried to find the reason and completely failed to answer why I am doing this!!! Call me crazy, but the perfectionist and the ever lurking OCD in me makes me go an extra mile to make everything perfect for my loved ones.

Mango-Coconut Chitranna Recipe | Quick and Easy Mango-Coconut Rice Recipe

Learn how to make Mango-Coconut Chitranna - A spin to South Indian tangy yellow rice of coconut and raw mango flavoured with generous tempering of peanuts and aromatic spices

The meaning of ‘home’ is ever evolving. When I was a kid, home was a palatial bungalow where I was born and surrounded by dozens of aunts, uncles, cousins, my grandparents and parents. It was a place where I woke up to jingling of anklets and bangles, clattering pots and pans, aroma of rasams and sambars bubbling in a large copper pots, sound of sizzling tadka and gossiping women in the kitchen. Home was the warmth of being held closely to my uncles chests, tickling fingers of my aunties, skipping and running bare footed with my cousins, splashing waters in a crystal clear streams, sleeping peacefully on a cosy bed of my grandpa’s chest, morsels of food being fed by my grandma under the star lit skies, and being sandwiched between my parents before drifting off to sleep.

When I was 6 years old, my parents moved to their current home to be close to the best schools and dad’s clinic and it became our home where we drove each other absolutely crazy one moment and made one feel like million dollars the next. It was a place which nourished me and always made me feel safe, loved, and cherished. Home was a place that welcomed me with open heart and a plate of amma’s home cooked meals peppered with spice and love!

KaaTu Mavina Hannina Saaru/Gojju Recipe | Wild Mango Soup from Udupi-Mangalore

Learn how to make KaaTu Mavina Hannina Saaru/Gojju ~ Sweet, spicy and tangy wild mango soup/curry from Udupi-Mangalore

A big hello from India! :) It’s been 3 weeks since we landed here and the life has been, well, little chaotic trying to do hundred and one things at once! We have been struggling to come up with the fact that this is not our annual month long holiday with our loved ones and we are actually going to live here permanently!

Sometimes I feel it’s all a dream and I will wake up next moment in our old house in England listening to the howling wind, grey skies and rain drops splattering around! But that is not the case as every time I wake up here in my parents’ home, all I can hear are the noise of tweeting birds, bright sunlight streaming through the curtains and to the lull of ceiling fan… Life is so much different to the life that lived just a month ago… I will write more about our Indian adventure later as we are still living out of suitcases.

No Oil Spicy Cut Mango Pickle Recipe | Step by Step Indian Mango Pickle Recipe

Learn how to make Spicy Cut Mango Pickle ~ No Oil Spicy Raw Mango Pickle Recipe

Family recipes, the recipes that have been cooked for decades and some even for centuries are the most treasured ones and close to my heart. Our taste, preference and choice change with time, but certain recipes withstand the test of time as they tie us to our roots and happy memories. Recipes like these need to be treasured, preserved and cherished for honoring the previous generations and for the new generations who are yet to sample the goodness of life!

Mango Panna Cotta Recipe | How to Make Panna Cotta

How to make Mango Panna Cotta ~ Italian dessert of layered cream flavoured with vanilla and a Desi twist of mango flavoured with cardamoms 

She looked at pregnancy test kit in her hands again to make sure what she was seeing was true! There they were two pink lines as clear as they could be! 

She came running out of the bathroom screaming at top of her voice, “We really are pregnant! The nurse was right. We really are pregnant!” 

 “Of course she is right”, husband said with big smile on his face. 

“What are we going to do? We don’t know anything about babies!” wife said with worry lines etched on her face. 

“Well, we will figure out”, husband tried to reassure her. 

And figuring out is what we are still doing after 3 years!!! ;)

Mango Lassi Recipe | How to Make Punjabi Mango Lassi

Learn how to make Mango Lassi ~ Thick, sweet and creamy mango and yogurt drink flavoured with aromatic cardamom, a refreshing Indian summer drink

It was hot summer day when the sun scorched every object that came in direct contact under his blazing rays. On that particular day the temperature shot up by another few degrees making already miserable hot day even more difficult to bear! People looked up at the sky eagerly looking for the sign of rain to bring the temperature down to bearable degrees, but all they could see by squinting eyes was the sun god shining bright with his full glory, blissfully unaware of the complaints that were thrown at him from one part of the world below him! Amidst all the complaining people, the girl wearing white salwar kameez breezed through the crowd. There was only one thing that was going in her teenage mind as she quickly walked through the street lined with shops and complaining people. She knew where she wanted to go, away from curious glances and gossiping tongues, to meet her beloved who was waiting for her with bated breath.

Black & White Wednesday: Childhood is Calling

If you never did, you should. These things are fun and fun is good!
~ Dr. Seuss

Pickled raw mangoes and Indian gooseberries sold in wooden carts… Isn’t it one of the tastiest treats of childhood, or even adulthood for that matter! Oh this excitement and anticipation is killing me! I can’t wait to be child again and relive it with my Lil Dumpling :) It’s gonna be soon… very soon….

Mango Chutney/Relish: Summer Beckons

Mango Chutney/Relish

A warm hello on a very warm summer day to all warm and lovely readers of Monsoon Spice. How are you? What is happening at your end? Oh, I can go and on as it’s been more than a year since this blog had any food posts. So much has happened in a last year or two and I don’t know from where to start! All of a sudden words seem to have deserted me! My mind is bursting with thoughts and memories which I want to share but they just don’t seem to be budging and flowing at my finger tips. Alas! I am at that phase again. A writer’s block!!!

Coconut-Mango Pulihara/Chitranna: Recreating Forgotten Taste...

Coconut-Mango Pulihara

Last week of March and just a day away from 2 months summer break. Yes, it was the day before my last exam and every year we had same exam to write, Moral Science!!! I always felt that it had to be some immoral and sadist person’s way of making us kids suffer one more day in the name of exams. Yes, Moral science paper which was not at all counted in the final exam valuation. So there was no question of studying! We kids were all excited about 2 long months of sun, mangoes, ice creams and candies, meeting our cousins (more like a bunch of monkey soldiers from Ramayana), lazy afternoons, swim in a stream and late nights.

The day before last exam was also the day where our home buzzed with excitement and non-stop ringing of telephones from our cousins. “Don’t forget to pack your cricket bat and wickets”, said one cousin to my brother. “And bring along that new board games too”, screamed another cousin of mine. “Did you pack your piggy bank for Goli Sodas and ice candies? I have 58 rupees 75 paisa in my piggy bank”, I whispered to my sister in excitement. “And Amma promised that she will give us 20 rupees each when we go to Grandma’s place”, said my chuckling brother.

At last it was the day which we all were eagerly looking forward to. We were too excited to even sleep in the previous night thinking what if we overslept and no one woke us! We surprised our parents by getting up from bed without any alarm and got ready in lightening speed. After quick breakfast, we went through our list of things-to-pack, making sure that we have not left anything behind. Then the waiting game began….

Every five minutes we would look at the clock and then look out on the road for the sign of military green jeep. Our three year old brother continued to stare at the clock without batting his eyelids to make sure that the big hand in clock is moving towards 12 while the small one was at 10. Just when the clock was about to strike ten, we saw a giant green jeep coming towards our house and we would start waving both our hands, screaming at top of our voice to make sure that our uncle noticed all three devils. We never wanted to take risk as what if he at that time suffers from short-term memory loss and drives away!

Every time our uncle came to pick us and along with him were my cousins whom he had picked from their home on the way. Without giving him much time to think about the weeks of torture he will have to face, we would pressure him to take us to Ajji’s home even before he could finish his coffee made by his elder sister, making him choke on the Chakkuli’s that he was busy stuffing his mouth with. Within few minutes we would dump our bags on second rows of seats and jumped into the back of this giant of jeep that served also served as boot for carrying gunny bags filled with Areca nuts, rice and Cocoa from farm. That place was our favourite place to play cards, board games and also house-house game. A thick blanket with green and black checks was spread on a 5 feet by 5 feet boot and we six cousins sat on it spreading tiny stainless steel kitchen toys. While some pretended to be mothers, others were their husbands and kids. While the husbands and kids went to school by jumping to second and front rows of seats, mothers of the family busied themselves with cooking and gossiping! Thus the game went on till we travelled for 3 hours and at last reached our granny’s place.

Those blissful days of fun and frolic…. The days of innocence and carefree spirits… Ah! The magical world of childhood where few rupees were more precious than today’s millions of rupees!!! The simple days where drinking Goli Soda and licking the ice cream running down on your arms were the ultimate pleasures any kid ever wanted!!! The carefree days where seat belts in vehicles were unheard of and two or three wounds on knees were considered too small an issue to even look at!!! I can give up everything to live those days again!

As the nostalgia hits me hard again, I try to loosen the knots of my memories to weave the beautiful days of my childhood… While my mind is busily knitting the colourful days, my hands pick up the ingredients to create a long forgotten recipe from my grand ma’s kitchen. While my mind pictures the retro coloured visuals of one of my favourite childhood favourites, my taste buds, along with my nose join my fingers in typing a familiar name quickly on Google search. And voila, with in few minutes I come across this recipe which very much sounds and looks like the one I have in my mind. Thanks to Mika, I was able to recreate the taste from my childhood which I had thought was buried with the death of my grandma. I found the same taste and aroma of my Ajji’s Coconut-Mango Pulihara/Chitranna in Mika’s recipe for Mango Rice and it was indeed as refreshing and tantalising as I remembered it to be.

Coconut-Mango Pulihara

Sweet Coconut, sour mangoes, spicy green chillies and pungent mustards, a flavour sensation in true sense! Crunch from the Tadka and peanuts is just added bonus to this unbelievably simple and delicious Coconut-Mango Pulihara/Chitranna. Only thing I missed was the small bowl prepared using banana leaves that would fit nicely between our small hands. My granny made these parcels of Coconut-Mango Pulihara in fresh banana leaves tied with threads made using banana stems and put it in a basket made using thick base leaves of areca nut plants along with small bowls made using banana leaves whenever we kids left for our trip to nearby ponds or hills. Can you think of any other better way of saving mother earth and better bio-degradable bags and plates? The heavenly smell of coconut-mango-chilli-mustard mixed with fresh smelling banana leaves is something I will never be able to put it into words. It is something that one has to experience to know exactly what I mean! If you are lucky enough to get some fresh, sour mangoes make it at once and experience the true flavour of simple ingredients. And if you are really-really lucky enough to get fresh banana leaves, just serve this warm Coconut-Mango Pulihara/Chitranna in it to take a small trip to heaven!

Coconut, Mango, Green Chillies & Mustard Powder for Coconut-Mango Pulihara

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Coconut-Mango Pulihara/Chitranna (Rice flavoured with ground mixture of fresh Coconut, Green Mango and Mustard Powder)

Prep Time: 5 mins
Cooking Time: 5 mins (If using leftover Rice) - 30 mins (If using fresh Rice)
Serves: 3-4
Recipe Source: The Green Jackfruit
Recipe Level: Easy/Beginner
Spice Level: Low to Medium
Serving Suggestion: Serve as it is or with any Raita/Yogurt and Tender Mango Pickle

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Ingredients:

1½ cups Rice (Preferably Sona Masuri or Basmati)
1 cup Fresh Coconut Pieces or ¾ packed cup grated Coconut
1-1½ cups Green Raw Mango Pieces (you can peel the skin if needed)
3-5 Green Chillies (Adjust acc to taste)
2 tsp Mustard Seeds, ground to Powder using coffee grinder or Pestle & Mortar
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 tsp Sugar (Optional but recommended)
¼ cup Roasted Peanuts or Cashews
1-2 tsp Fresh Lime/Lemon Juice (optional, use it if the mangoes are not sour enough)
Salt to taste

For Tadka/Tempering:
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tbsp Urad Dal
1 tbsp Channa Dal
2 Dry Red Chillies, halved
Few Curry Leaves
¼ tsp Hing/Asafoetida
1-2 tbsp Ghee or Oil

Coconut-Mango Pulihara

Method:

Cook rice using 1:2 ratios of rice and water. Once cooked, separate each grain with a help of fork and keep it aside to cool. The best rice is usually the leftovers from previous day’s dinner or lunch.
Take coconut pieces, mango pieces and green chillies in a food processor or mixer and pulse it to get roughly ground paste without adding any water. You should get bits and pieces of coconut, mangoes and chilli when you eat this rice. Keep this mixture aside.
Heat oil or ghee in a pan and add mustard seeds to it. When mustard starts to pop and splutter, add channa dal, urad dal, dry red chillies, curry leaves and hing. Sauté till dals turn golden brown.
Mix in ground coconut-mango-green chilli mixture, mustard powder, turmeric powder and sugar and give it a good toss for 2-3 mins and switch off the flame. Remember not to over cook this ground mixture as you want to retain the raw sour taste of mangoes. Add lime or lemon juice, if using, and salt to taste and mix well.
Mix in cooked rice and toasted peanuts or cashews and give it a good toss so that every grain of rice is coated well with ground mixture. Serve this delicious Coconut-Mango Pulihara/Chitranna hot as it is or with yogurt or any raita and pickle of your choice and enjoy.

Simplicity in Cooking: Raw Mango Kodhel

Mango Kodhel

Simplicity in cooking is something I am learning these days. It’s not necessary for you to add all the spices and more ingredients to cook delicious food. There were times when I couldn’t think of cooking without adding onions, tomatoes and garlic with minimum half a dozen of spices to jazz it up. With time I feel more confident in choosing just few spices that is right for the main vegetables. In other words I don’t panic and hop around when I have to use just few ingredients to cook something exceptionally delicious. These days I am seeing different me when it comes to cooking. I have stopped harassing the vegetables with extra handful of herbs and suffocating them with overdose of spices. I see dramatic change in my style of cooking. It’s like seeing mirror image of my mother who always cooks exceptionally great food with just few ingredients. Well, I may never be able to reach her standard of cooking but I am on my way of becoming at least one decent cook.

Such simplicity in cooking is very common when it comes to Udupi-Mangalorean cuisine. Everyday food is cooked with very few ingredients and lots of love and coconut. Coconut is the heart of this region’s cuisine and you will find most of the recipes using it in one form or other. Don’t be surprised to see people getting little carried away when it comes to Coconut be it coconut oil, gratings, desiccated coconut, coconut milk and even coconut water. Coconut not only dazzles any dish it touches but also gives it very distinct flavour by easily complimenting any vegetables, herbs and spices it is blended with.

One such recipe is Kodhel or Kodheal, a coconut based curry from Mangalore. Recipe is quite simple and straightforward, vegetables cooked with a ground paste of fresh coconut and few handfuls of spices. Sounds simple isn’t it? But the taste is unforgettable. Every time I make Kodhel it tastes different when used with different vegetables. From humble vegetables to royal fruits, the choice of main ingredient is many. This time I made summer special and my all time favourite Raw Mango Kodhel using Totapuri Mango which is a best choice for this recipe. Don’t fret if you don’t find Totapuri mangoes. Instead go for those mangoes which have mild sweet note with sourness. The rich and vibrant golden red colour of the gravy comes from special type of dry red chillies called Byadagi Menasu/Chilli which comes from Byadagi region in North Karnataka and is a must for Managlorean cuisine. This Raw Mango Kodhel where sweet and sour Totapuri mangoes are cooked in lightly spiced coconut gravy is delight to every foodie’s senses. And off this goes to Suganya who is guest hosting this month’s AFAM-Coconut. Oh yes, Coconut is really a fruit and like many of you I too learnt it recently.

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Raw Mango Kodhel (Raw Mangoes cooked in Mangalorean Coconut Gravy)
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cooking Time: 15-20 mins
Serves: 3-4

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Ingredients:
1 large Totapuri Mango, cut into 1 inch cubes (no need to peel its skin)
1-1½ inch cube of Jaggery
Salt to taste

For Ground Paste:
¾ cup grated Coconut, fresh/frozen
4-5 Dry Red Chillies (I used Byadagi, adjust acc to taste)
1 tbsp Coriander Seeds
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
½ tbsp Urad Dal
Big pinch of Methi/Fenugreek Seeds
1 small marble size Tamarind (adjust acc to taste, if mangoes are quite sour them omit it)

For Tempering:
1 tbsp Oil (preferably Coconut oil)
1 tsp Black Mustard Seeds
1 dry Red Chilli, halved
A big pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
Few Curry Leaves

Ingredients(clockwise): Raw Mango, Jaggery, Tamarind, Roasted Spices & Coconut

Method:

Cook cubed mango pieces in 3-3½ cups of water adding jaggery and salt to taste for between 7-10 mins on a medium flame. Make sure that the mangoes are just cooked and its peel change to dirty green colour.
Mean while, dry roast coriander seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chillies, urad dal and methi seeds for about 1 min in a medium flame till they turn light brown in colour and gives out nice aroma. Grind these roasted spices with coconut, tamarind pulp and just enough water to very smooth paste.
Add this ground paste to mango pieces and mix well. Add little water if needed to get required consitancy of base gravy. Cook this mixture for another 5-7 minutes and bring it to gentle boil.
Heat oil in a tadka pan and add mustard, dry red chillies, hing and curry leaves. Transfer this tempering to the curry when mustard starts to pop and splutter. Mix well and cover and keep it aside covered for about 10 mins for all the flavours to blend well. Serve this delicious Raw Mango Kodhel with Rosematta or Basmati Rice or with Dosa and Idli and enjoy.

Raw Mango Kodhel

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Notes:

While cooking mangoes make sure that you don’t over cook them as it is important for mangoes to retain their shape and not become mushy.
Don’t cook for too long once you add ground mixture of coconut.
This Kodhel tastes great the next day when all the flavours are blended well.

Other mango recipes blogged so far

• Spicy Mango Chutney/Pickle
• Raw mango Spinach Dal
• Aamras
• Mango-Coconut Chutney
• Uppu Mavina Kai Palya (Mangoes in brine stir fry)
• Uppu Mavina Kai Gojju
• Mango Rice

Thanks to dear Skribles of Food with a Pinch of Love (for Nice Matters & Good Chant Blog) and lovely Happy Cook of My Kitchen Treasures (for Arte y Pico) for passing me these awards. I am honored and feel cherished girls :)

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Reminder:

MBP-Street Food ends on 24th of June, 2008. Start patrolling the blogs and cook your favourite Street Food that your tummy begs and heart desires and spread link love.

Deadline: 24th June, 2008

Please go through the guidelines and include all the required information in your post and mail when sending me your entry. Don't forget to add Your Name, Your Blog Name, Name of the Dish you cooked, Perm Link of the entry, Perm Link of original recipe along with the gorgeous Photo of final dish.

Click Here or on the logo to find out more information on this event.

Mango Memories: Spicy Mango Chuteny/Pickle

Spicy Mango Chuteny/Instant Mango Pickle

Mangoes here, mangoes there, and mangoes every where!
There they are swinging along on a laden tree;
Here they are tightly packed in a wooden cartoon.
There they are neatly sliced and piled on a plate,
Here they are pickled and brined to perfection.
It’s a season of Mango Mania.

- By Yours Truly Sia Wordsworth ;)

It is and it will always be mangoes that rule my world and my childhood memories. Forget all exotic fruits- pineapple, peach, kiwi, plum, berries; nothing can ever come quite close to magnificent Mangifera Indica in flavour, taste or aroma. It’s a same story every year. Just one look at them and I start reminiscing about the Mango Season, the season of the king of fruits, back home in India.


Come summer and it meant only one thing for me and my sister, long vacation at Paternal Granny’s home. The memories of those sunny, glorious summer days of endless fun, pranks and digging our teeth into succulent mangoes warm my heart even today. Granny’s house was just like many other beautiful tiled-terraced houses (or more like mansion) in my native Mangalore. Surrounded by acres of greenery, the white house with red tiles stood tall and proud with wide porches running around the house. Polished to perfection red oxide floors would gleam with intricately carved round rosewood pillars supporting the roofs. The trees around the big house served as the compound walls and the beautiful water stream flowing right next to the house was its gate. Magnificent jackfruit, tamarind, coconut trees competed against each other for the title in the backyard.


Amidst them was this garden from heaven, Mango Orchard. No idea as since how long it’s been there. It was just like my great grand father knew that his numerous great grand children, like hungry flocks of birds, would come and attack the mangoes while they were still green, tender and sour. Just one look at those luscious gold and emerald coloured fruits hanging from green leafy trees was enough to get us all excited. Every summer it was the same story as if we were looking at the mangoes for the first time. There’s always something special about mangoes. It is like seeing the gold rush, precious to every kid and even grown up. Always trying to suppress the innate urge to monkey around but failing miserably, all we kids were seen hanging from the mango trees while the grownups snored through the hot summer afternoons. While older kids, especially the boys, climbed the higher branches we smaller kids would be seen hanging from the lower branches of the trees. And the ones who were scared of height were seen standing on the ground holding a big bath towel spread wide to collect the mangoes picked and thrown by the ones on the trees. Biting deep into raw sour mangoes and dipping those pieces into the spiced ground mixture of salt, pepper and red chillies wrapped in an old newspaper sheet was pure heaven. If that was not enough, each and every meal served during mango season had one or more mango dish to tingle our taste buds. Tender Mangoes ground with Sweet Coconut Chutney, Tender Mango Pickle, Mango Dal, Mango Burfee, Mango Palya, Mango Mosaru Gojju, Mango Rasayana, Mango Rice, Mango Lassi are few of them which were served with dollop of love everyday. While listening to stories of Devas (God) and Asuras (Demons) from Ajji, the intoxicating perfumes of the mango flowers wafting from backyard would sooth our senses and lulled us into deep sleep. Blissful childhood days and glorious mangoes!!!


This year during our short trip to India we did manage to gulp down few mangoes and recreate our childhood memories with little nephew and niece and half a dozen other kids from neighbourhood. And if you are wondering did I really climb the mango tree with them, then I am not going to disappoint you guys. Yes, I did climb the mango tree with my sister and brother just two days before my sister got married and managed to get scolding from our neighbour who happened to be the owner of that gorgeous mango tree. Well, something just can’t be changed! With all these I did manage to eat all delicious food cooked by my MIL (can’t believe I am one of those lucky people who have this generous, sweet soul as MIL). Out of few recipes I managed to learn from her during busy schedule was this delicious Spicy Mango Chutney or Instant Mango Pickle. Slightly sweet and sour Tothapuri Mango is grated and mixed with salt to remove excess juice and then ground with few spices to make this very fresh, aromatic and spicy pickle/chutney. If you don’t get Tothapuri Mangoes then you can easily substitute it with any other sour raw mango of your choice. I am dedicating this mango post to my gorgeous sister who was not only my trusted companion in stealing mangoes from our neighbours but also is celebrating her birthday today. S, this is for you my dearest. And straight away it goes to dear Arundathi who is guest hosting this month’s WBB-Mango Madness started by Nandita. While we are still talking of Mango Mania, don't forget to share your Mango memories with us.

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Spicy Mango Chuteny/Instant Mango Pickle (Sour Mango ground with selected aromatic Spices)

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 3-5 mins
Makes: 1-1½ Cup
Recipe Source: My MIL

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Ingredients:

1 medium Raw Mango, peeled and grated (Approx. 1 packed cup)
5-8 Dry Red Chilli, broken (I used Byadagi, adjust acc to taste)
½ tsp Methi/Fenugreek Seeds
1-1½ tbsp Black Mustard Seeds
1-1½ tbsp Sea Salt
¼ tsp Hing/Asafoetida

Ingredients for Spicy Mango Chuteny/Instant Mango Pickle

Method:

Mix sea salt with grated mangoes and keep it aside covered for about ½ and hour to hour time. The juice from mango will be released.
Squeeze the juice from grated mango and reserve it for later. Keep aside squeezed mango gratings.
Dry roast dry red chillies, fenugreek seeds, mustard seeds and hing in a pan on medium to low flame for about 2-3 minutes till fenugreek seeds turns light brown in colour and you get nice roasted aroma from spices.
Cool the spices and grind them coarsely with grated mango. Add reserved squeezed mango juice as and when required. This Pickle/Chutney should be quite thick in consistency and make sure that you don’t grind them to smooth paste.
Store them in a sterilised jar in refrigerator. It can be used up to a month’s time. Serve them with Dosa, Idli, toast or Curd Rice and enjoy.

Spicy Mango Chuteny/Instant Mango Pickle

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Notes:

You can also add 1 tsp roasted Cumin Seeds/Jeera for little different flavour.
Make sure that you don’t grind it to smooth paste. It should be ground coarsely so that you can enjoy small chunks of spices and mango.
Tothapuri mangoes work best for this recipe. But if you don’t get them at your place then you can easily substitute it with any other sour, raw mango of your choice.

Akki Shavige with Rasayana & Menthe Chutney

Akki Shavige with Rasayana & Menthe Chutney

She was sleeping soundly, smiling in her sleep while she dreamt of chasing colourful butterflies in garden. When the persistent sun shone brightly on her face, little girl with pigtails sighed and snuggled back under the covers, blissfully embracing slumber. The mild caress of heavenly aroma coming from kitchen nudged her gently to open her heavy eyelids. Dragging her feet on cool marble floor with her favourite doll tucked under one arm and blinking her eyes to the golden glow of sunshine streaming from high ventilator and windows, she blissfully inhaled the wonderful aroma of ground coffee beans and spices. The sight of her mother with long hair tied in a loose knot adorned with pearls of water, standing in kitchen stirred the feeling of love and happiness. She ran and hugged her mother inhaling the heady perfume of her herbal soap and shampoo. Mother gently lifted her daughter planting kisses on her daughter’s blushed chubby cheeks and placed her away from heat, close to window where she could see the world waking up to the glorious sunshine. As her mother churned delicious food in lightening speed, little girl watched her dad entering the kitchen with special device to make one of her favourite food. As her dad and mom smiled at each other knowingly, little girl sat on the floor cross legged with a twinkle in her eyes as she watched her dad rotate the noodles presser which turned the steaming rice dough into thin, stringy white noodles. She smiled brightly at her parents looking over the food, simple home food, food that made her happy and content.

Yes, I am talking about my favourite breakfast item, Rice Semige/Shavige. Also known as Sevai or Santhakai in Tamil and Idiappam or Noolappam in Malayalam, Shavige is made from rice and coconut in my native Mangalore and it is usually served with sweetened coconut milk and spicy chutney or sambar. This was the only time when my mother would allow my dad to help her in kitchen as it required an extra pair of helping hand to make these stringy rice noodles. While my mom inserted the steaming balls of rice dough in the Sevai container and rotated the plate kept under the container collecting Shavige, dad would quickly rotate the sturdy handle in clock-wise direction. This Shavige Presser although might look like something out of medieval torture device to some people is a must device in every house-hold in Mangalore. Back in my Ajji’s house she had wooden Shavige Presser which looks quite different to what we have now. Instead of rotating the handle, the wooden one would press down the dough like hand water pumps in rural India. Unlike my Ajji and Amma, I use simple Chakkli Presser to make Shavige. Chakkli presser works fine for two growling tummies and moreover it’s quite easy to clean. But I must add that rotating Shavige Presser is equlivalent to working out those muscles in gym, so will not get enough of arm exercise when using Chakkli press ;)

Akki Shavige with Menthe/Methi Chutney and Baale Hannu Rasayana is my contribution to this month’s RCI-Karnataka hosted by our blog queen Asha of Foodie’s Hope and also to this month’s JFI-Banana hosted by lovely Mandira of Ahaar.

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Akki Shavige (Rice Noodles)
Prep Time: 30 mins (excluding soaking time)
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
1 cup Rice
1 cup Fresh/Frozen Coconut
2 tbsp Oil, preferably Coconut Oil
Salt to taste

Akki Shavige

Method:
Wash and soak rice in 2 cups of water for 4-5 hours or overnight.
Drain and grind this rice with grated coconut and salt to taste adding little water at a time to very smooth paste. Note that there shouldn’t be any lumps and the paste should be silky smooth. Usually my Ajji and Amma make very thin batter of buttermilk consistency but I grind it to Dosa batter consistency which works fine for me.
Apply coconut oil to heavy bottomed kadai/wok covering it well. Pour the batter in this wok and keep mixing this batter in medium flame till all the water evaporates and it turns to a thick lump of dough.
Switch off the gas and start making big lemon sized balls by applying little cold water to stop it from sticking to your hand.
Steam cook these rice balls in a steamer or pressure cooker without putting its weight for about 10 minutes.
Place two steaming rice balls in Shavige presser or Chakkli maker and press the noodles. Place these noodles in a banana leaf or wet cloth and let it cool. This noodle needs to be cooled down to hold their shape. Serve these noodles with Chutney, sweetened Coconut Milk or Sambar. You can also make Tamarind or Lemon Rice Noodles with the leftovers.

Check Shilpa or Aayi's Recipes and Manjula of Dalitoy's recipes for Shavige where they use Shavige Press here and here. And also check here for Viji of Vcuisine's recipe for Vella, Lemon and Ulundhu Sevai using Chakkli Press.

My Ajji and Amma usually served Akki Shavige with Sweetened Coconut Milk or Rasayana and Menthe Chutney. Rasayana (Rasa means Juice/essence/flavour/taste in Sanskrit) is basically a sweetened coconut milk mixed with chopped Bananas or Mangoes depending on seasonal availability of fruits. Freshly extracted Coconut milk is flavoured with Jaggery and pinch of Cardamom and made wholesome by adding chopped bananas or mangoes.

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Rasayana (Banana in Sweetened Coconut Milk)
Prep Time: 20-25 mins
Cooking Time: -
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
1 cup Bananas, quartered and sliced
1½ cup freshly extracted Coconut Milk (big no-no to Canned Coconut milk)
1-2 tbsp grated Jaggery, adjust according to taste
2 Green Cardamoms, skins removed and seeds crushed
1 tsp roasted Sesame Seeds (Optional)
Small pinch of Salt

Rasayana

Method:
Dissolve grated Jaggery in coconut milk and mix all the ingredients.
Serve cold with Akki Shavige or drink as it is.

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Variation:
You can use ripe sweet mango in place of bananas.
Replace coconut milk with milk and add 2-3 tbsp of banana or mango puree to give it thick base.

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Akki Shavige with Rasayana & Menthe Chutney

Methi/Fenugreek seeds are one of the most importance spices in Mangalorean cuisine. My Ajji would soak few methi seeds in buttermilk and make us drink after heavy meals as methi is good for digestion. Read more about benefits of Methi here and here. Menthe Chutney is one dish which is full of different flavours. Bitter methi is ground with creamy coconut and spicy chilli and then cooked with dash of jaggery to give it little sweet flavour.

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Menthe Chuteny (Methi Seeds Chuteny)
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 10-15 mins
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:

1 tsp Methi/Fenugreek Seeds
1 cup grated Fresh/Frozen Coconut
3-4 Dry Red Chillies
1-2 tbsp Jaggery, adjust acc to taste
1 tsp Oil
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
Few Curry Leaves
Pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
Salt to taste

Menthe Chutney

Method:
Dry roast methi and broken red chillies in a pan for around 1 minute till you get nice aroma of roasted methi.
Grind sautéed spices with coconut adding little water at a time to smooth paste.
Heat oil in a pan and add mustard, hing and curry leaves.
Once mustard starts to pop and sputter, add ground paste, jaggery, salt to taste and ½ cup of water.
Cook it on a low flame for 10-15 minutes stirring in between. Serve hot with steamed rice or akki shavige.

Raw Mango & Spinach Dal

Luscious, succulent mango fruit!
How do we guard you from the brute?
King of fruits, without dispute
To you we all humbly salute!

Ripe, and unripe in forms many,
Enjoyed universally by all and any!
Ah., delicious and sweet as sugar cane,
Protecting you can be wildly insane!

Your name derives from the word "mAngaai"
You are linked to the legend of Surya Bai!
Food of the gods! How you enchant!
O’ tangy Drupe! Wishes you grant!

Akin to Maya - you are the fruit of gold,
That sages in Arunachala have extolled;
Witness to battle and thunder storm
You let Soorapadman take your form!

O’ earthy, ripe "Sappattai" delight,
Envy of the "Alphonso" this starry night!
Gazing at onlookers from the compound wall,
How gracefully you sway amidst trees tall!

Then, in the quiet afternoon Chennai sun,
When the siesta of ladies has just begun,
Fearless street urchin and vagabond alike
Gear up towards you to aim and strike.

Alas! Shouting to protect is of no avail,
For the wily ones on the prowl prevail;
As adroitly they grab and you will snatch Pray,
can any match a more princely catch?

A well directed stone at you they throw
Following victory cries of "kokku"* ru kO!
Ah.. heavenly "kokku" sweet as cane,
Yes, protecting you is indeed in vain!

-By Rajeshwari Iyer

Mango mania… I just need to take a quick peek at food blogs and my heart goes mmmm….Mango. This is the magic of the “food of the Gods”. Ask any Indian child to share his/her childhood memories and mangoes will be golden part of his/her childhood. I remember the mango orchard in my grandma’s home, where hundreds of mango trees laden with beautiful shades of green and gold would lure me and turn me into mischievous brat. My mango memories match the vibrant golden colour of mangoes. We cousins a bunch of monkeys, loved eating mangoes the way monkeys eat them:) Raw or ripe, just bite and suck the whole mango and enjoy that sweet, sticky juice squirting all over our chin, arms and cloths. Pure bliss… Although eating mangoes from our orchard was fun, aiming a slingshot at our neighbour’s tree felt more appropriate ;) When confronted by our elders, we would innocently deny the fact that we stole mangoes from our neighbour’s tree. Staying in Pardes I can imagine the fruit markets in India with the bewildering array of mangoes, heaped lustily on straw baskets or placed in hay to ripen evenly from cool green to hot yellow. Most of my childhood memory strings are attached to the king of fruits and hence there is no question of I am getting tired of mangoes, be it rambling or eating. We Indians have been talking excitedly about the fruit for 3000, yes 3000 years, where as the western world has savoured it for only 300 years!!! More reasons to celebrate the mango season.

One particular dish I always liked was Amma’s Raw Mango and Spinach Dal. Everyday boring dal would dazzle with the addition of sour and tangy mangoes. The combination of mixed dals with power packed spinach and mango is a marriage made in heaven. Just few pieces of mangoes not only enhances the flavour but gives the much needed anti-oxidant supply to the body. Sweet, spicy and tangy dal will be ready to serve in no time.

Raw Mango & Spinach Dal

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Raw Mango & Spinach Dal
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 25-30 mins
Serves: 4-5

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Ingredients:
1 cup Raw Mango, diced into 1 cm cubes
2 cups Spinach, finely chopped
1 large Tomato, finely chopped
1 small Onion, finely chopped
½ cup Masoor Dal/Red Lentils
½ cup Split Moong Dal
½ cup Split Channa Dal
½ tsp Turmeric Powder
½ inch Ginger, crushed
½ tbsp Jaggary
3-4 Green Chillies, slit
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
½ tsp Coriander Powder
2-3 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
1-2 tbsp Fresh Lime/Lemon Juice (optional, use them if the mangoes are not sour)
1 tbsp Oil/Ghee
Salt to taste

For Tempering:
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1-2 Dry Red Chilli
Few Curry Leaves
¼ tsp Hing/Asafoetida
½ tbsp Ghee/Oil

Raw Mango & Spinach Dal

Method:
Wash all three dals in water and add about 2½ cups of water.
Cook these dals in a pressure cooker with turmeric powder and few drop of oil for about 10 minutes or one whistle.
Cool the cooker before opening the lid.
Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan and add chopped onion.
Sauté the onion till it turns transparent for about 2 minutes and add slit chilli, crushed ginger, cumin and coriander powder.
Sauté it in a medium flame for a minute till nice aroma comes and then add finely chopped tomatoes, cooked dal, spinach and about 2 cups of water. Adjust the amount of water based on the consistency of dal.
Cook this on a medium flame for 5 minutes until the spinach leaves are half cooked.
Now add diced mangoes, jaggary and salt to taste and cover and cook for another 5-10 minutes till the mangoes become tender and all flavours blend well.
Just before switching off the gas, add chopped coriander leaves and lime/lemon juice. Omit lime/lemon juice if the mangoes are sour.
In a tadka pan, heat oil and add jeera, mustard, red chilli, hing and curry leaves.
When mustard starts to pop and splutter transfer this to dal and mix well.
Serve this hot and delicious mango-spinach dal with Chapatti or with Jeera Rice or with plain rice and papad.

Raw Mango & Spinach Dal

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Did You Know?
The name mango comes from Tamil. From man-kay or man-gay, it changed to manga.
The people who gave it the name manga or mango were the Portuguese. They first came to India, across the oceans, about 500 years ago. As they settled down in parts of India, they discovered the mango.
It was Portuguese who started experimenting with new varieties of mango -- the famous Alphonso or Mulgoa that we cherish today, is the result of their hard work.
Down the ages, several qualities have got attached to the mango. It is seen as a symbol of good luck and in many parts of west and south India, mango leaves are put up at the front door.
It is a belief that the mango tree has the power to make wishes come true.
The mango tree is also associated with the god of love "Manmatha'; its blossoms are considered to be the god's arrows.
It is said that the Buddha created a white mango tree which was later worshipped by his followers.
(Source:www.pitara.com)

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Raw Mango & Spinach Dal

PS: This is one funny Indian rap I recieved as forward. Click on the play button, play the song and enjoy!!! And no, I am not the composer!!! ;) Have a gr8 weekend:)

Thalipeeth with Okra Raita and Aamras

Purani jeans aur guitar
Mohalle ki vo chhat
Aur mere yaar
Vo raaton ko jaagna
Subah ghar jaan
Kood ke deewar
Vo cigaretee peena
Gali mein jaake
Wo karna daanton ko
Ghadi ghadi saaf

Pahunchna college hamesha late
Vo kehna sir ka
"Get out from the class!"
Vo bahar jaake hamsha kehna
Yahan ka system
Hi hai kharaab
Vo jaake canteen mein
Table bajaake
Vo gaane gaana
Yaaron ke saath

Bas yaadein yaadein
Yaadein reh jaati hain
Kuchh chhoti chhoti
Baatein reh jaati hain
Bas yaadein…

Remember this song of Ali Haider? This song has been our college anthem;) and it always takes me down the memory lane. College canteen, mimicking our lecturers, bunking the classes, late night parties, birthday bums, ragging, internals, last minute study, lab sessions, hostel warden, hostel food, Sunday telephone calls from home, long Q in STD booths (when mobile phones were very rare and looked like TV remotes;), another long Q for Sunday special breakfasts, new year parties, tapri/dhaba food… Oh yes… How I miss my college and hostel days! Hostels, my home away from home where I made very good friends, and the memories of ragging my juniors, fighting with warden, jumping from compound walls after curfew hours, chewing bullet proof chapaties, drinking watery coffee, Friday night’s beauty session with all colored face packs, Saturday night’s eating out at Kamat’s or Sagar’s, visits to Café Coffee Day, counting the days to go home(for me from the day I returned from home;), stuffing last inch of our bags from Maggi noodles to hair pin, attacking the supply of home food from friend’s bag, reading M&B in zero watt bulb, bunking first session of the day coz of late night reading, listening to music till wee hours of morning, heating water with candle light to make Maggi noodles, birthday parties, pajama parties, Sunday laundry sessions… Yes… I can go on and on with my memories of hostel days.
When it comes to hostel days, hostel food is integral part of every hostilities memory. It is not a joke to cook and feed hundreds of hungry tummies every day; morning, noon and night. With usual bullet proof chapaties, sticky dal, watery milk, hot as hell subjis, oily curries, it was like breath of fresh air when we get invitation for home cooked meals from our localite friends. No wonder I used to feel home cooked meals are like oasis in hot desert ;) One of my friend’s mother was an excellent cook and her specialty was Marathi Cuisine. I still remember all delicious chat-pata chats, spicy Kaap (Pakoda), aromatic Bhaaji’s (Vegetable dish) with simple Koshimbir (Salads) and Poli’s she used to churn in her small kitchen and serve. There were the days when aunt would send us big stack of delicious Bhakries which we homesick souls would dip in sweet and creamy Shreekhand or Spicy Thalipeeth with Yogurt and Spicy Pickles. And how can I forget all those Puran Poli, Basundi, Gul Polies which we would gulp during Ganesha Chaturthi.
When lovely Nupur of One Hot Stove announced RCI-Maharastrian Cuisine for this month’s of RCI which is the brainchild of Lakshmi of Veggie Cuisine, I knew what I wanted to contribute. It’s been ages since I had Thalipeeth and decided to serve it with Okra Raita and Aamras.
Thalipeeth is a multi-grain mildly spiced pancake which is not only tasty but also healthy and nutritious. I remember aunty using Bhajani, flour mixture of different grains which are slightly roasted and ground. After unsuccessful hunt for bhajani, I made thalipeeth using the flours in my pantry. Adjust all the ingredients according to your taste and preference. The recipe below makes 6 thalipeeth.
If you are a lover of Maharashtrian Cuisine like me and want to try some of the best Marathi food then look no further. Our this month's hostess for RCI, Nupur of One Hot Stove has her blog dedicated to authentic A-Z Maharashtrian Cuisine and here for Nupur's recipe for Thalipeeth. Her Bombay Pav Bhaji is something which I love the most.

Thalipeeth with Okra Raita and Aamras

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Thalipeeth
Prep Time: 15-20 mins
Cooking Time: 10-15 mins
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
1½ cups Jowar Flour
½ cup Wheat Flour
2 tbsp Rice Flour
2 tbsp Gram Flour
1 tbsp Semolina
1 medium Onion, chopped very finely
1-2 Green Chillies, chopped finely
3-4 tbsp Coriander Leaves, finely chopped
½ tsp Jeera/Cumin Powder
½ tsp Coriander Powder
½ tsp Red Chilli Powder
¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
Salt to taste
Oil/Ghee for frying

Thalipeeth

Method:
Mix all the ingredients except oil/ghee and knead it into stiff dough using water. The dough should be of chapatti consistency. While kneading the dough, rub some oil or ghee to your palms to keep from sticking.
Keep this dough aside for 10-15 minutes covered with wet kitchen towel.
Again knead the dough and make golf ball sized balls.
Take a clean plastic sheet or banana leaf and grease its one side with some oil or ghee.
Flatten one ball in the palm of your hand and place it in the center of the sheet. Pat the ball with palm and the fingers. If the dough is too sticky, dip fingers in water to make the patting easier. Keep flattening in circular motion to make a round flat disc but make it sure that the thalipeeth has even thickness.
make one small hole in the center with finger which will help to cook the thalipeeth evenly.
Heat the griddle or non-stick tava and gently remove thalipeeth from plastic sheet and place it on tava.
Apply little oil or ghee at the edges, in the center hole and on top of the thalipeeth and cook on both the sides until it turns crisp and light brown in colour.
Serve hot thalipeeth with yogurt or raita with pickle and sweet Aamras.

Thalipeeth with Okra Raita

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Bhindi/Okra Raita
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 5-10 mins
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
6-7 Okra/Bhindi, cut into thin slices
1 small Red Onion
2 cups Yogurt
½ tsp Green Chilli, finely chopped
A Pinch of Jeera/Cumin Powder
1 tsp Oil
Salt to Taste

Method:
Heat oil in a pan and add finely chopped onion. Sauté it till they turn translucent.
Now add okra and green chilli and sauté it in high flame till it becomes crisp and brown.
Beat the yogurt and mix sauted okra and onion and cumin powder and salt to taste and mix well.
Chill the raita for at least half an hour before serving.
If desired you can add little bit of chat masala. But I like the sweet taste of fried Okra with tanginess of yogurt.

Thalipeeth with Okra Raita

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Aamras
Prep Time: 5-10 mins
Cooking Time: -
Serves: 2-3

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Ingredients:
3 Ripe Mangoes(I used Alphanso)
1 tbsp Sugar(acc to taste)
1 cup chilled Milk
A pinch of Cardamom Powder
Ice Cubes

Method:
Peel the mangoes and take out the pulp. Discard the skin and seeds.
Blend this pulp with milk, sugar and ice cubes.
Add cardamom powder and chill it before serving and enjoy.

Thalipeeth with Aamras

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Did You Know?
The saying 'Anna he poornabrahma' aptly summarises what Maharashtrians feel about the food they cook. They consider 'anna', or food, equal to 'Brahma', or the creator of the universe. Food is God, to be worshipped. Little wonder that Maharashtrian cuisine not only fills the stomach, but also fills the soul - with content!
The cuisine of Maharashtra has its own distinctive flavors and tastes. It can be divided into two major sections–the coastal and the interior.
A major portion of Maharashtra, which lies on the coast of the Arabian Sea, is loosely called the Konkan and boasts of its own Konkani cuisine, which is a homogeneous combination of Malvani, Gaud Saraswat Brahmin, and Goan cuisines. Besides the coastal cuisine, the interior of Maharashtra—the Vidarbha area, has its own distinctive cuisine known as the Varadi cuisine.
The people are known for the aesthetic presentation of food, which adds extra allure to the feasts. For instance, in formal meals, it is a practice to sing sacred verses to dedicate the meal to God. The guests sit on floor rugs or red wooden seats and eat from silver or metal thalis and bowls placed on a raised 'chowrang', or a short decorative table. Rangolis or auspicious patterns of coloured powder are drawn around the thali or the chowrang. To avoid mixing flavours, each guest is given a bowl of saffron scented water to dip the fingers in before starting on the next course. There is a specific order of serving of savouries and sweets, curries and rice or rotis, and a person who does not know this is not considered to be well trained in the art of hospitality. Agarbattis spread fragrance everywhere and the host believes the satisfaction of his guests to be his true joy.
(Source: wiki and www.maharashtraweb.com)

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Thalipeeth with Okra Raita and Aamras