Sago snack (Sabudana Khichadi)

Level of difficulty: Medium

Prep time: Couple of hours

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves 4.

Many have asked me to post a Maharashtrian recipe so here's one! 






 

 

 Ingredients

 

Sago (Sabudana) - 1 full cup 

Roasted and ground peanuts - 1/2 cup

Boiled and diced potato - 1 medium
Cumin seeds (Jeera) - 1/2 tbsp.

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Green chillies - 2 Salt to taste
Coriander for garnishing

Sugar - 1 tsp (optional)

Oil - 4 tbsp.

Ghee - 1 tsp. Water
 

Note: You can adjust the spiciness by increasing/decreasing the amount of diced green chillies.  Some prefer to cook the sago in only ghee (not oil), but being health-conscious, I primarily use oil and add a touch of ghee at the end - totally upto you! Also, the more oil/ghee you use, the tastier it is ;)
 

Procedure
1. Soak the sago in water for 3-4 hours. Make sure that all the sago is just submerged under water.

 

 

2. Place a non-stick frying pan on medium heat and add the oil. Add the diced chillies, chopped curry leaves, and cumin seeds. After a few seconds, add the diced potatoes and the ground peanuts.

 3. After a few minutes, add the sago to the pan.  If the sago feels a bit hard, that is ok - as it cooks over heat, it will start to get translucent.  I have also heard that at this point, if you are conscious of the amount of oil in this recipe, you can put it in the microwave for a few minutes.

4.  Cook covered on low heat - the steam should cook the sago through.  You can add the ghee to the pan now and sprinkle the chopped coriander, sugar (optional) and salt to taste. Once cooked, some people like the mixture to be left as-is in the pan so the sago that is touching the pan forms a crisp crust!

 

 

 5. This is a fairly easy recipe to make but it depends on the quality of sago that you use. Through trial and error, you will eventually get an idea of how much water and oil to use in this recipe to ensure that the sago does not end up lumpy/sticky - enjoy!

Crispy leftover rice pancakes

Level of difficulty: Super Easy

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Serves 4.

Ever wonder what to do with leftover rice? Then this recipe is for you! A slight twist on a traditional south-Indian snack (Akki Rotti), this recipe is super easy to make! It is equally loved by kids and adults.






 Ingredients

Leftover cooked rice - 2 full cups
Plain rice flour - 2 full cups
Finely grated coconut/dessicated coconut - 3 tbsp.
Roasted sesame seeds - 2 tbsp.
Ground green chillies - 1 tsp.
Salt to taste
Sheet of baking paper
Oil
Water

Note: You can also add grated carrot or finely chopped onions or cumin seeds (jeera) to this recipe. You can also adjust the spiciness by increasing/decreasing the amount of ground green chillies.

Procedure

1. Mix all the ingredients together in one mixing bowl other than the oil. 

2. Mix into dough using plain water. It should be a dough slightly more solid than a pizza base. Best to use hands! If the dough is too sticky you can add more rice flour, if it is too hard to roll out, add more water. Divide into tennis size balls.

3.  Take one ball and flatten it on the palm of your hand. Use a bit of oil if it gets too sticky.

4.  Take a piece of baking paper and lay flat on counter.  Add a bit of oil/oil spray an place the flattened ball on top. Start to roll it out using the palm of your hand till you get a flat pancake (less thick will be more crunchy). Otherwise, you can always use another piece of baking paper on top and roll it out using a rolling pin.  Apply some oil to the top.

 5.  Flip on to a flat pan/griddle/tava on medium heat and take the baking paper (which was on the bottom) off. Now let one side cook and as it starts to crisp, flip it and cook the other side. If it breaks do not worry - since it is rice flour, it is very easy to join broken pieces using your fingers (just be careful not to burn yourself in this process)!  And that is it! Serve hot with ketchup, pickle, chutney etc.

 

Ambode - Chana dal/Bengal gram vadas/fritters

Level of difficulty: Moderate
Prep time: 5hrs Cooking time: 30mins
Serves: 4 people (1 potato/person - 'rule of thumb')


This is a yummy snack that is relatively easy to make - a sure hit at most parties!








Ingredients (will make about 20 vadas/fritters)

Chana Dal/Bengal gram (1 cup)
Onion finely chopped - 1/2
Green chillies - a few as per howspicy you want the vadas to be
Methi/Fenugreek leaves or Fresh coriander/cilantro - handful
Curry leaves - 4-5
Grated coconut - 1 tablespoon (dessicated will do)
Oil to fry
Salt to taste

Note: To reduce/increase the SPICINESS, decrease/increase the amount of green chilli

Procedure

1. Soak the dal in water for 4-5 hours.

Soaked dal

2. Chop the chillies, curry leaves, and coriander. If you are using frozen Fenugreek (Methi) leaves (available at most Indian stores or in vegetable markets), microwave it first and bring it to room temperature.

Chillies, curry leaves and coriander/cilantro

3. Drain the water from soaked dal, and put 3/4 of total quantity into a blender/food processor. Grind it with as minimal water as you can.  If you find that you do have to add water, then you can thicken the mixture afterwards by adding some rice flour.  The ground mixture should not be an absolute smooth paste, but should be a bit rough.  Add the remaining unground dal to the mixture, along with the chopped greens, chopped onions and coconut. Once this mixture is ready, you should fry it soon or they will not be crisp.

Final mixture should look like this

4. Place oil in frying vessel to heat (not way hot).  Take about a tablespoon of mixture into your palm, and using your other hand, shape them into oval balls. Make them kind of flattish...

Shaping vadas

5. Drop them in oil and fry until golden brown on both sides. Keep the flame on medium heat so they crisp really well. Turn over and fry till both sides are crispy.

Fry in oil on medium heat

6. Drain excess oil on paper towels and serve hot!

Ready to eat!