Versatile Tomato Thokku (a tangy, mildly spicy tomato preserve)

I'm leaving for Mumbai tomorrow, for over a week. While emptying my fridge, staring at me was a bag full of beautiful organic tomatoes that my aunt had carried all the way from Madanpalli. Certainly didn't want them to rot away and they were too precious to be  given away.

My options: puree the tomatoes and freeze or make some kind of a preserve that can be refrigerated. The second option definitely seemed so much more appealing. Here's what I did:

Cut up all the tomatoes into quarters and pureed them. Didn't bother to sieve as I prefer a chunky thokku to a pasty one. Then in my chopper, whizzed a couple of large pods of garlic, some birds eye chillies and a piece of ginger. set this aside. About 5 tbsp of this ginger - garlic - green chilli mixture. You can use as much as you wish to, depending on how hot you want the thokku to be.

Other ingredients used:

- 2 tbsp rasam powder - i used this because it is much more flavourful compared to plain red chilli powder.
- 4 tbsp rock salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp amchoor / dry mango powder
- 1 tbsp fenugreek / methi seeds

1 cup oil
1 tbsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp jeera
1/4 tsp hing

a few sprigs of curry leaves.


you can also add 2 tbsp of 'menthyada hittu'if you have it handy. It lends some flavour, some paste like body, bringing the thokku together. Totally optional, though.
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First heated the oil and allowed the mustard to splutter. Added jeera, hing, curry leaves and the Ginger-garlic-chilli mixture and allowed it to become slightly cooked.

Then, the puree, and all the powder masalas, salt and sugar. Mix well and allow it to simmer away (without lid) for at least 45 minutes.

The thokku will turn a reddish brown and will separate itself from the oil. At this stage, take it off the flame, and allow it to cool completely before transferring to a glass, air-tight jar.

When refrigerated, this should stay for a few months, if it's not polished off by then, that is!

Once I tasted it, I realised that that it is such a versatile thokku -
> can be used as an instant mix for tomato rice / bhath /
> as a base for tomato rasam - just add dal and water and boil /
> can be added to subzis for a kick of flavour
> can be added to poha, with onions to make tomato-kanda poha
> can be added along with other veggies while making upma / khara bhath

I love it with plain, hot, steamed rice. Yummm.

Do try it out

Mint tomato & Flaxseed chutney

One more to my list of coconut free chutneys.

2 tbsp dry roasted chana dal
1 handful mint leaves - roasted
3 small tomatoes - roughly cut
1 onion roughly cut and slightly sautéed
1 small sized ball of tamarind / 1 tsp tamarind paste
1/2 tsp sugar / jaggery
1 tbsp dry roasted flaxseeds
Salt to taste

Ghee, hing, mustard and curry leaves for tempering.

Put all the ingredients in a mixie and buzz it till It becomes a smooth paste.  Transfer into a bowl and add the tempering.
Can be had with dosas, idlis, chapati, and as a bread spread. Ek teer, kaee nishaan ;) One chutney, many uses!

Note : In my house most chutneys are made in batches and excess put in the fridge immediately.  They stay for up to a week. I dont add the tempering to the batch that goes into the fridge as I like the mustard seeds to be fresh and crunchy.

Gulpaote (gul- pao-tay)

This has been a favourite ever since I can remember eating sweets. And I like the one my grandmother makes.. none of the other versions even come close.  So this time, when she visited us, I got her to teach me how to make it. And its so simple. Took less than 20 minutes in all!

You need

1 measure fine sooji
1 measure dessicated fresh coconut
3/4 to 1 measure powdered jaggery (depending on how sweet you like it)
A little milk (to moisten sooji)
Ghee 1 cup

Heat ghee in a non stick pan. Add rooji and roast till it turns golden brown. Take it off the flame and det aside to cool.

Then heat jaggery ober a low flame, stirring constantly. Once it turns into a syrup, check for any impurities and strain if necessary.  While still on the flame, add the dessicated coconut to thw jaggwry syrup and allow it to cook in the syrup for a few minutes. 

In the meanwhile, thw sooji should have cooled down.  Add about 2 tbsp of milk (at room temperature) to the sooji and mix well. Allow it to rest for a max. Of 5 minutes.  By this time the coconut and jaggery mixture should have turned a beautiful golden brown and wonderfully fragrant. Add the moistend sooji to it and keep stirring to avoid any lumps.

Let it sit on a low flame, remembering to stir all the while, till the sooji soaks up all the jaggery and coconut syrup. Once done, it will start leaving the sides of the pan.  Take it off the heat, top it with a generous amount of ghee, mix well and let ut cool.

You can then made small laddoos or scoop it into a bowl and enjoy it.

Note:
1. I prefer using a deep nonstick kadhai as it tends to get messy.
2. You may add dry fruits and cardamom if you like it. I like the plain version the best.

If you tried it...tell me how it turned out!

Simple Potato Subzi

This is the simplest of it's kind and probably one of the quickest too. It takes about 20 mins in all (including preparation time). This is one of the favourites at home and I can eat this subzi every day!

Ingredients (for 4 people)
- 6 large potatoes, cut into small, thin squares (so that it gets cooked quickly). Unpeeled potatoes taste better.
- a pinch of turmeric
- Mustard seeds and Jeera
- Red Chilli Powder
- Chat Masala
- Salt to taste
- Oil for cooking.

Heat oil in a pan and put mustard seeds. Once it stops spluttering, add the jeera and turmeric. After a few seconds, add the chopped potatoes into the pan and stir once. Cover with a lid and leave for 5 minutes. Once the potatoes are slightly soft, add salt and red chilli powder and stir well. Allow it to cook for another 5 minutes. Once they are completely cooked, Sprinkle (generously) chat masala, mix well and switch off the stove. You may add chopped coriancer and curry leaves if you like. Serve hot with Chapatis / Phulkas.

If it's quite oily, you can even mix it with rice to make a quick fix Potato rice. :)

Sabudana Khichadi

Sabudana = Sago (Eng) = sabakki / seeme akki (Kan)

The Sabudana Khichadi is a typical Maharashtrian dish prepared either for breakfast or evening snacks. Considering that my family has a very strong Maharashtrian influence anf also that I've lived in Mumbai for most of my life, i've been feasting on this ever since I remember. It takes some planning and preparation but otherwise, it's a simple and easy to make breakfast.

Ingredients

• 2 cups of Sabudana - soaked overnight / for 12 hours (would serve 3 people)
• 1 cup diced potatoes (you can leave the skin on but make sure that the potatoes have been washed very well before cutting)
• 3-4 green chillies - finely chopped
• 2 tbsb roasted and coarsely ground peanuts (roast and grind with the skin)For the seasoning - Curry leaves (whole or chopped), Jeera / cumin seeds, Finely chopped coriander 
• Oil for cooking
• Salt to taste.

Method  

Put Sabudana in a large vessel and fill with water. Just mix gently once and drain out the excess water. Leave the moistened sabudana in the vessel (covered) for 12 hours.

Heat enough cooking oil in a  deep pan. Add jeera and finely chopped green chillies. Once the chillies are done with spluttering, add the curry leaves. Put in the diced potatoes and allow them to cook well. Then, add the sabudana into the pan and mix well. Close the pan and allow it to cook till the sabudana becomes transluscent. Ensure that the sabudana is not sticky or it'll make the khichadi rubbery. Once cooked, add the peanut powder (roasted and coarsely ground) and mix well. Allow to cook for one or 2 mins more.

Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves and serve hot. One of my favourite accompaniments for this khichadi is curd with sugar!