Navane Dosa (Foxtail Millet Pancake)
Navane dosa is a very healthy and delicious dish. Navane (foxtail) is one of the seven important millets which are proved to be very beneficial to health. It is advantageous to add foxtail in our regular diet, it is rich in vitamins and minerals. A gluten-free diet is naturally good for health as it helps in improving digestion and increases energy level. Navane dosa is served as morning breakfast. It is commonly used in Southern part of India. In earlier days, millet was cooked as porridge for breakfast. There are many other ways to incorporate millets in our regular diet. As such there is no hard and fast rule in reworking with foxtail millets recipe. Now a days, regular rice dosa is replaced with navane dosa. You will be happy to know that it is very easy to prepare. Let us see the preparation of Navane dosa. Continue reading →
Jolada Hittina Dosa (Sorghum Flour pancake)
Jolada hittu (Sorghum flour) is, invariably, available in every house of North Karnataka Region (India). I am writing this recipe especially for working people. You don’t need much time for preparation and it requires vey less number of ingredients. This can be prepared instantly and served for breakfast. Jolada hittu is a kannada word which is known as Jowar atta in other Indian languages and Sorghum flour in english. Basically, Sorghum (Jola) is one of the most important staple crops grown in India. Sorghum is gluten free and it helps in controlling weight. It is highly nutritious and it will be much beneficial if you include it in your daily diet. In Norther region of Karnataka, we include sorghum flour in our daily meals. We prepare Roti, Masala rotti (Thalipeet), dosa and so many other dishes from sorghum flour. Preparing plain jolada rotti (bhakri) may be little bit difficult, that is the reason, I am writing this recipe for you which is very easy to prepare. You need not worry at all because it won’t get spoiled in any conditions. You can serve it with chutney, pickles, veggies or bread spreads or jam because this is like a plain dosa. Making this dish is so simple and healthy that you may wonder and love to do it again. Let’s see the preparation of jolada hittina dosa. Continue reading →
Plain Alasande Kalu Dosa (Black eyed beans pancake)
This dish is one of the most tasty and healthy breakfast. Black eyed beans are known as alasande kalu is kannada (official language of Karnataka state in India) and pancakes are called dosas. Normally these beans are used in preparing Sambar, veggies and curries, where as I am using them as main ingredient in preparing breakfast. I tried this recipe last week, believe me it came out very tasty and aromatic as well. You don’t need to wait for it’s fermentation, you can start making dosas instantly. We all know that beans, including black eyed beans, are high in protein and low in fat. Eating legumes regularly may help in loosing weight. They are rich in dietary fibre which helps to promote regular bowel movements and improve the health of the entire body, especially the digestive system. Surprisingly they are high in Vitamin A which is very good for eyes. We can add black eyed beans in our regular diet for protecting our eyes and skin as well. Knowing all these health benefits, I am trying to use these beans in our regular diet in different ways. This recipe is one of them. I made it very simple, if you try it, you would love to do it again. It would be better if you use dried black eyed beans which give better flavour, taste and texture than canned one. You can use canned beans in case you don’t get dried one. Let’s see how to prepare alasande kalu dosa.
INGREDIENTS
- Alasande kalu/Black eyed beans – 200 grams (around 1 cup)
- Ground nuts – 1 Table spoon
- Raw rice – 1 Table spoon
- Fenugreek seeds/Methi seeds – 1/4 tea spoon
- Salt – 1 Tea spoon (very the measurement according to your taste)
- Cooking oil – 1 Table spoon
You can add green or red chillies if you like spicy one.
PREPARATION
- Clean all the ingredients. Take a big bowl and pour all the ingredients – alasande kalu, groundnuts, rice and methi seeds to it. Wash them three to four times thoroughly and soak them in one litre of warm water for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours, you can check whether all ingredients especially alasande kalu, are fully soaked or not. Take a soaked bean in hand and press it by two fingers, if it is fully soaked, it will break into small pieces otherwise it will be hard to break. You can start the next process once you confirm that they are fully ready.
- Pour soaked ingredients to a mixer jar. Add salt and half cup of water to it and grind it to a fine paste. Add green or red chillies while grinding if you want the dish spicy. While grinding, if required, you can add some more water to it. consistency of the batter should be thicker than that of dosa (pancake) batter.
- Place a pan (tawa) on medium heat and wait for 2 minutes. Once pan gets heated start the process of making dosas (pancakes). Pour one big spoon of batter over pan and spread it uniformly by moving the hand in circular motion. Sprinkle few drops of oil over it or you can use oil brush for greasing and allow it to cook for 1 minute. Turn dosa (pancake) upside down with the help of a ladle. Grease the other side of dosa (pancake) with few drops of oil, allow it to cook for 1 minute. Take it out, place it in a plate and serve it with chutney of your choice.
- You have to repeat the process for the remaining batter.
- Healthy and tasty alasande kalu dosa is ready to serve. Isn’t it easy!
- Enjoy cooking…….
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Avare Kalu Uppittu ( hyacinth bean porridge )
Here comes a very delicious and healthy breakfast recipe from Karnataka, especially from Southern part of Karnataka (India). Uppittu is purely a Kannada word which is popularly known as upma in all over India. Uppittu or Upma is a very common breakfast dish cooked as a thick porridge from dry roasted semolina (Rava) with vegetables and natural spices. You can include vegetables of your choice and taste. Rava is a Kannada word for semolina. Semolina (rava) is made from hard and well processed wheat. The texture of the wheat used is little bit coarse and the texture after it is cooked is very unique and attractive. Since semolina (Rava) is naturally very low in fat, it is good for diabeties and for those who intend to loose weight. The fibre present in semolina will help you to digest easily. It is very light for your stomach and you don’t feel heavy even if you include it in your dinner. Added to this, I am using avare kalu which is very good source of dietary fibre. You will be happy to know that it consumes comparatively very less time to prepare and I made the procedure little bit easier for beginners. Let’s see the preparation of Avare Kalu Uppittu. Continue reading →
Huggi (Pongal/Khichadi/Spicy Split Green Gram Rice)
After sweet dish for Makara Sankranti, here comes another dish, especially, prepared one day before the festival, we call that day as “Bhogi”. Huggi is a typical south Indian recipe. Huggi recipe is similar to pongal and Khichadi. This recipe is very popular in southern part of India. Huggi is prepared using rice, split green gram and some spices. There is no such hard and fast rule that this recipe is prepared, particularly, on Bhogi, you can prepare it whenever you feel of eating it. Huggi is very good child friendly food which is very easy to digest and is very tasty and healthy as well. You can try it for your younger one. Huggi with “Hasi Huli” is an excellent combination. Hasi Huli is similar to rasam or saaru. I prepare this dish often as it consumes very less time. Whenever you are tired or you have very less time to prepare food, you can prepare this dish and serve it. You can serve it for breakfast, you can serve it as main course for lunch and you can prepare it for dinner as well. It is a boon for working women. Let’s see the preparation of Huggi. Continue reading →
Mixed Dall Dosa (Mixed split pulses Pancake)
This is very healthy and delicious dish, you can make it hot and spicy as well. You can prepare this dish for breakfast and as well as for lunch box, this dish is fit for all seasons and all time. And more over it can be prepared instantly, no need to wait for fermentation. Dall is a dried pulse (lentils, peas or beans) which has been split. You can use any dal available in your kitchen. Split pulses (dall) are powerhouse of nutrition. They are the oldest commonly consumed food grains and at the same time, they are the one which need very less time to prepare since they don’t require a lengthy soaking time unlike other grains. In fact, I prepare it frequently for the breakfast, it is very easy and simple to prepare. Let’s see the preparation of mixed dall dosa. Continue reading →
RAJMA DOSA (KIDNEY BEANS PANCAKE)
In southern part of India, we, normally, prepare varieties of dosas (pancakes) for breakfast. We make dosas using all types of pulses and cereals, some of them can be prepared instantly and some of them require processing. I have prepared this recipe (Kidney beans pancake) using rajma (kidney beans) with some herbs and spices. Believe me it awesome and came out very tasty and delicious. One more good thing about it – you can make it as you like, you can make it soft like set dosa or crisp like rava dosa. At the same time, Rajma beans are rich in proteins, minerals and fiber. Breakfast with rajma recipe is very healthy. You will be glad to know that this recipe requires very less preparation and it can be prepared instantly after dough is ready, you need not wait for fermentation. Now, I am going to tell you how to prepare Rajma dosa or Kidney beans pancake.
MAVINAKAYI CHITRANNA (GREEN MANGO RICE)
This recipe is one more good old and traditional summer dish, which is very familiar to all Kannadigas (people belong to Karnataka, India). This dish is prepared in southern part of India, where, rice is used as main course. This dish can be prepared in many ways, but I am showing you the simplest way of preparing this tasty and spicy dish. I am using natural herbs and spices along with green mango, which are good for health. You can serve this dish as breakfast or else you can serve this dish as second to main course for lunch and dinner. This is an ideal dish for picnic, it is easy to prepare in short time and easy to pack and carry. You can prepare this dish with leftover rice as well. Let’s see the preparation of this tasty and spicy Mavinakayi chitranna/green mango rice. Continue reading →
AVALAKKI BHATH (POHA BHATH/BEATEN RICE SPECIAL DISH)
Avalakki bhath is a kannada word used for ‘Poha bhath or Beaten rice special dish’. This is a South Indian dish, which is made from beaten rice and some spices. This is served as breakfast. Beaten rice is a staple breakfast diet especially in rural and semi-urban areas. It is low cost wholesome food with good nutritional value. It can be eaten in different forms like raw, fried, with curds (or yogurt) or milk. It can be prepared at a short notice and in less time. It is also a convenient food item to prepare and have.Let’s see the preparation of avalakki bhath or “poha bhath”. Continue reading →
DHANIYA RICE (CORIANDER RICE)
This is an Indian dish made from rice and coriander seeds. This dish is prepared in different ways in different parts of our country. We can have this for breakfast. I have seen my Mother- in-law preparing this dish. I have slightly modified it and it came out very tasty and delicious. Coriander seeds are excellent source of minerals like iron, copper, calcium and many more. They are also rich in dietary fiber and they have got pleasant aromatic quality. You will be happy to know that it takes only 15 minutes to prepare this dish and procedure is also very simple. Let’s see the preparation of Dhaniya Rice. Continue reading →
Food For Thought 