Kitchen Corner-Try It

Bottle gourd/ Churaykka pachadi Churaykka/Lauki/bottle gourd is used in stews and curries and becomes soft and juicy when cooked. Pachadi is a simple side dish popular in Kerala made with spiced and seasoned yogurt. When cooked churaykka pachadi tastes similiar to vellarikka/cucumber pachadi. Try this cooling and refreshing pachadi,you will surely love it. Ingredients Churakka chopped -2 cups Green chilly- 2 Salt to taste To make a paste Coconut- 1/4 cup Cumin-a pinch Mustard seeds- 1/3 tsp Garlic- I clove (optional) Yogurt- 1 1/2 cup Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp Dry red chilly-2 Curry leaves- a few Coconut oil- 2 tbs Peel churakka, remove seeds in the center and cut bottle gourd into thin small pieces. Cook this along with green chilly, salt. Cover and cook in low heat. Vegetable will start oozing water and will get cooked. Allow this to cool down a bit. Make a fine paste of coconut, cumin,mustard seeds and garlic.Mix this into yogurt and whisk . Pour thi

Garlic and Dates Pickle A spicy and sweet garlic and dates pickle for all pickle lovers out there. This pickle is made with fresh garlic and dates. You can  substitute dates with raisins. Garlic has a strong pungent flavor .But as the pickle sits matures for a few weeks it becomes soft and the intense flavor reduces to a sweet garlic smell,this combined with the sweet dates makes it very appetizing. Try thus you will surely love it. Ingredients Garlic-1 cup Dates whole- 15-20 Chilly powder-4 tbs (or according to your spice tolerance) Fenugreek powder-1  tbs Mustard powder- 2 tsp Asafoetida- 1 tsp Salt- to taste Sugar - 1 tsp Gingerly oil- 1/3 cup Vinegar- 1/3 cup Steam dates for three minutes and keep aside. When it comes to room temperature use paper towel and pat them dry.  Peel garlic and keep aside. Here I used whole garlic. You can also slice them. Note: This recipe is for instant pickle. If you can allow it to mature for a few weeks,there is no need

Pepper Sardine Sardine is very common sea food in Kerala. This is a recipe which we tried during our recent visit to India. It was from my mother-in laws recipe book collection . It was a quick and easy recipe and it was learning experience and great fun to experiment some rare authentic recipes with my mother-in-law.Thanks Ammachi for this recipe. Sardine is a small oily fish found in plenty in the Indian Ocean.There are different types of sardines world wide and are rich in protein, calcium and fatty acids. Pepper sardine is a healthy and tasty version with the flavor of pepper and the  sourness of gooseberry. This recipe is a keeper which you would love to try again and again. Ingredients Sardine- 1 lb Shallots- 1/2 cup Ginger -i inch thick piece Garlic- 4-5 cloves Tomato-2 small Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Crushed dry gooseberry-3 (or you can add fresh) Chilly powder-1/2 tsp Pepper powder- 1 tsp Coriander powder- 1/2 tsp Thick tamarind paste - one tsp Salt

Cranberry Banana Bread Do you love banana bread? Are you looking for a recipe to use up the overripe banana bread sitting on the kitchen counter? Then why not try some delicious banana bread. Banana bread always comes in handy during busy weekday mornings. A thick slice of banana bread, cut fruits and coffee is perfect filling breakfast. When I was teaching myself to bake cranberry banana bread was the first recipe that came out perfect. This is a cherished recipe for years and still make them for holidays. It is a convenient and simple, no-fuss recipe. The bananas are naturally sweet which yummy flavor, and sweet chewy cranberries, it is like dessert for breakfast! One bite and you will be pleasantly surprised. It is quite addictive. Banana bread is a cake-like bread and there are so many recipes out there. This is your regular banana bread with a twist to make it more interesting. It has a citrus flavor from lemons and the sweet-tart from cranberries. This recipe uses dr

Lima Beans Potato curry Potato curry is a quick side dish for chapatis. I got this healthy lima beans for the first time. It turned out to be a good combo with potato. Lima beans has a smooth buttery texture.It is healthy beans rich in dietary fiber and nutrients.  I used frozen Fordhook lima bean and it does not take much time to cook.Try this,you will surely love it. Ingredients Frozen lima beans- 1 cup Potatoes-2 medium Onion - 1 medium Ginger garlic paste- 1 1/2 tsp Tomato puree- 1/4 tsp Cashew nut paste- 1/4 cup Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Chilly powder- 1 tsp Green chilly -1 Coriender powder- 1 tsp Garam masala- 1/2 tsp Coriander leaves- a few Butter - 1 tsp Oil and salt to taste Wash and boil potatoes till it is soft and cooked. Chop into cubes. Steam lima beans for 4-5 minutes till it is cooked ( or boil for 4-5 minutes and drain out the excess water). Soak cashew nuts in water (10-12) and make a fine paste. Heat oil in a pan and saute onions, gree