Gol Gappa Aka Pani Puri

Gol Gappa Aka Pani Puri is a simple, lip-smacking snack popular in places such as Delhi, Mumbai, et all... It is one of the most-desired chaat items for many Indians, as once you taste it, for sure, you would love to have at least 4-5 in one go. It is a balanced mix of all tastes including spice, tangy, sweet, and salt. I have relished them in the streets of Delhi... Down in Chennai, this is just gaining prominence so much room for improvement :) Over here, Gangotri is one outlet serves a decent quality of gol gappas.

Finally, made up my mind to try my hand in making this all time snack. One of my partners in such crimes Sangee joined me readily! We managed to bring on a satisfying & happy smile on our lovelies' face :))

Ingredients:

• To make the puris:
• Suji (Rava)         : 1/2 cup
• Flour (Maida)     : 1/2 tbsp
• Soda Water        : 3 tbsp
• Baking Soda       : 1/2 tsp (optional)
• Salt                     : To Taste
• Oil                      : To Fry

• To make the Pani (Green Pani):
• Pudhina (Chopped)   : 1 1/2 cup
• Coriander (Chopped): 1- 2 tbsp
• Imli Water                 : 1/3 cup
• Ginger (Adrak)          : 2"
• Green Chillies            :6-8 (medium * as spicy you need the water to be)
• Coriander powder     : 1 pinch (optional)
• Jeera Powder            : 1 tspn (freshly ground will have a nice flavor)
• Black Salt                 : 1.5 tspn
• Salt                           : To Taste

• For the Filling:
• Potato (Boiled and Smashed) : 4-5 medium
• Boondi                                  : Fried (Get them in market & is optional)
• Sev                                        : Optional
• White Channa / Sprouts (Boiled) and any other of your choice

Method:

• To make puris:
• Mix Suji, flour, salt, baking soda and make it to a smooth dough using the soda water and regular water. (Oil not required to make this dough)
• Cover it by a wet muslin cloth (or any thin white wet cloth) and leave it to rest for 15 mts. The dough will raise a bit due to the soda (very slightly)
• Make small and thin puris. Place these puris first under a damp cloth for 5 mts before frying them. (Thinness of the puris will ensure the crispiness else the flour won't get cooked easily, making the puris soft rather than crispy)
• Ensure the oil is in the right heat before you add the puris to fry. Using a cooking slotted ladle or spoon, press the puris to ensure they puff up both sides. Take them when golden brown (cook it both sides till they puff up to the shape of the gol gappa; if they flatten then u can eat them as puris for other chaat items).
• Remove, drain, allow them to cool. As soon as they cool down, store them in an air-tight container.

• To make pani:
• Grind all ingredients (specified under 'To make pani') except for salt. After ground smoothly, sieve it into a bowl of about 500 gms to 1 lt of water (as you want the quantity & also ensure it doesn't dilute the spice)
• Add salt & mix well. 
• Serve it chilled.

• To make the Filling : Boil the potatoes and smash it well. You can individually add all fillers you decide on while serving

• To make the sweet / tangy chutney: Refer to "Dates & Raisin Chutney". You can take a few spoons of this chutney and dilute it a bit to be used as the gol gappa mix

To Serve / Eat: Take a puri, slightly tap and make a hole in the center, add all fillers, a spoon of pani & a spoon of the chutney and just gulp it... As you develop the taste you may end up having countless numbers as well :))

Dates and Raisin Chutney

Both Dates & Dry Grapes (Raisins) are healthy, but some may not like to eat dates directly. Searching for alternative ways to consume dates, I ended up with this recipe by Tarla Dalal.

Ingredients:

• Dates             : 1 cup
• Raisins           : 1/4 cup
• Tamarind       : 2 tbspn (juice)
• Brown Sugar : 1/4 cup
• Ginger           : 1/4 "
• Salt                : To taste
• Cumin Seed Powder: 1 tspn (Dry roast & powder)
• Black Pepper:   1/4 tsp (as desired spice)
• Red Chilli Powder: 1/4 tspn (as desired spice)
• Water              : 3/4 cup

Method:

• Soak the raisins for about 30 mts. 
• Remove the seeds of the dates. Soak them for 5-10 mts or cut them into pieces
• In a pan, add water. To it add tamarind juice, sugar, salt, black pepper, red chillie powder, cumin powder, and bring it to boil
• To this, add the dates, raisins, ginger and let it cook by boiling for 10-12 mts (the water will reduce)
• Remove from fire and allow it to cool (* Some prefer to eat it in this form)

• I had customized it further by grinding this entire mix in a jar and sieving it to make the red tangy/sweet/spicy chutney

Herbal Stuffed Baked Fish -- by our inhouse Chef @ Gopakumar

A while back, I had created this page to share some interesting, mouth-watering, tasty, innovative, genuinely prepared dishes by whom, I would like to name as 'Guest Chef' for my blog. This began with me merely posting some pics but here I come to you with my first share :) 

I have developed a love for 'fishes' both alive and as interesting eatables :) Recently, I got to taste this real yummy baked fish with some fresh herbs and vegetables, that I had to start blogging in this section. So, presenting the 'Baked Herbal Fish' by Gopakumar.

Bitter Gourd Pickle

Bitter Gourd (Karela / Pagarkai) initially was force fed (and mostly so for many) to me... However, with time, I did realize that it is one of the richest vegetables. So, was keen to know the various dishes possible such that one can relish it. Stuffed, fried, spicy gravy with tamarind, are some possibilities. One that I found recently was that we can also make pickle out of the same.

I did try & believe me it went down almost everyone's throats so easily :)

Ingredients: (As I used)

Bitter Gourd : 2 big size (4 medium size)

Small Onions (Shallots): 10 (cut into thin slices)

Garlic: 10 pods (per your taste; cut into thin slices)

Ginger: 2 inches (per your taste; cut into thin slices)

Curry Leaves: to garnish

Gingely Oil: 4-5 tbspn (this pickle doesn't need excess oil & needs to be refrigerated)

Turmeric Powder:  1 tspn

Salt: to taste 

Mustard Seeds: 1 tspn

Fenugreek Seeds: 1/2 tspn

Tamarind: 1 small lemon sized (soaked in water)

Jaggery: 1 small piece (powdered)

Green Chilli: 5 nos (slit)

Red Chillie Powder: 2-3 tspn 

Hing: 2 pinch

Method:

1. Clean, wipe, remove the seeds and slice them into 1/2 inch slices or desired shape (rings etc)
2. Place them in a bowl, add a tspn of salt, mix it and leave them for an hour
3. Pick the same mix and leave it in sun for a couple of hours to ensure they are dried
4. In a deep pan, add a few tbspn of oil and fry these dried pieces in small lots, till they turn golden brown 
5. Take them and place it on a plate with tissue papers to absorb the oil
6. In another pan, add 2-3 tbspn of oil. As it heats up, add the mustard seeds. As they splutter, add the fenugreek seeds. As it becomes reddish, add the curry leaves. Saute for a minute.
7. To this, add the slit green chilies, garlic, ginger, and onions. Fry them till they are cooked or become golden brown.
8. To this mix, add the tamarind extract (to balance between the bitterness and spice)
9. Add the red chillie powder, hing and allow it for a minute
10. Then add Salt and the fried bitter gourd pieces to this. Mix well, and allow it to cook on a small-medium flame for 5-7 mts (if you have not fried the pieces well enough, then you will need to keep it for 10-12 mts to ensure the pieces are well cooked)
11. Add the powdered jagery and mix well.
12. Remove from fire and allow it to cool
13. Pack it in air tight container & refrigerate it

You can serve this with hot chapatis and / or rice. Can also serve as dry subji if you make it less tangy and spicy.

Tips: Instead of tamarind, you can also use Lemon Juice or Vinegar

[Source: Customized from various online recipes]

Curry Leaves Gravy

Curry leaves (karuvepilai), is an inherent ingredient for most of Indian & Srilankan cooking, mainly because they grow well in tropical - sub tropical climate (thanks to encyclopedia :). It is high on minerals such as iron, calcium, phosphorus, and vitamins.

Mostly, it is used as a garnishing ingredient for its flavor and is mostly discarded (rarely does anyone eats curry leaves unlike coriander & pudhina). However, thanks to our grandmothers, we can make better use of these leaves & enjoy the full benefit by consuming them in better forms.

One such rich dish is curry leaves gravy that can be had with hot rice, idlis, pongal etc. You can store it for some time and refrigerate it for longer use. So, here you go...

Ingredients:

Curry Leaves : 2 cups (preferably fresh but you can use dried ones too)

Green Chillies: 4-5 medium

Small Onions : 10-12 finely chopped (some use small onions as is; if rqd, you can use chopped big onions)

Chili powder : 3-4 tspn (as spicy as you need it)

Coriander powder: 

Tamarind: Lemon Size (Extract juice)

Salt : To taste

Mustard Seeds: 2 tspn

Uradh dhal : 1 tspn (half white)

Jaggery : 1 piece (optional)

Gingely Oil (til ka thel): 2 - 3 tbspn (oil allows you to store it for a longer duration)

Asafoteida (Hing): 2 pinch

Method:

• Grind the curry leaves with green chillies to a smooth mix
• In a non stick pan (or better a mud kadai), add oil
• Add mustard seeds. As they crackle, add uradh dhal. Next, add the onions. 
• Fry till the onions turn pinkish.
• To this mix, add all spices, salt, and hing. Follow it up with Tamarind extract and curry leaves mix
• Add water to allow the curry leaves to cook till the raw smell is gone
• Stir and cook till the oil separates as a top layer
• Add the jaggery (if rqd) and remove from fire
• Allow it to cool before you store it in any dry air-tight container 

Note: If you have used high amount of oil then it can be kept outside, else, its preferred to refrigerate it. 

Serve it with:

• hot rice & gingely oil
• hot idlis / dosas
• spread on bread as S/W
• spread on rotis / paranthas