Karela’s( bitter gourd) bitter taste might turn people away from it however it can really sweeten your health by virtue of its disease preventing and health promoting phyto chemical compounds. There are a variety of recipes you can make with Karela, like stir fried Karela with onion, or gravy or stuffed karela fry. Stuffed karela goes very well with simple daal and rice as a side dish.
Stuffed Khandvi
Khandvi is a famous Gujarati snacks. Khandvi is prepared using besan (gram flour) and curd and tempered with curry leaves, mustard and sesame seeds. Making it first few times until you get hang of it, requires lot of patience. The very important step is getting the mixture consistency right and time taken to spread. It took me three iterations to get the right consistency of mixture and to make it perfect. Khandvi is garnished with fresh grated coconut and coriander leaves. I also have tried a little variation by stuffing the khandvi with shredded coconut, coriander leaves and beetroot. You can either skip the stuffing or make it as per your choice.
Chicken Tikka Masala
Chicken tikka masala is one of the most popular non-veg dish. You can find this yummy dish in every Indian restaurant. Grilled chicken cooked in thick creamy gravy and a combination of spices makes it very delicious. Chicken tikka masala goes very well with jeera rice, parata or garlic naan.
Green Egg Curry
Egg curry is a simple and easy recipe however there are many variations. Green egg curry is slightly different then normal. Green egg curry prepared using baby spinach, corn and Indian spices. Boiled roasted eggs in to spinach and tomato green curry gives a nice color compliment to the dish and taste delicious. Egg curry goes very well with rice or paratha or naan. This curry recipe can be used for paneer or tofu.
Tomato Rice
Tomato rice is a popular dish in the Southern part of India. Tomato rice could be very simple or filled with lot of ingredients and flavors. This colorful dish is easy to prepare and perfect for lunch or lunch boxes. One can use either leftover rice from previous night or make a fresh rice. In this recipe I have added some additional ingredients to make it more flavorful. You can adjust the spices according to your taste. Tomato rice goes very well with plain yogurt or raita.
Poi Leaves (Malabar Spinach) Pakora
Poi leaves are also called as Malabar Spinach or Basella Spinach and generally available in Indian grocery stores or Asian market. Poi leaves are glossy, broad, deep green and thick. The pakora/bhajji made from Poi leaves tastes awesome and goes very well as snack item with tea. It can be prepared in both way either shallow fry or deep fry. In fact you can bake as well if you are worried about oil. However the best taste is in deep fried as always.
Amla( Gooseberry) Pickle
Amla has a lots of health benefits. Amla is a seasonal fruit similar to mango and others and generally available in winter season. The fresh Amla is easily available in India however couldn’t find the same in US. I used the frozen Amla available in Indian grocery stores for this pickle however if you can get fresh it would be more delicious. This pickle is not as cumbersome as other like mango or chilies. Amla pickle can be stored for 3-4 months in refrigerator.
Mango Falooda
Falooda is one of the popular cool dessert in India. Mango Falooda is made with milk, mango, home made strawberry jelly, sabja seeds flavored with Rrooh Afza and khus syrup. I have used rose syrup flavored falooda sev, and you can find at any Indian store if you do not want to make it at home. Mango falooda is a refreshing dessert during the summer and really rich. 