An update and Tomatillos

Every time I sit down to write a post, the same thought pops up in my head - It has been so long since my last post. I wish I could say it is because there have been exciting events or because I have been travelling or that I have been super busy or that I haven't been cooking lately. No none of it. I have been in Portland, not traveled anywhere, there is always an excuse to be busy and I have been cooking.
And herein lies the problem - I have been making simple everyday food and it really is nothing to blog about. I have two new found  distractions addictions to kill time. Scrabble for Droid (I can be anti social on networks and play solo) and the super easy collection of NY times crosswords.  And then a renewed interest in knitting. My friend gave me her stash of yarn and I have been eyeing this hat pattern and this lovely ladybug coat.  
But since this is a cooking blog there must be a recipe. It is lentils again but definitely not ho-hum.  French Puy lentils seasoned with tomatillos and black pepper- The tomatillos literally melt into the dish and add a bright  but subtle tang. If you have pre cooked lentils; this dish comes together in the time it takes to cook rice. Add some roasted pappad and a cucumber salad and it is the perfect comfort food.

Serves 5 as a main course

**2 cups dry lentils cooked or 3 cups  canned lentils.
1/4 of a yellow onion sliced thin
3 cloves of garlic peeled and coarsely chopped
*4 small tomatillos (the size of cherry tomatoes) or equivalent roughly chopped.
1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper (or more)
1/2 tsp of turmeric
2 bay leaves/ tej patta
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp of oil.
salt to taste
*Remove the papery skins of the tomatillos; wash well in warm water and then chop.
** cooking instructions for lentils - Follow instructions here. But you want to cook it a little longer for dal
Heat the oil in a large sauce pan on medium high and add the cumin seeds. When the seeds crackle add the sliced onion and fry until brown spots appear. Add the bay leaves and the black pepper and mix. Immediately add the chopped tomtoes and garlic.  Add the turmeric and cook until the tomatoes  start releasing water  but still hold shape(3 minutes or so). Add the tomatillo and saute for a couple of minutes. Now add the cooked lentils and any cooking water and salt to taste.  Lower the heat a little and let it come to a simmer and cook for 6 to 8 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings as required. Turn off the heat, cover the saucepan and let stand for a few minutes before serving.

Lentil burgers (gluten free)

We made a trip to Vancouver BC  in honor of spring break and this post was inspired by a burger we ate in a little town there. This isn't really a recipe, more of a technique( But I told myself I can't let it be 5 months until my next post).

These are also known as clean out your fridge burgers. So you need some lentils or beans. You will need to cook it. And something for a binder. Rice, couscous, Quinoa, bread any of it will work. And then you look in your pantry and you will hopefully find some onion and some garlic. If you look in your fridge some more maybe you will find a carrot or a bell pepper . Lucky you.  So what you do is  first saute up the onion , ginger and garlic in a little olive oil and then add whatever veggies you find. You want to get this well cooked and rather dry. So don't salt this yet. Then you mix this up with your rice/couscous/Quinoa/Bread  and beans/lentils and add salt and pepper to taste. Then pulse it so briefly in your food processor until it just comes together.  At this point you can chill it a little. Then you form it into burgers. Dredge them in some flour/semolina/bread crumbs and cook it on your oiled cast iron pan -  and there you have it. I told you it isn't really a recipe.  But if you insist on a recipe, this  is what I did.

 One small onion

2 to 3 cloves garlic ( or more)

5 mushrooms

10 mint leaves

About 1.5 cup of cooked green mung beans

Another half to 3/4  cup of leftover  white rice

Coarse semolina flour for dredging.

So I sauteed and pulsed, and made burgers and dredged in the semolina and cooked on my cast iron pan.  I cooked about 4 burgers at a time oiling the pan with a couple of teaspoons of oil for each batch. It took about 4 minutes per side to get nice and crispy. They stored well in the fridge for 2 days  and revived well in the toaster oven.

Green Mung bean salad

I can't refuse to believe that my last post was in October of 2012. You see, I composed so many posts in my head- for marmamaldes and pickles, for traditional food of Kerala and Karnataka. .  uh.. I guess happy 2013 :D..Hope you have all had a good year so far. I know I have. There have been holidays and meeting of friends and family and lots of good food. And this post is for Amitha - I can't tell you how proud and excited I am for your success and a big thank you for nudging me to update this blog.

For the salad:

1 to 1.5 cups of cooked green moong beans ( French lentils, brown lentils or aduki beans will work )
1 medium english cucumber chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
1 carrot grated

For the dressing

1/4 teaspoon sumac
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp chilli oil
2 tsp orange vinegar( substitute with a mix of  equal parts orange juice and sherry vinegar)
salt and pepper to taste.

Add all the salad ingredients to a bowl. Add the dressing ingredients to the bowl and toss. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Even better the next day.

Three greens and lentils.

Sappina huli  is a favorite in our house. It is nutritious , tasty and comes together quickly and in one pot. To break it down, it is a mix of cooked lentils and vegetables  laced with freshly ground spices.

For this version, I used three kinds of greens - Spinach, red chard and Amaranth and the taste was divine.

1 cup cooked split   pigeon peas or pink lentils

1 bunch spinach washed, cleaned and cut into ribbons

1 bunch red chard (stalks and leaves)washed, cleaned and cut

1 bunch Amaranth  (stalks and leaves)washed, cleaned and cut

2 medium tomatoes diced

*1 to 2 teaspoons of concentrated Tamarind paste( to taste.)

For the spice paste

1/4 white onion chopped

*1 teaspoon coriander seeds

*1/2 teaspoon Fenugreek powder

*4 curry leaves

6 to 8 dried red chilies or to taste

2 tablespoons hulled pumpkin seeds (Pepita)

For tempering

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

2 cloves of garlic roughly chopped

*1/4 teaspoon Asafetida

2 dried red chilies

Take the cooked lentils , greens and tomatoes in a  fairly large stockpot.  Add some salt to taste and cook until the greens are  tender and melting and the tomato has broken down.

While this is cooking make the spice paste. Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend to a smooth  and thick paste . Add water as necessary.

Add the spice paste to the lentil mixture. Add tamarind paste ( start with one teaspoon). Taste and balance with additional salt and tamarind as  required.

Heat the oil in a small skillet or saucepan. When the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds. (Careful! The mustard seeds pop and crackle and fly). Then add the red chilies and garlic and stir for a minute. Don't let the garlic brown. Finally add the Asafetida and take the pan off the heat.

Pour the hot oil mixture over the lentils. Serve hot over rice.

* Can be found in Indian grocery stores.

Hubbard squash dal

Today was a beautiful crisp and sunny Oregon day. Soon enough, the rains will start again. In the spirit of Thanksgiving that is just over, I made a list of things that make winter worthwhile
- Holidays, Walks in the rain with the dogs, Autumn leaves still on the ground, Oranges and Grapefruit, apples and pears, cranberries and winter squashes.

Today's recipe celebrates the Hubbard squash. A very simple stew that showcases the sweet flavor of the squash.

1 c tuvar dal (or use any mild lentil - pink lentils are a good choice)
1/3 of a Hubbard squash
1 or 2 serrano peppers
Ginger ( a piece as big as half your thumb)
6 Curry leaves
A pinch of turmeric
1/4 c thick coconut milk
1 tomato
1/2 lime - juiced.
salt to taste


For the seasoning(vaggarne/.vaghar/tadka)
1 tsp oil
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
1 clove garlic (chopped)
1/2 tsp cumin powder.

Cook the lentils first. Cover the lentils with about 3 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 30 minutes or until done. You want the lentils to be a little soupy, and may have to add some water to thin as the lentils are cooking.
Peel and chop the squash into uniform pieces. Put in a saucepan and add enough water to cover the pieces. Add the curry leaves, peppers, turmeric and ginger. Cook till the squash is tender about 10 -15 minutes. Add the tomatoes, lentils and salt to taste and bring to a boil. Add the coconut milk and heat through. Add the lime juice. To season the dal, heat the oil in the smallest saucepan you have. ( i have a special one just for this) . When the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds. Once they crackle add the garlic and the cumin powder.
Pour the hot seasoning over the dal and eat with hot brown rice.

pasta with lentils

I am a huge fan of the Splendid Table show.  The first time I heard the show, I breathed a sigh a deep sigh..Lynn Rosetto Kasper was not giving out a perfectly measured recipe but rather introducing the techniques and flavors that went into making the recipe. She was teaching me to cook.

This is a recipe I have made often from the show. It is simple, wholesome and a great weeknight dinner.
 Pasta with lentils

Variations I have tried:
I have tried it with French Lentils and whole wheat spaghetti
I have tried it with whole masoor dal and angel hair pasta
Try it with some sprouted lentils
Add some bell peppers  to the mix
Finish with some green olives


One thing about this recipe - make sure you use a good olive oil. It makes a huge difference. Have a wonderful week all.

Ethiopian style khichdi...

Has it happened to you - you see a recipe and you know you have need  to make it NOW. I was all excited, fortune seemed to have smiled on me, I had the key ingredient sitting in my pantry.
But alas when I got home, all I really had in the pantry was the key ingredient. No tofu, no tempeh, no mushrooms no tomato paste and no time. But I had to have that Doro Wat, it was beckoning.
So I did what they call a SAM in Banglooru.. (Swalpa adjust maadkoli)


So I slow roasted the onions, using some Riesling to deglaze the pan, stir fired with Berbere and some other spices, added a couple of tomatoes, and then added some rice and lentils to the mix and cooked it all together.
The result was a fabulously flavored khicdi, mujadara whatever you want to call it.

And here is the recipe.

Source: Adapted from Vegan Doro Wat on Holy Cow


1/2 yellow onion
Riesling to de glaze the pan
3 tsps berbere
2 tomatoes quartered
1 inch piece of ginger
2 cloves garlic
1 c rice (washed and drained)
1.5 c french lentils(washed and drained)
4 3/4 c H20
salt to taste
2 tblsp of  olive oil

Slow roast the onions without any oil. For this put the onions in the pan you are planning to cook the rice. Keep the pan on medium heat. When the onions dry up  add a little bit of the wine and de glaze the pan. Repeat the process until the onions are a nice amber color.
Add the Berbere  and fry with the onions.
Add the quartered tomatoes, ginger and garlic  and cook until the tomatoes release water and start to get mushed up.
Add the rice and the lentils and stir to coat. Add the water and salt to taste.
Bring  the water to a boil and then close lid,, simmer for 20 mins. Leave to stand for 10. fluff with a fork .

We ate this with a simple chopped salad of tomatoes and cucumbers.

Kosambri and Masoor Dal Tacos

This is a simple weekday dinner with very little prep time and some largely unattended cooking time. The lentils and the kosambri were served with brown rice for dinner. Left overs were packed separately  to be eaten with hard shell tacos and they made an excellent school lunch.
I spent some time every weekend communing with my pressure cooker. I usually cook enough lentils and beans to last me through the week.
The french lentils were cooked and ready and this dinner almost made itself.

Serves 4 to 6
inspired by this ppk recipe

For the lentils
2 cups French lentils (or whole masoor dal) cooked.
1 yellow onion diced
1 serrano pepper chopped fine
1 fresh Anaheim pepper chopped fine
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
salt to taste

Directions for cooking lentils
Cook lentils in a large stock pot using 3 to 3.5 cups of water per cup of lentils. Cook the lentils on a medium flame. It should take you about 25 to 30 minutes.
If there is too much water left in the pan after cooking the lentils, drain the lentils. Reserve the water and use it to flavor soup or stew.

Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the mustard seeds and cover the pan with a lid. Once the seeds have crackled nicley, add the peppers and the onion. Saute until the onion browns nicely. Add the cooked lentils and salt to taste. Cook for another 5 minutes for the flavors to meld. The lentils should not be too soupy or too dry.


For the kosambri
Kosambri is an indian salad typically made with a single vegetable (cucumber, carrots or cabbage), soaked moong dal , seasoned generouly with lime and salt and tempered with mustard seeds, curry leaves and green chillies.

6 large carrots grated ( I use the food processor)
Juice from 2 limes
salt to taste
1/4 c cilantro ( leaves and stems chopped finely)
2 serrano peppers or 4 thai chillie peppers chopped really fine
4 -5 curry leaves
1 tsp mustard
1/4 tsp asafoetida
3 tsps oil.

In a large bowl  mix the carrots, salt, cilantro and half of the lime juice. Taste and adjust as necessary. The mixture should be fairly tart. ( don't worry the tempering will balance it out).
Heat the oil in a small sauce pan. When the oil is hot, add the mustard and the asafoetida. Wait till the seeds crackle and splutter. Add the curry leaves. Pour this hot oil over the carrots. Mix it in and taste. Add more salt or lime juice if necessary.

For the tacos:
Fill the hard shell tacos with the lentils and top with the kosambri.