Urad Tamatar Dal | Urad Dal with Tomatoes and Purslane

Purslane is abundant in our garden even in Autumn. All season, since early December, it appears in different parts of the garden. We have followed it around, pulling out the plants and using the leaves. A nice way to keep it under control.

Today we have used it in an urad dal, and it turned out to add that beautiful lemony flavour to the dish as well as a little texture against the creamy urad. I hope you like this dish.

Are you looking for similar Dal recipes? Try Ghol Takatli Bhaji, Urad Dal with Onions Four Ways, Simple Monk’s Dal, Urad with Tomato, Coconut and Coriander, Urad Dal Sundal, and Urad Dal Garlic Rice. Or try Moolangi Tovve (Daikon Dal).

Also browse How to Use Purslane in Salads.

Browse all of the Urad recipes and our Indian recipes. Check out our Indian Essentials. Our Dal dishes are here. Or explore and be inspired by our easy Late Autumn recipes.

Daunker Pachadi | Danger Pachadi | Urad Dal

Daunker Pachadi, also known as Dangar, Danger, Daanger, or Urad Dal Pachadi,  is a simple pachadi that is very famous in Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu. It is not made very often now, one of the forgotten recipes of Tamil Nadu. It is a pity because it has quite a unique flavour from the black gram powder mixed into the pachadi.

This Pachadi is a great accompaniment for Vathal Kuzhambu, Rasam or Sambar with rice or just with a mixed rice dish. There are some variations from other parts of Tamil Nadu and beyond, such as Chettinadu.

In Thajavur, there are couple of different versions of this  – one with unroasted urad flour, and one where the flour is roasted. I have included both recipes below.

These recipes are from Meenakshi Ammal’s Cook and See books. One of our very special projects in the kitchen is to cook through these books, as they are very traditional Tamil recipes.You can find all of Ammal’s dishes that we have made here. Most of them are from Vol 1 so far.

Similar recipes include Okra Pachadi, Nethu Kottu Flour Pachadi, Methi Sprouts Tambuli, Boondhi Pachadi, Tri Colour Pachadi, and Sago Kitchari.

Browse all of our Urad recipes and all of our Pachadis. Our Indian recipes are here and our Indian Essentials here. Or take some time to explore our Late Spring dishes.

Cucumber Pachadi (or use Snake Gourd, Ridge Gourd or Chow Chow)

We have a few ways of making Cucumber Pachadi, varying just a little in ingredients. This is one of the simplest and one of the favourites.

It is of course, from Meenakshi Ammal and Vol 1 of her Cook and See books.

Similar recipes include Okra Pachadi, Nethu Kottu Flour Pachadi, Methi Sprouts Tambuli, Zucchini, Lime Leaf and Yoghurt Salad, Chow Chow Kari, Vellarikkai Thayir Pachadi, Tomato Pachadi, and Bitter Melon Pachadi.

Or browse all of our Pachadi recipes.

Okra Pachadi | Okra with Coconut-Chilli-Ginger Yoghurt

We are so blessed that we get good quality okra locally at a cheap price. Move closer to the city and it is rare and expensive. Our local shops stock it by the barrel load, a testament to the local Indian, Nepalese and Middle Eastern communities. I had never used Okra as much before I shifted into this area. It shows just how much that the stock in our shops influences our behaviour.

This is another Pachadi, a South Indian dish of yoghurt, okra and spices, a cooling and healthy dish. I have a few other Okra raita dishes – each one is a little different.

Similar recipes include Nethu Kottu Flour Pachadi, Methi Sprouts Tambuli, Okra Tamarind Pachadi, Zucchini, Lime Leaf and Yoghurt Salad, Sauteed Okra with Ginger and Garlic, Roasted Okra with Tomato, Aloo Bhindi, and Bhindi Raita.

Browse all of our Okra dishes and al of our Pachadi recipes. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Mid Autumn recipes.

Soupa de Legumes | Simple Goan Vegetable Soup

I have posted a few Goan dishes including soups that originate from the Portuguese/Catholic cuisine in  Goa, India. These are simple, home-fare dishes but do not lack flavour. In fact you can say that the flavour goes beyond what you expect from the ingredients. These are cheap and every-day dishes, quickly and easily made, yet comforting and filling.

This soup is a vegetable soup that is pureed and then greens and dried legumes added – chickpeas or white beans or any dried pea or bean that you have on hand.

Today I used a stock that included mushrooms, so the dish is a little darker than normal. Usually it takes the colour from the vegetables you use – varying from white if only potatoes are used, to yellow-orange from carrots and pumpkin.

Similar recipes include Narangi Shorba, Caldo, Goan Vegetable Pulao, and Feijoada.

Browse all of our Vegetable Soups and all of our Goan dishes. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Mid Spring recipes.

Cabbage Bondas

Bondas are a popular street food in parts of Indian like Mumbai. Bondas are little round dumplings made from chickpea flour and generally filled with potatoes. They are sold from street carts or footpath stores, and in those little working-men’s canteens that have wonderful, very cheap food.

It is not so hard to make them at home. We were given this recipe for cabbage bondas and they are delicious. They can be made flat into a patty, or round to resemble the potato bondas. We don’t know the source of this recipe – if you know please let us know so that we can update this post.

Similar recipes include Crispy Fried Potato,  Vadai with Yoghurt, Delicious and Addictive Indian Snacks, and Beetroot Vadai.

Browse all of our Indian Snacks and all of our Cabbage recipes. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Early Spring recipes.

Indian Melon and Tamarind Kuzhambu with Brown Chickpeas | Kadalai Puli Kuzhambu

This is a delicious dish that can be made with Ash Gourd, Winter Melon, Bottle Gourd, Green Squash, Pumpkin, drumsticks or a mix of vegetables. It includes brown chickpeas (kala chana) cooked with toor dal for both silky smoothness with the chunky chickpeas. It is a dish from Tamil Nadu.

Similar recipes include Curry Leaf Kuzhambu, Beetroot Vathakuzhambu, and Poritha Kuzhambu with Tamarind.

Or browse all of our Kuzhambu recipes.

Narangi Pulao with Pistachios

It is orange season and so all of our orange recipes come out to add delight to our kitchen menus again. This beautiful pilaf is so good – full of orangey flavours and a visual delight.

We made this recently in one of our late night COVID-19 lockdown cooking sessions, around 10pm after endless zoom meetings. Luckily the rice had been soaked and dried, so the cooking was not a chore. There are no photos for this recipe yet – almost a travesty in this visual era. But we wanted to share it with you and keep it on our blog as a record of our best loved dishes.

Similar dishes include Matar Pulao, Orange and Date Salad, Orange and Green Chilli Relish, and Quinoa Salad with Orange.

You can also browse all of our Pilafs and our Orange Recipes.

Black Pepper Garlic Broccoli with Mustard Seeds and Curry Leaves

If you follow our blog (hello to all of our lovely followers!) you will know how much we love broccoli. Particularly pan-roasted broccoli. This time we have turned it into an Indian style dish, with black pepper as its major flavouring.  It is delicious!

Similar recipes include Steamed Broccoli with Pinenuts, Broccoli with Orange Sauce, Bean Curd with Broccoli, and Sri Lankan Broccoli Curry.

Browse all of our Broccoli recipes. Or explore our Indian recipes and our Indian Essentials here. Alternatively, explore our Mid Spring collection of dishes.

Kasa Kasa Payasam

Poppy Seed Payasam is a nutty and creamy sweet dish made with white poppy seeds, coconut and saffron simmered in milk and topped with toasted cashews. Payasam is a typical Indian traditional sweet usually made for festivals and as a sweet treat in homes.

Poppy seeds are tiny seeds known as kasa kasa in Tamil. Indian recipes usually use white poppy seeds rather than the black ones, so look for them in your Indian supermarket. They are used for their flavour, texture and thickening qualities.

Did you know that poppy seeds calm the mind and stimulate the digestion? In Ayurveda the taste is pungent, astringent and sweet. Its heating action acts as a vata calmer. Used with nutmeg or valerian they can induce relaxing sleep.

Similar recipes include Char Grilled Stone Fruit with Scented Yoghurt, Sago Payasam, Vermicelli Payasam, and Besan Payasam.

Browse all of our Payasam recipes, and all of our Desserts. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Late Spring recipes.