Beerakaya Pachadi ( Ridge Gourd chutney )

" Beerakaya Chutney " is a simple recipe, easy to prepare and very delicious to taste. We usually take care in selecting the right Ridge Gourd before we purchase them. For this recipe, any kind of Ridge Gourds are good, even if they are not tender. No need to go for tender Ridge Gourds here. But taste the pieces for any bitterness before you cook them.

For this recipe, we need the following ingredients.
Ingredients:
Ridge Gourd pieces ( Beerakaya Mukkalu ) - 2 cups
Green Chillies ( Pachi mirchi ) - 4
Tamarind ( Chintha pandu ) - small goose berry size
Black gram ( Minapapappu ) - 1tsp
Cumin seeds ( Jeelakarra ) - 1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds ( Aavaalu ) - 1/2 tsp
Hing - a pinch
Turmeric ( Pasupu ) - a pinch
Coriander leaves ( Kothimeera ) - to garnish
Curry leaves ( Karivepaaku ) - few
Salt - as per taste
Oil - 3 tsp

Method:
Take a pan, heat 2 tsp of oil in it. When it is hot, add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds and allow them to splutter.

Now add hing, chopped green chillies,curry leaves, tamarind, turmeric and ridge gourd pieces.

Add required amount of salt, close them with a lid and allow them to cook until they are tender. Now add chopped coriander and stir for 2 mins and switch off the stove. Allow the pieces to cool and then grind them. We can grind to it a crispy level, not very smooth, it should have crunchy pieces of Ridge Gourd. This gives the chutney, a very good taste.

Now take a pan, heat one spoon of oil in it, add the black gram and fry it till golden and add the black gram to the chutney just before you serve ! This gives a crunchy effect to the chutney which brings extra flavours to it ! Ridge Gourd chutney is thus prepared and ready to serve. This recipe serves 3 - 4 people. This goes well with hot rice. We can also serve this chutney with pulkas, chapathis and rotis.

Tips:

No need to peel off the Ridge Gourds as the peel itself gives a nice effect to the chutney and more over, the peel has good amounts of fiber which is very healthy.

Health info:

Ridge Gourd is low in saturated fat, cholesterol, high in dietary fiber, Vitamin C, Riboflavin, Zinc, Thiamin, Iron etc.. This vegetable is beneficiary in losing weight and maintaining good health.

Mamidikaya Pappu ( Mango Dal )

" Mamidikaya Pappu " is a popular Andhra Dish. This recipe is made with sour raw mangoes and dal. Following are the ingredients required to make this recipe.

Ingredients:
Sour raw mango pieces ( Mamidikaya mukkalu ) - 2 cups
Pigeon peas ( Kandi pappu / Toor Dal ) - 2/3 cup
Green chillies ( Pachi mirchi ) - 4
Mustard Seeds ( Aavaalu ) - 1/2 tsp
Cumin Seeds ( Jeelakarra ) - 1/2 tsp
Dry Red Chillies ( Yendu Mirapa )- 2
Curry Leaves ( Karivepaaku ) - few
Coriander leaves ( Kothimeera ) - to garnish
Oil - 2 tsp
Hing ( Inguva ) - a pinch
Turmeric ( Pasupu ) - 1/8 tsp
Salt - to taste

Method:
This recipe can be prepared with Moong dal( Green gram ) or Toor dal ( Pigeon peas ). Here I have used pigeon peas. Firs of all, take a pan and dry roast the pigeon peas. No oil is used here. I usually prefer dry roasting the dal before making any recipe with Pigeon peas. It tastes more good when compared with the one made with raw pigeon peas.

Peel off the raw Mango. Cut it into one inch pieces removing the seed from it. Now cook the pigeon peas, green chillies and mango pieces in a pressure cooker until they are soft and well cooked. Now take a pan and heat some oil in it. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, dry red chillies, hing and allow them to fry well.

Add curry leaves. When they splutter, add the cooked pigeon peas, mango pieces to the dish. Add the required amount of salt and turmeric powder. Allow to cook for 5 minutes keeping the lid closed over the pan. Now switch off the stove and garnish with coriander leaves. Thats it ! " Mamidikaya Pappu " can be served with hot rice and ghee. If this recipe is accompanied with papads or " vadiyalu ", it tastes even more good. This recipe serves 3 people.

Tips:

Check the taste of the Mango before making this recipe. Sour mangoes taste good when compared to sweet ones.

Health Info:

This food is very low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Dietary Fiber and Vitamin B6, and a very good source of Vitamin A and Vitamin C.

Dosakaya Pachadi Baddalu

" Dosakaya Pachadi Baddalu " is a traditional Andhra chutney made with Cucumber. This is a very simple recipe and can be prepared very quickly.



For this recipe, we need the following ingredients.

Ingredients:
Cucumber chopped ( Dosakaya mukkalu ) - 1 1/2 cups
Mustard Seeds ( Aavaalu ) - 1/2 tsp
Cumin Seeds ( Jeelakarra ) - 1/2 tsp
Dry Red Chillies ( Yendu mirapa kaayalu ) - 3
Tamarind ( Chinthapandu ) - 1 inch piece
Turmeric powder ( Pasupu ) - 1/8th tsp
Curry leaves ( Karivepaaku ) - few
Hing ( Inguva ) - a pinch
Oil - 2 tsp
Salt - as per taste

Method:
First of all we need to take care in selecting the right cucumber. Some cucumbers are bitter in taste. Check the taste for any bitterness before making any dish. Peel it off, remove the seeds and chop the cucumber into very fine pieces and keep it aside.

Now take a pan, heat some oil in it. When the oil is hot, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, hing, dry red chillies, tamarind. When these are fried well, add curry leaves and allow them to splutter. Now allow these spices to get cooled. Now grind all of them in to fine powder in a mixie jar.

Now take 1/4 th cup of the chopped cucumber pieces into the same jar which has the spice powder. Add the required amount of salt and turmeric. Make it into a fine paste. If necessary, add 2 - 3 tsps of water to it. Now add this paste into the remaining cucumber pieces and mix them thoroughly. Dosakaya Pachadi baddalu is ready to serve ! This goes well with hot rice and sesame oil. This recipe serves 3 - 4 people.

Tips:

Try to select a raw cucumber for this recipe. Raw cucumber tastes even more compared to ripen cucumber.You can add tamarind paste to the pieces according to your taste instead of frying the tamarind directly in the oil.

Health info:

This food is low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Vitamin A, Pantothenic Acid, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Manganese, and a very good source of Vitamin C, Vitamin K and Potassium.