Healthy bitter gourd (karela) chutney

Bitter gourd is one such vegetable that is not easily loved by all types of people. Specially kids run away when bitter gourd is cooked. Due to its bitter taste i never liked this vegetable since childhood. One day my grandmother told me how this bitter tasting gourd is so healthy for my skin and even helps in reducing weight. She shared this recipe and it was tasty, healthy and never tasted bitter. This vegetable is mostly used by asian people.  People with diabetes should definitely include this vegetable in there diet because this helps in reducing blood sugar level. This can be cooked in many ways either eat like chips or  make a curry or chutney and you can also make pickle and store for few days.

Today i am sharing my grandmom's secret karela chutney with you guys. This can be stored for 3 to 4 days. This is a perfect side dish to eat not just with rice and parathas but can be used with hot fried snacks.

Ingredients:

    2 medium size  Bitter gourd(karela)

    1 cup   Onions

    1/4 cup Sesame seeds (till)

    3-4   Green chilis

    1/2 cup   Tamarind    

    2 tbsp    Cumin seeds(zeera)

    2-3    Garlic pods

    1 tsp  Oil

    Salt to taste

Tempering:

   2 tbsp  Oil

   1 clove   Garlic

   1 tbsp   mustard seeds

   1 tbsp   cumin seeds
   5-6     Curry leaves
   2-3    Dry red chilies
   Pinch of turmeric

Method:

1.  Roast bitter gourd directly on the stove till it is soft. Then cut the bitter gourd into pieces removing all the seeds.
2.  soak tamarind in little water.
3.  Heat 1/2 tsp oil and add onions, saute till light golden. Almost transparent.

4.  Heat 1/2 tsp of oil and add greenchilies, cumin seeds(zeera), garlic cloves, sesame seeds then roast them. Grind them into a paste.
5.  Add onions and soft tamarind with little water and grind into smooth paste.
6.  To this mixture add bitter gourd pieces and coarsely grind it.
7.  Now make the tempering. Heat oil in pan and add garlic, mustard seeds, cumin seeds when they crackle, add red chili and curry leaves. Add a pinch of turmeric to this.
8.  Add the grounded mixture to the tempering. Add water to make loose consistency.
9.  Cook for 5 minutes and its done.

Tips:

1. Add good amount of tamarind to avoid the bitter taste.

DIY corner wall paper art

Have a corner space in your living room which looks boring? always gets unnoticed? wanna make it bright? who don't like to rite. Here is a simple way you can make the corner beautiful and next time people visit your house they cant just stop appreciating your talent. All you need is few colorful papers of your choice. Lets see in detail how to make this.

Things required:

 --  4 different color sheet of paper
 --  cutting blade
 --  glue

 Directions:

1. Choose any two colors of your choice for flowers and two for branches.

2. Fold the paper in to half three times, now draw a leaf like shape on the folded paper. No artistic experience required you can draw free hand. which should look like this.

3. Now on the right side of the leaf draw and arc reaching to the top of the leaf. Repeat on the other side too. Then cut the leaf and the arc neatly using blade. you will have 6 leafs and 12 arcs .


4. Repeat this same method on different color paper and same color paper to make three flowers of this type.



4. Now draw a heart flower on the paper. If you find difficulty in drawing a flower, you can get flower templates on internet easily. You can use them also. Cut the flower in different colors.




5. Cut this same size flower in different color. making 3 same type of flowers altogether.



6. You can cut different shapes of small and very small size flowers to fill in the sizes of the design.







7. Next fold the paper into four parts to make a flower. Draw a petal on the paper and cut out the petal. Open to see the flower, cut two flowers of same type. With the help of glue stick one flower on the other making a beautiful 2d flower. Curl the petals of the upper flower to give the 2d effect

8. Now when all the flowers are ready. draw branches, cut 3 long same color branches and other small branches of different color attaching the long branch.

Assembling:

1. First with the help of glue stick the three branches as shown in the main design. Then add other small branches.

2. Now assemble the flower and stick on the top branches like this.

3. On the lower branches stick the heart shaped flowers.

4. Extra branches and the spaces can be filled with different flowers of your choice. Make your unique design with different colors and flowers.

5. Place a lamp in the corner to make it more bright and beautiful.

Healthy Indian Masala Quinoa..

I have been thinking of simple quinoa dishes in my purple time which can add  an indian twist and flavor, here i am with my first recipe.  Masala Quinoa is  easy to make and delicious healthy dish made with quinoa. This is a very good healthy option for lunch box. Does not take much time and requires no much cooking experience. this dish is a beautiful blend of indian spices with quinoa giving a lovely flavor to it.

          Preparation time: 15 minutes
          Cooking time : 10 minutes
          Serves : 2

       Ingredients:

         2 cups   Quinoa
         1/2 cup  tomatoes
         1/2 cup  carrots
         1/2 cup  french beans
         1/2 cup  capsicum
         1/2 cup  onions
         2 tbsp   olive oil ( can use any other oil instead)
         1 tsp   ginger garlic paste
         1/2 tsp   red chilli powder
         1/4 tsp  turmeric
         1 tbsp  coriander powder
         1/2 tsp  cumin powder
         salt to taste

     Method:

1. Heat the oil, add onions and fry  till golden brown. Add ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute.

2. Add all the vegetables and saute for 2 minutes. Then add all the dry ingredients ( masalas). cook till the tomatoes are mushy .

3. Add 2 cups water. When the water comes to boil add quinoa.

4. Let it cook for 5 minutes. till all the water is evaporated. Keep stirring in between and mix well.

5. Once the quinoa is cooked its done. Serve hot and eat with raita.

   Tips:

1. Rise the quinoa with cold water properly before adding. It removes the bitterness.

       

QUINOA..,a perfect substitute.

I know this is a bit weird first post of my blog but nothing stuck my mind which is as brilliant as quinoa. My passion for cooking has made me experiment with quinoa and this friendly seed soon became my favorite. Thus i want you all to know about this healthy seed. 

Two years back when i first heard of quinoa, i had this imagination of some vegetable. Later i came to know about this tiny little miraculous grain which has become my favorite these days. This wholegrain is actually not counted with the other cereals this is called pseudocereal. 2013 was named as " the year of quinoa" because of its popularity.

Quinoa is called the super food by nutrition scientists and dietitians in the world because of its nutrition value. Quinoa is high in protein, fiber, minerals and it is also gluten free. This complete protein is great for vegetarians and vegans to get essential protein in daily life and it is also great for people who are dieting, as it is cholesterol free, has dietary fiber and low fat source of protein. Quinoa is low in calories.

Quinoa is twice as high in fiber as most grains like beans and legumes. It is gluten free and considered easy to digest. Quinoa has high anti oxidants that help fight ageing and many diseases. This is called weight loss friendly food because of its proteins which increases metabolism and reduces appetite. This is a source of calcium, high in magnesium and iron.

When cooked its texture is much like cooked rice. Me as an indian has a habit of eating white rice more. I found this grain a perfect substitute for rice. This is much better and high in nutrition value compared to rice. Due to the difficulty in digestion, rice is the cause of obesity and cardio-vascular diseases.

When compared 1 cup of quinoa has 222 calories whereas rice has 205 calories. Quinoa has 39g of carbs where rice has 44.5g. Quinoa has has 8g of protein which is much higher than rice which is 4.3 g. Quinoa has 4g fat where rice has 0.4g. Though quinoa has more total fat which can be overlooked for having more nutrition value. Due to many plus points quinoa is considered as the perfect substitute for rice. Where it is very close between brown rice and quinoa. Which is also a health alternative for quinoa.

Quinoa can be eaten in salad, soups, and cooked in many ways. Many delicious rice dishes can be made with quinoa. This tiny grain has become my new cooking fantasy. Keep looking for many delicious indian quinoa recipes i will be sharing.