Geetha's Kitchen

Happy New Year Everyone! May your lives be blessed with good health, peace, love, joy and laughter everyday of the new year! Here is a delicious Black-eyed peas dish to begin the New Year! Szechuan pepper (Fagara) is not really part of the pepper family but the berries from prickly ash trees. Japanese sansho is a close relative of fagara. Fagara is not hot like pepper but has a pungent flavor. It is used in Indian, Nepalese, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean cuisines. This stew can be made two ways - with or without garlic. Fagara is available for purchase in Asian and Indian markets. If fagara is not readily available, it is no matter; just omit and proceed with the rest of the ingredients and you will still have a fabulous stew. Dessicated (dry, unsweetened) coconut may be used instead of fresh or frozen; use about half as much as the fresh. 4 Servings Ingredients: 1 cup dry Black-eyed peas 1 tsp instant Tamarind paste 1/2 cup fresh grated coconut (or frozen) 2 dried Red Chile 1...

A delicious stew from Kerala, Erisseri is a traditional dish for major holidays and feasts. It can be prepared with flavorful ripe pumpkins or green immature ones! My favorite erisseri was my grandmother's green pumpkin erisseri with green and shelled karamani beans. But do not , I do mean do not make it with the Jack-O-Lantern type of pumpkins whether they are orange or white as they are not flavorful at all - been there, done that :D. Pumpkins, unripe Jack Fruit, Moringa pods, Elephant Yam, etc are traditional veggies used to make this delicious stew. Yard Long beans are also added to pumpkin or yam erisseri when available. Various winter and summer squashes and chayote also make good erisseri veggies. Karamani are red cow peas labeled as "red chori beans" at the Indian markets. Black eyed peas or Azuki beans may be use instead of red chori beans. 4 - 6 Servings Ingredients: 1/2 small Pumpkin (about 2 cups) 1/2 cup Red Chori/Azuki Beans/Black-eyed peas 1 tsp Sea Sa...

When we have a thogayal for a meal, one of the frequently asked questions is "whose tholi (skin or peel) thogayal is it today?" ;D. Luscious thogayals are often made with tender skins or innards of veggies when a recipe calls for peeling or hollowing them and you don't want to throw away perfectly good and nutritious scraps. Today's thogayal utilizes the skin of peerkankai; when the ridge gourds are peeled for dishes like masiyal , some of the flesh is peeled away as well - what a waste of good food! This tasty thogayal is very similar to Pumpkin Thogayal . Of course, it goes without saying that the whole veggie may be used to make the thogayal as well. Other vegetables that make great thogayal are carrots, eggplants, various winter/summer squashes. We love to spread this chutney (and others) on toast; it makes a wonderful savory breakfast or snack. It is also great as a sandwich spread and a delicious dip for fresh breads. Ingredients: Peels of 1 or 2 Peerkankai ...

Stir-fried green beans are a family favorite. Fresh or frozen green beans can be utilized to make this dish. Served over brown rice or other grains, it is a filling and nutritious dish. It is adapted from The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook. Since we did not have hoisin sauce in my pantry, we devised a substitute. A quick hoisin sauce can be made from simple everyday ingredients if you don't have a prepared one in stock or cannot run out to the store to get one. It is surprisingly simple and quite good. We made it based on a recipe Chellu found on food dot com. Hoisin sauce does double duty as a condiment with snacks or as a stir-fry sauce. Enjoy! Kecap manis is a sweet, thick Indonesian soy sauce; kecap manis, chile sauce, toasted sesame oil etc are available in Asian markets and sometimes in supermarkets also. In case kecap manis is not available, use more of the soy sauce instead. Ingredients for Hoisin sauce: About 1/2 cup sauce 3 Tbsp each regular Soy Sauce and K...