Tag: Cooking Health

Ingredients:

Raw rice and black gram (black lentils) – equal quantities if you’re using a blender, or 3:1 if you’re grinding by hand

1. Soak rice and black gram in separate containers for at least 4 hours.
2. If using unpeeled gram, squeeze and knead the lentils in the water repeatedly until the black skins come off (leaving the skin on will make it bitter).
3. Grind or blend the black gram until foamy. To test the consistency, dip a finger in the ground lentils and blow on it gently – frothy bubbles should come away.
4. Add the rice and grind/blend together. (Optional: you can add a spoonful of fenugreek here if you like.) When mixture is the consistency of pancake batter, leave overnight.
5. If you don’t have a non-stick pan, use a bit of coconut fibre oil to grease the pan (or any edible oil). Then spoon batter onto pan and cook like a pancake, flipping once to cook each side.
6. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 cup wheat flour
Water
Salt

Filling:

½ coconut, grated (or 1 cup dessicated coconut)
4 tablespoons melted jaggery
2 ground cardamom pods, or 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1. Mix the flour with enough water to make a batter of the same consistency as pancakes. Add a pinch of salt. (Optional: You can add some sugar to the batter if you like, or some grated coconut.)
2. To make the filling, mix together the grated coconut and the melted jaggery. Add the ground cardamom. (Another option: You can also make it with cardamom, cumin seeds and dried ginger. Grind all ingredients together.)
3. Pour the batter onto a heated, oiled frying pan. After the first side is cooked, flip, and then flip again once the second side is done. Take a spatula and mark a line that bisects the pancake. Fill the upper half with filling and then fold the bottom half over.
4. Ready to eat!

Ingredients

Equal quantities cucumber and banana
Coconut milk, buttermilk (not the sour kind), or curd
Sugar

1. Cut the cucumber and banana into small 5mm cubes.
2. Add the coconut milk, buttermilk or curd.
3. Add a pinch of sugar, to taste.

Ingredients:

300g raw rice
100g green lentils
3 brown onions, chopped
Handful of curry leaves
½ tablespoon cumin seeds
½ tablespoon garam masala
2 teaspoons coriander powder
¼ teaspoon turmeric

1. Soak the raw rice and the lentils together for around 3 hours.
2. Heat a bit of oil in a pressure cooker on the stove. Add the cumin seeds. When they start to pop, add the chopped brown onions and then the other spices. Fry for a few minutes.
3. Drain the rice and lentils. Add them to the pressure cooker and stir until everything is combined. Then add water until it covers the mixture completely (about one thumbnail above the level top of the mixture). Add salt and stir. Taste to check the balance of flavours.
4. Replace lid and return to heat. Kichdi will be cooked after three whistles of the pressure cooker, or about 15 minutes.

Ingredients:

1kg of small bananas, unpeeled
5 tablespoons jaggery (or unrefined brown sugar), melted
1 teaspoon natural vanilla essence
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Wash the unpeeled bananas. Steam, either by placing in an empty receptacle and then topping up with boiling water, or by using a vegetable steamer. Leave to cool.
2. When cold, peel and add the melted jaggery and other spices. Mix well in a blender.
3. Place the mixture in a vessel and heat, stirring, for 15 – 30 minutes, until as much liquid as possible has evaporated.
4. Ready to eat!

N.B. Banana jam will only keep for about 3 days.