soak for 2-3 hrs in hot water Hi! The recipe to make dal is very simple. As north indian dal is everyday's dish. U can just presoak the dal in hot water for 3-4 hrs if possible. But if its not possible just soak in very hot water for 1/2 hour. Just boil the dal with salt, red chilli powder and turmeric powder. Once its done put tadka in it. for tadka heat one tablespoon of oil add some cumin seeds to it and just put this tadka in dal. for masala tadka in heated oil put cumin seeds, chopped onion and brown the onions and then add ginger and garlic paste(garlic is optional) and tomatoes saute it till it becomes like mashed gravy type then put some more red chilli powder into it and finish it with garam masala. Add this tadka into any kind of daal. Serve hot daal with any kind of rice.
soak overnight Clean and soak the dal overnight in 4 cups of water. In the morning add a pinch of salt, turmeric and a few drops of oil. Pressure cook - let it whistle atleast eight times. Season and garnish. This is a basic dal recipe. If you like while pressure cooking you can add finely chopped garlic, ginger and chopped onions and tomatoes. Happy cooking! Sharada
wipe dry Wipe the bhendis dry. In a kadai put 2-3 tbsp oil. When it's hot add haldi, jeera and chopped bhendi. After a few minutes add juice of one lemon or 1/2 tsp amchur powder and stir on low flame for a few minutes. Cover and let it cook on simmer for 10 minutes. Add masalas - garam masala, red chilli powder and stir. When it's cooked add salt to taste. For the sambhar don't cook bhendi with the dal. Fry separately, add tamarind juice, sambhar masala and salt. When this boils add the dal. I hope all this works for you! Another recipe for u to try. Bhendi Raita Deep fry 1/2 kg bhendi and drain excess oil on a tissue/newspaper. Then add red chilli powder, garam masala and salt and mix well. Add to thick curds, garnish with coriander leaves. This goes well with pulaos, pulyogre etc. Sharada
To cook in a hurry! Hello Sharika, Whenever I am in a hurry to make pulses like chana, Rajma etc. or when I forget to soak them overnight, I just put the them in a flask full of boiling water for an hour or two hours & then they are ready for cooking. May be you can try the same with daal. Happy Cooking!
cookin dhal well Hello Sharika, Soak 1 cup dhal in 3 cups of boiling water for 1 hr in a closed vessel. Put this vessel inside a pressurecooker,add haldi & 1/2 tsp castor oil(yes!) & start cooking. When the 1st whistle comes decrease the gas to sim & cook for 10 mts. Switch off & open after 1/2 an hour. Dhal will be nicely cooked. Mash witha potato masher, cool & refrigerate. Use as & when necessary. CV.
To retain green colour of vegetables Dear Neha, If you microwave the vegetables with 1 tbsp of water, partially covering the container, the colour will be retained. In fact spinach will be so beautifully green that you will be surprised. Another method is faster - in a small 2 - 3 litre pressurepan pressurecook the vegetables with 1 tbsp of water for just 1 whistle - immediately switch off. After 2 mts try lifting the weight slowly & take it off. The vegetables will be cooked well & the colour will also be retained. cv
How to make perfect pasta? My kid loves pasta a lot and I want to cook pasta frequently. I follow the instructions for the amount of water, cooking time, etc. as given in the pasta pack to cook it, but many times it turns out be disastrous! It gets overcooked and if I get very conscious about it, it turns out to be undercooked and sometimes stuck together as a mass. Please do share any practical tips to be followed for cooking the pasta just right!
cooking pasta Hi sheeba Put the pasta in boiling water with a dash of salt and some drops of oil and keep testing the pasta. half a packet of pasta will take around 7 - 10 minutes to cook properly. Once u remove it off the fire, make sure u drain the hot water and run the pasta under cold water. Then ur pasta will not be sticky. I make it this way and it comes out well. hope this helps!!
Always add pasta to boiling water! Hi Sheeba, Add pasta to the water once it comes to full boil. The starch in the pasta gets released when you put in water that is yet to come to boil. Because of the starch that acts as glue, they tend to get stuck to each other. Also, keep stirring the pasta in the intervals of 3-4 minutes and then close and allow it come to boil again. Prathi, I do cook the pasta exactly the same way you had mentioned, except for running the pasta under cold water at the end. I remember reading in some health site, that running the pasta under water will wash away the nutrients from it :? . So I just drain the boiled water and leave it to cool in a colander.
To cook 1 cup of pasta, atleast 3 cups of water should be boiled with 1/2 tsp salt & 1sp oil. When water starts boiling add pasta & do not slow down the stove.Let it boil well for 5-7 mts (this depends on the size & thickness of pasta & also whether you prefer it very soft). Drain immediately,rinse under tap. Now mix a little oil in the cold pasta & spread it on a plate or shallow container. Mixing a little oil (or smearing oil on pasta) keeps the pasta without sticking to eachother.
