10 Health benefits of Turmeric

Turmeric revered in India as "holy powder" or yellow-gold spice has being used for centuries in Indian Cuisine as a seasoning that provides flavor to Indian curries. It has for centuries been an important part of traditional Asian and Ayurvedic medicine used to treat everything from a runny nose to chest pain. 

Turmeric is truely one of nature's most powerful healers. Scientists in Michigan are reporting discovery of the secret behind the fabled healing power of Turmeric. 

1. Small studies have found that curcumin the active ingredient, cuts cholesterol
2. Animal research suggests it inhibits tumor formation.
3. Turmeric is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial agent, useful in disinfecting cuts and burns.
4. It prevented breast cancer from spreading to the lungs in mice.
5. Reduces the risk of childhood leukemia.
6. May prevent and slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease by removing amyloyd plaque buildup in the brain.
7. A new research, just published in the May 2009 issue of The Journal of Nutrition, involving mice provides clues that turmeric could be helpful in the fight against obesity.
8. Speeds up wound healing and assists in remodeling of damaged skin. Also helps in the treatment of psoriasis and other inflammatory skin conditions.
9. Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, it is a natural treatment for arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
10. Now more than a dozen studies in humans are investigating whether it protects against cancer and other diseases like multiple myeloma, pancreatic cancer

Crispy Masala Dosa

Making the Dosa Batter

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups - Idli rice or parboiled rice
• 1/2 cup - Skinless split urad daal (skinless black gram)
• 1/2 teaspoon - Methi seeds (Fenugreek seeds)
• 1/4 cup - Poha (beaten rice)
• 1/4 cup - Cooked rice
• 1/4 teaspoon - Cooking Soda
• 3 to 4 teaspoon - Sugar
• 1 tablespoon - Salt
• 1 handful - Chana dal (Yellow split peas)

Add parboiled rice, methi, poha, cooked rice, yellow spilt peas into one large vessel containing sufficient water for soaking. Then soak urad dal in water in a separate vessel. Soak for 6-7 hours or overnight. 
Then grind the contents from both the containers separately to a smooth paste adding water as required. After grinding the urad dal, add it to the main batter container and mix well. Add water as required until you get a pouring consistency.

Now add sugar, salt, cooking soda and mix well. Cover and keep aside in a warm place for at least 7 hours. During this time the batter raises and reaches approximately two and a half times the original volume. So make sure you use a big enough container for the dosa batter.

Red chili chutney

Ingredients: 

• 1/4 cup - Coconut
• 4 to 5 nos - Red chili
• 1 teaspoon - Roasted split chickpeas
• 4 to 5 - curry leaves
• Tamarind - Size of a grape fruit
• Coriander or cilantro - 1 tablespoon chopped
• Salt to taste

Grind all the above ingredients and make a thick paste as shown in the picture.

Onion Potato Subji or Palya (Dosa Filling)

Ingredients: 

• 4 nos - Potato, medium sized
• 1 to 2 - Onion, medium sized long thinly sliced
• 12 nos - Small green chilies, not to be chopped. Just split them at the center
• 1/4 tsp - Turmeric
• Salt to taste
• 1/4 tsp - Mustard
• 1 tsp - Urad dal (black gram)
• 1 1/4 tsp - Chana dal (yellow split peas)
• 10 nos - Curry leaves
• 2 tbsp - Coriander leaves or Cilantro
• 1 tbsp - Ghee
• 2 tbsp - Oil

Cut the potatoes each into 2 pieces with the skin intact and cook them in a cooker until one whistle. Then peel the skin of the potato and smash or squeeze them coarsely by hand and set aside.

Heat oil in a khadhai or a pan amd add mustard. When the mustard starts popping or bursting add urad dal and chana dal. Keep stirring for a minute and then add onion, curry leaves, green chilies and turmeric. Saute for around 10 minutes. Add Salt and 1/2 cup water and stir well. Add the mashed potato, coriander leaves, ghee and mix well. Now take the pan of the heat and the potato subji is done.

Green Coconut Chutney

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup - Coconut grated
• 3 tbsp - Roasted split chickpeas
• 6 nos - Small Green chili
• 2 pieces - Ginger (small)
• 3 tbsp - Coriander or Cilantro chopped
• Tamarind - size of a grape fruit
• 1/4 tsp - sugar
• Salt to taste

Grind all the above ingredients with a little water into a paste. For tadka add 1 tsp oil, little mustard and few curry leaves in a pan on medium heat. When the mustard starts crackling for a minute add the tadka into the chutney paste and you are done.

Making the Dosa

1. Take a dosa tava or a non-stick pan and put it on a medium to high heat. 

2. Apply few drops of oil on the pan. Take a piece of cloth and rub it all over the surface of the pan to grease it. Do this step for each dosa.

3. Now sprinkle a little bit of water with your hand. Wait for the water to crackle and evaporate. This ensures that the Dosa will spread evenly and not break because the pan is too hot. Do this step for each dosa.

4. Take 1/4 cup of dosa batter and gently pour this batter onto the center of the pan.

5. Now begin to spread the batter in sweeping circular motions to form a circle. Do not be alarmed if the Dosa develops tiny holes as you spread the batter. This is normal.

6. Apply oil and ghee over the surface of the dosa and also around its edges. If you wan tyou can hold the pan by its handle, lift up and swirl it so as to make the drizzled oil spread all over the Dosa.

7. After a minute or two you will see the the thinner part of the dosa is turing dark brown. This indicates that the dosa is coming out crispy and is almost done.

8. Now smear a little bit of the red masala chutney on the dosa as shown in the picture. the quantity of this chutney depends on how spicy you want the dosa to be. 
9. As the last step add the onion potato subji to the center of the dosa and flip the 2 sides of the dosa one over the other such that the subji is covered. The dosa is now ready to be served.

Spicy Chicken Dry

Ingredients 

• Chicken - 1/2 kg or 1.1 lb
• Soya Sauce - 1/2 tsp
• Tomato Ketchup - 1 tsp
• Chilli Powder - 1 tsp
• Tumeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp
• Cinnamon + Cloves (Lavang/Laung) Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Pepper Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Food color - 2 pinch
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Coriander or Cilantro Chopped - 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Preparation Time: 5 minutes 
Cooking Time: 25 minutes 
Serving: 3-4 people 

 Method 

1. Put a non-stick pan or khadhai on medium heat. Add chicken and stir for 2 minutes.
2. Reduce the heat a little and add soya sauce, tomato sauce, chilli powder, turmeric, ginger garlic paste and mix well.
3. After a couple of minutes add salt, cinnamon and cloves powder and food color. Mix well, close the lid and leave it to cook for 15 minutes on low heat.
4. Add coriander leaves and oil. Mix well and wait for 2 minutes.
5. At this stage there will be some liquid from the chicken in the pan. You need to now allow the chicken to cook in its own liquid until all the liquid evaporates.
6. Add pepper powder, mix well. Wait for another minute and the dish is done.

Pepper Chicken Recipe

Ingredients 

• Chicken - 1k.g/2.2lb
• Garlic cloves - 10-15
• Onions, chopped - 1/2 (medium sized)
• Green Chili  - 4
• Curry leaves - 25 individual leaves
• Soya Sauce - 1 1/2 tablespoon (for dark Soya Sauce) or 2 tablespoon (for light colored Soya Sauce)
• Pepper Powder - 1 or 1 1/2 tablespoon
• Lime or Lemon juice - 1 teaspoon
• Ghee - 1 teaspoon
• Oil - 1 teaspoon
• Turmetic powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt to taste
• Coriander or Cilantro for garnish

Preparation Time: 5 minutes 
Cooking time: 30 minutes 
Servings: 4-6 people

Method: 
1. Heat oil and ghee under medium heat in a deep frying pan or khadhai. 
2. Add crushed garlic cloves. Saute and stir for 2 minutes 
3. Add onion, green chillies (vertically sliced) and curry leaves to the mixture. Stir the ingredients for 2 more minutes 
4. Then add chicken and mix the contents of the pan. 
5. Now lower the heat and cover the pan with a lid. Allow the chicken to cook for 10-15 minutes. 
6. Add tumeric, salt to taste and mix it thoroughly 
7. Put the lid back over the pan and cook for 5 more minutes 
8. Add soya sauce and wait for 2 additional minutes 
9. At this moment all the liquid in the pan should have evaporated which indicates that the chicken is fully cooked. 
Note: If there is some liquid left you can increase the heat a little and cook until no liquid is left. 
10.When there is no liquid left in the pan add pepper powder, lemon juice and mix well. 
11.Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot. 
Please follow the method for preparing this recipe exactly in the same sequence as mentioned above for great tasting pepper chicken

Chicken 65

Ingredients:

• Boneless chicken – 1/2 kg
• Egg – 1 no
• Ginger-Garlic paste – 1 tbsp
• Red chilly powder  – 1 tsp
• Red food color – 2 pinch
• Corn flour – 2 tbsp
• Green chilly – 8 no (split)
• Curry leaves – 10 no
• Ginger finely chopped –1 tbsp
• Curd/Yogurt – 1 1/2 cup
• Ajinomoto – 1 pinch
• Black Pepper powder – 1/2 tsp
• Coriander leaves for garnish
• Oil for deep frying
• Salt to taste 

Method:

1. Take a bowl. Add ginger garlic paste, food color, salt, chilly powder, corn-flour, egg, chicken and mix well. Set aside this marinate for half an hour.
2. Take a heavy bottom deep frying pan with sufficient oil.
3. When oil is hot, fry the chicken pieces in batches and set aside.
4. Take another nonstick pan. Put 2 tbsp oil, add finely chopped ginger and fry for 2 min.
5. Put green chilies and sauté for another 2 minutes. Then put curry leaves and fry till curry leaves turn crispy.
6. Add yogurt and cook for a couple of more minutes. When the curd starts to bubble, add salt, ajinomoto , food color and then add the fried chicken. Now increase the heat and mix well.
7. Once you see that the chicken has absorbed 3/4th of the curd, add pepper and mix well.
8. Continue tossing the chicken slowly without breaking them into smaller pieces. I would recommend using a wooden spatula. Toss the chicken until all the curd is absorbed and you are left with almost dry chicken pieces.
9. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Malpoa

100 gm semolina 

300 gm flour 

Oil for frying 

4 large black cardamom seeds 

1/2 kg sugar 

pinch of sodium bi-carbonate .

METHOD:

For the Syrup, in about 2 litres of water add a kg of sugar. Boil the two together and cool and leave aside. The Malpoa will be finally added to this mixture. Mix together the flour and the semolina by adding enough water to make a thick batter and keep it aside for 5-6 hours, as the semolina has to melt. Add the cardamom seeds, a pinch of salt and sugar and sodium bi carbonates and stir well. Heat oil in a small pan. Deep-fry a spoonful of batter at a time into the mildly simmering oil. The batter will spread to make malpoas. Soak the malpoas in the syrup that has already been prepared. Cool it. Remove from the syrup and serve.

Gushtaba....Meatballs in Yogurt Gravy

500 gm mutton-boneless 

1 tbsp ghee(Clarified Butter)

1 tbsp onion paste 

2 tsp sonth (ginger powder) 

1 tsp saunf (fennel seeds)-powdered 

1/4 tsp dalchini - broken into pieces (Cinnamon)

2 badi elaichi - seeds only (Big Cardamom)

salt 1 1/2 tsp or to taste 

500 gm dahi/Yogurt

METHOD:

Pound the meat to a pulp with a mallet or in a grinder.  Mix in 1/8 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp sonth, elaichi powder.  Shape into balls about 2" in diameter.  In a deep pan, boil enough water as will immerse the meatballs.  Add the meatballs and cook them for about 5 minutes, turning them to cook evenly.  Remove the meatballs from the water and keep aside.  Heat ghee in a separate pan and add the dahi.  Saute till a light brown.  Add 3 cups water and add the onion paste, rest of the sonth, saunf, dalchini and salt.  Bring to a boil and add the meatballs, simmer for 15-20 minutes and serve.

Khille hui Khichdee....Rice and Lentils

1 cup basmati rice 

1/4 cup arhar daal 

1/4 cup channa daal 

1/4 cup moong daal 

2 tbsp clarified butter 

1 tsp cumin seeds 

2 bay leaves 

1 tbsp ginger-finely chopped 

1 tbsp salt 

1/2 tsp garam masala 

1/2 tsp chilli powder 

2-3 green chillies-chopped

METHOD:

Soak the rice and daals together for at least 1/2 hour. Drain and keep aside until further use.  Heat ghee in a heavy-based saucepan and add cumin seeds and bay leaves.  When the seeds splutter, add ginger and sauté till a light brown.  Add drained rice mixture, coriander powder, salt, garam masala, chilli powder and stir a few times well mixed.  Sauté over high flame, till excess water dries up.  Add green chillies and 3 1/2 cups water, bring to a boil.  Lower flame, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.  Serve hot, garnished with coriander leaves.