Soy Chunks Dhanshak, Brown rice and Kachumber

Dhanshak is a Parsees all time favorite and must have Sunday Lunch. Its not at all complicated just a long list of ingredients but it will be done in no time. Generally it's with Mutton (Lamb /Goat) or Chicken too. So give that feeling I made it with Soy chunks along with vegetables. 

Dhan mean grains so it has rice and different lentils, shak means vegetables so mix of grains and vegetables and you have a feast. Its traditionally served with brown rice, kachumber and kababs too. 

For brown rice traditionally they brown the sugar so that gives the nice brown color but I dont like the sweet so I added soy sauce and that was giving me umami while it was cooking and flavor was spot on. 

so let's start

Dhan Shak Ingredients : 

Pulses

2 cup Tuver dal - split  chickpea yellow lentils

1/2 cup masor dal - red split lentils

1/4 cup Chana Dal 

1/4 cup Mung dal - Yellow Split lentils

Vegetables :

1 cup diced pumpkin or sweet potatoes

1/2 cup greens - either methi , spinach, kale

handful chopped mint leaves

1 green onion chopped

2 chopped tomato

1 potato cut in big chunks

1 large red onions sliced thinly

1 cup chopped eggplant

2 green chilies or as per our spice level

1 cup soaked and dry soy chunks

handful chopped coriander leaves

Spices : 

1 tbsp. Turmeric Powder

1 tbsp. Cumin and coriander powder

1 tbsp. Ground ginger garlic paste

1 tbsp. Kashmiri red chili powder

1/2 tbsp. Red Chili powder

3 tbsp. oil 

Salt as per taste

Method :

Wash all lentils and soaked separately at least for 2 hours. 

Before use it , wash again and keep it aside. 

Heat a pressure cooker and add oil in it. 

Fry the onions until its brown , then add green chilies, and ginger garlic paste, cook till raw smells goes away. Then add all spices and mix it and cook for a minute on low flame.

Add all the vegetables and mix it with the spices. Check the seasoning as per your taste.

 Leave some coriander leaves for garnished. 

Add dal in it and add enough water to cover the dals and vegetables. Pressure cook till 3 whistle. 

Let the air pressure goes normally. 

By the time let's make the rice. 

Rice Ingredients :

2 cup rice

1 chopped  red onion

1 Bay leaf

2 green whole cardamom pods

3 cloves

1 tsp. cumin seeds

salt as per taste , we are going to use soy sauce too so don't add more taste

instead of water, you can use vegetable stock for more flavor

1 tsp. Soy sauce , if you want to use sugar, then skip this and 2 tsp. sugar

1 tbsp. oil

Method :

Wash and soak the rice for 2 hours too. 

In a big pan, add oil and fry the onions till its brown. 

If you are adding sugar, take out the onion and in the same pan add sugar and caramelized it. 

Add a cup of hot water and melt the sugar and then add the fried onions back.

If you are not using sugar then after frying the onions, Add rice in it and stir for about 5 minutes. 

Add the whole spices in it and cook for a minute. 

Now add 3 and half cups of warm water / stock and salt. 

Once it comes to boil, lower the flame and cook the rice  till the water is absorbed and its cooked. 

ALWAYS , allows the rice to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving. 

Let's make kachumber : 

Kachumber (Red onion, tomato and cucumber salad)

1 medium red onions finely sliced or matchstick slices, what ever way you prefer, make sure you do the same way for tomato and cucumber too

1 tomato chopped

1 small green chili chopped

salt  as per taste

Lime juice as per taste

1 tsp. olive or vegetable oil

fresh chopped mint and coriander leaves

Method:

Chopped all vegetables and herbs and all the salt, lime juice and oil and mix it and serve it with the dhan shak platter 

Rice 

Kachumber 

Nuchinunde with Hingu oil - Steamed Lentil dumpling with Asafetida oil

So This recipe is basically from Karnataka , and its healthy, less oil and steamed so what not to like about it. Its basically Gujju's deep fried dalwada answer by South in a Steamed version, Since it has lot of lentils, it usually eaten with Asafetida oil , you can have it with coconut chutney or Majjige huli , which is again curry based on coconut milk with vegetables similar process to Gujarati kadhi but added coconut milk and vegetables. I had it with hingu oil since it was fast and new way to had it. 

I was craving for dalwada but was not interested in deep fried version so this was so long on to do list so made it and enjoyed it, it was good while it was out of the steamer as well as cold too. 

To crush the dals, it totally up to you to finely crushed or coarse. I like it little coarse so I keep it that way. 

You can adjust the spice level as per your liking.

Keep in mind you are working with lentils since once you soaked it , it will double in size so you can adjust the quantities as per your need. 

Ingredients for lentil dumpling: 

1/2 cup Chana dal

1/2 cup split mung dal with chilka

1/2 cup coconut

2 tbsp. fresh coriander leaves

few fresh curry leaves

1 inch ginger finely chopped

2 green chilies slit

1 tsp whole jeera

pinch of hing

Salt as per the taste

Half white onion cut it in cubes

Ingredient for Hing oil

3 tbsp. oil

1/2 tsp hing

Method 

In a bowl take the dal and washed it nicely till the water is clean

then add enough water and soak for 4-5 hours.

Drain off the water from the dal and transfer to the grinder, along with all the ingredients mentioned in ingredients for dumplings

Without adding water make a coarse paste.

Now heat the steamer with water and grease the plate with oil on which you are going to put the balls.

Mix all the ingredients and make a cylindrical shape.

Place it in the steamer leaving enough space in between the balls.

Steam for 15 to 20 minutes or until its cooked completely.

When its done, take it out and enjoy with any chutney, majjige huli or the way I had it hingu oil 

Recipe for the hingu oil - In small pan, add the oil, when  oil is warm, add hing in it and mix it and shut off the gas and take the oil in bowl. and enjoy it with Nuchin unde. 

Sambar Sadam / Sambar Rice

I love this combo of sambar and rice so when I had a chance to make it I made and enjoyed it. There is a lot of ways to make sambar rice which also known as Sambar Sadam in TN. Sambar rice is nothing but a mixture of dal, rice, vegetables, and spices. It's a very delicious, quick and yummy dish. It goes perfectly with pickle and rice papad.

You can use small grain rice or the mixture of white and brown or you can mix other grains like quinoa or foxtail millets also. I just used basmati since that's the only rice I stored.

This recipe is not one pot dish but the flavor is amazing. You can just have as it is or when you have a company you can make some Kesari, medu vada or appe and you have a full dish.

Ingredients : 

1/4 cup Tuver dal (you can use little mung dal too)
1/2  cup Rice
2 cups of water
Few curry leaves
One pinch of Hing
2 tbsp oil/ghee
Few sticks of drumsticks 3 inches long
1 Tomato chopped
Few dried red chilies
1 tsp. Mustard seeds
1 tsp. Jeera
1 Onion chopped
!tbsp. Turmeric powder
1/2 cup Mixed vegetables (I used frozen )
Tamarind water - As per taste
Salt as per taste
2 tbsp. Sambar power


Method : 

Wash and clean rice and dal and put it in a pressure cooker with 2 cups of water. Cooked on medium flame till 2 whistles.

Let the pressure go out by itself.

When the pressure release, just slightly mash the cooked rice and dal.

Heat oil/ghee in a pan, add mustard seeds, when it crackles, add jeera, dried red chilies, curry leaves, and hing.  Add onions and cook its little pink.

Now add all vegetables and cook for few minutes.

Add tomatoes with Turmeric powder and cook till it's become little mushy.

Add a cup of water and cook till all the vegetables are cook.

When vegetables are cooked, add tamarind water, salt and sambar masala.

Cook for 5 minutes.

Now add mashed dal and rice.

Stir well to combine rice and dal and liquid mix, taste and adjust salt and spices.

If needed add more water to get the right consistency. When it starts to bubble switch off the gas.

Served hot with rice papad and pickle.

Vegetable Sambar & Rice

It was a quick but nice meal so instead of just posting pictures I thought let me put down the recipe so when I share the pictures , people asked for recipe and I don't have to write it down, just post a link. So here is sambar with loads of vegetables and peas rice so you won't miss side vegetable dish.

Rice :

1 cup basmati rice
1/4 cup frozen peas
Salt as per taste
1 tsp. oil
1 tsp. jeera
Few whole black pepper corn

Method:

Heat a medium pan, add oil in it, add jeera and pepper corns , wait till pepper popps and jeera changed the color , add washed and soaked rice and peas , salt and mix it nicely, add enough water to cook , cover and let it cook. When the rice is puffed up and no water left, shut off the flame.

Vegetable Sambar :

1 cup tuvar dal
1 tsp. Fenugreek seeds / methi dana
1 onion
1 tomato, few drumsticks, 1/4 cup pumpkin, 1 small eggplant
1 tbsp. chili, ginger, garlic paste
3 tbsp. sambar powder
salt to taste
1 tsp. Mustard seeds / rai
2 dry red chili
1 tbsp. red chili powder
1 tbsp. turmeric powder
small pea sized ball of tamarind paste
few curry leaves
1 tsp. urad dal
pinch of hing
2 tbsp. oil

Method:

Pressure cook the tuvar dal with fenugreek seeds and all the vegetables in it.
Keep it aside.
Take a big pan, add oil in it.
Add mustard seeds, when its popped, add curry leaves, urad dal , dry red chili , hing.
Add onion , cook it for 2 minutes, add tomatoes and cook for 3-4 minutes until both is soft.
Add all powder masala, both paste and boiled dal.
Add enough water and let it boil.
You need to boil this on low to medium flame for 8-10 minute. The more its boil , the taste will be awesome.
When its done, sprinkle coriander leaves.

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Root Vegetables Biryani with Spicy Dal

Here we go, once again I was alone for dinner, so first thing , I soak up rice for biryani, because hubby dear don't like white rice and I just love biryanis. Back home before all this multi cuisine came, three decades ago, every  Christian marriages we had , we had mutton or chicken biryani with spicy dal and Mohanthal, that's perfect wedding lunch or dinner. So I never like biryani with raita, cause never had it or like it . While making this biryani wanted to have that same dal so soaked tuver dal too. I used to drink four or five bowls of that dal in marriages, that much I used to love it. So this was perfect time for me to little over indulge on my favorite dish. But instead of same vegetables, I use root vegetables in it , It was something different but delicious. You can take your favorite and available vegetables.

Ingredients :

2 cups of Root vegetables  - cubes ( I take carrot, turnip, suran, regular potatoes, sweet potatoes, few florets of cauliflower - just had to use it so)
4 cups of cooked and cool basmati rice
1 onion chopped
each of whole garam masala ( bay leaf, star anise, big and small elaichi, few black peppercorns, few cloves)
salt to taste
2 tbsp each grated ginger, garlic
2 chopped green chilies
few strings of mint leaves
3 tsp Ghee /oil or mix
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp red chili powder
1 tbsp. cumin-coriander powder
1 tsp. garam masala powder
OR you can use just packet biryani masala too.

Method:

Soak two cups rice in water for 1/2 hour. then cooked with plenty of water with salt in it and when its done, strain it and let it cool.
In a big pan, add oil or Ghee. Add whole spices, when you get nice aroma of the masala, add onion, and cook till its brown.
Add ginger, garlic, chilies , turmeric powder, chili powder, cumin -coriander powder, garam masala and mix it.
Add all the root vegetables and salt for the vegetables only and water to cook the vegetables.
You have to cook all the vegetables and there has to be no water in it. Vegetable mixture should be dry.
When its done, add the rice in it and mix it very gently.
Add few chopped leaves of mint in it and cover it and let it cook on very low flame for 5-10 minutes. Just to mix the flavor.
When its 10 minutes, shut off the gas, don't take the lid off. Just leave it as it is till you are ready for diner.

Spicy Dal

Ingredients :

1 cup tuver dal - yellow split pigeon lentils
1 onion chopped
2 tbsp. tomato puree
1 tbsp. 3G paste (ginger, garlic, chili)
1 tbsp. cumin coriander powder
2 tbsp. red chili powder - I said spicy dal so
1 tsp. turmeric powder
salt to taste
1 tsp. Cumin seeds
2 tbsp oil
coriander leaves for garnish

Method:

Take a pressure cooker, add oil in it.
Add cumin seeds, when its brown, add onion in it.
Cook till its brown.
Add puree, paste, all powder masala and mix it and cook it for a minute.
Add washed and soaked dal , salt and enough water to cook dal.
Put the pressure on and cook it till 3-4 whistles.
You need your dal to cook completely.
Once its done and pressure is out, take the lid off, mashed it and make it nice consistency.
Sprinkle coriander leaves.
Take your biryani, make a well in it and put the dal in it and serve it with lachha onion to enjoy your diner.

As I told you, I had it with my biryani , dal and lachha onions.

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