One thing I love about Singapore is the availability of Indian seasonal vegetables. There’s no way I could have had access to these gorgeous red winter carrots from Delhi if I were in Kerala but here, you get them throughout the season time in India. Using these red carrots gives the Carrot Halwa a lovely depth in colour and flavour. If you can’t find Delhi carrots where you live or they are not in season, you can substitute regular carrots in a pinch....

The merciless Hyderabad summer has started and temperatures can sore to upto 38 degrees centrigrade. There is no escaping it and weekends are even more horrid cuz you just don’t feel like stepping out of the house. Moreover, it differs from the Kerala summers to which I am used to. In Hyderabad, its hot, but not humid. The sun will scorch your skin and leave you completely dehydrated. Buttermilk is known for its hydrating and refreshing properties....

Pin Then, of course, the stir fried bean sprouts. Pin One of my faves. Fish Otah (aka otak-otak). Its mashed, spiced and steamed fish in banana leaves. It looks like raw fish marinated in masala, I know. But you have to taste this to see how awesome fish can taste. Really! Ocean Curry Fish Head place has one of the best otahs I have tried. Pin Pin Ocean Curry Fish Head 181 Telok Ayer Street S(068529) Tel: 6324 9226 C losest MRT: Tanjong Pagar Avg cost per person: 12-14 SGD...

I love all things citrusy and making a juice of orange with some drops of lemon and sugar just seemed like a welcome change to the usual tea we have in the evenings. This orange lemon juice was born out of necessity though. The other day, we saw this huge orange being sold in a supermarket nearby. When I say huge, I mean huge - almost three times the size of a regular orange....

Learn how to make restaurant-style Paneer Shashlik , a sizzler-special paneer starter, at home using this easy recipe. Paneer Shashlik is similar to Paneer Tikka and usually made in a tandoor or on a sizzler plate. This is an easier version we can make at home without any special equipment. Paneer Shashlik is a slightly lesser known paneer starter that’s usually served on a sizzler plate on skewers. I have tasted Paneer Shashlik sizzlers many times but never attempted to make it at home until my brother happened to sign me up for a cooking demo by " big chef Naushad" , who is a popular chef and caterer in Kerala known for his original recipes, especially biryani....

Pin So let’s check out how to prepare a simple vegetable rice with whatever vegetables you have lying around in your fridge. A great way to use up leftovers and also get a nutritious meal for you and your family. Simple Vegetable Rice Recipe Pin So let’s check out how to prepare a simple vegetable rice with whatever vegetables you have lying around in your fridge. A great way to use up leftovers and also get a nutritious meal for you and your family....

Sugar cookies are very simple to make and just involve the usual suspects in a cookie, mainly flour, sugar, butter, eggs, and some flavouring, usually vanilla. These cookies just take the humble sugar cookies up a notch by being two-toned and looking so darn cute. I only had to go out and buy red food colouring, the rest of the ingredients were ready to go in my pantry. You also need two cookie cutters (any shape will do) of different sizes....

Tamarind rice or puli sadam, a much simpler version of the popular puliyodharai sans spices. Learn how to make this super easy tamarind rice recipe that’s perfect to pack on train journeys (my favourite!) or lunch boxes. Pin Tamarind rice recipe Ingredients Instructions Growing up, I ate a lot more of this tamarind rice than puliyodharai. As an ardent fan of any “South Indian variety rice”, I loved my tamarind rice with a generous amount of roasted peanuts and a beautiful tangy flavour....

Roast, cool and grind together: Coriander seeds / malli – 2 tbsp Grated coconut (fresh or frozen) - 2 tbsp Chana dal – 1 tbsp Dried red chillies – 6 Fenugreek seeds / methi seeds / uluva / menthayam – ¼ teaspoon (or a little less) Curry leaves - a few Oil - 1 tsp Instructions: Pressure cook the dal in 3 cups water for 3 whistles. Roast and grind the masala mix and set aside....

Pin Pin This is what I ended up with. Like I said, it was pretty darn close in taste to the original thing I had in the restaurant. Here’s how: Beetroot Rocket Salad with Brie Serves 2 What I Used: 4 cups lightly packed rocket lettuce leaves 1 small beetroot, cubed and steamed until cooked yet firm Brie cheese cut into small pieces Toasted sunflower seeds (the original recipe used pine nuts) For the dressing: 2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil ½ teaspoon sugar A pinch of salt Toss the salad leaves and other ingredients together....

Chutney Podi made with coconut is a staple in my home and is often called Thavana Podi. It’s quite similar to the Kerala Chammanthi Podi that’s mixed with rice but this Chutney Powder recipe has an Andhra twist to it too. Every visit back to Kottayam sees amma cooking up masala podis, dosa and idli podi , pulusu podi which I use for vatha kuzhambu , and this Thavana Podi or Chutney Podi which TH loves with curd rice....

Pin Then my rasam became okay. That was before I devised this recipe. I stripped down all rasam recipes and came up with this uber simple recipe that really cannot go wrong. (TH actually makes better rasam but he has to add tomatoes to it). And Dal? What dal? I never add dal to rasam unless I am making this version which I call parippu rasam . So in a nutshell, this rasam recipe goes against most Brahmin rules of making rasam:...

You need to use ethappazham or nentran pazham for this snack since those are the bananas that work well for this. So try to get ripe ethappazham to make ghee-roasted bananas. If you like snacks with bananas, try out these banana chips made in the microwave or koftas with plantain . Ghee Roasted Bananans Ingredients: Ethappazham/nenthrapazham : 2 Ghee : 4-5 tbsp Sugar : to sprinkle How to make Ghee-Roasted Bananas:...

About once a month, TH and I have sandwiches for dinner. It’s just one of those inexplicable things we do. One of our favourites is always the sandwiches with pudina chutney. Since I got a mint plant for my balcony, there’s no dearth of fresh mint and I love using fresh herbs in my cooking. Well, don’t we all? This is a quick sandwich recipe that works great for a picnic, tiffin box, or even brunch or tea party....

This Kerala Chicken Roast Recipe is a family favourite which Amma’s friend makes and sends over whenever us kids visit Kottayam. It is a semi-gravy chicken recipe so there’s enough to mop up with your appam and the gravy also has tons of onions. The fiery red colour and the delicious gravy of the chicken curry is sure to impress you as well. Visits to Kottayam always involve a lot of great food....

So here’s the Typical Kerala breakfast dish that’s very healthy and very filling - Wheat Puttu or Steamed Wheat Cakes. Puttu was originally made with rice flour but later, more healthier options like wheat flour, raagi and even mixed grains powder was used to prepare it. Its normally made in a puttu kutti, a vessel specially available for this. Its a cylindrical vessel with two portions, the bottom part to hold the water and the top to hold the flour....

I can’t believe its been a month since I updated something in here but I am super happy I have a fantastic review sent by Madhuri on her LG Convection Oven. Before you read on, here are a couple of articles you may find useful: Types of Ovens - Samsung Convection Oven Review Over to Mads! I’ve spent a better part of my life baking, thanks to the baking bug running in the family....

The chocolate pistachio fudge especially struck me because its a no-bake fudge recipe. Any fudge that doesn’t required you to cook it or bake it has to be a winner, right? This one sure is! Looking for more no-bake recipes? Check out this list of easy no-bake dessert recipes . This no-bake chocolate fudge only needs 4 ingredients. How much easier can it get? Oh and also, I hadn’t used pistachios in my baking before this....

What I Used: Spinach/Palak - 1 cup, chopped What I Used: Spinach/Palak - 1 cup, chopped

Paneer Paratha is a popular Punjabi paratha recipe. A delicious double-layer of paratha filled with spiced paneer or cottage cheese is our idea of bliss for a weekend meal. Learn how to make easy Punjabi paneer parathas using this easy step by step recipe. I learnt how to make parathas quite late in life - especially the stuffed parathas like aloo paratha . When I tried gobi paratha for the first time, I used a different technique (check the post to see what I did) since I was worried my parathas will tear and all the filling will spill out, ruining my parathas and so, dinner for that night....