Broccoli Salad

Broccoli, to my knowledge is the most nutritious vegetable. It is rich in vitamin C, which aids iron absorption in our body. The folic acid in broccoli helps to sustain normal tissue growth and prevents hair loss. The potassium in broccoli aids those battling high blood pressure. The vegetable is also fiber-rich, which enhances the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, as well as aims to reduce blood cholesterol levels.

Indole-3-carbinol a component found in broccoli, promotes "good" hormones, while working against destructive ones, hence prevents hormone-related cancers, such as breast and prostate cancer.

Best way to cook broccoli is blanching, spices like garlic, ginger, lemon and chili flakes goes well with this vegetable. I try to take it as salad along with other vegetables and legumes, soups, stir fry (Broccoli with 3 color peppers is a good combination), add to noodles or vegetable fried rice.

Ingredients

Serves 2-3

200g Broccoli Florets – Blanched

50g pitted black olives sliced

100g sweet corn thawed and blanched

1 Onion thinly sliced

100g boiled black eyed peas

1 celery stick diced

100g cherry tomato

For Dressing

1 tbsp lime juice

1 tsp chili flakes

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

1 tsp minced garlic and ginger

Salt and pepper to taste

(Mix them all and set aside)

Method

Add all grains and vegetables, drizzle dressing over vegetables. Mix them well, serve immediately.

Stir-fried Tofu with Peppers

My prayers and good wishes to all affected people in Japan ! God.....please give strength to cope with this situation. Stop worrying, it won't help those who are suffering.

Tofu is not my favorite food, but I still try to take it due to its health benefits.. I make stir fried dishes, or add tofu to noodles or fried rice or soups.

Tofu is an excellent source of protein for vegetarians, also is a great source of calcium and iron. Regular intake of tofu helps to reduce serum cholesterol, Low Density Lipoprotein LDL (bad cholesterol) and triglyceride concentrations. Tofu is an essential ingredient in oriental cuisine, but increasingly becoming popular among western vegetarians.

This is a mildly spicy stir fried dish with three colored peppers, good to serve with rice or noodles. It takes only few minutes to prepare this wholesome dish.

Ingredients
Serves 2-3


100g firm tofu – cut into cube size
¼ of each green, red and yellow peppers – thinly sliced
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
50g shitake mushrooms thinly sliced
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp chili flakes
1 tbsp tomato puree
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt to taste


Method


Heat oil in a pan, sauté garlic ginger for a minute. Add tofu, mushrooms stir fry for 5 minutes. When they turn into golden brown color, add soy sauce and tomato puree stir well.

Add chili flakes, salt to taste. Remove from heat and serve with your choice of main meal.

Lemon Rice with Vegetables

If you’re bored of regular rice and curry meal, this variation is a must try. Lemon is a staple in my kitchen. Lemon flavored rice with vegetables is a good way of taking less carb’s and more healthy vegetables. Just this rice and your choice of pickles or chutney is a complete meal. I usually have this with Ruchi South Indian pickle and low fat yogurt.


Ingredients
Serves 2-3
100g Ponni / Basmati/ Samba Rice washed
100g Frozen mix vegetables, thawed
1 lemon juice
1 tsp of each mustard and fennel seeds
2 tbsp vegetable oil
4 dry red chili chopped
1 large potato diced
1 tbsp yellow split peas
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 onion diced
Few curry leaves
Salt to taste


Method


Wash rice and add to rice cooker with water. Water has to be 2  times of  rice amount(Example 2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice, for Basmati it has to be 1 ½ times)

Heat oil in a large pan, add mustard, fennel seeds, yellow split peas, curry leaves and dry red chilies. Sauté for 2 minutes.


Add onion, diced potatoes, turmeric powder and salt stir well, close the lid, cook in low heat till potatoes are soft.


Separately place thawed frozen vegetables in hot water for a minute, drain them and set aside.


When rice is cooked, sprinkle lime juice, mix well using wooden spoon and let it dry.


Add rice and  mix vegetables to large pan, mix well. Serve with pickle or chutney.

Dhall (Red Lentil) Curry

Lentils are an excellent of source of protein for vegetarians and vegans of the world. Lentils are very rich in protein, folic acid, Vitamin C , B and contain eight of the essential amino acids. Although lentils are high in protein, they’re not a complete protein source since they lack two essential amino acids – lysine and isoleucine. For this reason, it’s important to eat lentils with another complimentary plant protein such as brown rice or a protein-rich whole grain to supply the missing amino acids needed to make a complete protein source.


Ingredients
Serves 4-5


100g red lentils washed
1 tsp of each mustard, fenugreek and fennel seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp curry powder
2 green/red chilies chopped
Pinch of asafetida powder (optional)
1 small onion diced
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
Few curry leaves and 1 pandan (Rampe) leaf
200ml low fat milk / 100 ml reduced fat coconut cream
1 tbsp ghee (optional)
Salt to taste
1 tbsp lemon juice


Method


In a pan add washed red lentils, onion, garlic, ginger, green chilies, curry leaves, pandan leaf, turmeric, mustard, fennel, fenugreek seeds, asafetida powder and 200ml water. Mix well, close the lid. Boil for 5-10 minutes until lentils are soft.


Add curry powder, milk and salt to taste. Stir well boil for few more minutes.
Turn off heat add ghee and lemon juice.


Serve with rice or bread or roti.


PsN - Thanks Zen of RAWk Me! for awarding this blog.

Lemon Grass and Vegetable Soup

The Lemon grass is a good cleanser that helps to detoxify the Liver, pancreas, kidney, bladder and the digestive tract. It cuts down uric acid, cholesterol, excess fats and other toxins in the body while stimulating digestion, blood circulation, and lactation; it also alleviates indigestion and gastroenteritis. Also, it can reduce blood pressure. Lemon grass, when boiled contains high amounts of beta-carotene; the powerful anti-oxidant that helps to prevent cancer.

Ingredients
Serves 2-3
1 vegetable soup cube
1 bowl of vegetables, like celery, cabbage, carrot, tofu, green and red chili, mushroom - diced
Lemon Juice
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
Salt to taste
2 lemon grass sticks cut into 4 inches length
1 tsp corn flour mixed in cold water
For garnishing
Few spring onion diced
Coriander leaves finely chopped

Method


Heat oil in a pan, sauté garlic and ginger for a minute. Add vegetables, stock cube and lemon grass, stir for 2-3 minutes.


Add one bowl of water, cover the pan with lid and boil the soup for 5-10 minutes till vegetables are tender.


When soup is simmering add corn flour mixture, and salt to taste stir for 2 minutes. Turn off heat add lemon juice and salt to taste.


Ladle soup into bowls garnish with coriander and spring onion.

Kidney Bean Risotto

Kidney beans are known for their high folate, protein and mineral content. High levels of magnesium found in the kidney beans provide added cardiovascular health benefits. Since these are high in proteins, they make good meat substitutes for vegetarians. These can be cooked with pastas, brown rice or added to salads; one can enjoy eating these rich protein sources without worrying about the calories.

Ingredients
Serves 2-3


2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion diced
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
2 tbsp tomato puree
100g rice washed
200 g boiled / canned kidney beans
1 vegetable soup cube
Salt and pepper
 2 red chilies diced
1 celery stalk diced
5-6 chestnut mushrooms thinly sliced
Minced parsley for garnish
50g grated cheese / soy cheese


Method
Heat oil in a large pan. Add onion, garlic and ginger cook for 2 minutes. Add celery, mushroom, rice and stir for 2 minutes till grains are coated with oil.


Add stock cube, 200 ml water, salt and bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes, until rice is cooked and liquid is absorbed.


Add kidney beans, red chili’s. Season with salt and pepper, stir well. Serve them in bowl and garnish with grated cheese and minced parsley.

Oyster Mushroom Spicy Stir-fry

Oyster mushrooms are packed with protein, vitamin B and C. These mushrooms are also rich in mineral salts that our body needs. The iron, phosphorous and calcium in these mushrooms is double that of chicken, pork and beef. It is also believed that vitamin B3 in these mushrooms is five to ten times higher as in any other vegetable.


Ingredients
Serves 3-4
500g Oyster Mushroom (wash them in water, squeeze water, then tear them into thin strips including stems. Cut off edges of the stems)
1 Large onion thinly sliced
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
4 tbsp vegetable oil
Few curry leaves
2 tbsp pepper
1 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
½ lemon juice

Method
Heat oil in a large pan, add onion, curry leaves, garlic ginger, and oyster mushrooms. Sauté for few minutes.


When mushrooms starts to wilt, add turmeric powder, salt, pepper. Cook stirring occasionally for 10 more minutes.


Once mushrooms are cooked and turns to crispy golden brown colour, add soy sauce, curry powder and mix well. Turn off heat sprinkle some lemon juice.


Serve with rice / noodles / choice of main meal.

Tabbouleh Style Salad

Slight variation is applied to this Middle Eastern salad by replacing bulgar with pasta. Parmesan cheese and sweet corn is added to enhance flavor and to make it a wholesome main meal.


Ingredients
Serves 2-3


50g pasta
50g de-frozen sweet corn
100g boiled / canned chickpeas
2 spring onions, finely chopped
1 Japanese cucumber, diced
1 large tomato, diced
2 tbsp finely chopped mint leaves
2 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
1 green chili finely chopped
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 garlic clove crushed
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Handful of roasted pine nuts
50g parmesan cheese grated / Soy Cheese 


Method


Boil water in a sauce pan, when water starts boiling add salt and pasta, cook for 15 minutes till pasta is soft. Drain water and set aside.


Mix pasta with all other ingredients with a wooden spoon and serve immediately.

Peas, Rice and Asparagus Stew

Ingredients
Serves 2-3


100g de-frozen green peas
100g asparagus, trimmed cut into 3 cm lengths
100g French beans, trimmed cut into 3cm lengths
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tbsp curry powder
1 vegetable soup cube
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion finely chopped
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
100g red/white rice - washed
100g grated parmesan cheese / soy cheese


Method


Heat oil in a large pan, sauté onion, garlic ginger for 2 minutes. Add washed rice, salt, turmeric, soup cube, curry powder and stir well till rice is mixed with spices.


Add 2 bowls of water, lower the heat, close the lid, and boil for 30 minutes till rice is cooked.


Separately blanch greens, by boiling water in a sauce pan, when water is boiling add salt, French beans and asparagus; let it boil for 2 minutes. Finally add green peas, leave it for a minute. Drain all vegetables, wash them in cold water and set aside.


When rice is cooked, turn off heat, stir blanched greens and grated Parmesan cheese. Mix well and serve immediately.

Mock Fish Curry

This is a meatless delight for vegetarians / vegans craving for chewy and meaty texture dishes. Similar to mock fish there are other vegetarian mock items such as chicken, lamb, duck, beef, drumstick, prawns etc.,  Mock meat dishes can be tried at Chinese Vegetarian Restaurants and in Singapore and Malaysia certain Indian restaurants serve them cooked in Indian style. Mock meat can be bought in Chinese super markets.


Ingredients
Serves 4-5


To marinate
500g Mock fish cut into 3” size slices
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp tomato puree
2 tbsp plain yoghurt


To make curry
1 onion diced
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
Few curry leaves
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
2 tbsp tomato puree
100ml yoghurt
100 ml milk
1 tbsp tamarind paste
300ml water
100ml vegetable oil
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves for garnishing


Method


Mix soy sauce, tomato puree and yoghurt to make a paste. Add mock fish pieces and marinate for 30 minutes.


In large pan heat oil, add mock fish in batches, deep fry till skin is golden brown. Drain with slotted spoon, and leave them to dry in kitchen towels.


To make curry, heat remaining oil in a pan, add onion, garlic ginger, curry leaves, mustard, fenugreek and fennel seeds sauté for a minute.


Add yoghurt, tamarind paste, tomato puree, curry powder, chili powder. Stir for 2 minutes till it forms a thick paste. Add milk, water and salt to taste. Close the lid let it boil for few minutes.


When gravy starts simmering, add fried mock fish, mix well.


Garnish with fresh coriander leaves. Serve with rice /bread /roti /chapathi.

Bitter Gourd Fry

Bitter gourds are very low in calories but dense with precious nutrients.  It is an excellent source of vitamins B1, B2, and B3, C, magnesium, folic acid, zinc, phosphorus, manganese, and has high dietary fiber.  It is rich in iron, contains twice the beta-carotene of broccoli, twice the calcium of spinach, and twice the potassium of a banana.


Ingredients
Serves 2-3


3 small bitter gourds, de-seeded thinly diced
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp toor dhal ( yellow split peas)
Few curry leaves
1 onion, chopped
1 tbsp minced garlic and ginger
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp tamarind paste
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp ghee (optional)


Method
Mix diced bitter gourd with salt and turmeric powder. Set aside in colander for 10 minutes.


Heat oil in a pan, sauté onion, garlic ginger, curry leaves, yellow split peas, mustard and fennel seeds for 2 minutes.


Squeeze the bitter gourd to drain excess water. Add bitter gourd and cook for 5 minutes stirring occasionally.


When bitter gourd softens and changes to golden brown color, add curry powder, tamarind paste and sugar, mix well and cook for few more minutes till vegetable absorbs the spices.


Turn off heat, add ghee, salt to taste, mix well, and serve with rice

French Onion Soup

This is perhaps the most famous of all onion soups. Non-alcoholic variation is tried to this western recipe replacing wine and brandy with curry powder to infuse spicy flavor. Yes it worked and was delicious.


Ingredients
Serves 2-3
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp vegetable oil
5 large onions, sliced
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1 vegetable soup cube
2 tbsp curry powder
50g grated cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

For the roasted bread
2-3 slices of French bread
Garlic butter
50g cheese grated


Method


Heat butter and oil in a large pan; add onions, salt, sugar and vinegar. Sauté stirring occasionally for 10 minutes till onion turns to golden color. Add all purpose flour, thyme and curry powder, stir for few more minutes.


Add soup cube and one bowl of water, bring to boil. When soup starts simmering, season with salt and grated cheese. Mix well and turn off heat.


To make the toast, spread garlic butter to bread, sprinkle cheese, toast in oven for 5 minutes.


Ladle soup into bowls serve with toasted bread.

Okra (Lady’s Fingers) Curry

Okara (Lady’s Fingers) these hairy and sticky vegetable helps to relieve constipation and sticky substance in okra is used to treat gastric ulcer. It’s a good source of soluble fiber which helps in controlling the cholesterol level.


Serves 2-3
Ingredients


200g okra wash & slice diagonally
2 green chilies sliced diagonally
1 onion diced
Few curry leaves
Pinch of turmeric powder
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp curry powder
Salt to taste
200ml low fat milk / 100ml coconut cream
1 tomato roughly chopped
1 tbsp lemon juice


Method


Add all ingredients in a large wok, except lemon juice. Cover the lid and cook for 5 minutes till okra is soft.


Turn off heat, mix lemon juice and serve with rice.

Jamie Oliver’s Leeks and Chickpea Soup

C

Serve’s 2

Ingredients

1 medium size leek stick chopped

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 onion chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic & ginger

100g boiled chickpeas

2 tsp corn flour mixed in cold water

1 vegetable soup cube

Parsley for garnishing

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Heat oil in a large pan, sauté onion, garlic, and ginger for a minute. Add chopped leeks, soup cube sauté till leeks are wilted turns to golden colour. Add one bowl of water and boil for about 5 minutes.

When the soup starts simmering, add corn flour mixture stir well. Add boiled chickpeas, salt and pepper to taste.

Ladle in soup bowls and garnish with parsley.

Carrot Sambol (Salad)

Carrot has high content of vitamins A, B and beta carotene which prevents night blindness. Best to take carrots in raw form as salads.


Ingredients
Serves 2-3


1 large carrot grated into thin strips
1 onion diced
Handful of curry leaves thinly sliced
1 of each fresh green and red chili finely sliced
2 tbsp low fat yoghurt (optional)
1 tsp lemon juice
Salt to taste


Method


Mix all ingredients in a bowl, serve immediately with rice.