Qatar Karak Tea

Recently I have started trying various tea recipes. I tried Qatar Karak Tea and it was really good. The major difference of Qatar Karak Tea from other tea recipes is that we use condensed milk instead of normal milk.

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Recipe Cuisine : International / Qatar | Recipe Category: Beverages

Preparation Time: 2 mins  | Cooking Time: 10 mins | Yields: 3 cups

Ingredients:

Water	2 cups ( 1 cup = 200 ml)
Tea Leaves / Tea Powders	1 tsp
Cardamom	1
Condensed Milk (Recipe HERE)	¼ cup
Sugar	1 tsp

Procedure:

1. Heat the water in a bowl and bring it into boil.

2. Put the tea leaves and crushed cardamom. Close the lid of the pan.

3. Allow it to boil for 2-3 mins. Keep the flame at medium.

4. Then strain the tea using the tea strainer.

5. Add sugar and condensed milk. Mix them well and again boil them for 2 mins.

       Yummy and delicious hot Qatar Karak Tea is ready! 

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Ragi Carrot Roti / Finger Millet Carrot Roti | Millet Recipes

Ragi roti is normally made without mixing any vegetables. I added carrot which makes the roti more colorful and attractive. Recently we have starting having Ragi Roti as a full  meal instead of snack only as it is a good healthy dish.

Click HERE to view 50+ Millet Recipes.

Full Video Recipe:

Recipe Cuisine : Indian| Recipe Category: Roti

Preparation Time: 10 mins  | Cooking Time: 5 mins | Yields: 10 nos.

Ingredients:

Ragi Flour	2 cups
Finely Chopped Onion	½ - ¾ cup
Grated Carrot	½ cup
Chopped Green Chilli	2
Chopped Curry Leaves	1 tbsp
Chopped Coriander Leaves	1 tbsp
Cumin Seeds	2 tsp
Salt	As required
Oil	As required (for cook the roti)
Water	1 cup

Procedure:

1. In a wide bowl, add ragi flour, carrot, onion, curry leaves, coriander leaves, green chillies, cumin seeds and salt.

2. Mix them with the wire wish or with your fingers.

3. Add water little by little and knead it into a soft and pliable dough.  Keep it aside for 5-10 mins.

4. Divide the dough into tomato size balls.

5. Spread over few drops of oil on the plastic sheet or banana leaf.

6. Now place the dough on the sheet and flatten the ball using the fingers. [Grease your fingers with oil].

7. Now heat the tawa and place rotti on the tawa. Pour oil along the sides of the rotti.

8. Cook both sides of the roti till black spots appear on it.

      Hot hot healthy finger millet carrot roti is ready! Serve with tomato chutney.

Note:

1. Ensure that the consistency of the dough is neither too loose nor too tight.

2.  You can add red chillies instead of green chillies. 

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White Kurma / Vellai Kuruma | Side Dish for Chapathi

This is a traditional recipe followed in my family circle. This is a very good combination for Idiyappam, chapathi and parathas. The color and creamy texture makes it very tempting.

Full Video Recipe:

Recipe Cuisine : South Indian | Recipe Category: Side Dish

Preparation Time: 10 mins  | Cooking Time: 15 mins | Serves: 4-5

Ingredients:

Vegetables:
Carrot	1
Beans	15 nos
Green Peas	½ cup
Potato	1
To Grind into Paste:
Grated Coconut or equivalent	½ cup
Cashew Nuts	15
Green Chilli	1
Ginger	1 inch
Garlic	3 pods
Fennel Seeds	1 tsp
Poppy Seeds	½ tsp
Cinnamon Stick	1 inch
Cloves	2
Cardamom	1
To Temper:
Oil	2 tsp
Cumin Seeds	1 tsp
Bay Leaf	1
Curry Leaves	1 spring
Onion	1
To thicken the gravy:
Corn Flour / Maida	1 tbp
Water	3 tbsp
To Garnish:
Finely Chopped Coriander Leaves	1 tbsp

Procedure:

1. Peel the skin of the carrot and cut it into small pieces.

2. Cut the head and tail of the beans. Then chop them into small pieces.

3. Peel the skin of the potato and cut it into ½ inch pieces.

4. Remove the skin of the onion and cut it into small pieces.

5. Pressure cook the vegetables (carrot, beans, peas, potato) with ¼ cup of water for 1 whistle in a high flame. Keep it aside.

6. Meanwhile, grind the (coconut, cashew nuts, fennel seeds, poppy seeds, green chillies, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, ginger and garlic ) into fine paste using little water. Keep it aside.

7. Heat the oil in a thick bottom pan, add cumin seeds and wait for popping.

8. Add bay leaf and curry leaves. Sauté till the curry leaves become crispy.

9. Add onion and sauté till they become translucent.

10. Add ground paste (from 6) and required water. Sauté till the raw smell goes off. It will take 3-4  mins.

11. Now add the cooked vegetables ( from 5) and salt. Mix them well. Close the lid of the pan and cook for 2 more mins.

12. Take corn flour and mix with water without lumps.

13. Pour this corn flour paste into the above vegetable gravy (from 11) and mix them well.

14. Coo for a min or till the gravy becomes thick.  

15. Switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves.

Note:

1. You should ensure that the quantity of chopped vegetables together amounts to 2 cups for this recipe.

2. Adjust the green chilli level according to your spice level

3. Vegetables can be any of your choice.

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Tomato Thokku / Thakkali Thokku | Easy Side Dish Recipes

Tomato thokku is a very popular side dish across India. There are many variations sometime based on region. One of my friends suggested a variant with few ingredients not used regularly. The taste was so good that the thokku vanished in a moment when I served it to my family.

Recipe Cuisine : South Indian | Recipe Category: Side Dish

Preparation Time: 10 mins  | Cooking Time: 20 mins | Serves: 4

Ingredients:

Onion	4
Tomato (big size)	4
Oil	2 tbsp
Cinnamon	1 inch stick
Cloves	2
Red Chilli Powder	2 tsp
Turmeric Powder	½ tsp
Fennel Powder	1 tsp
Salt	As required
Chopped Coriander Leaves	1 tbsp

Procedure:

1. Remove the skin of the onion and cut them into thin slices. Keep it aside.

2. Wash and chop the tomatoes into small pieces.

3. Grind the chopped tomatoes into coarse paste using the mixie. Keep it aside.

4. Heat the oil in a heavy bottom pan. Add cinnamon and cloves. Leave it for few seconds.

5. Add chopped onion (from 1) and little bit salt. Sauté  them well till the onion becomes translucent.

6. Add ground tomato paste (from 3), red chilli powder, turmeric powder, fennel powder and salt. Mix them well.

7. Close the lid of the pan and cook till the raw smell goes off and also the mixture becomes thick. Keep the flame at low throughout the process.

8. Finally, add the chopped coriander leaves and mix them well. Switch off the flame and transfer to serving bowl.

     Wooow, yummy and delicious tomato thokku / thakkali thokku is ready to serve with dosai, roti, chapathi etc.,

Note:

1. You should not add water.

2. You should not grind the tomatoes into fine paste.

3. Adjust the spice level according to you taste.

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Fresh Turmeric Root Kuzhambu / Manjal Kizhangu Kuzhambu | Fresh Turmeric Root Recipes

We all buy fresh turmeric / manjal koththu as a part of Pongal or Sankaranthi items. But we mostly don’t use it for anything. Why not try my village side recipe which uses fresh turmeric just like ginger? Try this without fail and give me your feedback. My family loved it very much.

Recipe Cuisine : South Indian | Recipe Category: Kuzhambu

Preparation Time: 5 mins  | Cooking Time: 15-20 mins | Yields: 1 cup

Ingredients:

Fresh Turmeric Root / Fresh Manjal Kizhangu	3 – (2 inch pieces )
Tamarind	Gooseberry size
Oil ( sesame / ground nut oil)	2 tbsp
Mustard Seeds	¼ tsp
Fenugreek Seeds	½ tsp
Cumin Seeds	1 tsp
Curry Leaves	1 spring
Garlic Pods	5
Sambar Onion	10
Sambar Powder	2 tbsp
Salt	As Required
Jaggery	Small Gooseberry size

Procedure:

1. Soak the tamarind the water and extract the juice from it.

2. Remove the skin of the turmeric root and wash them thoroughly. Then cut them into thin slices and keep it aside.

3. Remove the skin of the garlic pods and cut them into ¼ inch slices.

4. Remove the skin of the onion and cut them into small pieces.

5. Heat the oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and wait for popping.

6. Add fenugreek seeds and fry for 10 seconds.

7. Add cumin seeds and wait for spluttering.

8. Add curry leaves and sauté them till they become crisp.

9. Add garlic pods (from 3) and fry for a min.

10. Add onion (from 4) and fry for a min.

11. Add turmeric root (from 2) and fry till the onions become translucent.

12. Add tamarind water (from 1), sambar powder, required water and salt. Mix them well. Close the lid of the pan and cook till the turmeric root becomes tender.

13. Finally, add the jaggery and mix them well till the jaggery melts completely.

    Healthy and aromatic turmeric root kuzhambu / fresh manjal kuzhambu is ready to serve with hot rice.

Note:

1. Instead of sambar powder you can use red chilli and coriander powders.

2. Add big onion instead of small onion. But small onion gives more taste than big one.

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