Vendhaya Keerai Sadam / Methi Rice / Fenugreek Rice | Lunch Box Recipes

Variety Rice recipes have become ideal Lunch Box Recipes. I myself have posted more than 20+ variety rice recipes. But we should also consider seasonal factors like peak summer when selecting particular variety rice. Vendhaya keerai / Methi leaves is a coolant and therefore very good for summer. Try atleast once and I am sure you will like it.

Click HERE to view 20+ Lunch Box Recipes.

Recipe Cuisine : South Indian | Recipe Category: Rice / Lunch Box

Preparation Time: 10 mins  | Cooking Time: 20 mins | Serves : 2-3

Ingredients:

Rice	1 cup (1 cup = 200 ml)
Chopped Keerai	1 cup
Chopped Onion	½ cup
Chopped Garlic	¼ cup
Tomato (small size)	1
Turmeric Powder	½ tsp
Sambar Powder (Recipe HERE)	1 – 1 ½ tsp
Salt	As required
To Temper:
Oil	1 tsp
Ghee	2 tbsp
Mustard Seeds	½ tsp
Cumin Seeds	2 tsp

Procedure:

1. Clean and wash the methi greens / fendhaya keerai. Drain the water completely and cut them into small pieces.

2. Heat the oil and ghee in a pressure cooker.

3. Add mustard seeds and wait for popping.

4. Add cumin seeds and wait for splutter.

5. Add chopped garlic and sauté till they become soft.

6. Add chopped onion and sauté till the onions become translucent.

7. Add chopped tomatoes and fry till the tomatoes become mushy.

8. Add chopped greens (from 1) and fry for 2 mins.

9. Add turmeric powder, sambar powder and salt. Mix them wll.

10. Add enough water and rice. Mix them well and pressure cook for one whistle in high flame. Then bring the flame to medium. Then cook for 3 more whistles in medium flame.

11. Allow it to cool down completely. After pressure has gone, open the cooer and mix the rice gently with fork. Again drizzle few drops of ghee if you want.

                  

Yummy and helthy venthaya keerai sadam is ready to serve. erve it hot with Fryums.

Note:

1. As I am using normal rice, I have used Rice to water ratio as 1:3. You should change the ratio according to your rice variety.

2. You can also soak and use the rice. But ensure that you are using the water also instead of throwing it away.

3. I have mixed ghee with the rice for taste. You can use oil if you don’t prepare ghee.

4. You can also use the tender stem also.

5. You can chilli powder and coriander powder instead of sambar powder.

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Keerai – Greens Kootu without Coconut

This is very easy and tasty variant of keerai kootu recipes. This can be done with any keerai/greens variety. The main uniqueness of this recipe is that we do not use coconut unlike others.

Click HERE to view 15+ Greens/Keerai Recipes.

Recipe Cuisine : South Indian | Recipe Category: Side Dish

Preparation Time: 10 mins  | Cooking Time: 15 mins | Yields: 2 cups

Ingredients:

Any Keerai / Greens	2 cups (finely chopped)
Garlic Pods	5
Moong Dal / Paasi Paruppu	¼ cup
Small Tomato	1
Cumin Seeds	2 tsp
Salt	As Required
To Temper:
Coconut Oil	2 tsp
Mustard Seeds	¼ tsp
Green Chilli	2
Chopped Onion	¼ cup

Procedure:

1. Wash and drain the water from the leaves. Then chop the greens into small pieces.

2. Remove the skin of the onion and chop them into small pieces.

3. In a pressure cooker, add chopped greens/keerai, chopped tomato, cumin seeds, washed moong dal, garlic pods and ½ cup of water.

4. Pressure cook them for 1 whistle in a medium flame. After pressure has gone, remove the lid of the cooker and keep it aside.

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

6. Add green chillies (split it into two halves) and chopped onion. Sauté till the onion become translucent.

7. Pour this temper and salt into the cooked greens. Again cook the green for 2 more mins. Add water if needed.

8. Mash them with paruppu maththu (as shown in the pic) or blender.

   

               Healthy and tasty kootu is ready to serve with hot rice.

Note:

1. You can use any greens like thandu keerai, ponnanganni, siru keerai, etc.,

2. Adjust the chilli level according to your taste.

3. I have used Ponnanganni keerai.

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Palak Paratha | Easy Paratha Recipes

This is the best way to introduce greens to the kids. This Palak Paratha is colorful and healthy too.

Check out my other paratha recipes:

1. Spicy Aloo Paratha

2. Carrot Paratha

3. Beetroot Paratha

4. Cabbage Paratha

5. Raw Papaya Paratha

6. Mango Paratha

7. Peas Paratha

8. Baby Corn Paratha

9. Sweet Corn Paratha 

10. Thepla

Recipe Cuisine : North Indian | Recipe Category: Breakfast

Preparation Time: 15 mins  | Cooking Time: 10 mins | Yields: 5-7 parathas

Ingredients:

Wheat Flour	1 cup
Salt	As Required
For Palak Paste:
Oil	1 tsp
Finely Chopped Palak	2 cups
Finely Chopped Coriander	½ cup
Ginger	½ inch
Garlic Pods	5
Green Chilli	1 or 2
Turmeric Powder	½ tsp
For Making Paratha:
Oil	As required

Procedure:

Preparation Procedure:

1. Wash and drain the water from the palak and coriander leaves. Then chop them into fine pieces.

2. Remove the skin of the ginger and chop it into small chunks,

3. Remove the skin of the garlic and chop them into small pieces.

Cooking Procedure:

4. Heat the oil in a pan, add ginger, garlic and green chilies (split it into two halves). Fry till they become translucent.

5. Add chopped palak and fry till the quantity of the palak becomes half.

6. Add chopped coriander leaves and turmeric powder. Sauté for few seconds.

7. Allow this mixture into cool down completely.

8. Grind the palak mixture with little water into a fine paste using the mixi jar.

9. In a wide bowl, add wheat flour and salt. Mix them well.

10. Add palak paste and add water little by little, knead into a soft the dough. Keep it aside for 10 mins. [Wash the mixi jar and use that water also for making dough]

Making Parathas:

11. Now divide the dough  into a lemon size balls.

12. Now dust the dough ball and roll it into a small circle.

13.  Heat the tawa and transfer the palak paratha, sprinkle the oil and cook both sides till the black spots starts.

       

      Really healthy, colorful and tasty Palak Paratha ready to serve. Serve it with Spicy Chutney.

Note:

1.  Adjust the chilli level according to your taste.

2. Adjust the palak level as per your wish.

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Ponnanganni Keerai Chutney / Dwarf Copper Leaf Chutney

How about chutney instead of the regular poriyal from keerai? Ponnanganni keerai chutney is easy to make even with a little keerai. It goes well with idli, dosa and rice also.

Click HERE to view 30+ Chutney recipes.

Recipe Cuisine : South Indian | Recipe Category: Chutney

Preparation Time: 5 mins  | Cooking Time: 10 mins | Yields: 1 cup

Ingredients:

Ponnanganni Leaves	2 handful
Urad Dal	1 tbsp
Chana Dal / Kadalai Paruppuu	1 tbsp
Red Chilli	2-3
Tamarind	Small Gooseberry size
Grated Coconut	¼ cup or equivalent
Salt	Required
Oil	2 tsp
Ghee	1 tbsp

Procedure:

1. Remove the leaves from the stem and wash them thoroughly. Drain the water completely and keep it aside.

2. Heat 2 tsp of oil in a pan, add urad dal and chana dal. Fry till they become golden in color.

3. Then add red chillies and fry for a minute. Switch off the flame, then add tamarind and fry again for few seconds.

4. Transfer this mixture into a plate and allow it to cool down completely.

5. In the same pan, add ghee and fry the ponnanganni leaves till the color of the leaves go pale. Switch off the flame and allow it to cool down.

6. Grind the dal mixture (from 3) without water using a dry mixie jar.

7. Then add coconut and fried greens (from 5). Grind them into a paste using little water.

     Healthy and delicious Ponnaganni Keerai Chutney is ready to serve with Idli, Dosai and Rice.

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Mudakkathan Keerai Aappam / Ballon Vine Leaves Aappam

Mudakkathan dosai is very famous by Galatta movie. But many kids are not having it eventhough it is healthy. I tried mudakkathan appam with my kids and they had it without objection. I think this is a good try. Note that mudakku aruththan keerai means joint pain remover.

Click HERE to view more aappam varieties.
Click HERE to view Mudakkathan keerai Dosai.

Recipe Cuisine : South Indian| Recipe Category: Breakfast

Preparation Time: 10 mins  | Cooking Time: 10 mins | Yields: 5-7 appam

Ingredients:

Aappam  Batter (click here to view appam batter recipe)	1 cup
Ballon Vine / Mudakkaththan Keerai	2 cup
Oil	For making appam

Procedure:

1. Wash and grind the leaves with mixie jar.

2. Then add little water and grind them into a fine paste.

3. Strain the juice using the juice strainer.

4. Now add the appam batter and mudakkathan juice in a bowl. Mix them well and keep it aside for 5-10 mins.

5. Heat the aappam pan and pour few drops of oil. Then pour a ladle full of batter into the pan. Now rotate the pan in a circular motion, so that the batter spread all over the pan. See the video for how to make aappam.

6. Now pour few drops of oil and close the lid of the pan. Cook for 2-3 mins or tillt the aappam is cooed well.

7. Then take it out from the pan and serve.

                        This goes well with carrot chutney.

How to make Aappam?

How to make Flower Aappam?

Note:

1. Don't add more water to grind.

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Manathakkali Keerai Kootu / Black Night Shade / Sunberry Leaves Curry

Normally we use moong dal for preparing keerai kootu. But in this recipe we use thur dal instead of moong dal. The goodness of this recipe is that it hides the bitterness of the keerai completely.

Click HERE to view more Greens / Keerai Recipe.

Ingredients:

Keerai Leaves	2 handful
Thoor Dal / Thuvaram Paruppu	3 tbsp
Sambar Onion	10
Tomato	1
Green Chilli	1
Salt	As required
To Temper:
Coconut Oil	1 tsp
Mustard Seeds	¼ tsp
Red Chilli	1

Procedure:

1. Wash and pressure cook the dal with ¼ cup of water for 2 whistles in high flame. Keep it aside.

2. Wash the leaves and onions.

3. In a vessel, add manathakkali leaves, onion, chopped tomato, green chilli and ½ cup of water.

4. Cook them well till the greens become tender.

5. Mash them well with hand blender ( paruppu maththu).

6. Then add the cooked dal with water and salt to the mashed greens.

7. Cook them well till they incorporate well.

8. Meanwhile, in a pan add a tsp of oil. Add mustard seeds and wait for popping.

9. Then add the whole red chilli and fry till the chilli become crisp.

10. Pour this temper into the dal mixture (from 7) and cook for few more mins.

     Healthy and tasty manathakkali keeri kootu ready!

Note:

1. Adjust the green chilli level according to your taste.

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