It was quite a challenge to plan a good menu today as I had very limited quantity and choice of vegetables in the fridge. Apart from onions and tomatoes, I had a small piece of bottle gourd( suraikai in Tamil/ lauki in Hindi), one radish, 2 capsicums, one cucumber and 2 carrots.
Usually, for lunch it will be mostly our traditional South Indian menu. But today, I couldn’t come up with any good South Indian menu with the limited vegetables that I had.
So decided to make bottle gourd and radish paratha, a mixed vegetable gravy using carrot and capsicum, salad and raitha.
Bottle gourd and Radish Paratha
Capsicum and Carrot in Coconut and Peanut Gravy
Cucumber and Pomegranate Raitha
Salad
Tempered Curd Rice
Ginger Pickle
Ghajak( it’s a sweet made of sesame seeds and jaggery. A speciality from Rajasthan)
Bottle gourd and Radish Paratha
Ingredients
Grated bottle gourd- 1 1/2 cups
Grated radish- 1/2 cup
Whole wheat flour- 2 1/2 cups
Melted ghee- 1 tsp
Ajwain( omam in Tamil/ dil in English)- 1 tsp
Jeera powder- 1 tsp
Chilli powder- 1/4th tsp
Dry mango powder- 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste.
Ghee to make the parathas
Method
Mix grated bottle gourd and radish with salt and keep it aside for 15-20 mins.
After 20 mins, squeeze the water from the grated vegetables, drain and keep it aside.
Add whole wheat flour, 1 tsp melted ghee, salt to taste, jeera powder, chilli powder, dry mango powder to the vegetables and knead everything to a smooth dough. If water is required use the water that was drained from the vegetables.
Let the dough rest for 10-15 mins.
Make parathas after 15 mins.
You can make 8-10 parathas.
https://anubala29blog.wordpress.com/2015/02/26/bottle-gourd-and-radish-paratha/
Capsicum and carrot in coconut and peanut gravy
Capsicum- 2
Carrot- 2
Onion- 2
Tomato- 3
Oil- 1 tbsp+ 2 tsps
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder- 1/2 tsp
Jeera powder- 1 tsp
Coriander powder- 1 tsp
Dry mango powder- 1/2 tsp
Grated jaggery- 1 tsp
To roast
Urad dal- 1 tsp
Chana dal- 1 tsp
Sesame seeds- 1 tsp
Jeera- 1/2 tsp
Red chillies- 5-6
Peanuts- 1/4th cup
Grated coconut- 1/4th cup
Mustard- 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds- 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves- few
Hing- 1/8th tsp
Coriander leaves for garnish.
Method
Dice all the vegetables.
Roast urad, chana dal, sesame, jeera, red chillies and peanuts in a tsp of oil. Cool and grind it to a paste along with the grated coconut.
Heat oil in a pan.
Add the diced onions. Sauté till becomes pink. Add the carrots and cook for few mins. Add the capsicum and sauté for few more mins. Now add the tomatoes, salt to taste, turmeric, chilli, jeera, coriander and dry mango powder. Mix well. Add 1/2 cup of water, cover the pan and cook till the vegetables become tender.
Mix the ground the paste with 1 cup of water and add it to the vegetables. Mix well and check the seasoning. Add more water if required. Close the pan again and simmer for 10 mins.
Heat oil. Add mustard. Once it starts spluttering, add curry leaves and hing.
Pour the tempering over the gravy. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with the parathas.
https://anubala29blog.wordpress.com/2015/02/14/capsicum-and-carrot-in-coconut-and-peanut-gravy/
Cucumber and Pomegranate Raitha.
Ingredients
Grated cucumber- 1 cup
Pomegranate- 1/2 cup
Salt to taste
Roasted jeera powder- 1/4th tsp
Chilli powder- 1/4th tsp
Sugar- 1/2 tsp
Garam masala- 1/4th tsp
Well beaten yogurt- 1 1/2 cups
Mix everything together and serve chilled.
