Okra - Potato Stir Fry

The idea of mixing okra and potato came to me from a Raghavan Iyer cookbook, but I decided to make it dry. This was the first time I made it and the one lesson I learnt is that this subji should be made in great quantities if you want to get any share of it, which says a lot about its taste.

Here's how I made it:

Tender okra - caps cut off and halved lenght-wise
Red potata - cut into fngers
Tempering - oil, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafotida, chopped curry leaves, turmeric pwd
Other seasonings - salt, cumin pwd, coriander pwd, red chilli pwd, amchoor pwd
some more oil to shallow fry
chopped cilantro for garnish

Take some oil in a wide shallow wok, fry the okra for 15 mins on medium heat, stirring now & then. Drain the okra and fry the potatoes in the same oil. You can add a little more oil if required for frying. Drain the potatoes. At this stage, both the okra and potatoes should be well cooked but firm.

Make the tempering by heating the oil, then adding the mustard seeds. When they stop spluttering, add the other ingredients. Saute few seconds.

Then add the fried okra and potatoes. Add the seasonings to taste. Mix gently and let it heat thru.

Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve.

This Okra-Potato Stir Fry goes well with rotis and rice.

Penne in Ricotta Sauce

I got this recipe while browsing thru a bookstore. I was looking for a way to use up some left over ricotta cheese and this recipe fit the bill perfectly.

Here's how I made it:

1 cup whole wheat penne pasta cooked per package directions & drained (reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water)

For the sauce - Saute onions and garlic in olive oil until fragrant, abt 5 mins. Add roughly chopped spinach and chopped sun dried tomatoes. Cook till spinach wilts. Take off heat, add the ricotta cheese, salt, pepper, Mrs. Dash seasoning (or any other per choice) and about 1/4 cup of the water in which the pasta was cooked. Stir well to make a sauce like consistency. Adjust seasoning if needed.

Pour the ricotta sauce over the pasta. Serve warm with some garlic bread.

Tofu Omelette

This recipe idea is courtesy of a lovely lady I bumped into the other day at Trader Joes. We just got talking and she gave me some wonderful tofu recipe ideas. I did not waste any time in trying this out.

Here's how I made the tofu omelette:

1/2 block soft tofu
1/2 cup semolina/rawa
Seasoning to taste - salt, red chilli pwd/green chilli paste
Veggies to add - onions, bell peppers, spinach, tomatoes, cilantro - all finely chopped

Mix all the ingredients, add abt 1/2 cup water to make a batter. Pour 1 ladleful on a hot pan and drizzle a few drops of oil. Roast until golden brown, flip and roast similarly on the other side.

Serve with ketchup or chutney.

The batter

Omelette being roasted

Omelette being roasted