Mamma's Pineapple Lemon Rice

Raised in Southern India, my carb of choice has to be hands-down, Rice.
Every vegetable or meat cooked in our home was designed to be eaten with rice or a rice flour dish. That kind of carb dependence takes a lot of years to outgrow, you know?!
I was lucky enough to be exposed to the melting pot of Indian cultures that is Mumbai where I kicked my rice dependency and happily embraced the flat-breads, fried breads and mainly, wheat!
But even then, my reboot meal remains rice.  Sometimes in my enthusiasm or distracted moments, I overestimate the amount of rice to cook. Mostly I cook a little extra because I love my leftovers. After a tiring day at the gym, or running too many errands for the kids, I would like to make a small meal of leftovers.
Now, this post is all about those says when you dont get to utilize those leftovers. In my mind, I always connect Lemon rice to our Summer Vacations. Mom always made a tangy, zesty lemon rice when she made too much rice or for the long train trips during Summer. Summer vacations meant taking a long, two-day ride in a chugging, diesel-engine train, all the way to the lower tip of the country, in sweltering heat.Budgets were low and outside food from peeps who didnt speak a language we could understand was out of the family rule book. So Mom made tried and tested menu items for the first day in the train. Nothing perishable could withstand the second day of the trip, when the bogeys turned into ovens and baked everything inside under the hot Andhra sun.  Mom's lemon rice was a life saver for the first day. She would also deep fry marinated Tuna pieces that had to be finished on the first day. She would make oil packed lemon pickles and Ginger in tamarind and jaggery, too. The next day there would be bread (which would be baked drier even in its unopened packing in the heat) and a jar of Kissan mixed fruit jam, to ease it down.
It may sound like the worst trip, but the kids had the most fun in those trips. We made new friends, sang and played, and climbed up and down the sleeper berth ladders a gazillion times while the grownups took a break from all the worrying and work and settled down to read or take naps. All of us looked forward to these trips, in short!
My Mom's lemon rice had been an inspiration to me always. She made it with almost al-dente rice, never sticky and tinged with that gorgeous yellow color from the turmeric. The tangy, comforting taste of the tempered rice always brings back a rush of childhood memories with it, that never fails to bring a smile to me.

Lemon Rice, made my Mom's way, served with my Chilli Chicken Curry. Mmmm, Heaven, I tell ya! 

A few days back, hubby brought home a huge pineapple, in season, from Costco. I had been looking at Pineapple recipes since that morning, but for some reason couldnt get my mind off Mom's lemon rice. Putting one and one together, I decided to make something different, yet simple for dinner and that is how this recipe was born.
So here goes:

Ingredients:-
2 cups Sona Masoori rice, cooked in 4 cups of water, and 1 tsp of salt and cooled. (you may also use leftover rice, from previous night)
2 cups (small) diced, ripe pineapples
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 sprig curry leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp split black gram
1 or 2 dry red chillies
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tbsp oil

Method:-
In a large nonstick pan, heat oil and temper the mustard seeds, black gram, curry leaves and dry red chillies in that order. Stir in the turmeric and add the diced pineapple. Add a tsp of salt. Saute until tender.
When the pineapple pieces are no longer crunchy, add the rice half cup at a time and incorporate into the tempering mix. Add lemon juice, salt and a tsp of sugar and stir well until well combined. Now cover and cook on low heat until the lid is steamed well. Takes about 15 minutes.

Serve warm, with a Spicy Chilli Chicken Curry or Cashew Chicken Curry or Mamma's Whole Chicken Curry in a Tomato Gravy.
It goes very well with Spicy Vegetarian Sides like Rajma, Chole or Paneer curries.

Enjoy!!! :-)

Mamma's Mutton Curry

In my personal opinion, Mutton or Goat Meat has one of the cleanest flavors out of any other meats. My Mutton Curry is the combination based on the Mutton Curry preparations of two of the strongest characters in my Family--My Mom and My Father-in-Law. I have found their recipes for this dish absolutely out-of-this-world-yummy! But
During the hot summer months, Mom used to forego the easily available Chicken (supposed to increase body heat) and buy Mutton instead, which she believed to have a cooling effect on the body.
She used to make it spicy, the heat coming more from the green chilies and ginger rather than the cayenne.
We used to have it with Chapatis or Rice and always with a side of salted yogurt, cooked as a Morucurry or raw as in a Raita.
Years passed but the combinations of spicy Mutton Curry and Yogurt has always been a great source of comfort to me. Yet, the recipe of the Mutton Curry was pretty much hazy to me.
When I got married, my Father-in-law surprised me with the best Mutton Curry I have ever tasted and inspired me to pay more attention to spices and cooking techniques. His Mutton Curry was a full-flavored curry, but less spicier than Mom's. He never used oil in his curry but his secret was the mutton fat bought separately from the butcher, in which her fried the marinated pieces of meat in its own juices, spiced delicately with his secret spice mix.
When he was diagnosed with heart disease, the women of the family made it their personal business to cut down the fats and make him, healthy and wholesome food. Animal fat had to go! But we didn't have the heart to deny him his favorite Mutton Curry once in a while. My MIL, being a vegetarian, passed down to me the responsibility of cooking the meat for him.
Now, I had to make sure it tasted good, to his liking and also was was safe for his heart.
So I used his spice mixes and Mom's techniques and made this Curry.

To make a long story short, he loved it. The price I had to pay for it is that he doesn't make his version anymore. He just buys the meat and gives it to me, with a smile. That does it for me! :-)
Hope you all like this recipe too.

Ingredients:- Mutton (not lamb) : about 3 lbs (shoulder or leg works best. Also make sure you have bones in the meat. Fewer things in this world are as yummy as the bone marrow from the goat bones, smothered in the gravy.)- cut into bite sized pieces.
1-inch piece of cinnamon- 2
Star anise- 1 whole and a couple broken pieces
1 bay leaf
6 Cloves
1 large Black Cardamom


Red Onions: 3 large, peeled and chopped into thin slices
Green Chillies : about 10-12 (reduce or add as per your heat tolerance), chopped
Curry Leaves - 1 large sprig
Fresh ginger, minced :  2 tbsp
Fresh Garlic Minced: 2 tbsp

1 tsp cinnamon (powdered)
1 tbsp Fennel Seeds- powdered
1 tsp Green Cardamom Powder
1 tbsp coriander powder
1 tsp Chili powder
Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
Salt- to taste
Pepper (freshly ground) - 1/4 tsp

3 large potatoes, each- cut into 8 pieces
2 tbsp Coconut Oil
2 cups of thick coconut milk (divided)
Garam Masala powder

Coriander leaves/ Cilantro: 1 bunch, washed, trimmed and chopped

Method:-
In a Dutch Oven, or a very heavy Pan, heat 2 tbsp Coconut Oil and fry the whole Cinnamon, Cardamom, Star Anise, Bay Leaf and Cloves, until the cloves crackle a little.
Add the onions and a little salt, and saute it, until soft and glossy. Add the minced ginger and garlic and green chilies and saute well. When the mixture is a little softer and aromatic, stir in the spice powders (Cinnamon, Coriander, Chili, Pepper, green Cardamom and Turmeric) and 1 tsp salt.
Now reduce heat and add the cut pieces of Mutton to the Onion mix. Stir well until coated. Add 1/2 cup of the coconut milk, to help with the coating of the spices. Cover with a tight fitting lid and cook for about 15 minutes on low heat.
After 15 minutes, remove the lid and stir well. It should be more watery than it was before.
Add 1/2 cup more of the coconut milk and add 1 cup water. Throw in the Curry leaves and potatoes, stir well cover with lid once again. This time slow cook for 30 minutes. If needed, stir occasionally.
Check meat for done-ness. If not cover and cook for another 15 minutes.
When meat is really tender, and seasonings well permeated, stir in the last of the coconut Milk, Garam-masala and coriander leaves. Take off the heat. Stir well and cover and let sit for 10 minutes before serving with Rice or Chapatis.

A Kachumber Salad (chopped cucumbers, green chilies,onions and tomatoes in salted yogurt) goes very well with it. Featured here, is my Mutton Curry with some Yogurt Rice.
Enjoy!

Sabudana Khichdi

Sabudana aka Tapioca Pearls are one of those culinary ingredients used in Indian traditional cooking. Tapioca aka Cassava Roots are processed to create these pearls, which look a lot like hailstones around here. I grew up in 2 different states and I was fortunate enough to be exposed to two different approaches to cooking these cuties.
In Kerala, usually these pearls are used in desserts for thickening, or cooked in milk and sweetened with a little sugar, as a Vrat food or for health related recoveries, as its a very simple, easily digestible carb suited to not taxing out the digestive system.
In Maharashtra, these were hardly made into anything sweet. Instead, they were soaked and gently cooked along with a host of local, fresh ingredients into a filling Khichdi.
But both states seem to have approved the Tapioca peals as an authentic Vrat food. Now only if they would be this unanimous in politics!
The best Khichdi I have ever eaten was prepared by one of our neighbors Mrs Gadgil, whose cooking would scent up the entire floor of our building. I never got a chance to learn from her (I was too busy playing Cricket and climbing trees) but I dedicate this recipe to her amazing cooking prowess.
                             
                                                                                                                                                                 

Ingredients:
1 cup sabudaana- soaked 3-4 hours
(First rinse the sabudana pretty quickly with cold water and then fill the container with water exactly 1 inch above the sabudana level. Once it gets absorbed, fluff it with afork and add a little more water. The goal is to soak the sabudana enough to get rid of the hard kernel in the center of the pearl. Taking a pearl and squeezing it gently, will tell you if you need to add more water or not.)

1 cup roasted, salted peanuts
1 inch fresh peeled ginger
1 tbsp roasted jeera
2 tbsp raw peanuts
4-5 slit green chillies
1 tbsp chopped curry leaves
1 tsp jeera
1 medium potato, peeled and cubed
2 tbsp Peanut Oil
Fresh grated coconut and Chopped coriander leaves- to garnish

  

Method:-
Dry grind the roasted peanuts, ginger and 1 tbsp roasted jeera, until it resembles a coarse meal and keep aside.
Heat 2 tbsp Peanut oil in a heavy pan and fry the potato cubes until browned and crispy. Drain and keep aside. In the same oil, add 1 tsp jeera, raw peanuts, green chillies and curry leaves and fry in low heat until the peanuts are cooked. Then slowly add the soaked, drained sabudana and stir gently, until its coated with the remaining ingredients and oil. When it starts steaming, add the dry ground peanut mixture and stir well. This mixture keeps the sabudana from sticking to each other. So if it gets sticky as you cook it, add some more crushed peanuts. Check salt now and adjust.
Keep stirring in med-high heat until Sabudana is cooked completely.
Serve hot, garnished with coriander leaves and coconut. Enjoy!

Mamma's Chilli Chicken Curry

A long time ago, I had posted my Chilli Chicken recipe, which was more of a dry, appetizer kind of recipe. It was amazing with Rotis and on its own, but with rice as an accompaniment, it seemed a little too dry. So I made it into a curry version following the general Indian-Chinese cooking fundamentals. Without much blah, here it goes:

                               

Ingredients:-
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts---cut into bite sized pieces
For Chicken Marinade:
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp fresh ginger paste
2 tbsp corn starch

                                   

Other Ingredients: 2 tbsp each of fresh ginger and garlic, minced
3 stalks of green onion--the tops and bottoms separately chopped
1 med red onion---cut into thin strips
Bell Peppers or Capsicums---3 large, cut into strips
Cilantro---1/4 cup finely chopped
Green chilies (Thai or Indian. If using Serranos, use half the number mentioned here)--- 7-8, chopped
Oil--- to roast the chicken + 2 tsp
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp garam masala
salt and pepper

2 cups of chicken/vegetable stock
2 tbsp corn starch
4 tbsp cold water

                                       

Preparation:-

Mix the marinade ingredients in a large bowl, with a whisk.
Now throw in the chicken cubes into the batter and mix gently to coat. Let marinate for 30 mins, in the fridge.
Grease a nonstick skillet or omelet pan with 1 tsp of oil and brown the chicken pieces on both sides, in medium heat. It will take very less time. Do it in batches if needed, and keep warm.
Now in a Non Stick saute pan, heat 2 tsp of oil and saute the minced ginger and garlic. When they are tender and aromatic, add the red onion and bell peppers. Cook the bell peppers until tender, then add the green onion bottoms and green chilies. Reserve the tops for garnish. Cook for a minute and add the soy sauce. Finally add the chicken, and toss gently to mix.
Add the veg/chicken stock, sugar and vinegar. Stir once again and cover with a lid. Bring to a boil. Cook until chicken is cooked all the way through. Add some fresh ground pepper and the garam masala and stir to mix.  Check salt and seasonings.
Mix the corn starch in the cold water well, and pour it on the boiling stock. Stir. You will see the sauce thickening up. When the gravy becomes glossy and is smooth, (about 2 mins) switch the heat off.

Garnish it with chopped cilantro and reserved chopped onion tops. Serve hot on top of rice. Enjoy!

Mamma's Beef and Broccoli Stir fry

I absolutely love stir fries. There is something about vibrant veggies cooked to a crisp tender and lightly coated with sauce intermingled with  succulent morsels of a protein, that I just cant get enough of. If I ever had a chef who would make me a stir-fry, I know I can give up every other food I know just to have a different stir fry every day.
This dish happens to be a regular menu item whenever we order Chinese takeout. Sometime back, my favorite Chinese Joint moved away and I was in a total fix. The other nearby joint didn't even come close. That's when I seriously thought about making this at home. If they can whip it up "in 30 minutes or you get free egg rolls for every order", then maybe I could do it too, (without the egg roll offer, obviously!)
I had bought a brand new wok recently. All I needed was beef, since the only beef we ever bought was ground beef, for making hamburgers and pasta sauce. Both my boys hate the stuff and my girl is going through a "snack-only" phase where she has shunned off anything that is not a snack.
I went to the local market where butchers are really friendly and very helpful, and exceeding my expectations, they helped me to select a cut suitable for stir fries and also let me find a managers discount for the meat. SO I returned home with about 2.25 lbs of Tri-tip steaks and a smile. Its either that they hire really nice people or maybe I am blessed to be a woman who has good manners and a pretty smile. (wink!)

Anyways, I didn't want to make too much the first time, so I used just 1.5 lbs of the meat and about 2-3 lbs of the broccoli.
This simple sauce is so good you wont have to ever buy another bottled Teriyaki or stir fry sauce again. This yummy sauce just needs a handful of things that you might be using already. If these aren't in your pantry, just go and stock them up...because, this sauce is good with chicken, shrimp and just plain veggies too. Follow the same recipe and just mix and match the meat.
Also, I have tried reducing oil and refined flours in this recipe, without compromising on the sweet and the light spicy kick, from the red chili sauce. Feel free to customize the taste your way.

This recipe serves 6-8.

                                

Ingredients:-
1.5 lbs of Tri-tip Steak or Flank Steak, sliced into 2-3 inch strips
1/2 cup of reduced sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp each of minced ginger
2 bunches of green onions- chopped, stems and leaves separated.
3 lbs broccoli florets
4-5 dry red chilies (optional- you may use red pepper flakes too)
2 tbsp peanut oil
Freshly ground pepper
Toasted Sesame seeds (to garnish)

Method: In a bowl, combine soy sauce (reduced sodium), brown sugar and garlic powder until well combined. Add the sliced beef into this mixture and gently stir until every piece is coated in the mixture.
over with plastic wrap and stash in the fridge for the flavors to "mingle".

Meanwhile, steam the broccoli lightly. It should be tender-crisp; not soft and wilted. Sprinkle a little salt on top, toss lightly. Keep aside.

In a large wok, heat the oil and add the ginger and red chilies. Make sure you turn the heat down, to keep the chilies from smoking. (And if they accidentally, start smoking, switch off the heat, cover the wok with a lid and step away, until the smoke dies.)
If you are using red chili flakes, add them at the end.

Stir for a minute, then add the green onion bottoms. Save the green tops for later.
Now, drain the beef, reserve the marinade and throw in the beef into the wok and cook on high heat until the beef strips are cooked halfway. Add the marinade and bring to a boil. Cook until the beef is completely done and the sauce is boiling (about a minute). Check seasonings.

* If you prefer the sauce to be thick, at this point, you can add 2 tbsp of corn starch mixed in 4 tbsp water and add to the sauce*

Now add the broccoli florets and stir to coat. If you are using red chili flakes, add them now and stir well.
Switch off the heat and let sit for 10 minutes.

Garnish with onion tops and toasted sesame seeds, and serve hot over rice. Enjoy!

Mamma's Easy and Simple Eggplant-Spinach Lasagna

In the past, many times I have wondered, if my kids were spoiled rotten, since they request a non vegetarian menu every single day. That may not be a big deal for non-Indians but most Indians do get it. It may or may not be a religious thing but most households, (at that time...now everyone I know is in a mad rush to incorporate mass produced food in their daily menu AMAP), cooked non vegetarian fare only twice a week- Wednesdays and Sundays.
The reasons for the limited use of non vegetarian cooking, as I think, seems to be economical, religious and some ancient wisdom. The ancient wisdom in this particular habit being simplicity and keeping indulgences to minimum, keeping a firm control over the tendencies to go overboard. No wonder, two generations back we had the healthiest seniors around.
Either way, I decided a couple years back to enforce this little bit into my life. Even after trying to be a perfectionist in introducing fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains, in a timely manner and yet...
I have one kid who could eat fish - steamed, fried or curried three times a day, every day, loves fruits but wont touch a vegetable. And another who detests any kind of seafood and actually throws up if a piece actually crosses his lips. And he loves his vegetables cooked.
Now, you might all agree that between both of them, I have to cook really creative or incur the wrath of one. That's when I enforced two purely non veg days into our week. Initially, it was met with grumbles. But with my supportive hubby's backing, it soon became an important part of our home traditions. When eating out, my husband and kids are free to follow or not follow this, but at home, any food cooked by me follows this rule. As a result, my dinner menu is more elaborate in vegetarian dishes, and the ones, I started this tradition for, are eating much better. So much better that sometimes, they request a vegetarian item, on a non veg day.
So here is one of my more popular dishes for a Meatless Friday. Its one of the simplest lasagnas, made with entirely non vegetarian ingredients (not vegan), if you can manage to get egg-less pasta.


Ingredients:

12-15 Lasagna Noodles, cooked and drained and coated in a little oil spray (so that they dont stick to each other)
4 cups Mamma's Hearty Pasta Sauce or Marinara (You can use the vegetarian variation or the Meat Sauce Version)

5-6 cloves of minced garlic
10-12 oz of chopped spinach
2 large eggplants, thinly sliced
1 lb or 850 gm skim milk Ricotta Cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan
1 tsp Italian herbs (basil, parsley and oregano)
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
Olive oil- 2 tbsp + 2 tbsp
Salt and Pepper

Method: 
In a large nonstick pan, add 2 tbsp olive oil and toss the eggplant slices in it. Sprinkle salt and Pepper. Cook in low heat, until they wilt a little. Keep aside.
In the same pan, or maybe another, add 2 tbsp of olive oil and saute the garlic until a little sweaty. Add the chopped spinach and cook until wilted. Stir in the Italian herbs and add a little salt and pepper. Remove from heat and gently stir in Ricotta and Parmesan. Keep this mixture aside.
Preheat oven to 375 degree F and spray a Lasagna Pan with a little bit of oil.
Add 2 cups of the Pasta sauce to the pan. Lay 3-5 noodles on top of the sauce. Spread the spinach and cheese mixture on the noodles and arrange a single layer of the eggplant slices on top of it.

Next, add another layer of noodles, and repeat the steps until the noodles and the mixture are all used up.
Pour the remaining pasta sauce on top and smooth it out. Let the sauce drizzle down the corners.
Sprinkle the mozzarella on the top.

                             




Bake in the preheated oven for 30-45 minutes until the cheese on top has melted and light brown spots start appearing.

Let stand for 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!!!



Notes:-
1. This is a very mild and basic recipe and you can add spices and herbs to give it your own twist.
2. Substitute eggplants with cooked chicken or mince meat, or use a Meat Sauce, to make it a yummy non vegetarian dish.

Experimenting with Kale: Zesty Kale Pesto

Assuming you read my last post on my Kale experiment, I'd like to announce that I am concluding my experiments with Kale right here. Because something happened yesterday that just changed my whole take on Kale. This incident has been so moving, I believe God had this dish in mind when She/He created/designed Kale. The dish I am talking about is Pesto. A pesto made from Kale.No, I am not exaggerating! I am never buying a Pesto from the Grocers ever again!  You have to try this if you like Kale. You will be surprised how good this dish is taste-wise, and health-wise.  So here are the series of incidents that got me here, from "Meh, Kale!" to "Whoa! Kale?!"
I had another bundle of Kale left over from the last experiment (Baked Kale Chips), in the refrigerator, nicely wrapped between damp paper towels and stashed in a Green Bag. That really keeps any leaf fresh. But every time I opened the refrigerator door, the resourceful, small voice in my head kept saying in an annoying tone that this amazing, green, leafy vegetable was slowly dying on me, without making its chock full of nutrients available to anyone. That usually made me close the refrigerator pretty fast and pout for a few seconds.
And then, this month's subscription of Food Network Magazine came in my mail and as I leafed through the recipes, there it was! A pretty picture of spaghetti swirling in that beautiful, my fave kind of green sauce. The given recipe was a Kale Pesto with Walnut and Parmesan, but that gave me the brilliant idea and got me inspired on making something similar with my poor, ignored bunch of Kale.
My recipe is more based on the preferences of my kids, who are picky, snobby eaters.( And also, what was available in the refrigerator). I had some toasted almonds left over from my last session of Biscotti-making. So I used almonds instead of pine nuts which are traditionally used for Pesto. I used a sauce retaining Macaroni to stir the sauce into, and somehow it also made the pasta kid-friendly. (My son, the aforementioned picky snobby eater approved it and finished his bowl too! Now that enough of a compliment for me..God knows that kid hates his veggies!)

                                                 
                                               

                                                 

I made this pesto while the Pasta water was nearing a boil. So you will see the give and take of Pasta water in many parts of the recipe.
* If you are planning to make it in advance or for the long haul, make sure you double the amount of Olive oil, and omit any addition of Pasta water in the Pesto. The pesto freezes very well, and can also be used for making a Vegetarian Pizza. I will post that recipe soon.
*This Pesto recipe yields about 4-5 cups of pesto which I used up over a period of 2 days.
So here it goes:

Ingredients:-
1 bundle of Kale- washed thoroughly, thick stalks removed and trimmed
1 cup of Almonds, lightly toasted
1 cup of grated Parmesan Cheese
4-5 cloves of Garlic
1 tbsp Lemon Zest or from 1 lemon (whichever is more)
1/2 a lemon's juice, freshly squeezed
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1/2 cup
Pasta Water (the water in which you boiled Pasta)-- as required.
Salt and Pepper

                                               


                                                

Method:-In a food processor/ coffee grinder, grind the almonds finely. Keep aside.
Blanch the kale leaves briefly in boiling hot water. (That water getting ready for the pasta happens to be the perfect choice for this! And you can use the same water for Pasta after this.) Blanch the Kale just enough to wilt them and cool them off in a cold water bath. Squeeze out all the water from the leaves. This locks in the bright green color in the pesto.
In a blender, add garlic, blanched kale, lemon juice and lemon zest and grind well, slowly adding the olive oil until all the oil is used up and a fine smooth mixture is obtained.
Pour the ground up puree into a bowl and stir in the ground almonds and cheese. Stir well. If you are finding the pesto too thick, add a couple more dashes of olive oil. If you are going to use all that pesto right away, cheat and add a couple spoonfuls of pasta water. You don't need that much oil, even if its all good-for-you stuff!
Now check salt, add more if needed and stir in a few twists of freshly cracked pepper.
Serve over hot, cooked pasta of your choice and garnish with sliced, pitted black olives. Pair it with any Meaty Main Courses or just serve it Plain, its yummy! Enjoy!!!

Sprouts

Though any kind of grams, lentils, seeds  or beans can be germinated and harvested for sprouts, Mung Beans still are an Asian Favorite for sprouts. Mung beans or Green grams are a staple of Indian Meals, be it a Maharashtrian Usal or a traditional Kerala Parippu, roasted and cooked to mushy perfection. Health-wise, its a nutrient powerhouse with the filling fiber and proteins. I love this delicious little bean, more than all others in its family, just for one thing: Sprouts!
Bean sprouts are made by soaking the little dry rock-hard beans in water for a day and letting them--- well, sprout.
Its all a waiting game. Even working men and women can make it work, since sprouts are something that is pretty low maintenance...Since this is a Men in Kitchen special and for all you adventurous peeps who are motivated to try sprouting their own sprouts, I am sharing the steps here: First get a cup of nice unroasted and uncooked (duh!!!) mung beans, and put them in a bowl that will hold at least 4 times the stuff. Now pour about 2 cups of water or more, enough to have about 2 cm of water standing above them. Stir once nicely making sure there are no air pockets and all beans are wet. Now you are free to leave them to soak for 24 hours. Warmer climes can speed up the process and it maybe ready in as little as 12 hours.
Go to it when you are home, or after 24 hrs, say some sweet nothings, change the water if there are no visible changes like a stretched, broken skin and if things are going great, a tiny sprout. Now comes the transition from water to cloth. You will need a cotton cloth piece which will absorb water and will let the beans breathe. Old clean T shirts do wonders. I'm not a fan of Cheesecloth or tulle which actually let the sprouts go through them and break off the growth while transfer. So wet this one nicely and wring it enough to stop the cloth from dripping. Now drain the beans almost fully and dump them into the cloth and using the corners of the cloth tie loosely, with alternate corners. Put the bundle back in the big bowl or get a bigger bowl.

Sprouts, After Soaking for a day.

After every 12 hrs, empty them lovingly into a big container, and rinse that towel or cloth with clean tepid water, to refresh the beans.  a cup of water to hydrate, for about 5 minutes. Now, drain the water from the beans, with the same love- dump them back into the towel, and swaddle them up for the night, lay the bundle in bowl, and wish them sweet dreams if you really want to push it. Just don't get too attached!

Sprouts after roughly 36 hrs.

Repeat this for 2-3 days and you will have longer sprouts from the bean. Make sure you are extra gentle while you transfer them from the cloth since rough handling can break the horns off these tiny unicorns. If you leave the sprout bundle in a sunny spot, the sprouts can grow thicker and longer like the ones you get in supermarkets.
Just like kids, ignoring these little things never goes well. I say that from the multiple experiences of having a stinky kitchen from unchanged water, or yellowing sprouts due to too much water or uneven sprouts from having too little water. This Mamma cant make enough mistakes, but then again that's how you get into that position where you can give advice or writing a blog, for that matter. :-P

Sprouts @ 48 hrs growth 

Darn ADD! Back to sprouts...When they have about an inch long sprouts, its ready to be used. Immediately empty them into an airtight container and use them up within 1 week. The sprouts taste the best when fresh, and so use them in salads/ soups or stir fried into noodles or fried rice.

Washed, drained and Ready to be Cooked/ eaten.

And the recipe I'm going to share with you is pretty simple....It uses minimal spices, oil and is lightly sauteed.
So here it goes:-


Ingredients:-
2 cups of sprouted beans
1 cup finely chopped onions
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric
3-4 dry red chillies
1 tsp asafoetida
1 tbsp oil
salt
2 tbsp of fresh grated coconut ( optional)

Method:-
In a nonstick flat bottomed pan, heat the oil and add thew cumin seeds, asafoetida and chilies. Stir it well, taking care it doesn't smoke.
Add the garlic mince and saute for a minute. When garlic turns light brown, add the onions and saute them until sweaty and glossy.
Now add the turmeric, stir for a few seconds and add the sprouts, salt and mix well. Now cover, lower the heat and let the sprouts cook for about 5-8 minutes. When you see water droplets on the lid and the sprouts steaming, stir it once again and cover for about a minute.
Remove from fire and garnish with grated coconut.
Eat it hot on rice, wrapped in a roti / flatbread or just like that.

Mamma's Note:
* You could try grating some jaggery onto this mix and enjoy it as a snack or breakfast.
* To give it a Maharashtrian twist, add some cubed potatoes and a teaspoon of Misal masala, if you can get it. But then skip the chili powder, for the misal spice mix already has loads of heat. I haven't seen it yet in American Indian grocery stores, so I usually stock up on my India visits.
*  Chaat Lovers can use this recipe and further kick it up a notch, using your favorite chopped tomatoes, onions and chutneys to make a yummy Sprouts Chaat.