A Peek into my Life

We have started getting some really nice green mangoes at the local Indian grocery store. I use them in a few different ways but pickle is not at the top of the list. We are not a big pickle eating family since we do not eat very spicy food. But I love the sweet gujarati pickles like Gor Keri and Chundo. My mom and her mother (my grandmom) are expert pickle makers. My mom told me that grandmom made a few new varieties of pickles. Mango methi and Mango garlic pickles. I wanted to try them out. I adapted it though, and added both methi and garlic, in addition to adding a hint of sweetness with brown sugar and vidalia onions. My grandmom has also perfected the technique for keeping the mango pieces crisp year round, just like they are in a fresh pickle. The secret is not adding oil to the pickle. Just add the spices and salt to the mango pieces and keep them in the fridge. Take a small amount that you would use in a month or so and add oil to it. The pickle ends up tasting as fresh a...

In my last post, I wrote about Methi Muthiyas that I used in my Undhiyu inspired sabzi . I had initially made the muthiyas as an accompaniment to a simple dal-rice meal. After having them with the dinner and some more for breakfast with ginger chai, I had just the right amount leftover to use in my undhiyu sabzi. Muthiyas are meant to be snack food and go best with chai, preferably with some tamarind chutney or ketchup on the side. As you might know, people in Gujarat love their tea time snacks. It is basically the land of snacks. :) And for a good reason, with snacks as good as this (and things like khaman, handvo, khakhra and so on), people will gladly skip meals to have tea ;) Methi Muthiyas Ingredients: 1/2 cup atta (whole wheat flour) 1/2 cup coarse wheat flour (also known as wheat ladu flour) 1/4 cup besan (chickpea flour) 2 bunches methi 1/8 tsp asafoetida 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp sugar 1/2 tsp dhaniya-jeera powder 1/4 tsp red chill...

I have great love for the Gujarati Undhiyu. It can sway my vote away from chaat as I wrote in my post about our Atlanta trip. I have an even greater love for "Matla Undhiyo" which is like a cross between chaat and undhiyo. That is more about the entire experience. Ideally, in a farm outdoors on a winter afternoon. The fresh papdi and tuvar beans are cooked in an earthen pot (aka Matlo in gujarati). It is an elaborate setting of digging a hole, adding coal, covering the mouth of the pot with straw and then cooking the beans and the root vegetables. The vegetables are served right out of the pot and the diner has to peel the beans, mash the vegetables themselves, add the different and unique chutneys, oil (probably sesame oil), sev and eat like a chaat. Jalebi on the side is kind of mandatory :) That is probably my favorite childhood food memory. Mostly because of the inherent party like atmosphere of lots of people eating on a farm, using their hands, customizing it and par...

These days we are getting some good methi leaves in the local indian grocery store. I always pick up a couple or more bunches every time I visit. I stagger my methi preparation steps because I cannot get it all done in a day with a busy 3 year old to take care of. I pluck out the leaves one day, the next day I wash and chop them and the methi gets prepared on the third day. We do eat other vegetables that take less prep time on day 1 and 2 in case you are wondering :) Steamed Methi balls in Kadhi One day, while talking to my mom on the phone, she mentioned she saw a steamed methi ball in kadhi recipe on the TV that day. I had the methi all prepped and ready to go. This was as good a day as any to try the recipe based on the general idea. My daughter loved to help me make the little balls. She was inspired to eat them too :) methi ball kadhi with a mix of white and brown rice Ingredients: For Methi Balls 1 bunch methi leaves, cleaned and chopped 1 medium onion ...