The Steaming Pot - Easy vegetarian recipes from India

Hare moong ka cheela (savory green gram pancake) is a richer variation of the yellow moong ka cheela. The process of making the cheela remains the same, except that the base lentil in this one changes from the light yellow moong bean to the more potent green gram (moong bean).

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I make this papaya peanut salad when the fruit is somewhere between green and yellow, having a hint of sweet but still crunchy. A light dressing works well when the papaya is at this stage. No garlic or strong sauces, more fruity goodness.

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This orange marmalade recipe is for those who want a small jar of it to eat up within a week or two, without the rigors of canning and bottling for preserving till eternity. No pectin, no fancy equipment, no complex sterilization of storage jars. Making orange marmalade at home doesn’t get easier than this!

Ever since I’ve started making marmalade in my own kitchen, I wonder that I ever bought it from the market. I get far superior stuff at a fraction of the cost, with hardly any effort. Plus the activity leaves the kitchen smelling wonderful for hours. The bittersweet bite of rind, the real fresh citrus taste, the golden-happy translucence of homemade orange marmalade – there is simply no match for it.

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Traditional cooks who, when prompted upma, say “semolina” in a word association game, will probably raise quizzical eyebrows at this recipe. Upma without its core ingredient! No doubt the brainchild of someone with a large loaf of bread on hand along with a batch of tomatoes and an allergy to sandwiches. Bless the sandwich-hater for this brilliant recipe – "bread tomato upma", the nicest way to use bread when it’s best-before date has arrived.

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Paneer bread roll, pan-fried and served with red chili sauce. While mom made these, I did nothing this morning except click pictures and eat :-)

Bread rolls are generally deep-fried; this shallow-fried version is lighter and saves on the oil.

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Sooji or semolina, as Wikipedia tells us, is

the coarse, purified wheat middlings of durum wheat used in making pasta, breakfast cereals, puddings, and couscous.

That description covers wide ground, taking in its span popular Indian dishes like  halwa and upma – versions of pudding/breakfast cereal made of semolina.

Cooking sooji as a cheela (pancake) is a relatively unusual way of using the flour, but once you try it, you’ll definitely want to do frequent repeats.

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