Plain Ragada

Ingredients

Soaked GreenPeas: 2 Cups
Onions: 2
Tomatoes: 2
Potatoes: 1
Carrots: 2
Lemon Juice: 3 Teaspoons
Peanuts: 2 Teaspoons
Greenchillies: 3-4
Chatmasala: 1 Teaspoon
RedchilliePowder: 2 Teaspoons
Coriander Powder: 1 Teaspoon
Cumin Powder: 1 Teaspoon
Coriander leaves: 1 Bunch
Oil: 3 Teaspoons
Salt to taste.

(Check Fudtionary for meanings if you have doubt with the words with orange colour.)

Method
Pressure cook the soaked greenpeas,potatoes,tomatoes,carrots and greenchillies.Now take a pan and put some oil to fry peanuts and tranfer them to an absorbant.

Transfer the boiled vegetables to the pan and add coriander powder,cumin powder,chatmasala,redchillie powder and salt,mix well and close it with a lid  and cook it for 5 mins in a very slow flame.

Transfer to a bowl,add lemon juice and mix well,garnish with onions,peanuts,coriander leaves and serve hot.

Mirchi Ka Salan

Ingredients

Peanuts:4 Teaspoons

Sesame Seeds: 4 Teaspoons

Fresh Coconut: 2 Teaspoons

Coriander seeds: 1 Teaspoon

Ginger-Garlic Paste: 1 Teaspoon

Green Chillies: 4-5

Redchillies: 2-3

Mustard Seeds: 1 Teaspoon

Tamarind juice:2 Teaspoons

Turmeric:1/2 Teaspoon

Redchillie Powder:1 Teaspoon
Salt to taste.

(Check Fudtionary for meanings if you have doubt with the words in orange colour.)

Method
First put a pan on the stove and dry roast peanuts,sesame seeds,coriander seeds and coconut and grind to a smooth powder.

Now in a pan put some oil and fry the splitted green chillies for some time and keep aside,now add mustard seeds,redchillies and ginger-garlic paste to the remaining oil,once the mustard seeds starts splutter add the grinded powder.

Add tamarind juice,salt,greenchillies and little water,cook on a very low fame for 10 mins and turn off the stove.

Serve hot with Vegetable Dum Biryani  (http://tastebuds-tabu.blogspot.com/2011/02/vegetable-dum-biryani.html )

* You can also use brinjals instead of green chillies.

Vegetable Dum Biryani

Ingredients
Rice: 2 Cups
Water: 4 Cups
Potato: 3
Onions:2
Paneer / Tofu : 1 small cup.
Greenpeas:1 Cup
Carrots: 1 Cup
Cauliflower: 1 Cup
Beans: 1 Cup
Greenchillies: 5 or 6
Cardamom: 1 Teaspoon
Cinnamon: 1 Teaspoon
Cloves: 1/2 Teaspoon
Caraway Seeds: 1 Teaspoon
Cashewnuts: 1 Teaspooon
Ginger-Garlic Paste: 2 Teaspoons
Ghee: 2 Teaspoons
Oil: 3 Teaspoons
Bay Leaves: 2
Mace: 1/2 Teaspoon
Mareti Bud: 1/2 Teaspoon
Nutmeg: 1/2 Teaspoon
Coriander Leaves: 1 Bunch
Shahjeera: 1 Teaspoon
Mint Leaves: 1 Bunch
Curd / Yogurt : 2 Cups
Food Colour: Turmeric water for yellow color and saffron water for orange.
Fried onions : 1 cup
Salt to taste.

(Check Fudtionary for meanings if you have doubt with the words in orange colour.)

Method

Heat oil in a pan. Once oil is hot add in fennel seeds and all whole spices and allow them to fry till the raw flavor is gone, then add onions and cook until they get light golden color, now add ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, coriander powder and mix well and cook for 5 minutes.

At this point add  tomatoes, chili powder, garam masala and cook till tomatoes gets soft, add  in yogurt/curd, coriander leaves, mint leaves, biryani masala (My fav masala is Banne Nawaab's Biryani Masala) and mix well. Now add potato cubes and sprinkle 1/2 cup of water and cover and cook till potatos are 3/4th cooked. Then add carrots, green pepper, green peas, cauliflower, paneer/tofu and cook till all the veggies are half cooked
and add salt to taste and mix. 

Add soaked and drained rice in boiling water and cook till  rice is 3/4th done. After rice is 3/4th cooked, drain off all the excess water from boiled rice and keep drained rice aside. Now take half of the vegetables in a plate and in the remaining vegetables add some of the boiled rice as a layer and spread that evenly. Now add drops of saffron water, some crushed cashew nuts, chopped mint and coriander leaves and sprinkle some turmeric water for color and then add fried onions, repeat the same process for the remaining vegetables and rice and cover it with a lid.

Now you can either leave it on a low flame if cooking on a stove for 15minutes or can preheat the oven to 350F and place it in the oven for 5-6minutes and serve hot with raitha and mirchi ka salaan (http://tastebuds-tabu.blogspot.com/2011/02/mirchi-ka-salan.html) and Raitha.

*You can also cover the pot with aluminum foil and place it in a thick bottomed water vessel to avoid burning and cover it with the lid. 
*Carefully fold the foil and seal it around the lid so that steam doesn’t escape when cooking.

Basic Upma(Bombay Ravva/Semolina)

Ingredients
Bombay Ravva/Semolina: 1 Glass
Water : 2 Glasses
Onions: 1 
Oil: 1 Teaspoon  
Salt to taste.
Cashewnuts: 3-4
Greenchillies: 2
Ghee: 1 Teaspoon
CurryLeaves : 1 Stem of Leaves
Mustard Seeds : 1/2 Teaspoon
Grated Ginger : 1/2 Teaspoon

(Check Fudtionary for meanings if you have doubt with the words in orange colour.)

Method
First put a pan on the stove and put some ghee and oil and add cashewnuts,mustardseeds,onions,grated ginger and chillies.

Now after they turn little brown,add 2 glasses of water,once the water starts boiling,simmer the stove and  add salt and bombay ravva/semolina.

After 2-3 minutes,turn off the stove and garnish with curryleaves and serve hot with coconut chutney or any pickle.

* You can use Wheat Ravva/Broken Wheat/Cracked Wheat instead of Bombay Ravva.

* You can also add vegetables like  Carrots,Tomatos,Potatos,Cabbage,Cauliflower etc.