Aviksha's Kitchen

Tomato Chutney is not the exact chutney that we make using coconut. It is more like a curry or gravy and I like it the most. It is a little spicy and sour with the brilliant color. It goes very well with any kind of dosa, plain rice, chapathi and paratha. NOTE :   Number of green chilies depend on how spicy they are. I am using 4 as mine are not very  spicy. Don't add water as tomatoes have little water content in them. Optional - turmeric powder, garam masala powder and coriander powder. Preparation time : 2 minutes Cooking Time : 3 Minutes Total Time : 5 Minutes Yield : 2-3 servings Ingredients: Green Chilies 5 finely chopped Coconut Oil / Normal Oil 2 tbsp Cumin Seeds / Jeera 1 tbsp Mustard Seeds / Saasama 1 tbsp Tomato 2-3  chopped Curry Leaves 7-8 Salt as needed Onion 1-2 finely chopped Turmeric Powder 1/4 sp Garam Masala Powder 1/2 sp Daniya Powder / Coriander Powder 1/2 sp                                                           

My husband and I like the bitter gourd Fries.  Bitter gourd was one such vegetable that I hated as a kid and slowly started to like the fried bitter gourds after marriage.  We love to have it on rainy seasons and that was the reason for me to get the bitter gourd from the market. But unfortunately we both fell sick and I wanted to avoid the fried items but I had bitter gourds in my fridge and I had to use it. I tried to find out bitter gourd dishes but I was interested in none of them. Finally, decideD to make bitter gourd pickle that goes well with rice soup/paej.  Bitter Gourd Pickle/Karathe Kudko has a spicy coating and that tempted me the most as I love spicy food. This dish turned out to be so tasty and  mind blowing that now I prefer this instead of bitter gourd fries. You too try this and experience the spicy and sour taste of it. You have to taste it atleast once and the other advantage of this dish is it can be stored for weeks in an airtight container. NOTE :   Bitter

Idli is  every bodies   favorite  South Indian Breakfast Dish. My mother used to make it every Sunday's and we used to wait for that day. Making a perfect soft idli is not that easy because the  perfection  depends on the ratios of ingredients and weather conditions for proper fermentation. So now-a-days we get idli rawa and most of the people use it to avoid the risk. Thus, by making the job very simple. I will be showing how to make a perfect soft and fluffy Idli making use of idli rawa.  NOTE :  Adding salt to the batter fastens the process of fermentation. Adding fenugreek seeds/methi seeds and poha are optional. Fenugreek seeds are added to fasten the process of fermentation and poha/flattened rice to get soft idli's. Can also add split urad dal. Can use sago instead of poha. The left out batter can be stored in an air tight container in refrigerator. This prevents the batter from getting sour.  The same batter can be used to make a crispy paper dosa's.

This is the dish made by my mother out of left over cooked rice. These bojjo / fritters are extremely tender and crispy. Very simple with less ingredients and fast to make. Can have it as a snack with hot tea/coffee or as a starter. NOTE :   Number of green chilies depend on how spicy they are. I am using 4 as mine are not very  spicy. Don't add water to prevent it from absorbing excess oil. Green Chilies can be replaced by red chilies. Rice Fritters taste best when they are served hot. Coriander leaves can also be added. Preparation time : 2 Minutes Cooking Time : 3 Minutes Total Time : 5 Minutes Yield : 2-3 servings Shitta Bojjo / Rice Fritters Ingredients: Left Over Cooked Rice / Fresh Cooked Rice 1 Cup Smashed Green Chilies 4 finely chopped Oil For frying Ginger 1 inch finely chopped or 2 tbsp paste Onion 1 finely chopped Salt as needed Coriander Leaves 1 tbsp finely chopped Method : Take a bowl and mix all the above mentio

Kokam is a dark red colored fruit. Kokum Kadhi / Curry is a Goan / Konkan drink. It is good for digestion and acts as a cooler. Can have it lukewarm or chilled as a drink or along with plain rice. This is a curry prepared with no boiling process involved. Kokum Kadhi is very tangy and easy to make. Some people temper this curry with red chilly, mustard seeds.cumin seeds and curry leaves. This is made out of coconut milk and garlic cloves. Thus, this curry is little sour and spicy and can consumed as an appetizing drink. It gives a soothing effect by having it on hot summer. NOTE :  Number of chilies depend on how spicy they are. I am using 5 as mine are not very spicy. Can serve the kokum kadhi immediately or can keep it in a fridge and then serve cold. Remember, leftover kokum kadhi  should be refigerated as coconut milk can get spoiled in the hot weather. Can add a pinch of asafoetida also. Preparation Time : 30 Minutes Cooking Time : 5 Minutes Total Time : 35

This is a very famous and traditional dish of Karnataka especially Udupi. This dish is usually made out of rice vermicelli / shavige / thin noodles. It is a very simple and easy recipe. Best for lunch and breakfast. This dish has different variations. The color and ingredients like tomato, vegetables, lemon etc can be adjusted based on the availability. Can use any types of vegetables if available or can simply skip adding any vegetables to it. Similarly, people who likes it to be colorful and spicy can add turmeric and red chilly powder instead of green chilies. Thus, this dish can be either red, yellow or white in color. NOTE :   Number of green chilies depend on how spicy they are. I am using 5 as mine are not very  spicy. If you don't have lime water(Lemon juice) then use raw mango or tomato instead . Optional - Can use coriander leaves at the end to garnish. Can use even wheat vermicelli instead of rice vermicelli.  Vermicelli must be roasted properly else the upma

Vegetable Kurma / Korma is a very healthy item usually made out of coconut. So, it is a coconut gravy with vegetables in it. Thus, high in proteins and minerals. Goes well with dosa, idli, appam, roti, kulcha and kerela paratha. It is very simple and easy to make with least ingredients. My mom used to make this along with masala dosa and we used to enjoy its wonderful taste. Even today, me and my husband prefer having this along with masala dosa. Once you have this, I guarantee you that even your preference will change. Mind blowing combo of masala dosa and kurma. Try it and let me know. NOTE :  Number of chilies depend on how spicy they are. I am using 4 as mine are not very spicy. Can add any other vegetables along with potato and onions. If you are more health  conscious  then you can skip coconut and include an extra onion for the paste. Preparation Time : 7 Minutes Cooking Time : 13 Minutes Total Taken : 20 Minutes Yield : 3-4 servings Vegetable K

This recipe is my favorite. Simple, healthy and very tasty. Clears the throat completely thus very good for cold and sore throat. This is the simplest chicken item with least number of ingredients. NOTE :          Optional :  Can use capsicum and onions if needed. Can use finely chopped coriander leaves to garnish. Can use 1 tbsp Vinegar also. Time Taken : 15 Minutes Yield : 3 servings Pepper Chicken / Chicken Stir Fry / Chicken Kali Mirch Ingredients:   Coriander Leaves little finely chopped Garlic / Losun 4-5 finely chopped or smashed Ginger / Adarak 1 inch finely chopped or smashed black pepper  powder / Kali Mirch 2 tbsp Soya Sauce 1 tbsp Others: Chicken 200-300 gms Salt as needed Oil 2-3 tbsp Green Chilies 2-3 vertically splitted Clean and wash chicken pieces. Method : Chop the chicken into small pieces. Take a pan, add oil, garlic, ginger and green chilies. Fry for 1 mint and then add chicken, soya sauce and pepper powder. Ad

Masala Tea / Chai is a mixed-spice tea. It is a flavoured tea beverage made by brewing black tea with a mixture of aromatic Indian spices. This beverage imparts health benefits that can warm us in the cold of winter and during rainy seasons, help us to relax after a stressful day and balance the energies of body, mind and spirit. Many of the key ingredients like  cardamom, cinnamon,  cloves etc gives a nice  flavour  and soothing taste to the tea. This tea is used in eastern and western herbal medicine to aid the digestion, breathing and circulation of the blood. And most  often used during cold, flu season and  while fighting off a sore throat or cough. This beverage has gained a worldwide popularity.    The recipe varies with respect to the region and taste of the people. I prepare a masala for the tea / chai separately and store it in an air tight container and add it while making tea / chai. NOTE :   I will divide this into 2 stages. First, preparing masala and storing it

Pan Polo / Neer Dose is a Mangalorean Dish. We get the best rice flour in Sinagapore, which is so fine that there is no need to soak the rice grains and to grind it. Thus this is the easiest dosa and very simple and quick to make. It is instant recipe and yet very tasty. Good for morning breakfast or with evening tea. This is called 'Pan Polo' in Konkani and 'Neer Dose' in Kannada . 'Neer' means water and 'Dose' means Dosa. Thus this dosa is so thin like a paper. Normally, this dish is made by soaking the rice grains for atleast 4 hours or overnight and grinding it with coconut to form a very thin batter with no fermentation process involved. Can be served with any type of chutneys, pickles, butter, sambar, kodel, gashi, veg or non-veg gravy, honey and ghee or with sugar.  NOTE : Optional - Can use grated coconut if needed. This will make the dosa soft. I am adding 2 tbsp coconut to make it more soft add 1/2 coconut. Adding Cumin seeds gives you n