Bhindi Kurkure

I hate Bhindi. Something about its gooeyness just throws me off. Unfortunately, everybody else in my family loves it. It is also one of those vegetables you can easily make as part of packed lunches. Hence, I have been forced all my life to have Bhindi on a weekly basis. Luckily for me, since it is such a loved vegetable, there have always been takers to empty my lunchbox; my Mom, and then later in life, my husband being none the wiser (I think).

On the flip side, it is a vegetable that I am forced to cook often. Hence, I have learnt to adapt it to my tastes. Now, I can eat it when the Bhindi is cooked to such a level of crispiness that it's almost black. That's where this recipe comes in.

My mom started making this as an easier and less time consuming alternative to Bharwan Bhindi. She finds it a convenient item to make when we have guests over as it pairs well with Rajma, Channa or a fancy Dal.

Recipe (Servers 4)

Ingredients
500 gm Ladies finger/Bhindi - Slit lengthwise
3 tbsp oil
2 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
3 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp garam masala
Salt to taste

Method

• Wash, dry and slit the ladies finger lengthwise into 2 halves

• Take 3 tbsp oil in a large non stick pan, when hot, add the ladies finger and saute for 2 mins
• Turn down the heat and let the ladies fingers cook down till they turns dark green and crispy. Stir occasionally.
• When crisped up nicely, add the salt, chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and coriander powders. 
• Stir to mix the spices thoroughly. Let cook for another few minutes to ensure the spices cook out.

Alternatively, once the ladies finger is half cooked, place it on a tray in a preheated oven at 200 degree centigrade for 20 to 30 minutes to crisp up. The spices can be added after removing from oven

Notes
I like to wash the ladies finger the night before or a few hours before cooking to ensure there is no water when cooking this dish
Always add salt in the end to ensure that the dish is crispy.
Use a large kadhai, so that the bhindi has enough space to cook. Overcrowding leads to a soggy dish

Instant noodles in tomato sauce

This dish is what I can proudly call my first invention. I came up with this dish way back in my 6th grade when the only thing I could make (unsupervised) was dear ol' Maggi. I was quite bored of the taste of plain Masala Maggi and decided to change it up a bit.

This dish of mine is a weird fusion of Italian and Chinese cooking, although, I came up with it much before I knew what Italian food was. I make it when I want something nostalgic, comforting and easy to make. I usually find myself having it when I'm home alone, after a long day at work and Sanju is away on a trip. Probably, because, it takes me back to when I first started making it when I was home alone, just back from school and ravenous.

Over the decades, this dish has seen many iterations; starting from plating the noodles and sauce separately to mixing them together. The kind of noodles has also changed, from using Maggi to smoodles to finally the noodles of the whole wheat variety.

Recipe (Serves 2)

Ingredients

For the noodles
2 packets instant noodles
1 tsp salt
Water as per cooking instructions given on packet

For the Sauce
2 cloves of garlic - grated
4 - 5 medium sized tomatoes - quartered
2 tbsp chili sauce
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp vinegar
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp black pepper powder - freshly ground
Salt as per taste

Method

Noodles
Add the noodles to boiling water containing 1 tsp of salt. Once the noodles are cooked and water has evaporated, tip the noodles into a colander and rinse under cold running water (for 1 min) to get rid of all the starch.
Sauce
Take 1 tbsp oil in a pan and add  2 grated cloves of garlic and saute till light brown.
Add the quartered tomatoes along with 1 tsp freshly ground pepper and salt
When the tomatoes have softened, add the soy sauce, chili sauce and vinegar and reduce the heat for the sauce to simmer, till tomatoes soften completely .
Add the noodles and stir together.

Notes:
1. The type of instant noodles you use do not matter as the taste maker given alongside will not be used, although, I have found that using spaghetti or noodles does not work very well with the sauce.
2. Add salt to the sauce cautiously as the soy sauce will be salty and the noodles will also be salted.
3. If the tomatoes do not release much water, add 2- 3 tablespoons of water to ensure tomatoes soften properly and the sauce does not burn.

A lot of folks are quite disturbed when I tell them of this this dish. I have no idea why! But don't diss it till you try it. It is yumm yumm yumm!