Mutton-Aloo-Palak / Spinach With Mutton And Potatoes

Three healthy ingredients in one dish! Yeah, here you have one such. If I start writing about spinach / palak it will make my post so lengthy. A very very healthy vegetable, with lots of nutrients cooked with mutton and potato, am sure you will never say no to this dish. I hadn't much expectation before preparing this, but surprisingly the whole dish finished soon!
Before you buy leaves check the leaves are fresh or not. Buy deep green leaves with tender stems with no signs of yellowing. Soak the whole leaves in a large vessel of water, clean each leaf dipping in that and remove dirts and soil. Change the water and continue cleaning until you find there is no dirt or soil remains in the washed water. Two or three times will be enough.
Then cut the hard stems and chop the leaves and cook for 1 minute. Water shouldn't be used to cook spinach, because the leaves already produce enough water while cooking.
My kids think spinach is very good, thats the only benefit they got after watching Popeye.. :)

Read more >>

Read more »

Cheerathandu / Spinach Stems Sambar

This is an addition to the peel and stem recipes here! Don't think I have nothing to throwaway once a vegetable is used for cooking..:D But I can surely say, a mallu can survive without veggies if he is lucky to live in his own country.I have seen an aunty of mine who prepared spinach / cheera dishes in seven days of the week. If she didn't get spinach from the near by shops she heads to the surrounding land or the neighbour's house to pluck some cheerayila / spinach leaves..Those leaves are not the same which we get in shops. They are different and pure locals who grow with the grass! One more cheera type we have at home is known as Malaysian cheera, with dark green leaves, that we often use for cooking. I think many of you might have the same in your home courtyards.
And this cheerathandu sambar is my MIL's version and she is the another person who uses lots of leaves or stems for cooking..You can use the green spinach stems also for this..

Cheerathandu sambar ingredients and preparation
Cheerathandu / spinach stems 1 bunch
coriander powder 1 tablespoon
chilly powder 1 tsp or as desired
turmeric 1/2 tsp
masoor dal / red lentils 1/2 cup
puli / tamarind 1 goose berry size
water 2 cups or as required
onion 1
tomato 1
potato 1
garlic cloves 2
cumin 1/4 tsp
fenugreek / uluva 1/4 tsp
kayam / asafoetida / hing 1/4 tsp powder- I used 1 small piece
curry leaves few
mustard seeds
salt
coconut oil



Take the stems of spinach / cheera remained when once you removed leaves. Peel them like we do for removing the skin of drumsticks / muringakkai. Cheerathandu will have very thin skin which should be removed.
Cut them in the desired size but not too small. Wash and keep them aside. If the stems are very thick, cut them length wise into two pieces.
Peel potato and chop into big pieces.Chop onion and tomato too.Crush garlic.
Soak tamarind in water and take about 1 cup tamarind water.(Or take according to the sourness you desire)
Wash and cook dal / parippu with onion, tomato, garlic, potato, all the powders, asafoetida and salt in the tamarind water. When it is half done, add 1 cup water and the chopped spinach stems. (Or add enough water required for cooking.) Cook till done.
Heat oil, let the mustard seeds, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds to splutter.
Fry curry leaves, and pour this solution into the curry. Add dry red chillies too for seasoning if you like. Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves on top.

Read more >>

Palak Chicken Curry

Palak / Spinach chicken curry / Green Chicken Curry
chicken 1/2 kg
palak 1/2 bunch
coriander leaves chopped 1/2 cup
green chilly 2
curd 1 tablespoon
turmeric powder 1/2 teaspoon
coriander powder 2 teaspoons
pepper powder 2 teaspoons or as desired
garam masala 1/2 tea spoon
onion 2
garlic paste 1 teaspoon
ginger paste 1 teaspoon
salt
oil



Boil water.Remove from fire. Place palak leaves in this and keep for two or three minutes till it is cooked.Drain and fill the vessel with cold water and wait for two minutes. (We do this just to retain the green color of the leaves.)
Take the leaves out and grind them into a fine paste.
Heat oil, saute chopped onion till golden brown. Add garlic ginger paste and saute for few seconds. Then add chicken, all the powders, slit green chillies,salt , coriander leaves and curd..Use 1/2 cup or more water for cooking. Cook until the chicken is done. Then add ground palak paste. Keep on a low flame, boil, remove from fire.After adding palak paste boiling too much may change the green color of the curry.

Read more >>

Potato and spinach / Cheera Urulakkizhangu masala

Ingredients
1/2 bunch of spinach
2 medium size potatoes
1 small tomato
1 medium size onion
Ginger 1/2 inch chopped
Green chilly 1 or 2
Pepper powder or chilly powder 1 teaspoon
Coriander powder 2 teaspoon
Mustard seeds 1 teaspoon
Garam masala ¼ teaspoon
Salt
Coriander leaves chopped 2 table spoon
Coconut oil 1 table spoon

How to prepare
Boil potatoes and remove skin.
Cut them into small pieces.
Heat oil.
Let the mustard seeds splutter.
Sauté finely chopped onion.
Keep stirring after adding chopped ginger and green chilies.
Add tomato pieces and all the powders.
Stir for a while.
Add salt , potatoes, garam masala and coriander leaves.
Stir till the masala cover the potatoes.
Then add chopped spinach.
Sprinkle little water over it.
Mix and keep covered.
Cook till done.
Add cumin seeds or black gram dal according to the taste of North or South in the beginning.
Best to have with chapattis.
Submitted to JFI-green leafy vegetables hosted by Indira of Mahanandi

Read more >>

Cheera-Parippu Curry Or Dal-Paalak

Ingredients
Paalak/Cheera(chopped) - 4 cups
Sambar Parippu or Toor dal - 1/2 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Small onions(Kunjulli) - 3 - 4 nos
Cumin seeds(Jeerakam) - 2 pinch
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - As reqd
Coconut oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Dry red chillies(Kollamulaku) - 1 - 2 nos
Curry leaves - A few

Method
1)Cook dal with turmeric powder, chilly powder, a little water and salt.
2)Add chopped paalak or cheera and cook for 1 - 2 mins.
3)Blend together coconut, cumin seeds and small onions by adding little water until you get a thick solution.
4)Pour this into the paalak and dal mixture.
5)Remove from fire when it starts boiling. :- Do not boil too much.
6)Heat oil in a pan or a kadai.
7)Splutter mustard seeds and saute dry red chillies and curry leaves.
8)Add this seasoning into the curry.

Read more >>