Sprouts at home..

Sprouts are well known for their nutritive benefits.They are sometimes referred to as wonder foods.

Sprouts are an inexpensive method of obtaining concentrates sources of vitamins,minerals and enzymes.It is also the safest way to get the maximum nutritional benefit devoid of contamination and harmful chemicals/pesticides.

Apart from nutritional aspect,sprouts have other benefits as well.On sprouting,the grains develop better digestibility and increased nutritive value.

They supply food in the predigested form,meaning,the food has already been worked upon by enzymes thereby making it easy to digest.Starches are converted into simple sugars,proteins are broken down to amino acids and amides and fats and oils are converted into simple fatty acids by the action of various enzymes.

While whole bean is considered to be gas producing and shunned by many,the sprouting process gets rid of this quality to a maximum level.

Consuming sprouts avoids constipation as it contains lots fiber and water.

Last week I made Moong sprouts at home after a long gap.Though I get loads of varieties at the farmers market and the fact that it is very inexpensive,I wanted to make them at home for a change.

Moong sprouts have a greater nutritional advantage over the dried green gram/whole moong.The water content of sprouted moong is higher than the dreid one and the ascorbic acid content increases by many folds.There is also an increase in protein and sodium content.The increase in amounts of vitamins and minerals along with the sodium content contributes to the easy digestibility of these sprouts.

Making sprouts at home is very easy.

• Soak the moong bean overnight.
• The next morning,drain the water and tie it in a muslin cloth[or any thin cloth] .Put in tnto an vessel and leave it in a dark corner.
• The next day you can see the spouts emerging.Ideally the sprouts can be twice the length of the moong bean.Remove from the cloth and use as required.

Simple isn't it!!!!!




Sending this simple entry to My legume love affair[MMLA]- 17th edition,hosted by Sra of 'When my soup came alive'.MMLA is an event started by Susan of The well seasoned cook.

Carbohydrates-Part 1

The first nutrient that is to be demystified is Carbohydrates.I have tried to put it into simple terms and since nutrition is a vast topic,I will just talk about the important and interesting facts and I also plan to give some sample menus at the end of each topic as well..Happy reading....

* Carbohydrates are a class of energy yielding substances that include

-Starch
-Glucose
-Cane sugar
-Milk
-Sugar etc.

* Carbohydrates from the cereals form the chief source of energy. Food grains, roots and tuber are mainly composed of starch- a complex carbohydrate. Simple sugars like cane sugar and glucose are pure carbohydrates.

* Starches when consumed are digested and release glucose that provides energy to the body

* There is no difference between the starches derived from different sources.

* Besides the digestible carbohydrates there are some non digestible carbohydrates that we like to have in our diet- Yes, Dietary fiber…Dietary fiber or unavailable carbohydrates in technical terms, is one kind of carbohydrate.

Functions of carbohydrates

1. Provide energy

Any type of carbohydrate that we take in is broken down to glucose which is the primary source of energy for the body.

2. Sparing the use of proteins for energy

Though carbohydrates are the major sources of energy, in times of fasting or staying without food/carbohydrates for a longer period, the proteins which are essential for body building turn to become energy providers thereby hindering tissue development.

3. Breakdown of fatty acids and preventing ketosis

When there is an inadequate supply of carbohydrates, fats may also be used as an energy source and the breakdown of fats leads to the formation of ‘ketone bodies’ in the blood which is leads to a dangerous condition called ‘ketosis’.One of the ways to diagnose Ketosis is by the odors on the breath and in the urine.To prevent ketosis we need to take at least 50-100 grams of carbohydrates per day in our diet.

4. Flavor and Sweeteners

Apart from the major role of being the energy provider, carbohydrates also have a less important role as a sweetener. Different sugars vary in their degree of sweetness.

5. Dietary fiber

Sometimes called a ‘dieter’s boon’ is essential for everyone. It includes

§ Cellulose

§ Hemicellulose

§ Pectins

§ Gums

§ Lignins


Ø Though dietary fiber does not contribute to the nutritive value of the food stuff, it is necessary to provide the bulk in the diet

Ø Lack of dietary fiber in the diet is mainly due to the use of refined foods which leads to constipation and increases the chances of colon cancer

Ø Dietary fiber is very beneficial as they lower blood cholesterol, blood glucose[essential in diabetic control].

Ø Generous portions of vegetables, green leafy vegetables, fruits,unrefined cereals are to be included in the menu to achieve a diet sufficient in dietary fiber.

Stay tuned for more facts on Carbohydrates....

Recipe Junction

Have an ingredient at hand and wondering what to prepare with it?Look no further,here are all the recipes from my blog for you to try.

Also browse through some articles related to health,laugh at my culinary disaster and read some notes on nutrition,savor the takeaways and explore some restaurants.....

CEREALS

RICE
[Includes rice,basmathi,brown rice,forbidden rice]

Tomato Rice
Peas Pulao
Saffron Rice
Coriander coconut rice
Sesame seed flavored rice
Mintleaves Briyani
Lemon flavored rice
Spicy channa pulao
Simple coconut rice
Curry leaf flavored rice # 1
Curry leaf flavored rice # 2
Pepper flavored rice
Carrot rice
Fusion rice
Capsicum rice
Ridgegourd rice
Garlic rice
Brown rice phirni
Forbidden rice pudding

RICE FLOUR

Processed rice flour for snacks
Sweet kaduvu/Kozhukattai
Kaara kaduvu / savory kozhukattai

PRESSED RICE / POHA/AVAL

Aval upma
Curd aval

PUFFED RICE

Bhel puri

WHEAT FLOUR

Masala poori
Poori
Mooli paratha
Chilli chapathi
Chapathi wrap
Coriander paratha
Veggie chapathi
Nutri Chapathi
Wheat flour dosai
Meethi paratha
Tit-bits

WHEAT RAWA

Wheat rava idli
Wheat rava upma


WHITE RAWA

Rava idli
Rava kesari
Rava ladoo

SAGO

Sabudana kitchidi


OATS

Instant oats dosa
Insant Oats halwa


BUCKWHEAT

Buckwheat noodles with veggies

RAGI

Ragi sevai
Ragi porridge

MAIDA

Eggless chocolate cake[Microwave]

BREAD

Bread upma
Bread pizza sandwich
Bruschetta
Bread thayir vadai

RICE SEVAI

Rice sevai
Lemon sevai
Ellu sevai

NOODLES

Garlic noodles
Sesame vegetable noodles

SEMIYA / VERMICELLI

Semiya payasa

PASTA

Cheesy pasta


PULSES / LEGUMES

Rajma sundal
Blackbean salad
Gram dhal sundal
Peanut chutney
Groundnut sundal
Amma's Huli
Easy dhal
Sambar
Groundnut gravy
Pachai payaru kadaiyal
Tomato onion chutney with lentils
Kaalu chutney
Chole
Paruppu rasam
Ulundhu vadai
Ambaday




GRAM FLOUR

Boondhi
Bajji
Onion pakoda

TOFU

Tofu bhurju
Fried tofu fingers with black magic dip


RICE-PULSE COMBO

Kuzhi paniyaram
Ven pongal
Adai
Onion roast
Uthappam
Masala dosai
Idli upma
Idli
Bisi bele huli anna
Arisi paruppu sadham
Tovvay anna and gojju
Puttu and kadala curry

VEGETABLES

Capsicum soup
Broccoli soup
Umbrain cipollata
Nellikkai thokku
Bittergourd crisps
Bittergourd stir-fry
Spicy brinjal curry
Potato masal
Purple cabbage stir fry
Easy potato curry
Spicy mushroom stir-fry
Keerla sukke
Pico de gallo
Simple pumpkin stir-fry
Japanese daikon salad
Oh ee mu chim
Carotte rapees
Cauliflower stir-fry
Hash browns
Aloo Gobi masala
Potato and peas masal
Uruai kizhangu kaara curry
Manathakkali vatral
Potato crisps
Sundakkai vatral
Ennai kathirikkai
Coriander chutney
Green coconut chutney
Tomato gravy
Tomato chutney # 1
Tomato chutney # 2
Ridgegourd peel chutney
Tomato onion chutney
Gajar ka halwa

GREEN LEAFY VEGETABLES

Keerai kadaiyal


FRUITS

Mango milkshake
Instant mango pickle
Kiwi salsa
Kiwi cucumber lassi
Kiwi raita
Kiwi marmalade
Kiwi banana shake
Aqua fresca
Orange flavored gojju
Mashed sapota with milk
Stewed apple
Yiner hangzao lianzi geng
Banana in rich coconut sauce
Water melon slush
Jackfruit payasa

NUTS

Coconut milk
Coconut payasa
Coconut chutney
Green coconut chutney


SPICES

Dry curry leaves at home..
Curry leaf powder
Sesame chutney
Sesame seed spice mix
Ell urundai
Red chilli chutney
Garlic pickle
Garlic kuzhambu
Mil's instant rasam
Masala pappad
Vata tea
Jeeraga kashayam
Baby brinjal in tangy sauce
Rasam powder
Sambar powder


HERBS

TULSI / HOLY BASIL

Herb lemonade


FLOWERS

Vazhapoo vadai
Vazhapoo porriyal

MILK AND MILK PRODUCTS

MILK

Instant milk halwa
Breakfast shake
Strawberry banana mlkshake
Strawberry Milkshake
Apple milkshake
Banana milkshake
Haal obittu
Happala karadha payasa


CURD/YOGHURT/BUTTERMILK

Capsicum raita
Cucumber raita
Nellikkai raita
Beetroot raita
Boondhi raita
Banana raita
Udhin hittu raita
Tomato raita
Pancha ratna raita
Thayir vadai
Kothamira perugu pachadi
Carrot raita
Lentil dumplings in spicy yoghurt gravy
More Kuzhambu
Spiced buttermilk
Cucumber buttermilk
More
Fruity yoghurt # 1
Curd rice

TEA/COFFEE/GREEN TEA

Ginger tea
Japanese green tea sorbet

BASICS

Tips for super soft and fluffy chapathi


ARTICLES

NUTRITION / HEALTH / FOOD RELATED ARTICLES

Nutrients-What and why?!
Kiwi fruits
Sesame seeds
Tips to make children eat better
Weaning-Importannce,tips and a few recipe ideas
Forgotton flavors from the land of nectar
Nutmeg-Grandma's remedy
Green wonder
Microwave basics
Spice or medicine
Food and mood
Going bananas
A coincidence?!!

RESTAURANT / TAKE-AWAY REVIEWS

Huo guo
Dumpling
Tang hu lu
Pheni
Puttu


MISC

Deepavali
Mangala Gowri habba
Chinese wedding
Best of the year 2008
Kitchen treasures
My kitchen buddies
Masal dosa and the way of life
Saga of sago vada

Happy browsing....

Kuzhi paniyaram-A taste of Chettinad

A few years ago,when I was in college,I was invited for lunch by Aunty T.She is an excellent cook who can make varieties of dishes in a jiffy.Both of us learn Veena under my dad and did our graduation together.Though she is very elder to me,Aunty T and me would discuss some common topics,the first one [after music] would be-Cooking!

It so happened that one day I asked her to lend me a few cookery books so that I can write them down to try later.She has a vast collection of cookery books and is an expert baker.The topic turned to cakes and she promised to bake a cake for me or rather teach me[orally] how to bake a cake.That turned to be an invitation to lunch too.

She taught me to bake an egg-less marble cake and I was astonished at the ease of preparation.While the cake was in the oven she served me a scrumptious lunch.Later, after the cake was done,it was time to taste it and I loved every bite!

Soon she came out with a tray of Kuzhi paniyaram and a cup of tea.That's when I was introduced to the taste of Chettinad.

Chettinad is a region in Tamilnadu,South India and this region is well known for its cuisine,temples and mansions!!!

Its cuisine is well known all over and its famous for its spicy dishes.It makes uses of several spices resulting in an aromatic array of dishes.Chettinad is a very dry region and banking on this aspect,the cuisine also has many varieties of sun dried meat and salted vegetables.

When EC announced the WYF event - Specialty foods,the first dish that came to my mind was Kuzhi paniyaram,a speciality dish from Chettinad.Kuzhi paniyaram either be both sweet or savory and here is the savory version for EC's WYF:Speciality food event

You need:

1. Leftover idli / dosa batter - 1 cup
2. Onion-1 chopped
3. Green chillies - 2 ,finely chopped
4. Curry leaves - a few
5. Mustard-1/2 a teaspoon
6. Jeera-1/2 a teaspoon
7. Gram dha;-1/2 a teaspoon
8. Urad dhal-1/2 a teaspoon
9. Oil- as required.

Here is what you will have to do....

1. Take the batter in a bowl and put in chopped onion,green chillies,curry leaves and keep aside.The batter should neither be too thick or too watery.
   
2. Heat a little oil in a small pan and put in mustard,jeera,gram dhal,urad dhal and when it splutters and the dhal turns brown,pour it into the batter bowl.Mix well.
   
3. Heat a kuzhi paniyaram pan[shown in pic 1] and pour 1/2 a teaspoon oil into each depression.The quantity of oil depends on the size of the depression.
4. When it is hot,pour a tablespoon or so of the batter [depending on the size of the depression as in pic 2]
   
5. Wait for a few minutes till the sides shrink a little signaling that one side has been cooked.
6. Use a spoon/knife/steel skewer to turn over the paniyaram[pic 3]
7. After a few minutes ,when the other side has been cooked to golden brown,remove from paniyara pan
8. Serve as a snack with Tomato onion chutney
   

A few tips for a tasty snack...

- If the pan is 'seasoned'[meaning used often] paniyaram is very easy to turn over as it will not get stuck to the sides.
-If the first batch gets stuck,carefully remove from heat and let it cool.Soak the cool pan in a large basin of water,clean well and use again brushing a little extra oil.
- Instead of using metal/clay pans,non stick pans can be used for a fat free snack.
- If you don't like green chillies getting into the way while savoring these delicious bites,use chilli powder instead.
- If you prepare this ahead of serving time,just reheat for a few seconds in a microwave and serve.

A small word of caution,the metal pan gets very hot on using for a long time i.e when you prepare many batches, so handle with care,use a gloves to be on the safer side.

Happy cooking...

Nutrients – what and why?!

Everyone is talking about nutrition. People are becoming so health conscious that when a group of people meet, at one point or the other, their conversation turns to food and all you can hear is about the foods that are fattening or the food that is helps you slim down,the calories in a food,who advised what ..the list is endless. But not everyone who is so conscious about their intake is really aware of what they talk, meaning, the terms they use-calories,fat,protein and so on just seems to be ‘terms’ without them actually knowing what they really mean.

If you are wondering why I am talking about this all of a sudden ,then I must tell you what prompted me to write this post. A couple of days back, I was chatting with a close friend of mine. The topic steered towards blogging and my friend jokingly remarked that I seemed to have forgotten that I am a Dietitian since I just blog recipes! That set me thinking and now I plan to share some stuff which I think everyone will like to know-Yes,its about the nutrients..

My future posts in this series which I would like to call ‘Nutrients-Demystified’ is a small attempt to provide light to those words[which I was talking about earlier] that are making waves among us..

I am sure this series is going to bring back a lot of memories from my collage days but I assure you that this series will not be too technical like classroom theory, but more of stuffs that we can relate to…

Now just a small intro about nutrients….

Nutrients are the chemical substance present in the food that we eat and they are present in all the foods we consume and in varying proportions, some being rich in one or more nutrients while the other may lack it or have it in minute quantities.

There are quite a few foodstuffs that provide only one nutrient – like sugars which provide only carbohydrate while ghee provides only fat.

Depending on the concentration the nutrients are classified as

Carbohydrates
Proteins
Fats

These three are also called proximate principles. These 3 nutrients form the main energy source for the body upon oxidation. Along with water, the proximate principles form the bulk in the diet.

Another group of nutrients-Vitamins and minerals ,are also very essential for the role they play in regulating the metabolism and the usage of the proximate principles. They are not energy sources but are equally important.


In order to survive, we need all these nutrients in varying amounts, to live, grow and thrive.Hence the diet must be well balanced so as to provide a proper balance of nutrients. Not only that, the diet must also be eaten in a sufficient quantity daily to get the proper supply of nutrients for proper body functions…

Does all this seem confusing? Worry not. The first nutrient is just about to be demystified in my next post….

Tofu Bhurji-A protein powerhouse...

Almost everyday this summer, I made my way to the farmers market to buy vegetables.Since the vegetables are so fresh I didn't have the mind to buy them in bulk and stock them up.I preferred to treat my eyes and palette with farm fresh vegetables everyday.

Each time I go there,I can see the lady at the tofu stand look at me.Sometimes I think she is just looking at me coz I am the only 'foreigner lady' in that locality,sometimes I would feel she is looking at me amused as to what a foreigner is doing at the local market instead of going to the mall,other days I would think that she is waiting for me to come and buy her tofu.Well,this is just my imagination and God knows what she is really thinking when she sees me.

Then one fine day I decided to go to her stand to get Tofu.I have tasted tofu in restaurants but never prepared a dish with it at home.I made my way to her stand,past all the vegetable stalls,the meat counter and fish tanks and got a cube of Tofu.It cost just 1RMB for a cube weighing approximately 200g!![That's really cheap you know]

I got it home and MIL looked at me with a big question mark on her face.I said I was not sure what I am going to prepare with it but got it anyway.I drained it and placed the chopping board over it and a few more grocery jars on it[to drain the remaining water] and that's when the idea of bhurji struck me.

Bhurji is the Indianized version of scramble and this tofu scramble is a great treat for vegetarians and Vegans.

It is popularly believed that Tofu is bland but its this very fact that makes it all the more interesting.It blends with any dish into which it is incorporated and 'takes-in' those flavors!!Tofu is loaded with protein and has tons of health benefits.

Simple and easy to prepare Tofu Bhurji-just for you..

You need:

1. Tofu – 200 grams
2. Tomato – 1 small,chopped
3. Onion-1 small,chopped
4. Colored bell pepper -1/4 cup chopped [I used red and green]
5. Boiled peas[optional]
6. Oil- 2 teaspoon
7. Jeera/cumin seeds-1 teaspoon
8. Garam masala powder-1/2 teaspoon
9. Cumin powder-1/2 teaspoon
10. Turmeric powder-a pinch
11. Chilli powder-1/2 teaspoon
12. Ginger garlic paste-1/2 teaspoon
13. Salt to taste

1. Drain tofu and place a chopping board over it and top it with some heavy weight object .[This is to drain the remaining water.Water tends to spoil the taste of the dish].Let it remain as such till the water is fully drained.
2. Crumble the tofu in a bowl and put in the ingredients from 8-13.
3. Mix well and marinate for 15 minutes.
4. Heat oil in pan and put in jeera.
5. When it splutters,put in onion and sauté till transparent.
6. Put in tomato and bell pepper.
7. Cook till tomato is soft.
8. Add the tofu mixture,boiled peas and mix well.
9. Cook for another 2 minutes stirring occasionally.
10. Serve warm garnished with coriander leaves.

This bhurji can be served as a side dish with Roti/Chapathi or as a snack.

Sending this to Sara'sSay cheese event.Thanks Sara for letting me know about this wonderful event!

Also sending this healthy entry to My legume love affair- 17th edition,hosted by Sra of 'When my soup came alive'.MMLA is an event started by Susan of The well seasoned cook.It was only when I going through Sra's announcement page that I learnt that Tofu recipes are also accepted!!!

Few more awards....

Pari of Foodelicious has passed on these awards to me..Thanks a lot Pari,you made my day!!!






I share this with all my blogging buddies!!!