Munchies (dabbe khaaN)

Edamame Chakli

Edamame Chakli


Wish you all a very happy and prosperous Diwali.

This year has been one of the busiest years as far as I can remember. Although I have weekdays and weekends packed with work, kids activities and other household stuff, I am trying my best to take out some time to celebrate festivals. Diwali for me is full of lights, food and fireworks. Although we don’t do fireworks anymore since they are banned in our city, I always make sure to have some delicious homemade food. This year I wanted to make something new. My 7 year old loves chaklis and gulab jamuns. So I zeroed on them. I prepared sweet potato and paneer gulab jamun. I initially thought of making spinach chakli, but then decided to try Edamame chaklis instead.

Edamame are whole immature soy beans. My family straight away rejected them when we tried first time. Then we became fans of them after trying few times at Thai and Chinese restaurants. I get shelled frozen edamame and usually have a pack in my freezer. I need to start using them more frequently. They somehow come home and disappear in the bottom of my freezer!.  I decided to make use of one such pack. They have a peculiar smell to them, so I was not sure how the chaklis would turn out. But they were fantastic and no one could taste the edamame in them!.

The dough was quite ‘loose’, so I could not get them into traditional chakli shape. So I made small piles of them on a parchment paper and then slowly picked them up and slid them into hot oil. Once fried, they retained the shape.

Check out the other chakli recipes at traditional chakli, moong dal chakli, spinach chakli, ragi chakli, sugarcane chakli

Pictorial:
Frozen edamame, microwaved.

Dry roast urad dal, powder and add it to rice flour along with remaining ingredients.

Press chaklis on a paper.

Deep fry.

Edamame Chakli

Delicious and full of protein, made with edamame beans and spices
4.67 from 6 votes
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours

Ingredients
  

  • 4 cups rice flour
  • 1 pack 280g frozen (or fresh) edamame
  • 3 tea spn urad dal
  • 1 tea spn cumin seeds
  • 1 tea spn chilli powder
  • 1 tbl spn butter
  • Oil
  • 1 and 1/2 cups milk
  • Salt

Instructions
 

  • Microwave the edamame for 3mins (or pressure cook).
  • Make a smooth paste with milk.
  • Dry roast urad dal till nice aroma comes out and make a powder.
  • Add edamame paste, urad dal powder, cumin seeds, chilli powder, butter, salt and milk to rice flour.
  • Mix them very well.
  • Take a ball of the dough in chakli press and Press them into desired shape (they were delicate and easily broke, so I just pressed them into piles).
  • Heat oil and deep fry.
  • When they cool down to room temperature, store in air tight container.

 

Edamame Chakli

Spinach Chakli

spinach chakli
When my children were growing up, I frequently made chaklis and other deep fried dishes. After they moved out to go to college, I hardly made any deep fried dishes. Sometimes we buy ready made munchies to eat with evening tea. At Kumta, we get chaklies of many different varieties. One of our favorite is Spinach chakli. When we were visiting Shilpa and her family in March, we thought of trying to make these at home. They came out so well and tasty. I made a big batch of chaklis before leaving for India.

Ingredients:
4 cups (approx) or 1/2 lb baby spinach
2 tbl spns urad dal
4 cups rice flour
1 tea spn white sesame seeds
2 tbl spn (approx) water
6 tbl spn butter
1 tea spn cumin seeds
Oil
Salt

Method:
spinach chakli1 spinach chakli2

Roast urad dal till it is brownish. Make a smooth powder.
spinach chakli3 spinach chakli4 spinach chakli5
Grind spinach with minimum amount of water(approx 2 tbl spns) to a smooth paste.
Now mix the paste with all other ingredients(except oil) to a dough.
spinach chakli6  spinach chakli7spinach chakli8
Make chaklis using the chakli press.
spinach chakli9 spinach chakli10
Deep fry chaklis.
Store in a air tight container.

PS: First time we tried, we used more butter. Everyone loved the texture and taste but they were breaking very easily. Next time we tried, we used less butter and they were harder but still very good. So use between 1/4 cup(4 tbl spn) to 1/2 cup(8tbl spn) butter based on your liking.

spinach chakli

Corn Flakes Chivda

corn flakes chivda
I know this place has been very quiet for last few days. First the camera had some issues, then technical issues with the site and when they got resolved, I was down with pretty severe cold. All I wanted to do was sleep!. But I have been very active with my other blog art Campus. Finally I am making some time for the crafts – which I love so much but never had time to explore more!.

The temperatures here are dropping very fast. It is not possible to step outside without jackets. I was hoping we will have few more days to play outside, but we are staying indoors for now. That also means I am making a lot of soups. If anyone is interested, I will post them here.

Here is a simple recipe for Corn Flakes Chivda. A chivda can’t be simpler than this. I made this because I had to use up a large batch of Kellog’s corn flakes that we bought but could not finish. It was nearing expiration and I had to think of something. Since I usually like to make a hot breakfast every morning, corn flakes or cereals hardly get finished. V had bought this bag when I was in India and he could not finish it. These corn flakes were slightly sweetish, any corn flakes can be used. All my friends that tasted this loved it.

Also check out corn flakes rolls.

Ingredients:
5 cups corn flakes
2 tbl spns peanuts
2 tbl spns cashews (optional)
1 tea spn cumin powder
1 tea spn coriander powder
1 tea spn poha masala (optional, but gives a great aroma and taste)
1 tea spn chaat masala
6-7 curry leaves
1 tea spn mustard seeds
1 tea spn urad dal
A big pinch of asafoetida
1/4 tea spn turmeric
1 tea spn sugar (optional, do not use of corn flakes are sweet)
1/2 tea spn chilli powder
1/2 cup sev (optional)
Oil
Salt

Method:
corn flakes chivda1 corn flakes chivda2

Heat about 2-3 tbl spn oil and add peanuts and cashews. Fry for a minute and then add mustard seeds, urad dal. When they start popping, add curry leaves and asafoetida.
corn flakes chivda3 corn flakes chivda4
Reduce the heat to medium-low and add all dry masalas and salt. Mix well.
corn flakes chivda5 corn flakes chivda6 corn flakes chivda7
Now add corn flakes, sev. Mix everything very well.
Let it cool to room temperature, then store in air tight container.

Preparation time : 20mins

Cheddar Crackers

chaddar crackers

Like any other kid that goes to daycare here, Ishaan loved goldfish crackers from a very young age. Although I was okay if he ate them at daycare, I like to avoid giving them at home. So I wanted to make something similar for him, where I could control the ingredients. One day I was searching for crackers recipe and I came across this and this. I bookmarked the recipe and forgot all about it. Finally yesterday I made them. Instead of all purpose flour, I used wheat flour(chapati atta), so they turned out little dense. For some extra flavor, I added cumin seeds and chilli powder. They tasted great. Next time I will make them a little thin and use finely grated cheese, since some were not very crispy.

Ingredients:
1 cup wheat flour
8 oz mild cheddar cheese
1/2 tea spn cumin seeds(slightly crushed) – optional
4 tbl spn unsalted butter
1/2 tea spn chilli powder – optional
4-5 tbl spn water
Salt

Method:
Mix everything together to make a dough. While adding water, add 1 tbl spn at a time till the dough comes together nicely.
Wrap in a plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3-4hrs.
Preheat the oven at 350F.
Roll the dough into 1/8 inch thin sheet. Remember, if you make them too thick, they do not become crispy.  Cut them into required shapes.
Bake for around 18-20 mins till they get a golden color. I checked them after 15mins and then kept them again for couple more minutes. Let them cool to room temperature, serve.

Pictorial:

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chaddar crackers

Breadfruit Chips

breadfruit chips

We have a big breadfruit tree in our garden which gives big fruits, sometimes twice a year. My children loved this. We usually share them with our neighbors. Besides preparing randayi, phodis, bhajes and talasani, I prepare these chips very often. They are crispy and tasty when prepared from fully grown up breadfruits. The chips are not prepared from yellow coloured ripe fruits or the ones that fall down. We take out fresh fruits and make the chips. These can be stored and used for many days.

Check out chips made from bananas, raw jackfruit, potatoes.

Ingredients:
Breadfruit
Oil
Salt water
Turmeric powder
Chilly powder or Pepper powder (optional)

Method:
Peel off the skin of breadfruit. Cut it into pieces and immerse under water for about ten minutes to remove any gum.
Prepare salt water by adding about 1 tea spn salt to a cup of water and add a little turmeric powder and keep it aside.
Make thin slices and deep fry them in oil. When the chips are almost done, add a spoonfull of salt water. Fry till they are completely done. Remove them from the oil. If you want, you can sprinkle chilli powder or pepper powder as per your taste. When they get cooled, store them in an airtight container.

Pictorial:

breadfruit chips1

breadfruit chips2

breadfruit chips3

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breadfruit chips

Mango Burfi (Ambe Khadi)

ambe khadi

During mango season, we prepare so many dishes of mangos. Mango burfi is one amongst them. These are liked very much by all at my home. My grandmother was preparing many batches of Mango burfis. I have been making them every year in the season from many years.

Hot mango pulp  splatters all over the hands while stirring in the pan. Hence I was a little reluctant to prepare these burfis again and again. I prefer to use Ishad mangoes(a local variety of mangoes) for this purpose as it contains a lot of pulp compared to any others available here.

My daughter tried it with the ready made pulp a couple of times without much success, so I would suggest using fresh mango pulp for this.

Ingredients:
2 cups Mangopulp 
Sugar
1/2 tea spn Cardmom powder
1 tea spn ghee

Method:
Peel off the mangos and collect the pulp. Make the pulp smoother by using mixer or blender.
Take the pulp in a pan and heat it on a medium flame. Go on stirring the pulp till it becomes semisolid. If the stirring is interrupted, the pulp may get stuck to the bottom and get burnt. In order to avoid this,it is better to use nonstick pan.
Measure the semisolid pulp and take the same quantity of sugar. Go on heating and stirring the pulp and sugar in the pan till it stops sticking to the sides. Put off the flame once the
pulp becomes solid and attains orange color. Mix cardamom powder with the pulp.
Smear ghee to the rolling pad and spread the mixture over it. Spread it with the help of
rolling pin. Cut it to suitable size and shape.
Allow the burfis to cool and then store them in airtight container.

Pictorial:

ambe khadi1

ambe khadi2

ambe khadi3

ambe khadi4

ambe khadi5

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ambe khadi7

ambe khadi8

ambe khadi

Potato Chips

potato chips

One of the most popular chips available in market these days are these potato chips (or potato wafers as they are called here). We make chips from raw jackfruit, plantain/banana, breadfruit etc. Since these are readily available in market, I make these very rarely. Many of you requested for this recipe, so I thought of posting the recipe here.

For these chips, you have to select big sized potatoes to get chips of larger diameter. Use a mandoline slicer to get uniform pieces. In order to make them stiff, we generally put them in ice and water for about ten minutes before frying.

Ingredients:
Potatoes
Ice cubes and water
Salt
Oil
Chilly powder (optional)
Turmeric powder

Method:
In a bowl, mix a tea spn salt with half cup water and a pinch of turmeric powder. Keep it aside.
Wash the potatoes well. Do not peel off the skin. Using a slicer, make thin slices. Place them in a bowl with ice cubes(7-8) and water for about ten minutes. Spread them over a paper or cloth for about 20 – 30 minutes till they get dried up.
Deep fry them in hot oil. I generally use coconut oil for frying. Any oil
can be used.
When the chips are almost done, add salted water in the frying pan(Be very careful as the oil splashes when water is added). When the bubbling sound disappears, remove the
chips from the frying pan. Spread them on a paper so that much of the oil is absorbed by the paper.
Red chilly powder may be sprinkled over the chips when they are hot.You can store them
in an airtight container when they are cooled to room temperature.

Pictorial:

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potato chips

Plantain/Banana Chips (Kele Balka)

Banana chips are a very popular snack. We grow many varieties of bananas in our garden. Some of these are consumed ripe and some are mainly used for cooking (also called plantains). As my children liked them, I used to prepare them on large scale and store them in big tin containers. They loved to eat hot chips just out of oil. While my son and husband loved the spicy ones, my daughter liked plain chips.

I usually fried them in coconut oil as we were not diet conscious in those days. Chips fried in coconut oil last for more days. Any types of raw bananas (fully grown only) can be used for this purpose. I normally use a local variety called ‘Anabale’ in Konkani. Another popular variety used is called ‘Nendrabale’.

Ingredients:
Raw bananas
Oil
SSlt
Turmeric powder
Red chilly powder/pepper powder (optional)

Method:
Put longitudinal cuts on the external surface of bananas with knife and peel off the skin. Apply little oil to palms (to avoid palms becoming sticky and black). Immerse the peeled bananas in water for about thirty minutes. This removes the gum from bananas.
Cut the bananas into thin circular chips and spread them on a cotton cloth and allow them to dry for about thirty minutes.
Mix 1-2 tea spn salt and 1/4 tea spn turmeric powder in 1/4 cup of water and keep it aside.
Heat oil and deep fry the dried banana chips in it. When they are almost done (Take the spoon and mix the chips, if you can hear the sound of chips, then they are almost done) pour 1-2 tea spn salt and turmeric water in it. Take care to avoid splashing of hot oil when you add salt water to the oil. Frying is almost over when the splashing and the sound ceases.
Take off the chips from the oil. You can sprinkle the red chilly powder or pepper powder over the fried chips per your taste.

You can store these chips in a container when they cool. Remember to reduce the amount of salt water for subsequent batches as the oil in the pan absorb some amount of salt.

Note: Instead of adding normal salt, you can also sprinkle some rock salt on top to introduce unique taste.

Pictorial:

Sugarcane Juice Chaklis (Kabbarosa Chakli)

Every year, Tulsi pooja comes on Kartik shuddha Dwadashi. We decorate Tulsi vrindavan with mantapam and sugarcanes all around it. The mantapam and all the decorations are taken off after three days. After the pooja, sugarcane pieces were distributed along with puffed rice to all the people who came home to attend the pooja.

In previous years, many farmers from nearby places used to supply sugarcanes for Tulsi Pooja. However this season, sugarcanes were not fully grown and hence they were not sweet enough to eat. So we send them to the market to make juice. I used to prepare many dishes out of it, like the sugarcane juice – chaklis, appes and alayle peeta rotti/kabbarosa bhakri etc. Among all these, sugarcane chaklis were favorites at the house. So since then, whenever we got sugarcane juice, these chaklis became a staple at home.

These days the juice is easily available in the market. We love drinking it with lemon juice and ginger added.

Ingredients:
5 cups rice flour
1 cup maida(all purpose flour)
2.5 to 3 cups sugarcane juice
1 cup melted butter
1 tea spn sesame seeds
1 tea spn Salt
Oil for deep frying

Method:
Melt the butter. Mix butter, sesame seeds and salt with the rice flour, maida and add sugarcane juice to it slowly to have a smooth dough removing all the lumps in it. Start with 2.5 cups juice and increase if needed.
Knead it properly on a flat surface.
Fill the dough in the chakli press and make the chaklis on a paper or banana leaf or a plastic sheet.
Heat oil and deep fry chaklis. Remove them when they turn slightly brown. Store them in airtight container when they cool. They last for many days.

Updated recipe Apr 20th 2022:
Pictorial:


Video –

Kobbari Kodubale

This recipe was given to me by my friend Poornima. This was about 4 years ago. I rarely make deep fried items and kodbale making requires some time and effort. So I never got to it. What is better timing than Diwali for making such dishes? So I made these on the festival day. They were superb. Half the batch got over that day itself. I made few modifications to the recipe. Here is the version I tried. The original version had onions in it, but I did not add it.

Ingredients:
2 cups rice flour
1 cup maida (all purpose flour)
1 cup rava/sooji
1 tea spn moong dal
1 tea spn urad dal
1 tea spn chana dal
5-6 red chillies
2 tea spns dry coconut (kobbari)
1 tea spn coriander seeds
1 tea spn cumin seeds
Oil
Salt

Method:
Dry roast rice flour, maida(all purpose flour), rava/sooji for few minutes and keep it aside.
Heat oil and add moong dal, urad dal, chana dal, red chillies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, coconut for few minutes. Take care not to burn anything. Grind to a paste using just enough water.
Add the paste to the flour mixture. Add salt and make a dough.
Make kodbale and keep fry them in oil.
They get soft if they are not fried well, so make sure to fry them till they are little dark in color. Store in air tight container.

Pictorial:

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