Monday, June 8, 2009

Chow Chow bajji and Simple Dal


Chow chow or chayote bajji is a simple dish which can be had as a side dish or eaten with rice alone.
Ingredients
  • 2 small chow chow/chayote, peeled, cubed and pressure cooked
  • 2 green chillies
  • 1/2 cup grated coconut
  • small piece of tamarind
  • 1 tsp jeera
  • salt to taste
For tempering
  • 1tsp oil
  • 4-5 curry leaves
  • 1 tsp mustard
  • A pinch of asafoetida

Method:
  • Grind the cooked chow chow pieces with grated coconut, green chilies, cumin seeds, salt, tamarind with very little water.
  • Once it's ground to a fine paste transfer it to the serving bowl and set it aside.
  • Heat a 1 tsp oil in a tempering pan add mustard seeds, curry leaves as it begins to pop throw in the asafoetida, then immediately pour it over the ground paste and mix well. Taste and adjust the salt if necessary.
  • Serve with rice/roti.

Simple Dal: Dali Thoy -version 2



This is one of the simplest versions of dal that I've come across. The Konkani households make their dal in two versions, the difference is only in the tempering. In one version tempering is done with garlic and red chilies, and the other is with mustard seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves.
I've posted the garlic and red chilies tempered dal sometime back. Let's see the other one.
Ingredients:
  • 1 cup Toor dal
  • ½ tsp Turmeric
  • Salt to taste
For the tempering:
  • 5-6 curry leaves
  • 2-3 dry red chilies, halved
  • A pinch of asafoetida
Method:
  • Wash and clean the toor dal and drain the water
  • Pour 2 cups of clean water into the dal
  • Add turmeric powder and stir
  • Pressure cook it for 2-3 whistles
  • Now mash the pressure cooked dal using a whisker
  • Add salt to it and heat it on a low flame, stir occasionally
  • While the dal is heating prepare for the tempering.

Tempering:

  • Heat oil in a skillet, add mustard seeds and curry leaves wait till it begins to pop
  • Now add the red chillies and fry for 2-3 seconds, add asafoetida
  • Take it off the flame and pour it on the dal.
  • Stir well, switch off the flame when the dal comes to a boil. Serve it hot with rice.

46 comments:

Padma said...

Such a beautiful presentation Suparna... and healthy recipes... both the dishes look great and nice click :)

ARUNA said...

wow tht's a gorgeous spread!

Gita Jaishankar said...

What a lovely combination...looks very comforting :)

Deepthi Shankar said...

I love chow chow .. comfort food

Chitra said...

chow chow bajii is very new to me..looks simple and easy:)

Unknown said...

bajji and dal wow what a combination looks so inviting yum yum.

Pooja said...

Wow both dishes look fabulous! Never had chow bajji before!

Mangala Bhat said...

wow! love the combination ..:P...:)looks soo simple and tasty

Unknown said...

Comfort food for me, nice presentation.

Srilakshmi said...

Super yummy dishes.. Simple, yet delicious..

Poornima Nair said...

Delicious...such simple dishes are really the best, so tempting.

Priya Suresh said...

Wow bajji and dal looks too healthy and gorgeous..fabulous clicks:)

Parita said...

simple dal and delicious chow chow vegi , i have never tried this before .. will try sometime soon :)

Lavanya said...

awesome click...very good dishes :)

Soma said...

i didn't know it was called chow chow ;) I was thinking chinese! garam garam dal & bhaji sounds yummy.
Soma(www.ecurry.com)

Home Cooked Oriya Food said...

What is chow chow ? Awesome presentation ?

Unknown said...

nice chutney recipe with chow chow..i make thuvyal with it almost similar to the chutney you have made..good one..

chef and her kitchen said...

Both looks simple n delicious gal...Perfect lunch..

Priyameena said...

Looks like a perfect lunch with some steamed rice..Beautiful click..

Varsha Vipins said...

am not quite sure what this bhaji is..but it so ressmebles my amma's pachadi n I loved it..so is that comforting dal dear..:)

Sharmila said...

Sounds quick ... would love to try it. But what is chow chow?

Indian Khana said...

Looks yummy...never made chow chow chutney...will this try this

Suparna said...

hi,
Most of u are quite puzzled by the mention of chow-chow/chayote ...here's a link for more info about the vegetable..hope it helps :)

http://www.hindu.com/mp/2007/01/20/stories/2007012001450400.htm

Savi-Ruchi said...

ayyamma, photo nalle koltha iddiralla.., I love both of them & can have without a grin on my face :) lovely dear

Anonymous said...

Lovely Suparna...the tadka on the vegetable looks so pretty :) Loved both the versions of the dal-toi. Actually even I didnt know about this veg...till I came across it on another blog.

Lena Jayadev said...

Suparna..this looks amazing.. :) wonderful click.. :)

Shama Nagarajan said...

delicious recipes

Doloncookbook said...

Such a beautiful recipe & lovely presentation ... both the dishes look great and delicious ....

Nithya Praveen said...

Chow chow bajji sounds new to me....this is an interesting one.Thanks for sharing!

Bong Mom said...

what is chow chow ? I thought noodles :)

Both look good though

Sonal said...

I just love the simple dal...Its been years I had one..I surely want to make it again..

Vijitha said...

Yummy dish! looks so inviting n healthy too.

AnuSriram said...

Looks tempting! Nice recipes.. and a wonderful click!

Manju said...

the chow chow bajji looks great. Ive never made it this way. I usually make a kottu with moong dal and coconut in it. This looks a lot easier as i dont have to go through the trouble of cooking tha dal :)

Uma said...

Yum, yum!! Both the dishes look so delicious Suparna!

Raks said...

Looks very nice suparna! I have never tried like this with chow chow!Dal is always there for me in my lunch:)

Suparna said...

sushma, lena, manju,hc,nithya,anu,vij,sonal,
sandeepa,dolon,raaji,uma thanks for ur time and comments :)

Laavanya said...

I've never made chow chow this way - how interesting and the combination with that yummy looking dhal must be delicious.

Pooja said...

Lovely clicks suparna..Chowchow bajji is very new to me...Both are looking delicious..

Valarmathi Sanjeev said...

Simple dishes. Looks yummy.

Anonymous said...

Never tried chow chow bajji.will try soon.

Pavithra Elangovan said...

Perfect lunch, click , platter.. so good

gtyuk said...

delicious curries, I love both of them :)

Recipeswap said...

simple and delicious looking curries.I love dal and I have chow chow at home so should keep thi recipe in mind.

Sukanya Yogesh said...

Very nice chow-chow recipe and the dal looks so divine.

Srikitchen said...

wow! looks so delicious!