Salsa, a favourite mexican recipe

Ingredients needed for preparing Salsa
2 cups chopped tomatoes
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 green chillies chopped
1 red capsicum, finely  diced
1/2  onion, fine chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
juice of 1 lime
Chili powder, salt, and pepper, to taste
a pinch of Oregano
2 Fresh spring onions chopped with the green leaves
Coriander leaves or parsley according to taste

How to prepare Salsa

Take a salad bowl, add the chopped tomatoes and mash with hand.
Then add all the other ingredients and mix well.
Refrigerate for up to 12 hours to get the full effect of the infusion.
Serve with tortilla chips.

Points to Note while preparing Salsa: 

If you want to store , this will stay for several days in a refrigerator.
If you have jalapenos you can use  2 seeded and minced jalapenos along with 2 roasted, skinned and chopped ones. These will give you a better flavour.

Cruchy Fenugreek and Horsegram Sprouts Salad, a good dish for the Diabetics

Horsegram is known as Kollu in Tamil, Mudhira in Malayalam etc  Kollu is known in Ayurveda medical texts and have been used in their treatments for centuries in the southern parts of India.
Sprouts are known to be high  in Vitamin A, Thiamine, Vitamin C, Iron and Potassium. Sprouting the horsegram helps in reducing the production of gas  and helps  to digest easier and better than the dried horse gram.

How to prepare Fenugreek and Horsegram sprouts?
Soak 2 tablespoons each of Fenugreek and horsegram separately overnight. Drain the water out from the dals in the morning.
Tie them up in a thin cloth  for 24 hours. Sprouts will appear after this period. If kept for over 48 hours like that yu can see longer sprouts appearing.
Youwill have to just see that the bag is moist all the time. If needed sprinkle a little water now and then.
Now remove the sprouts from the bag and clean them nicely under tap water.

Ingredients needed for Fenugreek and Horsegram Sprouts Salad
1 cup of sprouts
2 tomatoes, chopped coarsely
2 tbsps freshly grated coconut
salt to taste
1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

How to prepare Fenugreek and Horsegram Sprouts Salad?
Mix all the in gredients mentioned together. Use immediately.
If you like you can use a dash of lime juice over that.
The salad is very rich in vitamons, iron and other minerals.
You can also mix and use other vegetables like carrot, cucumber, french beans etc.

Boondhi Railta recipe

Ingredients needed for Boondhi Raita 

1/4 cup Besan

1/2 cup of water

Oil for frying

1 cup curds fresh and not sour

1/4 cup milk

1/2 green chilli minced

Chat masala to taste

Salt and Pepper to taste

How to prepare the Boondhi Raita 

Start by preparing Bondhi. Mix Besan and water together, see that there are no lumps.

Heat oil in a fry pan / Kadai. When the oil is hot pour the batter through a slotted spoon.

The batter fall like drops in to the oil. When they get golden brown remove them and spread them on a kitchen towel.

Now mix the curds, milk, green chilli, salt and pepper to taste till the curds are smooth.

Soak the fried boondhi in a little warm water , squeeze the water out and then add them to the raita. Serve immediately.

Points to Note:

You can get ready made Boondhi from any sweets and savoury shops. If you don't feel like making Boondhis at home, you can bring them and make Boondhi Raita at home.    Just open the packet, soak them inn warm water, squeeze and then add the curd and milk mixture just before serving.

You can garnish the raita with a little chopped coriander leaves.

Mixed Fruit Raita

Ingredients needed for Fruit Raita
 2 cups fresh and not sour curds
1 cup chopped bananas
1 cup chopped pineapple
1 cup chopped apple
1 cup chopped mango
1 cup pomegranate  shelled
chopped coriander leaves
Sugar to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

How to prepare Fruit Raita
Whisk the curd till it is smooth and soft.
Add sugar, salt and pepper to taste
If the curd is very thick add a litle milk or water .
Add all the chopped fruits to the curd and mix well.
Garnish with coriander leaves and pomegranate seeds.

Cabbage Slaw Salad

Ingredients needed for the Cabbage slaw salad recipe

Cabbage

Onion

Carrot

Salad oil

Vinegar

salt to taste

Sugar to taste

How to prepare the Salad:

Cut the vegetables in to small cubes.

Combine all the chopped vegetables, salad oil, vinegar, salt and sugar well.

Serve in a plate garnished with sliced tomatoes.

Onion Tomato Raita

Ingredients needed for Onion Tomato Raita 
1 cup curds fresh and not sour
1/4 cup milk (optional)
2 tbsps chopped onions
1/2 tsp salt / or to taste
1 tbsp tomato chopped
1/2 tsp green chilli minced
1/2 tsp chat masala (optional for garnish)

How to prepare Onion Tomato Raita
Whisk curds and milk together till they are soft and smooth.
Add the chopped onions, green chillies and tomatoes to the curds and milk mix.
Add salt and mix well, mashing the onins and tomatoes a little with the back of the spoon.
Sprinkle Chat Masala on top just before you serve.

Points to Note:
If the curds are a little sour add a little more milk.
If you are using the raita immediately you need not use milk, you can just make it with curds. It will taste just as nice.
Chat masala will give you a slight tangy flavour, if you don't like it leave it and don't use it.
Even a pinch of Jeera powder / cumin seeds powder will work nicely as a garnish. It is a good digestive too.

Cucumber Coconut Salad recipe

Ingredients needed for the Cucumber Coconut Salad
2 cups grated Cucumbers,
1/2 cup yoghurt / 1/2 cup fresh not sour curds can be  used
1/2 tsp chopped Green chillies
a pinch Sugar
 1/2 tsp lime juice
Salt to taste
 2 tbsps Fresh coriander leaves, chopped
 1 tbsp Fresh Grated coconut

How to prepare Cucumber Coconut Salad
Whisk yoghurt / curd nicely till it is smooth.
Add grated cucumber, lime juice, sugar, chopped green chillies and salt to taste.  Mix well.
Keep it chilled in the refrigerator.
Just before serving add chopped Coriander leaves  and the grated coconut.
Mix well and Serve in beautiful serving dish

Chicken Capsicum Salad Recipe

Ingredients needed for the Chicken Capsicum Salad 
1 cup bone less pieces of Chicken
1 Red capsicum, Seeded and cut into 1/2 cm wide long stripes 1 medium
1 Yellow capsicum, Seeded and cut into 1/2 cm wide long stripes 1 medium
1 Green capsicum, Seeded and cut into 1/2 cm wide long stripes 1 medium
5 Green olives
5 Black olives

For the marinade
1 tbsp Olive oil
3 tbsps fresh curd
1/2 tbsp Green chilli paste
1 tsp Ginger-garlic paste 1 teaspoon
1/2 tsp Garam masala powder 1/2 teaspoon
1/2 tsp peppercorns crushed
Salt to taste

For dressing of the Chicken Capsicum Salad
4 tsps Extra virgin olive oil
2 tsps Lime juice
2 tsps Chat masala
Black salt to taste

How to prepare the Chicken Capsicum Salad
Mix all the ingredients mentioned under marinade and see that all of them blend nicely.
Apply the mix on to the chicken pieces  and keep aside for 15 to 30 minutes.
Then grill the chicken pieces either in a preheated oven or on a heated tava till they are done. See that they are cooked and juicy.
Cut them into smaller pieces, mix well with the shredded colour capsicums , olives  and the dressing . Toss nicely so that all mix well.
Serve immediately.