Huralikayi Rasavangi (Green Beans Curry) and Huli Pudi (Huli Powder)

It has been two and a half months now and we're still waiting for our stuff to arrive! Most moving companies that we called in the US were willing to quote over the phone/email without really looking at the amount of stuff we had, basing their rates on our description and our cubic footage guesstimate. Only this one company sent someone to check out how much we had and gave us a quote accordingly. We'd packed most of our stuff but they did a thorough packing of other items and even re-packed some of ours. In the end, we shared a container with a friend who was also moving to Bangalore. They had estimated Feb 10th as the delivery date. They never kept us informed of the progress of the shipment and all our emails inquiring about the shipment were ignored. Then we received an email from a local company in Bangalore who were the clearing and shipping agents here. Our cargo did reach BLR on Feb 10th as they estimated. We were called to clear Customs only the following Friday. But now some paperwork with the friend's cargo is holding our shipment up. We'll expect the shipment when we see it! I've realized that it's best to not get upset over things and have a philosophical "it is what it is" attitude. It is better for the overall mental well-being! :)

Update: We received the stuff the next day! Everything intact and nothing lost! The local moving/clearing company had a fire in their building the previous day and yet managed to deliver. Very impressed with them. Thorough chaps and they even unpacked and set up the furniture. All's well! :)

Rasavangi is a curry made like huli but without the dal. This is different from the Tamil rasvangi which is usually made with dal. Typical rasavangi veggies include green beans, bringal and cluster beans. The huli recipes I've posted here all have freshly made masala. But we also use a pre-made powder called "huli pudi" to make hulis and rasavangis. Recipe for the powder is at the bottom.



Ingredients for the Rasavangi:

Green Beans - 1/2 kg (chopped and boiled)
Jaggery, salt to taste

To Grind:
Huli Pudi - 1 tbsp
Kopra - 2 tbsp
Tamarind paste - 1/2 tsp
Raw rice - 1 tsp

For Tadka:
Oil
Mustard Seeds
Hing
Curry Leaves


Method:

In a pot, do the tadka and add the boiled green beans, along with some of the water used in cooking it.
Add the ground masala, jaggery and salt to taste.
Bring to a boil.
Cover and cook on low for a few minutes.
Serve with rice or chappatis.

For the Huli Pudi:

Ingredients:

2 cups - coriander seeds
1.5 cups - red chilies, broken (byadagi 3/4: guntur/hot 1/4)
1/4 cup chana dal
1 tsp methi seeds
3-4 1" pieces of dalchini
1/2 tsp hing powder
2-3 twigs curry leaves

Method:

Heat 1 tsp oil. On low heat, fry dhania and curry leaves until the leaves are crisp. Keep aside. Add another tsp of oil. Fry red chilies on low heat until the seeds are red. Keep aside. Fry chana dal on low heat until slightly red and keep aside. Add 1/2 tsp oil. Fry dalchini and hing for a minute. Then add methi seeds and fry until slightly brown. Keep aside. Once everything cools down, mix them altogether and powder. Store in an airtight container.

Bendekayi Gojju (Okra Curry)

We're slowly settling down at the new place. Our cargo is yet to arrive but ironically, my sis and BIL ended up moving to the US a few weeks ago and we're using some of their basic stuff to get by until our cargo arrives (supposedly this week but let's see). We have been eating out quite a bit (as expected!) but sticking mainly to our area for now until we are comfortable driving longer distances in the chaotic traffic. It surprises me that there aren't more accidents considering how traffic rules are pretty much non-existent! I used to be a confident driver in BLR before but now I need some time to build that up again and get into the "zone" along with the rest!

After having a LOT of Indian food from various parts of the country, I found myself craving for some pasta and pizza one night. We went to the much recommended Eurasia, an Italian restaurant in Jayanagar, to satisfy that. Can you imagine anyone, esp a restaurant, going wrong with something basic like garlic bread? Well, this one did! The bread used was a burger bun sliced in half with a really faint hint of garlic on the inside (maybe a spread of some sort?) and a cheese slice (we asked for the cheese version) in between! Eeewww!!! The other stuff we had were nice enough. The pizza we ordered was quite good, though it took them 45 minutes to get it to our table. We had to remind our waiter a few times to get that. Quite disappointing overall.

For the longest time, I could not believe anyone would order uppittu (upma) at a restaurant. After tasting some heavenly kharabhaths in restaurants, I'm one of them myself! Had a particularly nice one at Ganesh Darshan, a small darshini (no seating, more a take-out) kinda place in Jayanagar. We also had amazing raagi rottis with dill which they served with a really good menthya (methi seeds) chutney.

Onto a recipe now. I love all gojjus but this particular one made with okra has a special standing! This here is my mom's recipe for bendekayi gojju.



Ingredients:

Okra - 1/2 kg (chopped)
Tamarind paste - 1/2 tsp
Jaggery - to taste
Salt to taste

To grind:
Coconut shreds - 2 tbsp
Green chillies or dried red chilies- 3-4
Raw rice or dalia - 2 tsp
hing

Tadka:
Oil
Mustard seeds
Turmeric
Hing



Method:
Heat oil in a kadai. Do the tadka. Add chopped okra and fry for a few minutes. Dilute tamarind paste in about 1/4 cup of water. Add this to the okra along with some salt. Doing this not only infuses the okra with the tanginess but also removes the slime. Cover and cook until okra is cooked. Add the ground masala, jaggery and adjust the salt. Cover and cook until done. Serve with hot rice and ghee!