Author: Rajeshree Gandhi

Life is a journey of evolving roles, each with its own beauty and wisdom. From the structured world of academia to the ever-evolving realm of homemaking, I have embraced each phase with passion and grace. When my children settled into their own lives, I found myself with a renewed sense of purpose—to document and share the wealth of knowledge I have gathered over the years.

During the lockdown, I realized that my experiences in cooking, home remedies, and life’s simple yet profound lessons could serve as a source of inspiration for others. Meticulously and with great concern for the palate, gut health, overall well-being, and the emotional gratification of savoring each preparation, I began crafting a collection of love-filled, cherished recipes, time-tested remedies, and stories woven with warmth and wisdom.

I write under the name "Rajeshree's Kitchen", where I share detailed recipes—the kind that provide exact measurements for ingredients like salt and water, which are often left to personal interpretation in most other kitchen blogs. Additionally, I include practical tips with clear reasons behind them, ensuring that every piece of advice is rooted in understanding and experience. My aim is to make cooking approachable yet precise, helping readers not just recreate dishes but truly connect with the joy of cooking.

This endeavor is my way of preserving traditions, sharing insights, and connecting with those who seek both knowledge and comfort in life's everyday moments.

Categories
vegetables

(273)Parwal Bateta nu shak

Ingredients

  • 500 gms. Parwal.
  • 2 medium size Potatoes.
  • 4 tbsp. Til Oil.(Sesame seeds oil)
  • ¼ tsp. Mustard seeds.
  • ⅛ tsp. Asafoetida powder.
  • ½ tsp. Turmeric powder.
  • Pinch of Soda bi carb.
  • 1 tsp. Salt.
  • 1 tsp Sugar.
  • 1 tbsp. Red chilli powder.
  • 1 tbsp. Coriander Cumin seeds powder.
  • 1 tbsp. Freshly chopped Coriander leaves.

Method

  1. Wash and scrape each Parwal with a sharp knife. Again wash and cut into 2 halves and again cut either vertically or horizontally into small pieces.
  2. Peel Potatoes, wash and cut it into chips or dice.
  3. Heat oil in iron kadhai (try to use iron kadhai only as elemental iron incorporated into cooked food which acts as a direct source of iron) and add Mustard seeds in it. Wait for a crackling sound and then add Asafoetida powder and Turmeric powder in it.
  4. Now add cut Parwal pieces, potato pieces, salt, sugar and soda in it. Sugar and soda helps in retaining the green colour of the vegetable and it also helps in fast cooking.
  5. Cover the kadhai with a plate of water. Cook on medium flame for 10 to 15 minutes. Stir occasionally with a spatula. For stirring any dry vegetable use a spatula only, otherwise pieces of cooked vegetables become mashed. Check by giving little pressure on a single piece of parwal. If it mash with your finger it means shak is properly cooked. At this time add all dry spices and mix well. Switch off the flame and sprinkle Coriander leaves and close the lid for 5 minutes. So that the flavour of fresh Coriander leaves stays.
  6. After 5 minutes transfer shak in a steel or glass vessel.
  7. Serve hot with Dal, Rice and Roti .
Parwal+ Batata

List of my other recipes.

Categories
Protein rich food

(272)Tuver Dal (Tur Dal)

Ingredients

⅓ cup Tur dal.
2 tbsp. Oil for tempering.
8-10 Cashews.
½ tsp. Mustard seeds.
½ tsp. Sesame seeds.
⅛ tsp. Fenugreek seeds.
¼ tsp. Asafoetida powder.
⅛ cup Coriander leaves.
8-10 Curry leaves.
1-2 Bay leaves.
2 cloves.
1-2 Green chilies.
¼ tsp. Ginger paste.
⅛ cup finely chopped Jaggery.
3- 4 Kokum.
2 tsp. Salt.
400 ml. Water.

Method

Wash Tur dal 2-3 times and add 1 glass( 400 ml.) of water in it.

Add salt and pressure cook up to 3 whistles.

Once pressure releases, open the lid of the cooker and churn Tur dal with hand blender.

Heat oil in a tempering vessel.

Roast Cashews and keep aside.

Now in the same vessel with the remaining hot oil add Mustard seeds and wait for a crackling sound and then Fenugreek seeds.

Now add Asafoetida powder, Sesame seeds, Curry leaves, Bay leaf and cloves.

Saute for 30 seconds and pour in the dal pan. Also mix roasted Cashews and Coriander leaves.

Boil dal for 5 minutes after adding jaggery and kokum.

Serve hot with Steamed Rice

Tur Dal

List of my other recipes

Categories
snacks

(271)Babizza

Ingredients

Method

  1. Wash, peel cucumber and cut in thin slices keep aside.
  2. Wash and cut tomatoes in thin slices and keep aside.

Serving Suggestion

  • Arrange biscuits in a plate.
  • Keep cucumber slices and tomato slices on the biscuits and sprinkle chat masala over it.
  • The top of it put a drop of Green chutney and red chutney.
  • Now grate cheese over it and serve with Masala Tea, Herbal Tea or as you wish.

List of my other recipes.

Categories
Chilas

(270)Barley Oat Mini Uttapam

Ingredients

  • ½ cup Barley flour.
  • ½ cup Oats.
  • ⅓ cup Jowar flour.
  • ⅓ cup Udad dal flour.
  • 1 cup tender Coconut.
  • 1 medium size onion.
  • 1 Carrot.
  • 1 Cucumber.
  • 3 Green chilies.
  • ½ inch size Ginger piece.
  • 1½ tsp. Salt.
  • ⅓ cup Curd.
  • 1 ½ cup water.

Method

  1. Grind coarse powder of Oats and keep aside.
  2. In the same jar make a smooth paste of tender coconut
  3. Add Salt, curd , water and all four flour in the jar and blend into lump free batter( see video).
  4. In an electric chopper finely chop Green chilies, Ginger, onion, carrot and cucumber.
  5. In a mixing jar mix chopped vegetables and batter and adjust the consistency by adding water( see video).
  6. Heat nonstick tawa and spread 1 -1 tbsp of batter evenly in a circular manner on tawa.
  7. Drizzle ghee or oil or butter and roast till golden brown both the sides on slow flame.
  8. Serve hot with Coconut chutney and Milgai podi or Green chutney

List of my other recipes

Categories
onepot recipe

(269)Dal Dhokli

Ingredients

Ingredients for Dal:-

  • ⅓ cup Tur dal.
  • 2 tbsp. Oil for tempering.
  • 8-10 Cashews.
  • ½ tsp. Mustard seeds.
  • ½ tsp. Sesame seeds.
  • ⅛ tsp. Fenugreek seeds.
  • ¼ tsp. Asafoetida powder.
  • ⅛ cup Coriander leaves.
  • 8-10 Curry leaves.
  • 1-2 Bay leaves.
  • 2 cloves.
  • 1-2 Green chilies.
  • ¼ tsp. Ginger paste.
  • ⅛ cup finely chopped Jaggery.
  • 3- 4 Kokum.
  • 2 tsp. Salt.
  • 400 ml. Water.

Ingredients for making Dhokli:-

  • 1 cup Wheat flour.
  • 1 tbsp. Oil.
  • ½ tsp. Salt.
  • 1 tsp. Red chili powder.
  • ¼ tsp. Asafoetida powder.
  • ½ tsp. Coriander Cumin powder.
  • ½ tsp. Turmeric powder.
  • 1 tsp. Sesame seeds.

Method

Method of making dal:-

  1. Wash Tur dal 2-3 times and add 1 glass( 400 ml.) of water in it.
  2. Add salt and pressure cook up to 3 whistles.
  3. Once pressure releases, open the lid of the cooker and churn Tur dal with hand blender.
  4. Heat oil in a tempering vessel.
  5. Roast Cashews and keep aside.
  6. Now in the same vessel with the remaining hot oil add Mustard seeds and wait for a crackling sound and then Fenugreek seeds.
  7. Now add Asafoetida powder, Sesame seeds, Curry leaves, Bay leaf and cloves.
  8. Saute for 30 seconds and pour in the dal pan. Also mix roasted Cashews and Coriander leaves.
  9. Boil dal for 5 minutes after adding jaggery and kokum and keep aside.

Method of making Dhokli

  1. In a mixing pan mix wheat flour with all dry ingredients and oil .
  2. Knead smooth dough with water and keep aside for 10 minutes to set.
  3. After 10 minutes divide dough into 6 equal parts.
  4. Roll each dough portion into thin round chapati.
  5. Roll all six chapati first and then cut each chapati into 2 square centimetres parts called dhokli.
  6. Simultaneously boil 2 glasses of water in the pressure cooker or thick bottom pan.
  7. When water starts boiling add all dhokli one by one. If you add all together then they stick among themselves and make a lump of dough. Please complete this process under fast flame and boiling water only.
  8. Keep boiling for 5 minutes then take out one dhokli in plate and cut it with the spoon. If the edge of the spoon remains clean then it means dhokli is cooked.
  9. Now add dal in the dhokli pan and stir continuously so that dal will mix properly.
  10. Boil daldhokli for another 2-3 minutes.
  11. Serve hot after adding desi ghee with Papad, Rice and Onion Tomato Salad.
Tur dal
Tempering Ingredients
Dal
Dhokli dough
Dhokli
Dhokli in boiling water
Dal Dhokli
Dal dhokli ready to serve

List of my other recipes

Categories
salads

(268)Sprouts with Fenugreek seeds Salad.

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp. Brown Chana.
  • 1 tbsp. Whole Moong.
  • 1 tbsp. Fenugreek seeds.
  • 1 Amla.
  • 1 tbsp. Coriander leaves.
  • 1 tbsp. Mint leaves.
  • ½ cup Tender Coconut (Ideal because sprouts are dry so due to milk in tender coconut helps to keep salad wet or you can also use fresh grated coconut but not desiccated coconut. 
  • 1 tbsp. Chat masala
  • 1 Green chilli finely chopped ( optional)
  • 1 tsp. Red chilli powder.
  • 1 tsp. Lemon juice ( optional)

Method

  1. Soak Chana, Moong and Fenugreek seeds separately for 8-10 hours.
  2. After 10 hours tie all three separately in muslin cloth and keep it in a dark warm area for 8-10 hours.
  3. After 10 hours, you can see small roots coming out from each soaked grain. Mix them, Wash them and keep aside.
  4. Chop tender coconut into a hand chopper or mechanised chopper and keep aside.
  5. Finely chop washed Coriander leaves and Mint leaves and keep aside.
  6. Finely chop Amla and keep aside.
  7. In a big mixing bowl mix all ingredients and add chat masala.
  8. Serve with Roti, Bhakhri, Paratha, khakhra or as you wish.

List of my other recipes

Categories
salads

(267)Methi dana, kopra ni Salad

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp. Fenugreek seeds ( methi dana).
  • 2 tbsp. Pea nuts.
  • 2 tbsp. Daria dal.
  • ½ cup grated Coconut.( Please don’t use dessicated coconut)
  • 1 Amla
  • 1 finely chopped green Chilli.(optional)
  • 1 tb. sp. finely chopped Coriander leaves
  • 1 tbsp. finely chopped Mint leaves
  • 1 tsp. Lemon juice.
  • 1 tsp. Chat masala.
  • ½ tsp. Red chilli powder.
  • Salt

Method

  1. Wash and soak Fenugreek seeds for 6-8 hours. Seeds should be light in colour. Dark brown coloured seeds, means old seeds which may turn slimy.
  2. Tie overnight fenugreek seeds in muslin cloth for sprouting.
  3. you can see small  sprouts from the seeds coming out.
  4. Again wash these sprouted seeds and keep aside
  5. Cook peanuts in the cooker for up to 3 whistles. Add a little salt while cooking.
  6. In a mixing bowl mix thoroughly sprouted seeds with all other ingredients.
  7. Serve with Roti, Bhakhri, Paratha, Khakhra or as you wish. Serve with love and smile.

List of my other recipes.

Categories
Quick Cooking Tips

(266)Kasuri Methi

Homemade dried Fenugreek leaves.

Ingredients

1 bunch Fenugreek leaves ( Methi bhaji)

Method

  1. Hold the bunch of Methi in one hand and with the other hand cut  muddy roots.
  2. Fill 3 big pans with water and while holding a bunch of methi tightly and submerge your hand in one pan of water. Shake your methi bunch and the same way  wash methi bunch in other two water filled pans.
  3. Now cut the string of the bunch and spread it on the kitchen towel for 1 hour.
  4. After one hour when all the water from Methi bhaji drains, pluck leaves from the stalk and store in a brown paper bag. Make sure that your Methi leaves bag need a special corner without any pressure from other objects  in your refrigerator.
  5. After 15 days Methi leaves dried and the colour of the leaves remains green after drying.
  6. Remove all leaves from the bag and store at room temperature in a glass jar so that colour and flavours stay fresh .
  7. Whenever you need to use this dried methi, remove only the required quantity with a dry spoon and immediately close the lid of the jar.
Bunch of Methi leaves
Fridge dried Methi leaves

List of my other recipes

Categories
Faral

(263) Sabudana ni khichadi.

Farali khichadi

serves 4

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Sago(Dry sabudana)
  • 1cup roasted Peanuts , crushed lightly.
  • 2 cups diced potatoes( ½ cm).
  • 4 tsp.Sugar.(2+2)
  • 5 tsp. Salt (2+2+1)
  • Lemon juice.1tbsp
  • ½ tsp green chilli paste
  • ½ inch grated ginger .

Tempering Ingredients:

  • ½ tsp Cumin seeds(jeera)
  • 8-10 curry leaves.
  • ¼ cup finely chopped fresh Coriander leaves
  • 4 green chillies cut it into rings.

Method:

  1. 1 cup sabudana wash with water twice. Soak sabudana in 1 cup water. Keep this for at least 6 hrs. For better results 8 – 10 hrs of soaking .
  2. After 8 hrs. of soaking it becomes double in size, look like pearl and you can powder( not paste) it with your fingers. These are the perfectly soaked sabudana and best for sabudana khichadi.
  3. Add 2 tsp. salt, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tsp. sugar, ½ tsp chili paste, ½ inch grated ginger in sabudana, mix thoroughly and keep aside.
  4. In thick bottom kadhai dry roast peanuts for 10 mins.on slow flame. Cool it for 15 mins. For sabudana khichadi no need to remove peanut’s skin so crush directly it in manual crusher. Keep this coarse powder aside.
  5. In non-stick kadhai take 10 tbsp. of oil heat on slow flame. As oil heat up add cumin seeds. Wait for crackling sound and add curry leaves, coriander leaves and chili rings .Add 3 cups of diced potatoes, 2 tsp. salt and 2 tsp. sugar. Mix thoroughly and cover the kadhai. Stir occasionally till potatoes become tender.
  6. Once potatoes became tender add sabudana and stir continuously for 3-4 mins on medium flame
  7. Add coarse peanuts powder as soon as sabudana becomes translucent.Stiring is continuous otherwise khichadi will stick to the kadhai. Stir on high flame for 1 min. Sabudana khichadi is ready.
  8. Serve hot with piece of lemon and curd.
coarse peanuts
Sabudana khichadi

List of my other recipes

Categories
Faral

(265)Rajgira Almond Sheera

Amaranth Sheera

Ingredients

  • ½ cup whole Rajgira.
  • ½ cup Almonds.
  • 4 tbsp. Ghee.
  • 1 cup sugar.
  • 3 cups whole Milk.

Method

  1. Dry roast Rajgira grains and keep aside.
  2. Dry roast Almonds and keep aside
  3. Grind coarse flour of roasted Rajgira and keep aside.
  4. Grind almonds on pulse mode and make coarse powder.
  5. Heat ghee in a nonstick pan and roast Rajgira flour on a slow flame for 5 minutes.
  6. After 5 minutes add Almond powder and roast along with Rajgira for 5 more minutes.
  7. Simultaneously heat milk in a sauce pan.
  8. After 5 minutes you can see the ghee slowly separate out from roasted flour.
  9. At this moment add hot milk slowly cup by cup. If you add it all together then you will burn your hand with hot steam and milk will spill out due to heat.
  10. After adding one cup of milk , turn the flame fast and stir continuously and reduce the milk. when you see that all milk is reduced, that time only add the next cup. 
  11. When all milk is reduced, you can see ghee again separate from sheera. The best test is that your sheera is properly roasted and milk is totally reduced when your spatula comes clean while stirring.( see video)
  12. Now add sugar and again stir continuously. Remember your gas flame is fast so continuous stirring is important otherwise your sheera will stick at the bottom of the pan.
  13. Again you will see ghee separate from the sheera . At this moment switch off the flame and serve hot with sabudana khichadi, Farali paratha, Kand sabudana vada and Farali chutney, Rajgira ( Amaranths Chila) or as you wish. Serve with love and smile.

List of my other recipes