WATERMELON JUICE WITH GINGER, LIME & MINT

WATERMELON JUICE WITH GINGER, LIME & MINT

 With the days becoming hotter, we need to take in more liquids than before. What better way than to have fresh watermelon juice which is both refreshing as well as good for health. There are several versions of the watermelon juice. In today's recipe, I have shared the version suggested by my friend Shyamala Kini which includes crushed ginger, mint and lime.

The best part of this juice is that you don't need to add any sugar at all, provided the watermelon is sweet .You can, of course, add sugar if you wish too. There is no need to add any water either. The mint used for the garnish can be chewed and should not be discarded as it has a good taste of its own.

Ingredients:

• Watermelon, 1/2 of a medium sized melon
• Ginger, 1/2 " piece
• Lime, 1/2 a medium-sized
• Sugar, optional, or as per taste
• Salt, a pinch
• Mint leaves, chopped, a few

Method:

Wash, peel and de-seed the watermelon
Cut into bite- size pieces and place in a blender
Next, crush the ginger finely and add to the watermelon pieces
In a blender, blend the watermelon pieces along with the crushed ginger, without adding any water
Add lime juice
Add salt
Add sugar, if required
After blending all the above, pour into glasses
Garnish with chopped mint leaves
Serve chilled with ice cubes

NIMBEHANNU CHITRANNA or LIME RICE

NIMBEHANNU CHITRANNA or LIME RICE

This is a versatile and popular dish from my home state of Karnataka. It can be made pretty fast. as we use cooked rice for making Chitranna. Since Chitranna can be made with different variations, the one I present today is the straight forward "Nimbehannu Chitranna" in which the lime juice and turmeric stand out.

"Cooked rice" is preferably rice made earlier and sufficiently cooled. If you make fresh rice, ensure that it is sufficiently cooled before use, otherwise it will form lumps.

Here in our part of India, Chitranna is still very popular for take aways, tiffin boxes and picnics, since it is relatively easy to make.

I have presented this today with Cucumber Salad. You could choose either a salad, raitha or papad as accompaniments.

Ingredients:

• Cooked Rice, 3 cups, 
• Oil, 2 tbsp
• Mustard seeds,  1/2  tsp
• Curry leaves, a few
• Asafoetida, a pinch
• Peanuts, 2 tbsp
• Green chillies, 2 (broken into half)
• Red chillies,  2 (broken into half)
• Urad dal (Black gram dal), 1 tsp
• Channa dal (Bengal gram dal), 1 tsp
• Turmeric Powder, 1/4 tsp
• Salt, to taste.
• Juice of 1 lime
• Coriander leaves, chopped, 2 tbsp

Method:

In a little oil, roast the peanuts and keep aside
Heat oil in a kadhai on medium flame, add mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds splutter, add asafoetida.
Next add the urad dal and channa dal. Stir till the dals change colour
Add the green chillies, red chillies and curry leaves. Saute for a minute.
Add the rice, making sure it is not lumpy. Then add the roasted peanuts
Add turmeric powder, salt and finally add the lime juice.
Mix thoroughly.
Garnish with coriander leaves. If you wish, you can also add coconut gratings.
Serve hot.