KELE UPKARI (RAW BANANA STIR FRY)

 KELE UPKARI (RAW BANANA STIR FRY) 

In my house, I make it a point to make dishes using raw/green bananas from time to time. They can be used in a variety of dishes and also have numerous health benefits.

Today's recipe is for a simple yet tasty side dish called "Kele Upkari" in my mother tongue, Konkani.  Green Bananas are called Vazhakkai in Tamil, Baalekayi in Kannada, and "Kachcha Kela" in Hindi. 

"Upkari" is nothing but a stir fry in Konkani. 

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes using green/raw bananas such as :-

• Swadisht Vegetable Rolls, 
• Vazhakkai Varuval
• Kele Koddel 

For Kele Upkari, more commonly we do a seasoning of mustard seeds, red chillies, asafoetida and curry leaves.

Sometimes, for a change, I prefer to use garlic cloves for seasoning as it gives, I feel, a better flavour to the dish. This is a matter of individual taste. 

Ingredients:-

• Raw/Green Bananas, 3 or about 500 gms
• Red Chillies, 3-4, broken into pieces
• Garlic Cloves, 8-10
• Coconut Oil, 2 tbsp
• Salt, to taste
• Coconut Gratings, 2 tbsp, for garnish

Method:-

Wash the raw bananas, snip off both the ends, peel and cut them into cubes

Immerse these cubes in water to avoid discoloration

Lightly crush the unpeeled garlic cloves 

Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan and on medium heat add the lightly crushed garlic cloves

Saute till they turn golden and give off a good aroma

Next, add the broken red chillies and sauté for a few seconds

To this, add the cubed bananas (after draining away the water) and salt to taste

Saute till the raw bananas get well blended with the seasoning

Cover and cook on medium/low flame, without adding any water, stirring from time to time till the raw bananas get done

Remember that raw bananas get cooked very fast

If you want the Kele Upkari to be more crisp you can roast for longer time adding more oil

Switch off the gas and transfer to serving bowl 

Finally garnish the Kele Upkari with coconut gratings

Serve hot as a side dish with the main meal of rice and rasam 

CAULIFLOWER UPKARI

CAULIFLOWER UPKARI

Amongst vegetables, cauliflower is one that has always been popular at my home. I make dishes using cauliflower quite often as they have numerous health benefits.  One of the dishes in this blog that many have tried out and appreciated is Masala Cauliflower. You will also find recipes here for other Konkani dishes namely Cauliflower Ambat and Cauliflower Talasani.

Today's recipe is for the simple, easy to make Cauliflower Upkari.  In Konkani, we use the term
" upkari" for any type of stir fries. This is served as a side dish with the main meal of rice and dal.

Ingredients:

• Cauliflower, medium-sized, 1
• Onion, large -sized, 1
• Green Chillies, chopped, 2-3
• Curry Leaves, a sprig
• Mustard seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Oil, 2-3 tsp
• Salt, to taste
• Coriander Leaves, finely chopped, 1 tbsp

Method : 

Wash the cauliflower and break it into florets.
Add a little salt and some turmeric powder to a bowl of water and keep the cauliflower florets immersed in this for about 10 minutes. This keeps away all the impurities, if any,
Drain the water and keep the cauliflower florets aside
Chop the onion and green chillies
Heat oil in a thick bottomed kadhai and on medium heat add the mustard seeds. When they splutter add the chopped green chillies and curry leaves and saute for a few seconds
Add the chopped onion and saute till it becomes translucent
To this add the cauliflower florets and salt to taste
Sprinkle a little water, mix well and cook covered on medium flame till the cauliflower gets done
Make sure the cauliflower does not get overcooked. It should be done yet remain firm.
Finally garnish with the finely chopped coriander leaves
Serve hot as a side dish with the main meal

AMBE UPKARI

AMBE UPKARI

In Konkani, mangoes are called, "Ambo" so today's dish is of a sweet-tangy curry made with mangoes, called, "Ambe Upkari." In our hometown of Mangalore, this dish is typically made with small ripe mangoes which are not very sweet called "Gointo Ambos" available during the mango season.

In case you don't have them, as they are usually not available in other places, you could use any other ripe mango which is not too sweet. Usually, we do not use the more sweet higher quality mangoes such as the Alpohonso etc for this dish settling for the more common varieties like Raspuri, for example.

Ambe Upkari is served as a side dish with the main meal. The amount of jaggery you add will depend on the sweetness of the mangoes used. The maida or rice flour added is essential as it helps thicken the dish.

Ingredients:

• Mangoes, 6
• Green Chillies, slit, 2
• Jaggery, powdered, 1/4 cup
• Maida ( Refined Flour) or Rice Flour, 1 tbsp
• Salt, to taste
• Water, 2 cups

For the Seasoning:

• Mustard Seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Urad Dal, 1 tsp
• Red Chilli, broken into halves, 1
• Curry Leaves, a few
• Coconut Oil, 2 tsp

Method: 

Wash and peel the mangoes. Take away the mango peels and keep the peeled mangoes in a vessel.
Place the mango peels in a bowl along with 1 cup of water and using your fingers extract the mango pulp from it. Add this extract to the peeled mangoes.
Once again, add 1 cup of water to the mango peels and squeeze them to extract the remaining mango pulp.
Add the mango extract to the vessel with the peeled mangoes and discard the mango peels
To the peeled mangoes and mango pulp/ extract,  add salt, powdered jaggery and the slit green chillies and bring it to a boil
To thicken the ambe upkari, mix the maida with a little water to form a paste without any lumps
Add this maida paste to the mango- jaggery mixture
Mix well and allow the ambe upkari to simmer for 2-3 minutes

For the seasoning:
Heat oil in a pan and when it gets hot add the mustard seeds and when they splutter add the urad dal and saute till the dal changes colour
To this add the broken red chilli and the curry leaves and saute for a few seconds

Lastly, add this seasoning to the ambe upkari and serve it hot

BATATE UPKARI

BATATE UPKARI

Potatoes (Batata/Batato in my mother tongue, Konkani) are an excellent source of Vitamin C and potassium. I make dishes using potatoes quite often as they are easily available all through the year. For example, elsewhere in this blog you will find recipes for Konkani dishes using potatoes such as Batate Humman, Batate Losne Saung, and Batata Usli.

Today, I will share how I prepare an easy to make yet delicious stir fry called, "Batate Upkari." As an option, some prefer not to peel the potatoes but I have always peeled them. How much you roast the potatoes is a matter of individual taste. Some prefer to roast them till they are almost crisp by using much more oil. If you use Kashmiri chilli powder it adds to the colour without making the dish too hot.

This dish is usually served as an accompaniment to our meal of rice and dal.

Ingredients:

• Potatoes, medium-sized, 3-4
• Mustard, 3/4 tsp
• Chilli Powder, 1 tsp, or to taste
• Hing, (Asafoetida), powdered, 1/4 tsp
• Salt, to taste
• Coconut Oil, 1 and 1/2 to 2 tbsp

Method:

Wash, peel and cut the potatoes into cubes

Keep the cubed potatoes in a bowl of water so that they don't get discoloured

Remove the cubed potatoes from the water, drain away the excess water and apply salt. Keep aside for 10-15 minutes

Heat oil in a thick-bottomed kadhai and when it gets hot on medium heat add the mustard seeds. When they splutter add the powdered hing and saute for a few seconds till it gives off a good aroma

Squeeze out the excess water from the cubed potatoes and add them to the kadhai

Cover and cook on medium heat stirring from time to time till they are almost done

When the potatoes get cooked, remove the lid, check for salt and add if required.
Add the chilli powder and mix thoroughly until it gets uniformly mixed with the potatoes. 

Cook until the potatoes are roasted to the extent you desire drizzling more oil as required.

TENDLE BIBBE UPKARI

TENDLE BIBBE UPKARI

I have used this blog as a platform to share many dishes popular amongst us Konkanis. In fact, there is a section in this blog titled, "Recipes for Lunch/Dinner: Amchi Konkani." Today's recipe is one of the most popular in Konkani cuisine. It gets its name for the two main ingredients namely Ivy Gourd (which we call "Tendle" in Konkani, my mother tongue), and "Bibbo", which is what we call Tender Cashews in Konkani. Ivy Gourd, as you know, is called, "Thondekayi" in Kannada and "Tindora" in Hindi.

This is a kind of stir fry and is usually made during festivals like Ugadi, and on special occasions like marriages and the like.

Ingredients:-

• Tendle ( Ivy Gourd), 250 grams
• Bibbo ( Tender Cashews), peeled and halved, 1 heaped cup
• Mustard, 3/4 tsp
• Hing, (Asafoetida), 1/4 tsp
• Slit Green Chillies, 2
• Dry Red Chilli, broken into two, 1
• Curry Leaves, a sprig
• Fresh Coconut Gratings, 2-3 tbsp
• Oil, 1 tbsp
• Salt, to taste

Method:

Soak the bibbe ( tender cashews) in hot water for a few hours. Peel and halve the tender cashews and keep aside

Wash the tendle (ivy gourds) and snip off the two ends of each of them

Cut the tendle vertically into pieces

Heat oil in a thick bottomed kadhai and when it gets hot, reduce the heat and add the mustard seeds

When the mustard seeds splutter, add the asafoetida, followed by the slit green chillies and the broken red chilli, and the curry leaves and saute for a few seconds

Now add the tendle pieces and 1/4 cup of water and cook covered on medium/low flame for about 5 minutes or till the tendle get half cooked

Add the bibbe and salt, mix well and cook covered on medium flame till both the tendle and the bibbe get fully cooked

Finally add freshly grated coconut
Serve as a side dish with the main meal or with puris.