------Compiled by, Jitendra Kamat

Konkani Masolu variety--- Very important and must to know.

Ingredients Basic Masolu: Coconut, 3 roasted red chillies and tamarind - size of its seed, grind this to a fine or coarse paste as required for the curry. Ghasi 1 : Tablespoon each of fried coriander seeds and urd dhal is added while grinding the basic masolu. Mustard and curry leaves seasoning. Ghasi 2 : Basic masolu only. Mustard, curry leaves and jeera seasoning. Ghasi 3 : Basic masolu only. Add one chopped onion and small piece of chopped ginger to the curry while cooking. Just add oil for seasoning. Ghasi 4 : tablespoon of fried urd dhal and teaspoon of fried methi is added while grinding the basic masolu. Mustard and curry leaves seasoning. Normally used with Pathrado. Sagle : Tablespoon of fried coriander seeds is added while grinding the basic masolu. Mustard and curry leaves seasoning. Ambat 1: Basic masolu only. Onion seasoning for daily use. Ambat 2 : Basic masolu only. Mustard and curry leaves seasoning for festivals and sacred occasions. Bhuthi: Tablespoon of friend coriander and teaspoon of methi is added while grinding the basic masolu. Just add oil for seasoning. Koddel : Basic masolu only. Garlic seasoning. Bendhi : Basic masolu only. Garlic seasoning. Sukke : Tablespoon each of fried coriander seeds and urd dhal is added while grinding the basic masolu. Mustard and curry leaves seasoning. Gajbaje : Basic masolu only. Mustard, curry leaves and hing seasoning. Saasam : Add big pinch of mustard to the basic masolu while grinding. Kathkato : Basic masolu only. Garlic seasoning. ( A pumpkin curry) Method Whenever a Konkani is asked what is the ingredient in the "Masolu", they tend to answer with "nothing" or "kothambari" or "kothambari and Urd dhal". I am sure this is quite confusing if one is not familiar with Konkani cooking. As such I thought it may be of interest to all to know what "Masolu" means to a konkani and what are the variations. I am sure there are any number of combinations and variations other than what I know of.

Beans Upkari
Vegetable Accompaniment Ingredients 1 small packet french cut frozen beans or fresh beans if you prefer 1 small potato - peeled and cut into thin strips Salt to taste 2 tbspoon fresh coconut scrapings

Seasoning 1 table spoon oil Half tea spoon mustard seed

 2 red chillies - break into bits Method Heat oil in a kadai or wok, add mustard seeds. When they splutter add the red chillies Then add the beans, pototoes and the salt Cook on slow fire till the beans and potatoes are cooked Sprinkle little water if required, while cooking Add coconut scrapings Mix well and serve. Dalitoi A must for a Konkani, with Rice. Ingredients 1 cup Toor Dhal 3 Green Chillies - slit Salt to taste Seasoning 2 tbspoon oil 1/2 teaspoon Mustard seed 1 sprig curry leaves 2 Red Chillies, break into bits Large pinch of asafoetida powder Method Wash and pressure cook the dhal for five - seven minutes When the cooker cools down, open and beat the cooked dhal with egg beater Add enough water so that the dhal is of the consistency you like. Add the green chillies and salt to taste Bring to boil Remove from flame and season For Seasoning Heat Oil Add mustard seeds When they splutter, add red chillies and curry leaves Then add asafoetida powder, pour this into the dhal Vattana Gol Vattana Gol Ingredients 1 cup fresh green peas cup fresh grated coconut 1 tablespoon red pepper powder ( may vary according to taste) teaspoon turmeric powder 4 to 5 curry leaves teaspoon mustard seeds

 2 tablespoons oil Salt to taste

Method Boil peas until tender, drain the water and set aside. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, when the seeds begin to pop add curry leaves and the grated coconut. Fry the coconut until it is golden brown in color. Add turmeric powder, red pepper powder and salt. Finally add the boiled peas, cover and cook for approximately 5 to 10 minutes stirring occasionally.

Pistachio Cake Pistachio Cake Ingredients Self raising flour 8 oz Baking powder 2 tea spoons Pinch of salt Margarine or butter 8 oz Eggs 4 Green food colouring

For Filling Coco powder 4 table spoons Margarine or butter 6 oz Icing sugar 12 oz chopped & blanched pistachios 3 tablespoons grated chocolate 2 tablespoons Tin 8" square tin lined with greaseproof paper Method Sift the flour with salt. Cream the fat and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs to 2 above one at a time, beating thoroughly, folding in the flour. Tint pale green with food colouring. Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin - level the surface. Hollow out the centre slightly so that the baked cake will be flat. Bake until firm to touch and a skewer put through the centre comes out clean. It takes roughly one hour, but ovens are different and the time taken to cook might vary. Leave to cool. When cool, split it into two by slicing horizontally. Make the filling by adding a little hot water to the coco to make a thick paste. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in coco paste. Sandwich the two halves of the cake with athird of the mixture. 10.Spread another third on top of the cake. Sprinkle the pistachios. Pipe the border of the cake with the final third of the coco paste.

Recipe for Alsande Upkari (Steam-cooked long beans) Ingredients: approx. kg. Long / cow-pea beans 1 medium sized boiled potato a generous pinch asafoetida powder salt to taste 1 tsp oil tsp mustard seeds 3-4 dried red chillis, broken into two-three pieces each 2 tbsp gated coconut for garnishing (optional; I havent used) Method: 1. Wash and top & tail the beans. Cut them in 1 inch long pieces. 2. Cut the potato in cubes. (The size does not really matter here, because the potato is boiled and hence the question of it taking less/more time to cook does not arise.) 3. Heat the oil in a pan. Once it is fairly hot, add the mustard seeds and let them splutter. 4. Add the broken red chillis. After a second or two, add the beans. 5. Sprinkle some water (about two tablespoons for non-stick and cup for regular pans). Add salt to taste. Stir the beans well and cover the pan with a lid. 6. Open the lid after three-four minutes. Some steam should be gathered inside now. Add the potato pieces. 7. Stir the beans again and let them cook until soft yet crunchy. (Can the beans then be called 'al dente'?) 8. Just before turning the heat off, open the pan and add the asafoetida powder. Stir the Upkari well, put the lid back and turn the heat off. (I know, this is different from the usual 'hing in the tadka/asafoetida in the hot oil' routine, but believe me, it tastes great like this.) 9. Serve after about 1o minutes, so that all the flavours get time to blend well with each other. Garnish it with grated coconut, if you like, before serving.

Alsande Upkari

The traditional practise in Konkani households is to add asafoetida water, which is simply a small piece of asafoetida dissolved in water. However, this means a tiny bit of preparation, and I also sometimes am left with excess of it, which I don't know where to use. So,adding asafoetida powder is the only bit

Indian Vegetarian Recipes

Breakfast Lentils (Moong Dal Usli)

Serves: 4 Cooking time (approx.): 5 minutes Style: South Indian (Konkani) 2 tablespoons coconut oil or any oil 1 teaspoon(s) mustard seeds 1 dry red chilli(es) broken into bits 1 teaspoon(s) ginger finely chopped or grated 2 green chilli(es) slit teaspoon(s) asafoetida powder 1 sprig(s) curry leaves 2 cup(s) split husked green gram (dhuli moong dal) washed well. 2 cup(s) hot water or as required teaspoon(s) sugar

salt to taste tablespoon(s) grated coconut 1. Heat the coconut oil in a pan. Toss in the mustard seeds and the dry red chilli bits. Fry till the mustard seeds splutter fully. Add the ginger, green chilli(es) and stir fry on medium / low level for about 2 minute(s). Drop in the asafoetida powder and the curry leaves. Fry briefly. 2. Stir in the green gram and mix well. Add the hot water such that it is about and inch above the level of the green gram. Stir in the sugar and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes or till the water has been absorbed and the grams are cooked but the grains are separate. If they are not cooked, then add some more hot water and cook. Stir in the grated coconut and remove from the flame. keep covered for 5 minutes for the flavors to blend well. TIP: Split husked green gram is yellow in color. Chillies can be increased or decreased as per taste. Traditionally the grams are cooked soft and mushy. Serve hot with: buttered slices of bread

1. Daali Thoi:
Ingredients: 1 cup Toor Dhal 3 Green Chillies - slit Salt to taste Seasoning: 2 table spoon oil 1/2 teaspoon Mustard seed 1 sprig curry leaves 2 Red Chillies, break into bits Large pinch of asafoetida powder Method: Wash and pressure cook the dhal for five - seven minutes When the cooker cools down, open and beat the cooked dhal with egg beater Add enough water so that the dhal is of the consistency you like. Add the green chillies and salt to taste Bring to boil Remove from flame and season For Seasoning: Heat Oil Add mustard seeds When they splutter, add red chillies and curry leaves Then add asafoetida powder, pour this into the dhal

2. Pathrado or Pathrode:
Pathrado is usually prepared using colocasia leaves usually grown in the garden during

Monsoon. Few of these leaves are very very itchy. So one should be very careful while using these leaves. Ingredients: 5 colocasia / collard green leaves 3/4 cup fresh / frozen coconut 1/4 cup toor dal 1 table spoon rice 1 tea spoon urad dal 1/2 tea spoon coriander seeds 1 tea spoon jaggery 4 - 5 red chillies 1/2 tea spoon tamarind Oil Salt Method: Soak toor dal in water for about half an hour. Heat oil and fry urad dal and coriander seeds. Grind them with coconut, rice, soaked dal, tamarind, jaggery and salt without adding water (if required, add very little water). Remove the thick veins of the leaves. With the help of pestle, slightly crush all the veins (this makes rolling and cooking easier). Apply a layer of masala on the leaf. Keep another leaf on the first leaf and repeat till all the leaves have a masala coating on them. Roll them. Cut with a sharp knife to thin rounds and arrange them in a vessel (preferably use the vessels that comes with cooker). Steam them for around 15min. Leave cooker/steamer for another 10 min before taking out the pathrado. Serve with or without coconut oil. Any left over pathrados are rolled in sooji / rava and fried on the tava (since they become a bit hard when refrigerated) before serving for the next meal, to make them soft and fresh.

3. Kolmbo:
A traditional Konkani Sambar. Usually this is served with rice. Can also be served with idli or dosas. Ingredients: 1/2 cup toor daal 1/2 cup grated fresh / frozen coconut 1 tea spoon chana daal 1 tea spoon coriander seeds 1 tea spoon mustard seeds 1/2 tea spoon cumin seeds 1/4 tea spoon methi seeds A pinch asafoetida 7 - 8 curry leaves 1/2 inch piece cinnamon(optional) 5 - 6 cloves(optional) 5 - 6 red chilies Vegetables - green beans, carrot, cauliflower, tomato, potato, drumsticks Oil 2-3 strands coriander leaves A pinch turmeric Salt

Method: Cook daal with little turmeric and 2 drops of oil (turmeric and oil help daal to cook early). Cook vegetables separately. Heat 1 tea spoon oil and fry ingredients from chana daal to red chillies. Add coconut and fry for 2 - 3 minutes. Grind to a thin paste. Heat cooked daal, add vegetables, ground masala and salt. Heat for 5 - 10 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves. Heat 1tspn oil. Add mustard seeds, when they start popping, add curry leaves. Add this seasoning to the cooked sambar. Serve hot with rice.

4. Batata Song:

Usually this is very tatty with curd rice. Can also be served with idli or dosas. Ingredients: 4 big potatoes boiled and cut into cubes 2 medium onion (s) sliced finely 1 big tomato(es) chopped finely 1 teaspoon (s) red chili powder or as per taste teaspoon (s) tamarind paste or as per taste 4 tablespoons oil salt to taste Method: Heat oil on medium level in a pan for about 2 minute(s). Add finely sliced onions and fry on medium heat till they are lightly browned. Now add red chilly powder and fry for a few more seconds on low heat till you get a good roasted aroma. Add chopped tomatoes and fry again on medium / low heat for 3 minute (s) or till the tomatoes are tender and the oil has left the sides of the pan. Add now the tamarind paste and the boiled potato cubes. Sprinkle some water and salt to taste. Mix thoroughly. Cover and keep on low heat for about 4 minutes.

5. Khotto (Idlis in jackfruit leaves)

Ingredients: jack fruit leaves baskets Coconut Chutney Khotto batter

Usually this is very tasty with coconut chatney.

Making jack fruit leaves baskets: Baskets are made with 4 jack fruit leaves and thin sticks (called as shigir in Konkani). These sticks are either got from the betel nut tree or coconut tree. Hold Four jack fruit leaves with ends one upon another. Fix one leaf to the second with the help of stick. Five small sticks are necessary to hold all the leaves together. Now fold two adjacent leaves taking care there is no space in between. If there are small holes, the batter comes out. Cut the tips / ends of the three leaves. Leave one as it is so that when the Batter is cooked, it can be lifted easily. Making Coconut Chutney: Ingredients: Grated coconut 2 cup, green chillies 8 - 10, coriander leaves cup, curry leaves (few springs), tamarind pulp 2 tea spoons, salt to taste, hingu and fried gram cup. Method: Mix all the ingredients together. Later grind it in the mixie to fine paste. Serve it with dosa / onion uttappa.

Khotto Batter Ingredients: 1 cup urad dal 2 cups idli rava (rice sooji) or 2 cups rice Salt PS: Idli rava, also called as rice rava or rice sooji, is available in market with the name Idli rava (Cream of rice). If this is not available, use 2 cups of rice instead. Soak ri ce for around 4 - 5 hrs. Then let the water go by spreading it on cloth for around 30mins. When all water is gone, grind (without any water) to a coarse powder (of coarse sand consistency). Khotto Batter preparation Method: Soak dal for around 4 - 5 hours. Grind it to a very smooth paste (Do not add too much water; just add as much as needed). Touch the batter and no pieces of dal should be felt. The more it is ground, the better. Once it is ground very soft, some bubbles can be found on the surface, the more the bubbles, the better is the batter. Wash the rava with water(if rava is prepared at home, no need to wash it again) and grind it for 5-6 seconds, do not grind more than that, just to make the rava a bit fine. Some people do not grind the rava, but most of the times the ready made rava is too coarse and grinding it makes the Idlis turn out softer. If you have more time in hand, grind the dal previous day afternoon and mix the rava in the night. Add salt and mix well (When dal is completely ground, the rava can be added to mixer and ground 5 - 6 seconds as explained earlier to speed up the process. But make sure the dal is completely ground before adding the rava). Keep the batter in a warm place overnight. or it on warm gas stove, after all the cooking is been finished. Check in the morning if the batter is fermented. The volume would have increased. If it looks same as the previous day, it is better not to steam it, the kotto become like stone and everything has to be discarded. Instead make some dosas with the batter. There is no point in keeping it for one more night, because the kotto would become sour. Pour the fermented kotto batter in jack fruit leaves baskets. Steam in steamer / cooker. Serve hot with coconut chatney. The other most popular combination is called hittu - hinga udak (hittu with asafoetida water). Hittu with few drops of coconut oil, asafoetida water, ginger pieces, fresh grated coconut, salt and green chilies. While eating, the hittu is powdered using hand; chilies are crushed in salt and mixed with coconut - asafoetida water salt - ginger. Then the hittu powder is mixed with this coconut mixture. Few drops of coconut oil are put on top. This tastes so amazing that once you eat it, you will never ever forget the taste.

6. Goli Baje:
This can be prepared instantaneously and Usually this is very tasty with cocunut chatney. . Ingredients: 1 and 1/2 cups maida (all purpose flour) 1 tea spoon gram flour (besan) 3/4 cup curd or yogurt or buttermilk 1 tea spoon finely chopped ginger 1 tea spoon finely chopped green chilies 3 - 4 leaves curry leaves A pinch asafoetida (optional) 1/2 tea spoon baking soda

 1 tea spoon sugar Salt Oil Method: Mix all the ingredients (except oil) into dough. Dough should not be very very thick or very thin. Leave the dough for around 30mins. Make small balls of the dough and drop into hot oil. Deep fry. Serve hot with chutney.

7. Jeer - mirya kadi (Jeera -Pepper Kadhi):

It is good for health. A lot of garlic is added to this gravy to give that amazing aroma. Ingredients: 1 cup fresh / frozen coconut 1 tea spoon cumin seeds (jeera) 1 tea spoon coriander seeds 6 - 7 peppercorns 3 - 4 red chillies 1/4 tea spoon tamarind extract or 1 - 2 pieces of normal tamarind 1 - 2 tea spoons finely chopped garlic Oil Salt Oil Method: Heat oil and fry cumin, coriander seeds, pepper and red chillies. Grind with coconut, tamarind and salt. Heat the ground masala with sufficient water (to a consistency of sambar) for 10min. Heat oil in a pan. Add garlic, when they turn to brownish, add to the cooked masala. Serve with hot rice.

8. Sanna Polo:
Sanna means Small, the name comes from the size of these dosas. Usually three small dosas are made on a tava at a time. Its a well known dish in South Kanara. Ingredients: Dosa rice 3/4 cup Toor dal 3/4 cup Roasted Dry Red chillies 4 - 6 Small onions (Chopped finely) 2 Cabbage (Chopped finely) 1/2 cup (Instead of Cabbage you can add any choice of your vegetables to it to give it a personal touch) Tamarind extract 1 tea spoon Coconut 1 cup Hing (Asafoetida) A pinch Oil Salt Method: Soak rice and dal separately for about an hr each and drain. Set aside. Blend together the coconut, red chillies and tamarind to a fine paste. Add the toor dal and blend again to get a smooth paste, adding very little water when blending. Add the hing, salt and drained rice and blend again to get a smooth - coarse consistency. To this blended mixture, add the chopped cabbage and onions. Mix well. Heat the tava,

applying a little oil. Pour small dosas (can put three dosas at a time on the normal size tava). Fry on both side till they turn brownish. Serve hot.

9. Sevaya Payasu:
Sevaya Payasu is a delicious Konkani GSB sweet recipe which is liked by one and all. Ingredients: Milk - 500 ml Semiya - 1 cup Sugar - 1 & 1/2 cup Cardamom powder - 1/4 tea spoon Cashew Nuts - 10 whole Raisins - 15 Ghee - 2 teaspoon Method: Heat a pan with ghee. Toast the raisins till they become balloons. Then the cashew nuts to golden brown. They become crispy. Remove to plate and then roast the semiya or vermicelli. Remove to plate. In the pan, pour Milk and bring to boil. Simmer for 2 mins. Add little water if needed. Then sugar and let it dissolve. Then add the roasted semiya and mix well and simmer for 10 mins. Finally add the cashew nuts and raisins. Serve hot.

10. Shevai (Rice Noodles):

Shevai is a very popular dish among konkanis. It is also made in a lot of other communities. The basic ingredients will be the same, however the proportions vary. Since preparing this Shevai is a time - consuming process, it is considered as a treat when prepared. A special Shevai - press called SHEVAI DANTE is available just to make this shevai. However it can also be made with the normal chakli - press. But it requires a little more effort. Ingredients: Rice 3 cups Boiled rice (Red / White) 1 cup Grated coconut 1.5 cups Salt to taste Method: Soak the rice (both the types) for about 4 hours. Now grind the rice with the grated coconut to a smooth paste (like dosa batter) Steam this batter in little moulds like idlis. Infact, it can be cooked exactly like idlis. Now grease the shevai - press and press the shevai when the batter is hot. If the batter gets cold, it becomes very hard to press. This shevai is usually eaten with chutney or mango pickles. In this case, coconut oil is added to the shevai. If you have a sweet-tooth, shevai can also be had with godda rossu (coconut milk). Method for the Godda Rossu (Coconut Milk) Ingredients: Coconut 1

 Jaggery Cardamom powder Method: Make coconut milk with the coconut by grinding it several times and straining. Add jaggery to taste and cardamom powder.

Cabbage Sanna Polo

Ingredients Cabbage 1/4kg (chopped finely) Onions 3 (chopped finely) Rice 150gm Grated coconut 6 tbsp Red chilies 7-8 Tamarind marble sized

Method Soak rice in water for about half an hour. Grind grated coconut, red chillies and tamarind together. Add rice to this mixture and grind coarsely. Pour the mixture into a vessel. Add the chopped cabbage and onions, along with salt. Heat tawa, 1/2 tbsp oil and spread the batter to make a small dosa. Roast well on both sides. Serve hot. How to make Brinjal Pickle Ingredients 3lbs brinjals cut into small piece Powder: 1/2 tsp methi, 1/2 tsp pepper, 2tsp jeera, 2tsp mustard, 1tsp til. Blend in Vinegar:18 red chillies, haldi, 1 piece ginger, 2 pods garlic. Slice: 2 pods garlic, 15 green chillies, 1 big piece ginger.

Method Heat oil (1cup), add curry leaves, brown a little, add cut masala and fry. Add ground masala, fry a little. Then add powdered masala, brinjal, salt, sugar and cook 1/2 hr. When the ingredients are being blended , add vinegar instead of water. ( The vinegar should serve as a natural preservative for the pickle) Thats all !

Alavathi
ALVATHI(COLOCASIA STEM CURRY)

The stems of the colocasia leaves are always trashed after the leaves are used. It is a source of rich calcium. Konkanis make use of it to make tasty curries. Ingredients: stems of colocasia leaves-25, coconut scrapings-1 cup, red chillies-5, curds-1 cup, jeera-1 tsp, mustard seeds-1 tsp, oil-2tsps and salt to taste. Method: De-skin the stem. Clean and cut into 1/2 pieces. Cook in a pan, adding 3 cups of water. Add salt and the cut chillies and cook till the stem pieces become very soft. Grind coconut to a soft texture. Add it to the cooked stem pieces and cook for 2 more mts. Add curd, mix well and remove it from the flame when the curry is about to boil. Do phannu(season) wih mustard seeds and jeera in oil.