Odisha Mo Odisha

Has it ever occurred to you that even after you have eaten a whole lot of food, you are not entirely satisfied? This happens to me & my sister sometimes & since we are on a strict diet (Can not share too much details due to sensitivity & confidentiality) it becomes ever harder to cross check what exactly was wrong & how to fix it next time. So this last week has been somewhat similar during multiple meals. We felt dissatisfied during many meals & landed up eating anyway because.. you know.. "It's healthy" and "Let's not waste food" etc. Then it occurred to me that I have to change things a bit & mix them up. Rather than cooking as per the "Plan", why not try something completely outside of my comfort zone and see how that goes. Cooking the same comfort food will get boring at some point. Coach says " You have to get comfortable making yourself Uncomfortable. Only then you can challenge yourself & get

It's pandemic time. It's time to make sure there's enough food in the fridge & in the pantry. It's time to make good use of the extra time on my hands over the weekends. It's time for an elaborate Odiya Thali (Thali : A sectional plate usually made of stainless steel - also is referred to an assortment of food in one meal which compliment each other). Our Odiya Thali.. What I made... Mixed Vegetable Pulao Sagaw Bhaja (Baby kale + Raw Banana + egg plant + Mustard oil + Pancha Phutana) Chicken Curry Dahi Baigana What my sister made Gulab Jamun (Recipe coming soon)

My uncle & aunt (Dada & Khudi) who live on the east coast of USA are very fond of family get-togethers. They have a huge Odiya community, whose members meet almost every month for some kind of potluck. Sometimes, its "Cha o Charcha" (Tea & Discussions) and sometimes it's full fledged "Birthday" dinners. The best part of this community is that even if they are a large one, they are very close to each other. Everyone knows everyone & whatever is happening with everyone. No wonder, since it's a Odiya group, food is an essential part of the get-togethers. My khudi makes a lot of things which are super tasty and one of them is this dali bara (Lentil fritters). It's literally a 5 ingredient fix which can be made is huge amount or small but will win hearts over (and over again). What I used Mix of Red Masoor dal (1/4 cup) + Yellow Toor dal (1/4 cup) Washed & Soaked for around 45mins Salt 1 small piece of ginger (ma

Someone really smart has said... We eat with our eyes first & then our mouth.. Well, it's kind of true but then I always think, don't we eat with our nose first? I mean, before even you see your food, you have smelled it, haven't you? Well, something for you to think about.. but it's true.. after the case of nose/smell has been sorted, we do eat with our eyes.. and colorful food always attracts bees .. umm.. well.. Kids in my case.. :) Today's recipe is mixed veg pulao.. It's a regular crowd pleaser.. Very easy to make.. It's one-pot.. It has rice in it.. It is heavenly (Well, that might be an overstatement, but who's watching).. This is what I used.. 1.5 cups of Basmati rice Washed nicely  Soaked for 40mins or so 1 cup of frozen peas Thawed in water 1/2 cup of chopped carrots 1 red potato peeled chopped into small pieces 1/4 cup of mint leaves fresh from garden washed & finely chopped 1 small piece of bay l

Being on diet is not easy.. especially for a food loving person (aka Me). But given the fact that I am not getting any younger or thinner.. makes me eat salad for lunch some days. But this is not your usual raw salad with just green leaves put together (The kind they serve at restaurants).. No siree... This is my style... What I used Mixed greens (2.5 oz) Baby spinach Baby kale Baby Swiss chard 1/3 cups Shredded carrots 1 cup chopped lettuce 1 red radish - sliced 20 Craisins (Dried Cranberry) Few academia nuts - chopped Olive oil + Salt + Pepper + Onion powder + garlic Powder Process Heat a pan & add Olive oil When hot, add all the veggies (all together) Add salt + Pepper + Onion powder + garlic Powder Stir fry the veggies just until all soft enough - not mushy. Take them out on your salad plate. Add the rest of the ingredients & your salad is all ready.  If you don't like raw veggies salad, try this. You'll definitely love this. It

Lockdown... Shelter-In-Place... Worldwide Pandemic... Working from home... Too many meals to plan... Too much food to cook... Too many complex recipes coming to mind.. BUT... We will resort to this Simple Yet Yummy "Kala Chana Chaat" (Chaat : Sweet & Savory Indian Street Food, usually served during snack time). This is super filling (Both Stomach & Heart). Try & let me know how you like it. What I used 1 cup of kala chana aka black garbanzo beans Soaked overnight & then pressure cooked with 1 tsp salt 1 small potato Boiled & then cut into small pieces 1/2 red onion Finely chopped 1 red roma tomato Finely chopped 4 tsp Chaat masala powder 2 tsp Roasted cumin + red chili powder  Dry roast red dry chillies Dry roast cumin seeds Cool completely Dry grind & store in an air-tight container Black salt - Per taste Regular salt - Per taste Juice of 1 lime (Or more if you like more sour) 1tbsp Tamarind Chutne

The year 2020 like all years have brought me to a point where I realized (like every year) that I need to regularize my diet. Eat well. Eat healthy. Not eat less but eat smart. Part of that plan is that I got strict with my breakfast. The fact that I actually sit down & eat breakfast has something to do with it. So this year (as per my new years resolution), I make hot healthy breakfast usually containing eggs & green veggies and I actually sit down & eat with a steaming hot cup of coffee. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit us in California, I stopped going to the gym. But my coach insisted that I stayed accountable & every now & then asked me to post a picture of what I was eating & whether I was working out/ moving enough every day or not. So I made this green breakfast for myself one day to send her a picture and that is what I have today to share with all of you. The recipe is SUPER simple. Like mind-numbingly simple. But if you make it & eat i

This is an old story which never got published. But I did write it though !! From some week in January 2020.... This last week was totally crazy. It was the first week after the holiday break & there was so much to do. Schools re-opened, which meant we had to meal plan & run like headless chickens starting @ 6am till 7:45am. Amidst all this, some office friends had planned a "Lets welcome the new year" potluck party. Unfortunately that party didn't happen as planned. But me being me had a plan written down & I wanted to make mutton biryani (as planned for the party). So here's how I did it. "Three Cheers" from me to folks who believe in their plans & work to see it through no matter what the circumstances are. The year 2020 is a new beginning for me. I don't have much resolutions to keep (other than the generic ones which I make every year & then forget by Valentine's day - aka loose weight & fit into a size 6 dr

It's a worldwide pandemic. COVID-19 has taken over the world and we all are locked down at home. This means that there's no eating out & food delivery is also very very restricted & delayed. In these difficult & trying times, while we wonder what is actually important in our lives, we also try & keep ourselves busy & engaged in order to not be affected by all the negativity going around. Baking a cake is a very good way to calm your nerves. The sweet smell of eggs baking inside the cake batter is a way of telling that the world is not that bad after all. Today, I baked a cake from BARE MIN ingredients - I call it the Four Ingredients Fix What I used 1 cup Pancake Mix 2 Eggs (brown) 1/2 cup vegetable oil + wee bit more to grease the cake pan 1/4 cup sugar Process Set the oven to 350 F Grease a small cake pan with wee bit oil Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl until a smooth batter is obtained Pour the batter into the cake

So this post will be very short. You ask why? Because, this dish was nothing but a pure cry for help on the days of Shelter-In-Place in San Jose, CA on account of the Corona Virus. We had run out of greens & the food delivery was late. Like a good Odiya kitchen, we never run out of onions & this tome we had cherry tomatoes too so here I am with the most simple Salmon fry with cheery tomatoes & onions. Outcome was tasty and somewhat fulfilling. I will not suggest this for lunch but dinner... yes. What I used Salmon fillet ( 2 4oz fillets for two of us) - Skin on Marinated with salt + turmeric + lemon juice & tandoori masala powder Cherry tomatoes (24 or so) Red onion (1/2 medium - sliced) Olive oil to dry salmon Wee bit hot & sweet tomato sauce Process In a non-stick pan, I fried the salmon - skin side on first. Make sure that the fish is not overcooked. It has to have crispy skin but super soft moist juicy interior After salmon is done,

There are days when I long to eat chicken and then there are days when I DIE to eat to chicken. Does this happen to you too? In a typical Odiya kitchen, chicken has its days of glory usually on Sundays. But here in the US, we get to eat chicken anytime we want. Well, that does good & bad for us. Good because, well.. it's chicken and we all LOVE it. Bad because, how many times can you really cook chicken curry in a week? Same masala, same spice powders, same everything. Well, no more !! I have decided to keep chicken curry on the back burner (Metaphorically, not literally) and try out different types of chicken kassa (Kassa - Roasted with spices but no curry). What I used Boneless skinless chicken thighs (Cut into medium bite size) (2 Lbs) Onion-Ginger-Garlic masala paste (2 big spoons full) Mustard oil (2 tbsp + 2 tbsp) Bay leaf - 1 Salt + Turmeric Chicken masala powder (4 tsps) Garam masala powder (2tsps) Process Marinate the chicken with  sal