Quick Channa Palav

Palav is full meals food and it is easy to do it and it can be one pot meal, quick meal or tasty meal. Palav is prepared in many ways. This time it is Channa /Kabooli Channa Palav and is very easy to prepare and serve.

 Good for sunday brunch, or for packing kids lunch box or even for picnics.
I have used cooked channa, (Use of cooked channa helps in softening the hard pods to quick little more and easy to digest), coriander leaves, carrots, handful of cashews, garam masala and chutney powder, little spices like cinnamon pieces, 3 to 4 cloves, a little bit of sonf /fennel seeds or Aniseeds, green chilly, grated ginger and grated coconut.
Channa /Kabooli Channa helps you to keep you fit and provides proteins and energy. It helps to keep your body warm.
Channa helps in keeping your bones strong and fit. Channa is full of fiber and anyone can eat and enjoy.
It is my own creation and love the taste and aroma of this Palav.
No Onion or Nor Garlic is used here. "Quick Channa Palav" is yummy to have, filling and easy to prepare.

Things Needed :

Cooked Kabooli Channa : 1 Bowl.
Raw Rice : 2 Cups. (I used Basumathi Rice)
Carrots : 2 to 3
Cashews : 1 Handful
Saffron : 2 to 3 Rakes
Ginger : 1 Tablespoon (Grated).
Spices :
Cinnamon : An inch
Cloves : 3 to 4
Sonf/Fennel Seeds/Aniseeds : 1/2 Teaspoon
Garam Masala : 1/2 Teaspoon
Chutney Powder : 1 Tablespoon
Green chilly : 2
Fresh grated coconut : 2 Tablespoons
Coriander leaves : 1 Handful
Ghee : 2 To 3 Tablespoons
Cooking Oil : 1Tablespoon
Salt : As required

Method :

1. Wash and cut carrots and keep it aside. Wash and slit green chilly.
2. Wash rice and drain the water completely and keep it aside. ( At least 10 minutes before you prepare Palavu).

3. Wash and grate ginger and keep it aside.
4. Wash and cut coriander leaves and cut into small pieces. Grate coconut and keep it aside.

5. Now keep a pan/pressure cooker on the fire and heat.
6. Add oil and 1 tbs of ghee. Add sonf, cinnamon, cloves and fry for 10 seconds.

7. Add carrots, cooked channa, grated ginger, slit chilly and fry nicely for 1 minute.

8. Add cashews and fry till they turn slightly brown.
9. Add garam masala, chutney powder and stir just once or twice.

10. Add  rice and stir nicely for 2 to 3 minutes.

11. Add 4 cups of water and mix all the ingredients well.
12. Add  grated coconut, saffron and required salt.

13. Add cut coriander leaves close the lid and cook. Put weight after 2 minutes.

14. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes. Put off the fire and let the pressure come down.

15. Open the lid, add remaining ghee and mix it well. Shift the delicious palav to a serving dish.

16. Serve with your choice of Raitha. We had it with carrot raitha

Note : 

Any brand of Basumathi rice is optional. Use of Sona masoori is also useful. Use little more water if you use Sona Masoori Rice. Use of steamed rice gives different taste. Use of green chilly is optional.
Use of curry leaves chutney pudi adds to the taste. (Optional).
40 minutes

Serves : 3 to 4 .

Simple Shavige Pulav

Shavige or Vermicelli is made with Durum wheat. (Which is one of the best wheat variety). We can prepare Shavige- Upma, or varieties of spicy snacks and sweet dishes from Shavige. Normally in India, specially South Indians use Shavige for break fast, some time for lunch and even during their fasting days. (Vrutha or Ekadasi and some special days).

Shavige is a traditional type of pasta. It is known as seviyam in Urdu and Hindi. Shemai in Bengali, Sev in Gujarati, Shavige in Kannada, Seval or Semiya in Telugu, Semiya in Tamil and Malayalam. As I said it before we can prepare various dishes using Shavige.

Here is a recipe of Shavige Pulav which is easy to prepare. It is healthy and will be liked by all the family members I am sure.

Ingredients :

Shavige (Anil Shavige) : 1/2 Kg
Carrots : 2
Capsicum : 1
Green chilly : 1
Lemon : 1 Tablespoon
Ghee : 2 Tablespoons
Oil : 4 Tablespoons
Cashew nuts : 10 to 15 pieces
Cloves : 5 to 6
Cinnamon : 2 small pieces.
Jeera : 1 Teaspoon
Pepper Pods : 5 to 6
Coconut : 1/2 Cup
Ginger : 1 Teaspoon (grated)
Salt : required
Turmeric powder : 1/4 Teaspoon
Garam Masala Powder : 1 Teaspoon

Method : 

1. Wash and cut carrots and capsicum.
2. Cook carrots with little water till soft. (5 minutes).
3. Wash and remove the skin from ginger and grate. Squeeze out the lemon juice and keep it aside.

5.Grate coconut and keep it aside.
6. Now keep a big pan on the fire and heat. Put oil, jeera, pepper pods, cinnamon pieces and cloves.
7. Let it fry for 10 to 15 seconds. Add  green chilly, Shavige and fry till they are brown.

8. Add cooked carrots and put required water. Add turmeric powder and garam masal powder. Mix it well.

9. Add salt and grated ginger, let it cook nicely till the water disappear. (Cook on medium heat).
10. Put off the gas and put lemon juice, ghee and fresh grated coconut.

11. Now keep a small pan and put 1 table spoon of oil. Heat and put cut cashew nuts and fry till they are brown.

12.Add cut capsicum and fry till they turn soft. Put this mixture to ready shavige pulav.

13. Mix it slowly and pour the ready Pulav to a serving dish.

14. Serve "Shavige Pulav " with a cup of curd or coconut chutney.

Note :

You must fry shavige till it gets brown colour.
Using ghee is optional. Instead of ghee use little more oil.
You can grind coconut, garam masala, cinnamon, cloves , green chilly and ginger with little water and fry this mixture and fry till the raw smell disappear and add it to Shavige Pulav.
You can use more vegetables like peas and beans.
Adding lemon is optional.
Using onions is also optional.
Time :  40 Minutes
Servings : 5 to 6

Spinach - Peas Palav

Spinach - Peas Palav is full of Spinach.Spinach is full of Iron. Spinach Peas Palav is prepared with Methi, Dil leaves with peas and Basmati rice and some spices. Mint chutney and mint tambuli adds taste to Spinach Palav. Palav is popular rice dish in India and all over the world.

Palav is called, Pulau -Hindi, Sanskrit pulaka and the name must be a Dravidian orgin. Due to the vast spread of the dish, it is called in different names in many languages, like, palou, palov, pilav, polu, polaao (Bengali), pulao/pulv (Hindi-Urdu) etc.

Palav is a rice dish, cooked with seasoned vegetables and a good variety of rice. Especially Basmathi rice go well with Palav. It is easy to prepare, can be done quickly and its one of the favourite dish of many.

Dil weed is a unique perennial herbal plant. This herb contains no cholesterol and low in calories. It contain many anti-oxidants, vitamins and dietary fibers and helps to control cholesterol levels. Fresh dil herb is an excellent source of antioxidant vitamin C. Dil weed is a good source of minerals like copper, potassium, calcium. ,amganese, iron and magnesium.

Methi leaf is highly beneficial for treating poor liver functions. It is also helpful in treating gastic problems and other intestinal issues. Methi Leaf cut down the cholesterol and helps in preventing and treating of type 2 diabetes.

Here is a recipe of Spinach(Methi + Dil) Peas Palav with Mint chutney and Mint Raitha.  This dishes are very good healthy Combo and I am sure every one in the family will surely enjoy eating this Spinach dishes. You can have this palav for lunch or dinner.

Things Needed :

Spinach Palav 

Basmati Rice : 2 Cups
Dil Leaves : 1 Bundle
Methi Leaves : 1 Bundle
Peas : 1 Cup
Green chilly :2
Ginger : 1 Table spoon (Grated)
Clove :2 to 3
Cinnemon : small Piece
Palav Leaf : 1
Cardamom : 2 pods
Garam Masala : 1/2 Tea spoon
Coriander seeds : 1/2 Tea spoon
Coconut : 3 Table spoons
Oil : 2 Table spoons
Ghee : 2 Table spoons
Salt : to taste
Water : 4 Cups

Method :

1. Wash and cut dil leaves and methi leaves and keep it aside.

2. Wash and keep rice aside.
3. Grate coconut and ginger and wash and cut coriander leaves.
4. Dry grind coconut, cloves, cinnemon, coriander seeds and cardamom and keep it aside.
5. Now keep a big pan on the fire and put oil. Put ginger and peas.

6. Fry nicely for1 minute.
7. Add cut leaves and fry it nicely for 2 to 3 minutes.
8. Add ground coconut mixture and washed basmati rice and fry for 3 minutes.

9. Now add salt and mix again and put this fried mixture in the rice cooker or pressure cooker and cook.

10. Add ghee and mix when the Palav is done.

Note : 

You can use any cooking rice remember to add water according the quality of rice. (Sona Masuri 1 = 3, Basmati rice 1 cup rice = 2 cup water. You can add vegetables if you like. You can also use more chilly for spicy taste. Adding ghee increase the taste of the Palav.

Time : 40 minutes
Servings : 5 to 6

Mint Leaves - Coconut Chutney:

Grate coconut and wash and add 1 cup of mint leaves, tamarind, 2 green chilly and salt.

Grind this coconut + mint mixture til paste and shift it to the serving bowl.
Chutney is ready to serve

Mint leaves Raitha.

Fry cleaned and washed mint leaves and 4 to 6 pepper popds in 1/2 tea spoon of ghee nicely.
Add salt and allow it to cool. Grind with little water till paste and put it in a serving bowl. Add a cup of curd and mix it well. Mint Raitha is ready to serve.

Chutney and Raitha
Note :  You must roast mint leaves on low flame. Adding onions with Mint Raitha will adds to the taste. 
Time  : 10 minutes
Serves : 4 to 6