Method:

Chop all the vegetables. Heat the oil or ghee in a pan, add the cumin and hing. When the cumin starts to splutter, add the onion, chilli, capsicum, ginger and curry leaves. Fry till the onion turns light gold in colour. Add the tomatoes, salt, sugar and quarter cup of water. Cover and cook till the tomatoes become pulpy and the water evaporates. Add the rasam powder and stir and cook for a couple of minutes. Serve hot, garnished with coriander leaves (this is a good side dish for rice). Sambar powder or curry powder can be used instead of rasam powder.

* * *

Tomato dosas (Serves six or eight persons)


Ingredients:

Rice 1-1/2 cup
Tomatoes (medium sized) 6
Dry red chillies 3
Grated fresh coconut 1 cup
Salt 1 tsp

Method:

Soak the rice for two hours, wash well, drain all water and grind with the coconut, chillies, salt and chopped tomatoes into a fine paste adding one and a half cups of water. Remove into a container. Stir well. Heat a greased dosa tawa till hot, take a ladleful of the batter and splash it on the tawa like for rawa dosa. Sprinkle a little oil or ghee on the dosa, cover with a lid and cook on moderate heat till the dosa is crisp and golden in colour. Do not cook on the other side. Serve hot with any chutney or sambar. (The batter should not be fermented - in fact it should be kept in the fridge if not used immediately).

* * *

Tomato coconut masala sambar (Serves six or eight)

Ingredients:

Tuvar dal 1/2 cup
Fresh grated coconut 1/2 cup
Ripe tomatoes 8 (medium sized)
Dry red chillies 6
Green chillies 2
Curry leaves 2 sprays
Oil 2 tabs
Coriander seeds 1-1-2 tabs
Jaggery powder or sugar 1-1/2 tsps
Cumin seeds 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds 1/4 tsp
Tamarind lemon size

Method:

Pressure cook the dal with double the amount of water. Mash well and keep aside. Soak the tamarind in 1-1/2 cups of water, squeeze and strain out the juice. Chop each tomato into eight pieces. Heat one tab of oil in a kadai, and on low heat. Fry the fenugreek till light gold in colour, add the coriander, cumin and the red chillies and dry till you get a good aroma. Add the curry leaves and the coconut, roast a bit, allow to cool, grind this masala into a smooth paste, with a little water, in a mixie. Keep aside.

In a thick vessel, boil the tamarind water, jaggery and salt with a pinch of turmeric powder in it. Slit the green chillies and add to the boiling mixture. Boil till the raw smell of tamarind disappears. Add the mashed dal and the tomatoes. When the dal boils and the tomatoes are slightly cooked, add the ground paste and a sprig of curry leaves. Let the sambar boil for a minute on a medium flame, remove from fire. Heat one tab of oil, add half a teaspoon of mustard seeds and one red chilli to it. When the mustard splutters, add this seasoning to the sambar. Serve hot with rice.

(Other vegetables can also be used. Fenugreek and spring onion leaves taste delicious this way.)

* * *

Spaghetti with herbal tomato sauce (Serves six)

Ingredients:

Spaghetti 250 g
Large ripe tomatoes 6 (large)
Onion 2
Capsicum 2
Cream 4 tabs
Grated cheese 2 tabs
Oil 2 tabs
Butter 2 tabs
Flour 1 tabs
Oregano 1 tsp
Sugar 1 tsp
Salt 1 tsp
Pepper powder 1/2 tsp

Method:

Chop the onion and capsicum lengthwise. Chop the tomatoes and boil in two cups of water till cooked. Liquidise when cold in a mixie, sieve and keep aside. Boil the spaghetti in water with a few drops of oil till tender and strain. Heat one tab of oil and one tab butter in a pan. Add the onion and capsicum and fry till light gold in colour. Add the spaghetti, half a teaspoon of salt, pepper powder and saute till well fried. Keep piping hot on a low flame.

In another pan, heat the remaining butter and oil, add the flour and roast it for a while. Add the tomato puree, half a teaspoon of salt, sugar and oregano and cook till the mixture becomes thick, stirring all the time. Mix in the cream, stir and remove from flame. To serve, spread the spaghetti on a plate, pour the sauce over it, and sprinkle cheese attractively over it. Serve piping hot (a teaspoon of chilli powder can be added to the boiling sauce if one wants it spicy).

USHA BAIL