We have few jackfruit trees in our garden. During the season, we make many dishes from the raw fruit. This is one such dish which happens to be very popular among Konkanis. Some call it Chakko chane ghashi, we call it chakko chane randayi (In our Konkani, randayi is any side dish which is watery in consistency).
At my home, we usually like to make jackfruit-dal randayi which gets its aroma from teppal. Chakko-chane randayi is a nice variety with simple ingredients that are easily available everywhere.
Ingredients: 2 cups raw jackfruit pieces 1 cup chana (chickpeas) soaked overnight 1 cup coconut 4 – 5 red chillies 1/2 tea spn fenugreek seeds 2-3 kokum pieces or use tamarind Salt Oil 1 tea spn mustard seeds 5-6 curry leaves 6-7 drumstick(maskasangi/mashinga sangi) pieces (optional )
Method: Cook chana and jackfruit pieces separately in a pressure cooker. Cook drumstick (if using). Heat oil and fry fenugreek seeds. Grind them with coconut, red chillies. Add the masala to the chana jackfruit mixture and cook. Add kokum and salt. Cook for about 4-5 minutes. Heat oil and add mustard. After they start popping, add curry leaves. Add it to the randayi and serve with rice or chapati.
Serves : 3-4 Preparation time : 30mins
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I am trying to include more chicken into our diet. Although I mostly make Indian dishes at home, once in a week, I experiment with new dishes. This was one such dish which came out really well. If you are a vegetarian, you can leave out chicken in this, it will still taste very good. It is a rich and creamy dish we absolutely loved.
Ingredients: 1/2 lb tender tender chicken 1/2 lb small cut pasta 1 cup vegetables – onion, corn, carrot, red bellpepper Dried basil, red chilli flakes flakes – according to taste 1 cup cheddar cheese 1/2 cup tomato Olive oil/butter 1/2 tea spn pepper 1 tbl spn whipping cream Salt
Method: Apply salt and pepper to chicken pieces and grill them till they are done. Cook the pasta according to package instructions and keep it aside. Heat olive oil/butter and add corn, carrot, onions, bellpepper. Add some salt, basil, chilli flakes. Cover and cook for few minutes till the vegetables are soft. Preheat the oven at 350F. Take an oven safe dish. Spread the vegetables. Then the chicken, followed by pasta. Spread the cream on it, followed by cheese. Spread tomato on top. Bake in the oven for about 8-10mins till the cheese is melted. Serve hot.
Serves : 3-4 Preparation time : 40mins
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