Multicolor Bell Pepper fried rice with Indian Spices

Yesterday dawned like every other day for me here in North America. While a continent or two away a billion people in my motherland were brimming with optimism, hope and nail biting tension. I started the day as usual in a hurry doing this and that but without any of the aforementioned tension. The radio came on as I got in the car to drive DD to the bus stop(we don't want to be late for that one). Just as I was turning to head to the office Steve Inskeep's interview with Mukul Kesavan about the India Pakistan World Cup Semifinal (Cricket)came on surprising and jolting a bit. I don't know who this Mukul Kesavan is but it coming on NPR is what is surprising. India apparently has arrived! If NPR is talking about was it that India has arrived on the World scene or was it was the Indo Pak rivalry that got them interested? Whatever, it reminded me of something I would have missed otherwise. If anyone is interested in the article in the Economic Times of India. It is here. A good interesting read.

As it dawned on me that I had slept through an important part of history I turned around and headed home to watch what was left of the Indian innings(gone are the days when we paid hundreds of dollars to watch live cricket matches we watch them free now) needless to say the Indian team which was playing well till then got themselves into a rut but finished IMO at least with a fighting total.

Then life intervened and I had to head to the office. My office is a tiny extension of the state of Andhra, there are more people from Andhra than from the country in which the office is situated. So watching of the match continued with everybody passing by checking on the status of the match.

In the evening in the middle of my chauffeuring duties I hear again on NPR a piece about the historic cricket match and India defeating Pakistan. A twinge of pride swells inside and a tiny bit of sadness at not being able to breathe that air and be part of the excitement. Yes I do listen to a lot of NPR!!

NPR even had a blog article on Tendulkar missing his 100th 100.

Having expended all that energy is there any left for the World Cup Finals on Saturday? I agree with Mukul Kesavan the writer of the Economic Times article, that Indo Pak matches are exhausting. No it will not stop me from watching the game on Saturday. How about you guys?


Now on to the recipe, the colorful bell pepper being put to good use in this Indian style fried rice. Very very simple but flavorful rice. If you have some cooked white/brown rice leftover even faster.

Bell Pepper fried rice with Indian Spices
Ingredients
1. 2 Cups of Basmati Rice (cooked with 2 tsp of oil, I use 1 : 1.5, rice:water)
2. 4 Medium sized bell peppers sliced thin, core removed
3. 1 Medium sized onion (2 cups) sliced thin
4. seasoning: fennel seeds
5. Salt to taste
6. 1/4 cup roasted peanuts coarsely powdered

Spice Powder
1. 1/2 tbsp coriander seeds
2. 1 tsp cumin seeds
3. 1 tbsp urad dal
4. 3 red chilies
5. 2 cloves
6. a small piece of cinnamon
7. optional 1/2 tbsp dried coconut flakes (I did not add any)
8. 2 tsp of oil + 2 tsp of sesame oil or ghee

Dry roast the above till they turn slightly brown. I brown the urad dal first and the rest together. Cool and blend to a fine powder

Method
1. Cook the rice fluff it up and let it cool a bit
2. In a fairly big sized kadai heat 2 tsp of oil, add the fennel seeds followed by the sliced onions, let them turn slightly brown
3. Add the sliced bell pepper and cook till they are soft and still have some crunch
4. Add the spiced and mix well and saute for a minute or two
5. Add in the rice and mix it into spice mixture.
6. Sprinkle more salt and add the sesame oil and mix it into the rice
7. Add the peanut powder and mix it gently

Ready to be served with some vegetable chips.

Cornmeal Dosai (Cornmeal crepes)

The very mention of dosais brings to mind a lot of hard work and worries about fermenting and sticking to the pan while cooking. Leave alone non-Indians it is surprising how many of my North Indian friends request Idli or dosai and sambhar /coconut chutney when they visit.

Idlis are a category unto themselves causing challenges even to the most experienced cooks. Dosais on the other hand in addition to bringing out the creativity of the cook can also provide opportunity for some tasty variation with ingredients that are commonly available.

Red Chillies has been running the dosa series for a couple of weeks now and it is a tasty collection of dosais with some amazing array of ingredients. The one that called to me was the Corn Meal Dosai. With all kinds of corn meal readily available having a recipe that works would be a blessing for a quick meal.

I made a few modifications skipping rice flour in favor of wheat flour. It was one excellent dosai going by the number each one wanted and also the speed they were disappearing as they come off the stove. I initially had the batter a bit too thick and the dosais were not lacy. I added a lot more water to have a very thin batter and that seemed to be the right consistency. Keep in mind the consistency of rava dosai. There is no fermentation required so the dosai is ready to be made as soon as the batter is mixed.

I follow my mom's way of adding crushed/blended chilies, curry leaves, cumin, ginger and coriander leaves instead of adding them chopped. The amazing aroma this blended mixture adds to the dosai is another plus.

Cornmeal Dosai
Ingredients
1. 1 Cup stone ground Cornmeal
2. 1/4 Cup Cream of Wheat
3. 1/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
4. 1 tsp turmeric powder
5. 3 green chilies
6. handful of chopped coriander leaves
7. 2 sprigs of curry leaves
8. 2 tsp of grated ginger
9. 1 tsp cumin seeds
10. salt to taste
11. 2-3 tbsp of yogurt whisked with 1/2 cup of water(this is optional and use as much or less as you want)

Method
1. Blend green chilies, coriander leaves, curry leaves, cumin, grated ginger with a tsp of salt and set aside
2. Whisk together cornmeal, cream of wheat and wheat flour with turmeric and yogurt
3. Add in the blended mixture, 2 cups of water and salt if required. The batter should be very loose
4. Set aside for 30 minutes. No fermentation is required of course
5. Heat the dosai pan or griddle and pour the batter (it is not spreadable) around to form a lace pattern
6. Spray or add oil to the edges and let it cook on one side. Flip and cook on the other side

Serve with chutney of choice. Recipes for chutney here.