Ujwala's Delicacies

Indian inspired all natural kitchen.

Tindora, moringa saute

Do you want to taste something truly different when creating healthy recipes? You’re in the right place! I’d love to introduce you to my tindora moringa sauté. Moringa is nothing but drumstick leaves. Not just for people that love Indian recipes, this is the one that most people haven’t heard of. But this all-natural vegan-friendly Indian recipe is going to win you over. Tindora is also called ivy gourd, scarlet gourd. Tindora is Indians favorite staple food and party food. Tindora turns out so crunchy when sautéed and stays crunchy for a long time.

Sautéed Malabar spinach with tahini

Introducing Malabar spinach (Basella alba or rubra) to the western world. Malabar spinach is highly grown and consumed widely in India and other parts of South Asia. Malabar spinach is fleshy, thick and slimy. Leaves and tender and vine stems are edible. They may be eaten in appetizers, sautéed, stir-fried, in soups, and curries. Even use in omelets, pasta dishes, casseroles.

Malabar spinach is not spinach. To me, there isn’t any relation visually or in taste. Maybe scientifically they are distantly related. This dish called bachali Kura in Telugu.

Butternut squash soup

There is nothing more comforting than a piping hot soup during winter. This healthy, all-natural, vegan, vegetarian, paleo, gluten-free, no-stock soup is full of good stuff. When you want to keep your dinner light, this delicious soup is the one. This warm and comforting soup is your weight loss treatment, your vitamin pills. Fresh from the farmers market, fine butternut squash is simmered, adding body, and cooked in all-natural spices.

Butternut squash is steamed, preserving valuable nutrients, loaded with unprocessed spices and flavor. Low in fat, calories, high in protein, vitamins. Healthy starter, snack whatever you can think of.

Sesame, besan laddu

The word ‘Sankranti’ means the movement of the sun into Capricorn. On Makar Sankranti, the sun enters new zodiac-sign of Capricorn or Makara. Most Hindu festivals are based on the lunar calendar, making the dates of festivals change every year. But Makar Sankranti is a festival which falls on the same day every year as it follows the solar calendar. As Makar Sankranti is one of the oldest solstice festivals and falls on the equinox, day and night on this day are believed to be equally long. Post the festival, it is officially the beginning of spring. Indian summer and the days become longer, and nights shorter.

Makara Sankranthi is celebrated for three days. The first day is Bhogi. North India is known as Lohri.The second day is Sankranthi which is dedicated to worshipping Surya (the Sun god), Varuna (the rain god) and Indra (king of gods). The third day is Kanuma which is dedicated to cleaning cows, farm animals and farm equipment and also offering prayers to them for helping with a successful harvest season.

Celery, tomatillo chutney

Chutneys are a staple food in Southern India. Chutneys can be made with a variety of vegetables. Mix n match a wide variety of vegetables, nuts, seeds to make rich, enticing, exquisite chutney. This is a Vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, Paleo, nut-free recipe. Aromatic spices with vegetables, nuts in tampering makes chutney an ultimately delicious and healthy. Whichever vegetable you make chutney out of, Chutney is loaded with iron, vitamins, and antioxidants. Traditionally, vegetables are cooked in spices and crushed with the hand in mortar pestle to make chutney. In the modern generation, grinders are used. Chutney is usually consumed with rice and ghee poured on top. Lately, with low carb consciousness, people prefer eating chutneys as homemade dips for tortilla chips, pita chips, south Indian snacks as sakinalu, janthikalu and karappusa.

Gongura, potato curry

Gongura, which is known to the western world as Roselle, is a tangy and sour leaf. Roselle plant leaves and flowers both are edible. Gongura (Hibiscus Sabdariffa) leaves – the most popular dish in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, India. Gongura leaves are widely used in Andhra Pradesh. It holds a very special place in Andhra peoples hearts. It is called as Andhra favorite dish – Andhra maatha or Andhra Shakambari Varaprasadam which is translated to “Vegetarian mother of Andhra”.

Shrimp scampi

Shrimp scampi is one of the quick and easy recipes for fast, yet delicious and impressive weekday meals. Just toss shrimp in a white wine, garlic, parsley, chili flakes, and pasta. You’ll have the most satisfying dinner ready in less than a half hour. I use fresh shrimp. I never use frozen shrimp. I buy fresh shrimp, peel, devein. Yes, it sounds like a lot of work, but once you taste fresh shrimp, you don’t feel like going back. Fresh shrimp is so soft, that it hits the spot every time. When the week is busy, time is short and you want to make home-cooked meals for yourself or family, pasta is the one.

Vegan creamy gravy for Indian curries

Gravy is the base for most Indian dishes. Indian gravy is not the turkey gravy as most westerns are familiar with. This vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, paleo gravy adds up taste and smooth, silky texture to the dish. In parties, festival gatherings, gravy curry is staple. Thats because gravy adds up volume and smooth gravy simply slides thru the throat. Though I am not fan of freezing, you can make extra gravy, freeze and use when you need.

Common way’s to use Indian gravy is to cook with vegetables or meat and as a side to biryani dishes. Add your favorite vegetables or meat to this gravy, simmer and enjoy. Chicken and Potatoes are most crowd cheered combination which is cooked in gravy.

Tandoori whole cornish hen

As can often be the case when merging new-coming and traditional cultures, Americans of Indian descent often feel themselves torn between abandoning their traditional cuisine and adopting Western recipes outright in order to celebrate or making their usual foods and missing out on the delicious fun of the season. With me, you never have to make that choice. My Indian Thanksgiving recipes match the best of my homeland with the flavors of fall for a Thanksgiving experience that fit right into the American celebration without losing the feel or flavor of India.

You don’t have to worry about baking big bird. With Cornish hen, bake just the right amount you need, no leftovers.

Tandoori chicken is a favorite Indian meal that has a huge following in America. The name Tandoori comes from the oven called tandoor, in which the dish is traditionally prepared. Tandoor is high heat oven, that without special marinade, the chicken will be undercooked. Chicken and other meats cooked with this method are identified as tandoori chicken, etc. The very high temperature at the bottom of the oven would burn the outside of any meat in about 20 minutes, leaving the inside raw. What is the technique? When meat is exposed to an acidic marinade, the bonds break between protein bundles, and the proteins unwind, forming a loose mesh. Initially, water is trapped within this protein “net” and tissue remains moist and juicy. For this reason, chicken is marinated in citrus, yogurt, and spices.

All-natural, home-made vegetarian Tofurkey, stuffing and gravy

An all-natural, fresh, soft and tasty than store-bought tofurkey. Try something different with Thanksgiving dinner this year, make it meatless. It’s like a Thanksgiving present for the planet. A study of the veggie-loving Adventist community in California found that even non-organic vegetarian diets used 2.9 times less water, 2.5 times less energy, and 13 times less fertilizer than meat-centric eating. Go organic and the benefits get even bigger. Your body will thank you, too, if you swap out the meat for a Tofurkey. The vegetarians at your table will undoubtedly love it if your dinner features something they can eat, especially a dish that recalls the traditional poultry they’ve given up. Non-vegetarians can enjoy knowing that vegetarian dinners, even those that aren’t 100 percent organic, take less of an environmental toll than meat-centric suppers. Tofurkey is definitely the best-known brand of veggie-based turkey alternatives; it’s handcrafted from tofu to look somewhat turkey-like, and stuffed with a vegetarian stuffing. But it’s far from the only option. The downside of buying store-bought Tofurkey is there aren’t many certified-organic meat alternatives out there. Use your own certified-organic tofu and ingredients when you make at home.