Polenta aka cornmeal is granules of corn available in grocery stores all around. The Polenta is cooked in many ways like it can be baked, grilled or fried. This recipe is prepared using boiled Polenta which is typically simmered in water with salt and ghee or butter. Polenta takes a little long time to cook and creamy texture.You could each boiled Polenta as is or It can be served many different ways. For this recipe we would prepare a sambar to serve with Polenta. Sambar is a south Indian soup which is prepared using mix of vegetables of your choice, toor daal and special sambar masala. In this recipe, I have also added green pigeon peas along with toor dal to get twist in sambar taste. There are varieties of sambar recipes available and you can use anyone if you like or you can use your own sambar recipe. Polenta used to be one of common meal item when I was young and my grand mother use to make it and serve with toor dal and spicy curry. In northern India is it referred as “Makki ka bath”. I literally love Polenta and every time I make it, it bring memories from childhood. Polenta with sambar was an awesome combination and very delicious, you could also try it with rasam. 
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Tandoori Salmon Masala
Salmon is very tasty protein-rich fish and have less bones. Salman can be used for varieties of recipe mainly steak, fish kabab, grilled salmon salad or curry. I have already shared Tandoori salmon recipe. This recipe is prepared with grilled tandoori salmon which is cooked in onion tomato rich gravy and flavored with Indian spices. I have add beetroot to give red color to the recipe. Tandoori Salmon masala goes well with naan, roti, Paratha or rice.
Dum Aloo
Aloo (Potato) is king of the vegetables. It can be used to prepare variety of dishes like curries, Paratha, fried vegetable, snacks items like aloo tikki, samosa and so on. Tasty dum aloo is a very popular North Indian dish. Dum Aloo is a very simple gravy based dish made using very less ingredients basically boiled baby potatoes which is cooked in tomato gravy and spices. My mom always added freshly grounded garam masala which gives a wonderful aroma and taste to the dum aloo. There are many way to prepare dum aloo, different ingredients gives different taste to it. This recipe is tomato base curry but you can also make it yogurt base dum aloo. We all prefer to eat green vegetables however some time making potato curry gives a little twist to daily routine specially during summer when limited green vegetables are available. Dum aloo goes well with jeera rice, roti, Paratha or poori.
Methi Wheat Garlic Naan (without yeast)
Naan is an Indian flat bread, made with fermented all purpose flour and roasted in clay tandoor or oven. This yummy soft & fluffy bread is famous across India, and varieties of naan are served in Indian restaurants. In my earlier post, I had shared tava garlic naan using all purpose flour. The process to make wheat methi garlic naan recipe is almost similar except for the dough preparation. This recipe is made using wheat flour and fenugreek (methi) leaves and topped with garlic, coriander leaves, kalongi (nigella seeds) and sesame seeds and roasted on stove top on tava. The texture is slightly different but is still soft and fluffy and tastes great. Naan breads generally taste great with paneer or chicken curry. The texture of the wheat naan are very close to the restaurant naan. In this recipe, I have used baking soda and baking powder but you use yeast too.
Achari Gobhi Dry
Gobhi(Cauliflower) is one of popular vegetable and there are various recipes which can be prepared using this. You can make the it either dry or gravy. Achari flavored Gobhi is a dry recipe which is tangy and flavorful. This is my childhood favorite dish which my mom used to prepare for our lunch boxes and would give us either with Poori or Paratha. This is a very easy recipe and you can add other vegetables too like potato or french beans. It tastes awesome and perfect for lunch boxes.
Green Chana Poori
Poori is a deep fried Indian bread which is famous all over India. There are many kind of pooris like a palak & beetroot poori, plain poori, bhatura, stuffed chana daal poori and so on. Delicious green chana poori is made using wheat flour, fresh green chana and palak(spinach) puree and deep fried in oil. Pooris are all time favorite of my kids and they love to eat as lunch in school so I make them very often. During the season when Green Chana is available I make pooris using it. You can find green chana in Indian store or use frozen green chana if not fresh one is not available. There are many recipes which can be prepared using fresh green chana like paratha, kabab, spiced daal, curry or so on. In this recipe I have added spinach to give a nice green color. You can skip spinach if you don’t like and make it only with chana. Green chana poori goes very well with any Indian curry, pickle or dry sabji.
Chana Daal Poori(Paratha)
Chana daal poori/paratha is a simple and delicious traditional dish which is famous in Bihar and Uttar pradesh states. It is a local dish made for spacial occasions. Any traditional foods from anywhere always gives a high satisfaction to your test buds. Although this dish is very similar to other stuffed parathas like aaloo paratha, Gobhi paratha, mutter paratha, Mooli paratha however it special as it is filled with Chana dall instead of vegetables. This special dish is made during dussehra and specially when the bride comes to their in-laws place first time after marriage. This paratha/poori is enjoyed with sweet rice kheer and spicy curry. I love this dish and just the name makes me mouthwatering. Chana daal poori/paratha is made with very less ingredients basically using boiled spiced chana daal, filled in wheat flour dough balls. You can skip garlic if you making it for worship during dussehra. To make poori it requires deep frying however for paratha you can cook with greasing oil on a pan.
Bisi Bele Bath
Bisi bele bath is one of most popular dish in Karnataka. The recipe is very similar to north Indian khichdi. In Kannada, bisi means hot, bele means daal and bath means rice hence the name. Rice and daal cooked along with veggie, spices, and jaggery makes this dish delicious. I am very fond of south Indian food and this is one of my favorite dish. The aroma of bisi bele bath masala, curry leaves, ghee and tamarind creates a craving for the food. You can use home made Bisi bele bath masala which gives an awesome freshness and taste to this dish but if not available, you could use store bought MTR Bisi bele bath masala powder. Bisi bele bath tastes best when served hot, topped with ghee along with papad and kara boondi.