Lal lobia-aloo and a me-me :)

The ever charming and chirpy Sig, host of the fun blog "Live to Eat" tagged me for this meme :). My first time on this food blog, and i am supposed to share seven random facts about me. Sure Sig, i would love to have few mins. of fame ;). And then i was looking for a recipe to go with this meme. Having read Sig's recent experience with lobia,

Hey Musical, guess what, my dear husband went shopping and got me some black colored beans and huge kidney beans instead of black eyed beans from the Indian store. So I had to send him to the regular store again, and he bought white lobia instead of red... I made Olan and Erissery with the white beans, it looked very pretty and was yummy!!!

Sig speak in the comments section ;)

I felt i should share a simple, traditional recipe made with lal-lobia (red lobia),


as lal-lobia is what she craved for then :). So, here are the goodies: a meme and the lal lobia-aloo recipe :). Have fun!

Seven random facts about me.....

1. Me and cooking: lucky by chance ;). i hardly did any cooking before i came to the US. At home, there was always the best of khana lovingly prepared by Mom. In the graduate school, there was the mess (which was decent, i must say.....not at all a mess!). When i started cooking, surprisingly things turned out fine.....it was like, Mom's blessings.....oh, and btw, for some reason, i don't own a single cook-book, i have no idea why!! now call me lazy or crazy-your choice ;).

2. I love cats =^.^= i love dogs and other animals too :).

3. Fruits make my all time favorite dessert, followed by ice-creams (Kulfis rule, so do gelatos!). Frozen yogurt and home made smoothies are another favorite. But once in a while i enjoy other sweets too. The only requirement is that it should not be too sweet! My favorite foods: Upma and Rajma Chawal (and countless more).....and i am pickle FANatic :).

4. I have this habit of reading while eating!! anything is good: books, magazines, even catalogs!! and i usually pursue 2-3 books at a time.....just like one follows 2-3 TV programs ;).

5. I love flowers, in their natural habitat.

6. I am not too much into sports and games!! I watch cricket only when India plays and baseball only when Red Sox plays :)). Tennis is enjoyable too, only when my favorite players are playing (Like Sunday's Wimbledon Men's Finals).The only sportsy activity i do is excercise: mainly yoga and aerobics. I have played carrom and chess only once.....and am totally clueless about card games!

7.I believe that the taste of good food multiplies, when you share it with others.....your loved ones, friends.....and thats why i enjoy food blogging.

Who am i going to tag: anyone who considers themselves a friend and is willing to take it up :)

After having bored you thoroughly, lemme make y'all something good: the lal lobia aloo :)


Here goes:

We need:

• 1 cup red lobia
• 1/2 onion (finely chopped)
• 1 heaped tsp. ginger-garlic paste (more ginger, less garlic)
• 1 small tomato (preferrably Roma, chopped)
• 2 potatoes (peeled and cubed into big pieces)
• Some chopped sweet peppers (bell pepper or Holland pepper)
• 1/2 tsp. black cumin (shah-jeera)
• 1 tsp. amchoor/lime juice
• Turmeric and chilli powder (to taste)
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp. oil/melted ghee
  
• Chopped cilantro (for garnishing, be generous here!)
• Masala ( roast 4 cloves/lavang/laung, 1/4 cinnamon/dalchini stick and 1/4 tsp. mace/javitri-grind together and use 1/4 tsp.)

First thing is to soak the lobia in warm water for 1-2 hrs. Meanwhile, chop the vegetable and get ready ;). Add the cubed potatoes to the lobia and pressure cook for three whistles. Thats the reason the cubes should be really big, else the potatoes would get mushed up!

Red lobia takes a lil' longer to cook compared to the white lobia. While this stuff cools down, prepare the tadka. In hot oil, splutter shah-jeera and then saute' the onions. Now add the ginger-garlic paste (preferable make fresh with ginger to garlic in 3:1 proportion). Saute' and add the chopped peppers. Cook for 2-3 minutes, followed by the addition of tomatoes. Add turmeric (not more than 1/2 tsp.), chilli powder and the souring agent (amchoor or lime juice) and cook for 5 minutes. Add this to the cooked beans and potatoes. Add salt and stir. Bring it to a boil and then cook on low heat till the gravy thickens. Take care not to mush the potatoes. Once done, stir in the garam masala and chopped cilantro. Enjoy with rice or chapati :). Or if you are like me, with a crisp toast!!


Notes: Shah jeera is a good addition to the whole beans like lobia, Rajma, urad and masoor-it balances out the vayi/vayu element from these beans. I rarely use garlic in my cooking, but in this dish (besides paav bhaji, some chhole preparations and another few select dishes) i enjoy it a lot! I would prefer ghee to oil, as ghee adds its on aroma. Cilantro is a must.

Variations: Use white lobia for this dish. The two lobias taste quite different, so it does make a nice variation. Also you might like to try this with lal lobia :). During winters, Kasuri Methi can replace Cilantro to give a totally different flavor.