We are what we eat,
isnt it ? Satvic food, amongst others counts as one of the ways to cleanse our
body-mind-spirit on a continual basis. While food is mostly need based or even
based on what is grown regionally, its the conditioning that one needs to get
used to, that spices be used in moderation, and that we eat according to our
body type and weather conditions. Thus we have the Simple or Pure Foods
(Satvic), Rajasic (stimulating) or Tamasic (the base foods) in Indian Cooking.
I am sure Indian Thalis (that have been designed over the ages keeping these
things in mind) are more balanced, nutritious and recommended for everyday
dining too 🙂
Ok, before I manage to fully put you to sleep with these trivia, I
present today's dish, nee a pure Saatvic
South Indian Thali (Thali in Hindi means platter). It is
everyday dishes out together without any ginger / garlic/ onions and is also
prepared with just 1 teaspoon of oil !! Yes, just
1 teaspoon of oil is used for the
entire thali, and I must admit this was one of the most satisfying meals I have
had in a longggg time 🙂 Thanks to Valli's Thali Mela (to which this also goes
to), I managed to cook an entire meal for myself (for lunch - something that I
rustle up rarely as its cooking for only one person :)), and loved it. Also
sending the Okra Stir fry (which was actually the star of this dish, and my
personal personal favourite stir fry) to Blogging Marathon and my event
Heirloom Recipes hosted by Saras.
Lets get to the spread now :
Rice & Bread - Plain steamed
rice & Phulkas (puffed Indian bread)
Accompaniments - Okra Stir fry
(recipe below) & Tomato Rasam
Proteins - Sprouts Salad
Calcium / Dairy - Curd
Dips - Pudina
Thogayal & Cucumber
Pickle (recipe soon).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For Entire Thali:
Total prep time - 15 mins
Total cook time - 20 mins
Serves - 2 (I have shown
one portion here)
For Okra Stir Fry:
Prep time - 10 mins.
Cook time - 8 - 10 mins
Difficulty level - Easy
Spice level - medium
Serves - 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ingredients for Okra Stir Fry:
- Okra (Lady's finger) - 150 gms
- Oil - 1 tsp
- Turmeric - a pinch
- Salt - to taste
- Amchur Powder - ½ teaspoon (or ½ teaspoon of tamarind juice)
- Red Chilli powder - ½ tsp
- Jaggery - ½ tsp
- Grated coconut for garnish
- Tempering : Mustard seeds , curry leaves, hing (asafoetida)
Method:
Wash, pat dry and trim the Okra. Cut into ½ inch bits.
In a pan, heat 1 teaspoon oil. Splutter mustard, curry leaves and
asafoetida. Add turmeric and chopped okra. Saute for 2 mins. Add salt and cover
and cook for 6-7 mins till done (but not mushy).
Add amchur powder, red chilli powder, jaggery. Stir once and cook
for further 2 mins (without cover).
Finish with grated coconut and serve with Rasam and Rice.
Champa says
Kalyani,
I don't think I have seen that tender okra after leaving India. Even when I grew them last year, they used to always be fat.
vaishali sabnani says
wow this is one thali which I wud relish..two of my favorites...rasam and okra..simple yet delicious food is what I enjoy the most.
anjana says
Loved the thali!!delicious rasam and crunchy okra..nice recipe dear..
FewMinute Wonders says
An awesome thali. Must accept champ's view that I have not seen this quality of okra here. I love okra and this is the best picture I have seen of it that is closest to what I used to eat in India.Hope you enjoyed your meal.
The Pumpkin Farm says
amazing Kalyani...1 tspn oil for entire meal..you are mind blowing...i love these kind of ideas..bhindi is my favorite veggie
Priya Suresh says
Great looking thali Kalyani..seriously makes me hungry.
Harini R says
Love okra fry anytime! fortunately my kid are okra fans too!
Nalini's Kitchen says
Thali looks fabulous,okra fry looks so tempting...drooling here...
Cool Lassi(e) says
Great platter! Okra fry looks amazing! Brain food. 🙂
Jayanthi says
The thaali looks awesome and absolutely inviting. My all time favorite comfort food is okra and rasam and seeing it in your platter is just making me miss my mom. Good one Kalyani.
preeti garg says
awesome..i love bhindi
Aarthi says
love that curry
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Srivalli says
Kalyani, that thali looks stunning!..love those bhindi looking so inviting!
Chef Mireille says
i love okra stir-fry and make it quite often..yours looks yummy
Vardhini says
Lovely thali and okra is our favorite.
Vardhini
CooksJoy
Rajani says
The thali looks very nice and the vendakka looks good. Thats what I cooked yesterday for lunch 🙂
Gurgaonflowerplaza says
Really tongue tickling...
Gurgaonflowerplaza.com
Archana says
Love this veggies in any form but this way is my favourite.
Gayathri Kumar says
Saatvic thali looks so inviting. The stir fry looks delicious too...
Gayathri Kumar says
Saatvic thali looks so inviting. The stir fry looks delicious too...
Padmajha says
Yummy thali and love okra curry...
Suma Gandlur says
Love the platter. Okra is one of our favorite veggies and so any varaition is welcome.
Unknown says
All About okra nutrition. Okra is a popular vegetable of the housewives. The interesting thing is that it contains more nutrients for good health, such as fiber, mucilage, vitamin A, vitamin B6, vitamin C, niacin, calcium, potassium, magnesium, folic acid, iron.Very good for health.
Shobha says
I love this simple okra preparation. Makes a nice side dish with dal chawal.