Zaatar Cheese Omelette

Zaatar Cheese Omelette with Layered Paratha and Tea

It's a powerpacked, healthy breakfast menu which I absolutely love having on weekends. As it's a filling menu and the aroma of zaatar is really tempting makes you feel hungry even if you really are not, I find it's an ideal suhoor meal 😂😋😋

Zaatar is a middle eastern blend of dried thyme, oregano, marjoram and tossed sesame seeds which is then seasoned with salt and optionally with sumac. It has got many health benefits which toucan Google but I personally feel is surely does help improve my mood and gives a fresh feeling. Also helps digestion and soothes stomach ache caused by acid reflux. So, in short, I just love zaatar lol.

Recipes:

Simple Broiled Fish

We koknis love fish and no day is complete without at least one meal with fish. We get numerous varieties of fish here and have many different preparations and recipes for different kind of fish and prawns, shrimps etc. Mostly fish recipes are spicy and elaborated but then you have the days where you just can't tolerate the spices or the heat and want something quick, easy and simple.

I remember my grandma used to broil fish and served us with dal rice or with Hilda and buzlela papad because as kids we wouldn't rolerate the spicy fish chillat they used to make as an accompaniment. It tasted so good that till date there's nothing equal to that taste. I especially love Boi fish broiled this way. There in the old house we have a separate open kitchen where we have these clay stove where wood is used as fuel known as "choolh" though now those choolhs are not used since many years and to be honest in have never cooked on the choolh ☹☹ so, my grandma used to put fish in dried coconut shells over live coal pieces and flipping it to cook it from all the sides. If the fish size was large, they used to put directly in clay stove over coals. The aroma and the taste was so appetizing and rustic that no one would dare to avoid. You don't need to add in oil or butter as when fish is broiled slowly it leaves it own oil. So let's make it now ;)

Dahi Barra Chaat Recipe | Dahi Vada Recipe

Soft, fluffy, juicy, melt in mouth fried lentil dumplings dipped in chaat flavoured creamy yogurt and garnished with freshly chopped green coriander, sweet and sour and spicy chutneys!

I don't remember since when I fell in love with this absolutely mouth watering, filling and refreshing chaat but this is one of those dishes I really crave for if haven't had for it for two weeks lol. When we were in junior college a few years ago we used to frequently visit this small upmarket place famous for their dahi vadas, dahi batata puri, idli dosas and many other vegetarian delicacies though it would dig a hole in our pocket as we had to adjust everything in that limited pocket money but swag ya know! 😎 Ahh those were the days lol. But as I grew up I started learning to cook though initially it was just my favourite food and later on everything that sounded interesting. And till date learning to cook, bake and develop new recipes and yep! I end up creating mess in my kitchen most of the times rather than creating a recipe. 😆😆

So end of the story is, one fine day, I learned to make perfect dahi vadas! Something similar to that place near college. After first few failed attempts, it was a huge victory! Now I don't have to go anywhere to satisfy my cravings. In fact, now it is my go to party food item as a chaat and Alhamdulillah it was always a hit. I have got special requests to make this at dawats and parties 😁😄😄

Dahi Barra Chaat Recipe | Dahi Vada Recipe:

Mutton Akhni Pulav | Kokni Style Mutton Pulav

If you enter a kokni muslim household on Fridays between 11 am to 2 pm, I bet you'll get a severe hunger attack due the tempting aroma of traditional Friday lunches being prepared and served. Though biryani is a popular go to Friday meal nowadays, there are many other traditional dishes like dal gosht, masacha saalna, sukka mutton and of course Pulav, that have been relished for decades and still haven't lost their charm. In fact, Kokni Akhni Pulav is so much popular that you can find this as main course in wedding feats, paired with papads and kachumber and spicy lemon pickle! Oops! I am drooling already! 😋😋😋

Yakhni is pronounced Akhni in kokni dialect and it means the broth or stock. As the meat is first cooked with ginger garlic paste with enough water to later cook the rice in that same broth or mutton stock hence the Pulav is called Akhni Pulav or simply Akhni.

Fine kolam rice is an ideal choice for making Akhni but if you cannot get kolam rice you can use regular basmati rice as well. Meat has to be tender and juicy with minimum bones. Mutton leg or shoulder is recommended but

Bhindi Dal Recipe

There are days when we get bored of chicken mutton and fancy something simple, light but delicious. Most of the times it is dal chawal with some simple stir-fried sabji or baingan bhaji, kurkuri bhindi etc. But then you don't always have enough time to prepare two three different dishes and that's when we come up with dishes like this Bhindi Dal. Bhindi or Okra (lady's finger? Lol) is a favourite vegetable at home and dal is one thing that everyone eats. So this combo was well appreciated on the table :)

Bhindi Dal Recipe

Lemon Mint Iced Tea

Yay! The summer is here and it's getting hotter day by day so we constantly feel a need to drink something cool and refreshing but then there are people who are addicted to tea and can't stand simple sugary drinks and hence we have drinks that can quench their thirst as well as satisfy their caffeine addiction. So, here is this one classic iced tea flavoured with lemon and mint, slightly sweetened with two different sweeteners and is sure to make you feel fresh. Just try it once and you'll love it forever! 😁

How to make Lemon Mint Iced Tea:

Ganji | Godrh Pulao | Jaggery Rice

I think every South Asian cuisine has their own version of "sweet rice". Here we have Zarda that's saffron yellow coloured rice cooked in sugar syrup with lots of nuts and some fresh fruits like pineapple and it's usually served as a heavy dessert or evening tea accompaniment. Then we have this dish prepared with Jagger known as "Ganji" or "Godrh Pulao" or some people call it "Gud Waale Chawal". Ganji is served as

Sweet and Sour Mango Pickle | Corn Flour ka Achar

It's that time of the year again when we koknis are busy making and preserving delicacies out of mangoes. Pickles, marmalades, chutney, khatayi (amchur), pulp and squash are the popular mango preparations across the Kokan coast. There are so many varieties of pickles though but the cracked mustard tarka achar is quite popular and considered traditional but during last few years this sweet and sour mango pickle has took over it for its comparatively less oil content and more flavours. Plus this one is easier to prepare, takes less time as you don't have to keep mango pieces in salt for hours and hours plus there's no need to prepare any special masala as almost the powdered spices used are already found in the pantry. So here goes the recipe