Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Champakali


This is also one my of mom's most popular dish. This is my family's favorite item. We enjoy it every time mom makes it. My mom usually made Champakali on the Diwali day, and still does to continue the tradition. My mom even won cooking competition with this dish.

The gravy of Champakali is very different and one of the best I have ever tasted. The gravy is very rich and thick because of coconut milk. The tamarind paste tickles the taste buds. For the tikkis, my mom only used green bell pepper. I wanted to make mine a little bit colorful so I used all three red, yellow, and green bell pepper. One can deep fry tikkis by coating them flour. Most important part of the dish is the presentation when serving. When you serve this dish, sprinkle some coarsely ground seeds on top of it. This is the perfect finishing touch for the dish, and fennel seeds increase the taste and aroma.

Ingredients:-

-- For Tikki


  • 2 Potato, boiled
  • 1 Onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 Red Bell Pepper, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 Green Bell Pepper, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 Yellow Bell Pepper, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup Spinach, chopped
  • 1/4 cup Paneer, grated
  • 2 Green Chili, chopped
  • 3 tbsp Mint, chopped
  • 1/4 tsp Ginger, grated
  • 1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
  • 1 tsp Dhania-Jeera Powder
  • 1/4 cup Bread Crumbs
  • 1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
  • 2 tbsp Olive Oil
  • Non-Stick cooking spray
  • Pinch of Asafetida
  • Salt to taste

-- For Gravy

  • 2 Red Onions
  • 2 Tomatos
  • 4-5 Garlic Cloves
  • 1 inch Ginger
  • 1/2 cup Coconut, grated
  • 2 Green Chili
  • 1/2 tsp Red Chili Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Garam Masala
  • 1 tbsp Fennel Seeds
  • 1/4 tsp Tamarind Paste
  • 8-10 Almonds
  • 1/2 cup Coconut Milk
  • 1 Cinnamon Stick
  • 3-4 Green Cardamom
  • 2-3 Cloves
  • 2 Red Chili, whole
  • 2 tbsp Cilantro
  • Fennel Seeds, coarsely ground
  • 1 tsp Olive Oil
  • Salt to taste

Method:-

-- For Tikki

1. Heat oil in the pan, add cumin seeds.

2. When they start to turn brown, add onion, red bell pepper, green bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, green chili, spinach, turmeric, dhania-jeera powder, ginger, and salt. Mix well.

3. Cook them until onions and bell peppers are tender.

4. Mash boiled potato in the bowl. Add paneer, asafetida, bread crumbs, mint, and cooked onion and bell pepper mixture. Taste and adjust salt.

6. Make tikkis and lightly cover with bread crumbs. Let it set into the refridgerator for 1 hour.

6. Cook tikkis on griddle with non-stick cooking spray until both sides are golden brown.

-- For Gravy

1. In blender, add onion, tomato, garlic, ginger, coconut, green chili, red chili powder, garam masala, fennel seeds, tamarind paste, almonds, coconut milk, salt, cilantro, and little water.

2. Blend them into the smooth gravy consistency.

3. Heat oil in deep pan. Toast cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and red chili in it.

4. Add blended gravy to the pan, mix well, and cover with lid.

5. Simmer the gravy for 30-35 minutes on medium-low heat. Stir occasionally. If it gets too think, you can add water to make it consistent for your liking.

-- When Serving

1. In serving bowl. Take tikki and pour gravy on top.

2. Sprinkle some coarsely fennel seeds. Serve with naan, paratha, or rice.

Enjoy...



This is my entry to Curry Mela hosted by Srivalli

25 comments:

Indian Khana said...

Dhunda kaha kaha aur yaha mili champakali !! Lovely recipe...am sure going to try this...and the pic as usual looks wonderful. Need to learn a tip or two abt photography

Sonia said...

hey Madhavi,
a fantastic and unique recipe this time...!!!
I must have to try this dish...will let u knw abt outcome.
Thanx.
Tc,
Sonu:)

Illatharasi said...

Looks yummy.... I love its name, champakali:) Very unique recipe:)

Indranee Batabyal said...

Thanks Madhavi!I never heard of this recipe...so unique!!! Looks lovely:)

FH said...

Gorgeous recipe, sounds festive Madhavi. Thanks for posting your mom's recipe, I will try!:)

See you in Sept, hugs to you!

Deepthi Shankar said...

Champakali .. Nice name .. Looks good .. Never heard this before .. will give it a try

Laavanya said...

Such creamy goodness.. nice picture madhavi... very tempting.

Cham said...

Fantastic, no wonder u mom won an award! Just tempting, seeing the title i thought about sweet name :) But gal u didn't deceived me :)

Unknown said...

nice recipe never heard before will try it

Srikitchen said...

heard about this word but never tried it... got the recipe now.. want to take it to kitchen soon

Sujatha said...

Sounds different and interesting! Wow, you mom sounds like a great cook!! Thanks for sharing the recipe :)

Meera said...

Hey, it really sounds very festive and delicious.

Swati said...

Thats a lovely party dish..Am going to have guests over and I know now what to make..

ST said...

Lovely and Unique recipe....Love the name.....will try this ......

delhibelle said...

very very delicious!
and what a pretty name!

Sum Raj said...

loved this dish..new to me and yes its creamy and rich and healthy tooo....unique recipe...thanks for sharing madhavi

Anonymous said...

Wow...this looks good.Bookmarked to try :)

A_and_N said...

Very rich gravy indeed! Great recipe :)

Unknown said...

This one is a new dish to me Madhavi..And sure u are invited to my place..We can have a party..And you should definitely come home Madhavi..Living so closeby

Vaidehi Bhave said...

Hi madhavi,
name of the dish is very interesting !!! and it looks great too...

Vaidehi Bhave said...

Hi Madhavi,

Visit my blog.. smthing special is there for you


click here

Chakali

Marathi blog about Maharashtrian / Indian food,recipe & delicacies

Kalai said...

Beautiful dish, Madhavi! It looks simply amazing! :)

Uma said...

Champakali..what a beautiful name! Lovely recipe Madhavi! I have to make this for sure.

Namratha said...

I thought Champakali was a sweet dish, we have one like that back home :) This looks very good Madhavi, I have so many of your recipes bookmarked to try, will get to them soon! :)

Uj said...

This is the first time I have come across this dish. Looks really wonderful. Bookmarked it to try.. Pic looks wonderful