Kachumber Salad Mumbai Style

I grew up eating kachumber paired with a selection of rice dishes, so adding them is nothing new to me. Its base is creamy, thick, and has a crunchy, flavorful texture. This lightened classic fresh salad made from scratch uses no mayonnaise that most recipes call for. It comes out crisp and so delicious, perfect on biryani or pulav. Different varieties of salads are my favorite things to make ahead of lunch, from yogurt dip salad, simple greens salad, thick russian salad, or beetroot salad, to name a few.

Garbanzo Summer Salad With Refreshing Yogurt Dressing

Lately, we all are stucked up at our kitchen counter busy chopping, drizzling, tasting, mix-matching, and again tasting. During this process of cooking, I have realized that I need to develop recipes that are instant and fun thing to cook. As for breakfast, lunches, snacking and dinner everything need to be prepared at home due to fresh and clean cooking. During summer, we try to kill the heat by either hydrating ourselves with fresh mojito shots or just the desi way our own Lassi! Lassi is basically a thick yogurt mixture done by combining the smooth consistency with sugar and topped with ice cubes - its so refreshing and gives you much needed summer treatment that our body requires. Apart from all this, we fancy our evening hunger with a list of yogurt dishes like dahi wada, light and healthy garbanzo salad(recipe highlighted - its easy recipe), and now our regular servings of garbanzo summer salad topped with saucy yogurt dressing and wada. Wada is made up from the thick paste of soaked lentils and other spices. As you all know that I look up for the freezer-friendly recipes - so these wadas can be made beforehand and could be stored in freezer for upto 1 month. But, as we intake them in multiple forms like dahi wada and other salads they don't last long! Apart from wadas, We enhance its taste with crispy papdi, this is what my husband calls it, In India, we name it as farsi puri - nevertheless the taste is quite similar - adding this puts you into a constant spoonful eating. You are welcome to skip the step of adding wada, and for papdi you can have a good dose of nachos.

Coming back to garbanzo salad recipe, I find this option very fresh, colorful, full of twists in spices and very simple. Simple, because I boil the entire pack of chickpeas and drain the water, refrigerate it for months. And believe me, this is so time saving and I not only use it during snack time but also in main dishes like Chole Pulav, Chole Panner and Spicy Chole Masala, they are more like life saving beans. I will shortly share the recipe of other Garbanzo dishes as well. Garbanzo are nutrition-packed and highly filling, Yogurt has all the soothing properties and this undivided combination is like a sunshine on a plate. This is the perfect recipe for those who are lazy summer people, just choose a day and give a worth it time deal and freeze all. Juggle everything into one with spices according to your taste buds and yes! An amazing plate of fresh, nutritive, and crunchy summer treat is done. 

Garbanzo Summer Salad With Refreshing Yogurt Dressing

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 60 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Serves: 2 persons

Ingredients:

2 cups cooking oil

1 cup whisk yogurt, chilled

1 cup chickpeas, soaked overnight and boiled in the morning

1 large boiled and chopped potato

1 medium onion, half moon sliced

Salt, adjust as per the taste

1 tablespoon red chili flakes

A dash of chat masala powder, optional

1 teaspoon of cumin seeds, roasted and powdered

1 cup roughly crushed papdi or nachos

Chopped coriander leaves, for garnish

For Wada: 

1 cup yellow lentil, soaked overnight

 ¼ cup white lentil, soaked overnight

½ teaspoon ginger paste

2 finely chopped green chilies, you can reduce or increase its amount

1 teaspoon baking soda

Water, as per the consistency needed

½ teaspoon salt

For Mint and Cilantro Green Sauce:

2 tablespoons chopped mint leaves

½ cup coriander leaves

4 green chilies

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Salt to taste

For Tamarind Chutney/Sauce: 

Recipe shared earlier, click here.

Method:

• Firstly, boiled soaked chickpeas and potatoes separately.
• Wada: In the morning, Grind soaked and drained yellow and white lentils into a smooth running paste. Transfer the batter in a bowl and beat it slowly for 5 minutes.
• You can cross verify the state of batter by simply filling a bowl with water and later dropping a small amount of batter in the water. If the batter floats over the top of the water - it's ready to fry otherwise keep whisking for another 5 minutes until light in texture.
• If the batter floats on the water, add ½ teaspoon ginger paste, 2 finely chopped green chilies, 1 teaspoon baking soda and mix the batter properly.
• In frying pan, heat cooking oil and fry fritters until golden brown. At this point, you can freeze them in air tight jar for up to a month.
• If you want to eat them straight away - Take a bowl filled with water and 1/2 teaspoon salt, mix water and add fritters. Allow it to soak for 25 minutes. After the soaking method - take them out one by one and squeeze all the extra water by pressing the item with the help of your palms. This step is very crucial as if you don't squeeze all the water away - you will feel the push of water in every bite. After this refrigerate it and remove before serving
• For Green Chutney: Blend 2 tablespoons chopped mint leaves, ½ cup coriander leaves, 4 green chilies, 2 tablespoons lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Use water to blend the sauce into a smooth consistency. Adjust the salt and chilies.
• Final Serving for two - In a plate or bowl, add 5 tablespoons of chickpeas, 1-2 tablespoons chopped boiled potatoes, 1 or 2 dumplings, 1 tablespoon onion slices, gentle amount of whisk yogurt at most 1/2 cup, 2 tablespoons each of green chilies sauce and tamarind sauce, as much amount of papdi or nachos, sprinkle red chili flakes, chat masala powder, freshly roasted cumin powder and salt if required. Mix gently and adjust the sauces and spices accordingly. Garnish with chopped cilantro. 
• Serve it with fresh and chilled lime juice. YUM!

Nutritive Russian Salad

Lighter shades always rejuvenate and lowers the volume of all levels of complexities, be it light shades of color that refreshes and gives natural feels or the clouds forming the serape to cover the rays of flashy sun, pushing us to fall in love with the twilight and relaxing weather, the soft shimmer of rays draw us near and closer to the beaches or simply pressing for an enjoyable long ride. Not only our eyes requests soft and soothing colors for a perfect solution of the day, but our tummy too needs something beautiful, special, tasty and ultimate light options at the same time and What could be nicer than a creamy fruitilicious and nutrilicious creation of salad!!

Not always Khichdi or simplicity in food can be a solution for light foods, demands of food are endless. So today I have come up with a healthy and delicious bowl of heavenly salad straight from the houses of Russia! Russian food has always been listed high on my charts and this salad is a hit spot of taste. Olivier salad or Russian salad is all about the mixture of any veggies you die for plus a valuable combination of beans, corns, fruits and of course dips! Add red pasta, noodles and sweet and sour fruits to complement the veggies. I love the amazing creamy bites of vivid tastes that don’t make me feel at all heavy from the insides. Russian salad as Saturday dinner with phenomenal episodes of Supernatural makes the perfect end of our weekend! Try this at home and thank us later!

Russian Salad

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 30-40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Serves: 2 persons

Ingredients:

½ cup corns, boiled

1 teaspoon french beans, cut into pieces and boiled

½ cup apple, diced

½ cup Mango, diced

1 tablespoon boiled peas

A few black olives, for garnishing

1 tablespoon cabbage coleslaw, for recipe simply click here

A few slices of fresh cucumber

½ cup pineapple, cubes

1-2 tablespoons boiled pasta, optional

½ cup mayonnaise, heaped

¼ teaspoon black pepper

4 tablespoons fresh cream

1 teaspoon castor sugar

Salt to taste

Method:

• In a big bowl, combine all the boiled veggies, freshly diced apples, mangoes and pineapple, cabbage coleslaw, 1 tablespoon of boiled pasta, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon sugar, mayonnaise and fresh cream. Mix everything together and adjust the salt and other seasonings as per your taste, Garnish with black olives and serve chilled.
• You can even add boiled and diced potatoes, carrots and even boiled chicken. Enjoy!  

Crunchy Cabbage Coleslaw

Mumbai proffers special array of sandwiches bathed in pure cheese, veggies, coleslaw and winning chocolates. Yes! Chocolates, the perfect light dessert that tastes even more scrum delicious, I had a selection of these shredded, airy, warm and gooey chocolate delights to concentrate their sweetness in equal measure complementing hershey’s syrup, it just tastes epic fulfilling the tour of heaven, to finish there were glasses of light bella belini. Another version of sandwich that charms me and I ate throughout were the hearty slices of coleslaw sandwich, its light, creamy and thick viscosity of makings, quick glimpse come to series of reminiscence that spur me to re-live those gleeful days again with my lovely ladies where we used to roam on the alleyways of causeway leading to the pieces of arts and clothing, I love walking through those streets, enjoying the winters and queue of people into tour groups, indulging ourselves with the richness of treats in leopold café that heralds the celebration, they did inspire a love for work life. Shopping, food and drinks were the perfect end of days from home brimming with nostalgia and longing.

Coleslaw has been a firm favorite since then, a comfort dish I loved eating when blended well with sandwiches, it tasted classically awesome. When teamed up with veggies like carrots, peas, pasta, corns and green olives bring a hefty salad on the dining table, when mixed with shredded and roasted chicken makes another option for tacos or burger for non-veg hoggerz! A great coleslaw salad puts in relishable flavors when set up with hot and crisp chicken broast (Sounds YUMM! Quick start recipe here!) Or simply serve with any meal or salad and enjoy every bite of it! My husband demands this easy homemade salad almost every day to complete his charging meal!

Crunchy Cabbage Coleslaw

Ingredients

1 cup shredded cabbage

1 cup mayonnaise

½ teaspoon vinegar

¼ teaspoon mustard paste

Few drops of honey

A pinch of salt

Method:

• In a bowl full of shredded cabbage, add mayonnaise and mix well until it forms a creamy texture.
• Add vinegar, mustard paste, a few drops of honey and a pinch of salt, mix well and adjust the seasoning as per your taste buds. Remove and serve fresh with fried chicken or roasted vegan meals. Easy! 

Crunchy Soya Chunks Salad Recipe

Crunchy soya chunks salad is so fresh made with lemon juice and chili flakes, this can be perfect for potlucks if serve it over spiralized cucumbers, sweet and fresh roasted corns, fine chopped grape tomatoes and onions with minty touch. 

I'm in love with soya beans these days and I am having so much of fun cooking lately. It's a great source of protein and becoming quite popular around. It's wonderful in salads, side dish and rice dishes. I miss mama's special soya bean curry and soya bean biryani, she would just turn golden chunks into yummy and irresistible delights. 

In India and here I can easily find soya chunks in any natural foods market, but I realize some of you may not be as lucky, if soya chunks are nearly available to you, I highly encourage you to try it in different ways! Quick, simple, easy and crunchy salad recipe that takes less than 10 minutes to cook and teams up well with any main dish, they are so good I could have easily eaten two servings. Present the way you want, but always serve it hot for crunchier bites.

Crunchy Soya Chunks Salad Recipe

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 8-10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Serves: 2 persons

Ingredients:

1 bowl boiled soya chunks

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon finely chopped onions

1 teaspoon mustard seeds or rai 

1 tablespoon red chili powder

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Salt to taste

Method:

• In a pot, add 2 cups of water and bring it to boil, add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 cup soya chunks. Allow it to boil until the chunks turn delicately soft and spongy. Transfer it into the colander and strain all the water from the chunks by pressing down with the help of a spoon.
• In a frying pan, drizzle some olive oil and add mustard seeds. Once they began to splutter, add together the boiled soya chunks, red chili powder, coriander powder and salt to taste, allow it to cook until the texture becomes golden brown and crisp from outside.
• Once cooked, squeeze lemon juice and adjust the salt and piquancy as needed. Garnish with chopped onion. You can also garnish with chopped tomatoes, chopped cilantro or mint and even sweet corn, we prefer light and simple with chicken or vegetable curry!

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Cabbage Salad/ Sambharo

I love to try different types of salad and salad dressing for an impressive dinner meal. In our house, we love to eat different types of salads made by combining vinegar or yogurt or variety of other salad dressing ideas with carrots, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, grapes, green chilies, baby corns, sprouts and even pasta. Among all cabbage is the delicious and crunchy form of salad I can totally rely on. It goes really well with any type of vegetable curry or subzi.

This salad belongs to my roots Gujarat, we call it as sambharo! Sambharo or cabbage salad is basically half cooked salad with fewer spices and green chilies. Mama makes it every time for dinner whenever she prepares dal, rice or khaman dhokla and sometimes fafda. Khaman dhokla is a fluffy, spongy and  light Gujarati snack dished out after steaming the batter of chickpea flour, semolina, ginger-garlic paste and other seasonings. This salad also blends quickly with any vegetarian meal as it is fresh, half cooked, spicy and slightly sour in bites. It is a stir fry recipe where you can add cabbage, carrots, multi colored bell peppers, raw papaya but mama makes it simple. She puts cabbage, carrots and fresh cilantro and I love the addition of cilantro as I feel cilantro tastes heaven with crunchy salads.

Try this amazing side dish at home and thank me later. I am going to make this again and again with all my vegetarian meals. The amazing flavor of curry leaves and cilantro with a touch of lemon juice takes this recipe to another level.

Cabbage Salad/ Sambharo

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Serves: 2-3 persons

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon cooking oil

1 cup cabbage, sliced into thin strips

1 medium size peeled julienne carrot

1 small raw mango, sliced into thin strips

5-8 green chilies, with the help of a sharp knife slit the green chilies vertically without splitting it into two.

½ teaspoon mustard seeds or rai

½ teaspoon turmeric powder or haldi

1 teaspoon lemon juice, substitute for raw mango

1 stem of curry leaves

1 tablespoon roughly chopped cilantro or coriander leaves

A pinch of asafetida

Salt to taste

Method:

• Wash cabbage, raw mango and peeled carrot and chop them into julienne or just run the cabbage and carrot across the grater.
• In a skillet, heat cooking oil and add half teaspoon of mustard seeds and let them crackle for a few seconds. Directly add curry leaves, turmeric, a pinch of asafetida or hing, slit green chilies on a low flame.
• Let it cook for a few minutes until the raw smell goes away, add julienne of cabbage, raw mango and carrots. Toss and unify everything and add salt to taste. Allow the veggies to cook for a few minutes and turn off the flame.
• Garnish with chopped cilantro and squeeze lemon to it. You can skip adding lemon juice as we have added julienne of raw mango. 
• Simple and yummy salad recipe is ready to serve.