Nutritional Powerhouse: Home-made Vegetable Soup
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4-5
Ingredients:
1. Carrot (medium) : 1 (thinly sliced)
2. Cabbage : ¼ cup (finely chopped)
3. Mushrooms : 8 (sliced)
4. Celery stalk (shalari): 1 inch (sliced)
5. Spring onion : 1 (sliced)
6. Peas : 10
7. Onion (medium) : 1 (sliced)
8. Red capsicum (medium) : 1 (sliced into 1 inch pieces)
9. French beans : ½ cup (finely chopped)
10. Spinach leaves : 15-16 (chopped)
11. Garlic cloves : 5 (crushed)
12. Bay leaf (Tez Patta) : 1
13. Black peppercorns : 10-12 (crushed)
14. Cloves : 3
15. Lemon juice : 1/2 teaspoon
16. Salt to taste
How to prepare:
1. First, put 1 onion (chopped), ½ sliced carrot, chopped celery stalk, 2 crushed garlic cloves, bay leaf, 5-6 peppercorns and cloves in a pan and sauté for a few minutes on low flame. Now add 5 cups water to this mixture and bring to a boil.
2. Simmer the above mixture for 15 minutes.
3. Now add remaining crushed garlic to the above mixture and bring to a boil.
4. Further, add mushrooms, carrot, spinach, peas, cabbage, beans, spring onions, celery, red capsicum and cook for 2-3 minutes after it starts boiling again.
5. Now add crushed peppercorns and salt to the above mixture.
6. Stir well and remove from flame.
7. This multi nutritious vegetable soup is ready to serve. Add lemon juice to it while serving!
Health benefits: This soup is extremely rich in iron, calcium, potassium and vitamin K, C, E. All green leafy vegetables present in the soup delivers a bonanza of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients while promoting heart health.
Multi beneficial Bottle Gourd and Tomato soup
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4-5
Ingredients:
1. Tomatoes : ½ kg (chopped)
2. Bottle gourd (Louki): 250 gms (peeled and chopped)
3. Pepper corns (Sabut kali mirch): ½ teaspoon
4. Ginger: ½” piece
5. Fenugreek seeds (methi dana): 1 teaspoon
6. Basil leaves (tulsi) : 6-7 leaves (finely chopped)
7. Dry fenugreek leaves (Kasoori methi): 1 teaspoon
8. Salt to taste
How to cook:
First, In a pressure cooker put bottle gourd, tomatoes, black pepper corns, ginger, fenugreek seeds, salt and 4 cups of water and steam. When first whistle comes, keep on low flame for 5 minutes. Remove from fire and set aside.
Now cool cooked tomatoes and bottle gourd. Then make its puree in a blender. Now again take a deep pan and boil this puree for a few minutes.
This absolutely light and nutritious soup is ready to serve. Sprinkle dry fenugreek leaves and basil/coriander leaves on it.
Health benefits:
Bottle gourd contains almost 96% moisture and is rich in calcium, Vitamin C phosphorous, iron, and dietary fibers. It is tremendously beneficial in treating acidity, indigestion, flatulence, constipation and ulcers. It also keeps your body cool and refreshed!
Nutritious Vegetable Dalia
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4-5
Ingredients:
1. Dalia (cracked wheat) – 1 cup
2. Sunflower oil/Olive oil – 2 teaspoons
3. Capsicum (finely chopped) – ½ cup
4. Carrot ( finely chopped) – ½ cup
5. Beans ( finely chopped) – ½ cup
6. Onion (finely chopped) – ½ cup
7. Cumin seeds (jeera) – 1 teaspoon
8. Fenugreek seeds (methi dana) – 1 teaspoon
9. Garlic ( chopped)- 4-5 cloves
10. Coriander (Dhania) powder – ½ teaspoon
11. Red chilli powder – 1/4th teaspoon
12. Mint (Pudina) powder – 1 teaspoon
13. Coriander (chopped) – 2-3 tablespoon
14. Green chillies (chopped)- 1-2
15. Lemon juice – 1 tablespoon
16. Salt to taste
How to cook:
First, roast cracked wheat with 1 teaspoon oil in a non-stick pan for 5-6 minutes on medium heat till its colour changes to light brown. Now set aside for cooling
Now again take 1 teaspoon oil in a Non-stick pan. Add cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds to it and roast them till they turn light brown. Now add garlic and green chillies to the pan and stir well. Now add onions and stir fry them till they also turn light brown.
Now add all the chopped vegetables and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Now add salt, coriander powder, and red chilli powder to it. Now cover the pan and keep on medium flame till the vegetables become soft.
Now remove the cover and add 11/2 cups water, cracked wheat and mint to the above mixture of vegetables. Now again cover the pan and cook for 10 minutes on medium heat till all the water is absorbed and vegetables are completely cooked. You have stir twice thrice in between. Now remove from flame and add coriander and lemon juice to it.
And this nutritious snack is ready to serve!
Tastes best when served with: Mint (Pudina) chutney