avrekaalu usli

On one hand in the months of January and February people are trying to cope up with the winter chills, Bangalore-Mysore jana( people) on the other hand are excited for the much awaited avrekaalu season... The moment this season sets in, every other dish on the day's menu will surely have avrekaalu in it. Be it uppitu or rotti for breakfast, usli for lunch and bassaru and ragi mudde for dinner, you name it and you have avrekaalu in it. 

Being a north karnataka resident I wasn't aware of the craze for this bean until I actually got to stay in in the areas of south karnataka. I was lucky enough to get to know the recipe for one of the most liked curries, avrekaalu usli from Shilpa akka, who resides in Madikeri. Their might be many versions of it available on the internet, but the one I tried making is shilpa akka's family recipe, if I may call it so.

I really enjoyed cooking it, and relishing it was even more joyous. Highly recommended recipe, do try it.

Potato Fry

At the lunch area of St' Joseph's convent, Gulbarga ( this must probably be a decade ago.) me and two of my friends, Ritu and Meeni used to meet for lunch. I still remember how crazily I used to wait for Ritu to open her lunch box. Each time wanting her box to have this simple aaloo sabzi ( potato fry). Till date I have never had such perfectly cooked aaloo. Her mom undoubtedly was an expert in cooking this dish. I must have had it umpteen times then, but every time it would taste better than the last time. This dish makes me nostalgic for my school days and is one of my favorite dishes.