Spice up your leftovers

Kosambari vada

Ingredients: Two cups of leftover dal kosambari; one finely chopped onion; 2 to 3 tsps of besan; 2 green chillies and oil for frying.

Method: Grind the kosambari coarsely using little water. To this, add onion, besan and any other vegetable of your choice. Add salt to taste. Shape the mixture into vadas and deep fry to a golden brown. Serve hot with chutney and sambhar.

Chapati kurkure

Ingredients: Around 3 to 4 leftover chapatis or phulkas; 1 tsp of red chilli powder; 1 tsp of garam masala or any other sabji masala; salt to taste and oil for frying.

Method: Cut the chapatis into strips, which are 2 inches in length. Heat oil in a kadai and deep fry the strips to a golden brown. Once cool, sprinkle all the masalas on top of these and toss them well. This crispy, spicy chapati kurkure goes well with tea and coffee.

Malida laddoos

Ingredients: Around 4 to 5 leftover chapatis or phulkas; 2 tsps of fried groundnuts; 2 tsp of puffed dal; 3 tsp of grated khopra; 1 tbsp of ghee; 1 tsp of cardamom powder and 2 tbsps of grated jaggery.

Method: Heat the chapatis over the tawa till they turn crispy. Let them cool and grind these into a coarse powder. Add all the ingredients to this powder and mix well. Shape the laddoos carefully and serve. You can even add a tbsp or two of milk or replace groundnuts with almonds while making these laddoos.  

Rice patties

Ingredients: Around 3 cups of cooked rice; 1/2 cup of gram flour; 1/4 cup of sour curd; 2 onions chopped; 4 or 5 green chillies chopped; a piece of ginger; 1 cup of coriander leaves; 1/2 tsp of garam masala and salt to taste.

Method: Roast the gram flour till the raw smell goes. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and knead into a dough. Apply a little ghee or oil to the palm and shape the patties. Shallow fry these to a golden brown using oil or ghee. Serve hot with chutney or ketchup.

Idli upma

Ingredients: Five to 6 idlis; 1 or 2 chopped onions; 2 green chillies; a sprig of curry leaves and a handful of coriander leaves; 1/4 cup of grated coconut; 2 tsps of  oil or ghee; 2 tsps of groundnuts and a pinch of hing.

Method: Crumble the idlis completely. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and groundnuts. Fry these for some time and add all the other ingredients, except coconut. Once the ingredients are fried, add the idli mixture followed by salt. Lastly, add the grated coconut. Serve hot with pickle.