Ash Gourd and Salad Cucumber in Ollur Kerala

Growing vegetables is not easy. You have to bear the mosquito bites, rashes on your skin from the leaves of vegetables...but to eat organic home grown vegetables is a wonderful experience. And seeing a Strawberry plant flower, grow into a red little Strawberry is magical.

Winter Vegetables in Ollur Thrissur Kerala

Winter Veggies are getting more popular in Kerala these days.... I tried Cauliflower last year and was happy to get some home grown stuff without poison and pesticides. This year I am growing more in grow bags. Cabbage, Cauliflower, Broccoli, Lettuce, Parsley, Celery, Chili etc. See here is also flower on a Strawberry plant I got luckily from a Stall in the recently concluded BIOFACH India Agri Expo. I begged the Stall people from Pune to give me a Strawberry Plant which they brought only for display and not for sale. 

Brinjal Masala with Cheese and roasted Groundnut

Baingan or Egg Plant is Sauteed in Oil. Red Chili gives a spicy touch. Cheese is added. Roasted Ground Nut is used to garnish the dish. Good for Paratha, Chappathi and Nan....

Soya bean is a wonderful lentil which is a storehouse of vitamins and protein. It is a favorite is the Western world mostly prepared in Tomato Sauce. Here is a yummy dish prepared in Indian style.
The gravy is made of Tomato & Onion crushed in a mixie to make a thick paste. It is then sauteed in oil. African Coriander leaves are used to garnish.

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Green Bitter Gourd

Fresh green bitter gourd harvested from my vegetable garden. Very very bitter and have good amount of Iron in it. The soup is ultra bitter but tastes better with other ingredients like Onion, garlic, tomato, chili etc.

Purslane Salad Kozhuppa or Uppu Cheera Salad

Purslane is a common plant in Kerala. It grows along with grass in your backyard or on the roadside. Some are having red stem and have yellow flowers. It is rich in Omega 3 which is usually found in fish etc. As good as Spinach or Cheera, it can be eaten fresh as Salad or cooked like Cheera Thoran etc. This veggie is used by Tamilians etc and used abroad by Turkish, Greek, Spanish and Americans... To make fresh salad of Purslane: Chopped fresh Purslane chopped large Onion crushed garlic + red chili+ tomato salt and pepper lemon juice and virgin Olive oil Mix well to use.

Carrot Beetroot Salad

Fresh grated Carrot, Beetroot, Capsicum, Green Chili, Olive Oil, Salt and Vinegar. Good for a starter or side dish for Chapathi etc.

Okra or Bhindi Masala

Lady's Finger or Bhindi Masala with a hint of Ghee and sauce of tomato. Good for Chapathi/Bread/Porotta etc.

Chicken BBQ in Kerala simple grill

As long as the Chicken is BBQ-ed on Charcoal, it tastes good. Here we used a "Meen Chatti". I got a portable BBQ Grill from Rediff.com and did BBQ on it as well. Good time pass on weekend evenings.

Sweet and Bitter experiences in growing fruits

The Grape harvest was sweet. But this Robusta Bananas destroyed in a recent fire was a hard and bitter experience for me. As you see, it was a huge Banana bunch but was taken down by the fire in a few minutes last week. A lot of dry leaves and waste were lying near it and a little carelessness from my side did the unbelievable damage.

Grape Harvest at Ollur

The first few bunches of Grapes was harvested at home in Ollur today. Although the bunch was small, Grapes were sweet and we felt very excited to have them after almost 2-3 years of pruning and cutting off the flowers. Next flowering season is expected in August from my last years records. I will give some extra nourishment to boost the growth and flowering. May I can have a real cool Grape Juice at home 100% organic..!!