Masala Vada

Ingredients:

Makes 10 medium sized vadas

Urad dal - 1 cup
Finely chopped onions, cabbage,carrot - 1/2 cup
Finely chopped ginger (1/4"),green chillies (4),curry leaves ,coriander leaves
Peppercorns -10
Small sliced coconut pieces - 15
Salt,asafoetida for taste
Oil for deep frying

Procedure:

1.Soak urad dal overnight. Grind well in the morning with very little (may be 4 teaspoons maximum) water. Add water just to help dal to grind well.
2.Add all the chopped vegetables and other ingredients including salt and safoetida and mix well with spoon.
3.Heat oil in a frying pan. Wet both hands with water and take a lemon size dough with right hand. Place it on left palm and make a small hole using right index finger. Take the vadausing right hand and deep fry till golden brown. Crispy tasty vadas ready!

*If the dough got watery do not panic. Add some rice flour to get a consistency easy enough to make vada.

Palada prathaman

Happy Onam!

Ingredients:

Rice ada- 1 cup
Milk - 8 cups
Sugar-one and half cup
Cardamom powder
Ghee,raisins,cashews

Procedure:

Cooking is similar to pal payasam recipe

1.Pressure cook ada in milk until one whistle.
2.Open the lid and put the cooker in sim and slow cook for about 30 mins. Keep stirring inbetween and ensure that the prathaman is not getting burnt.
3.Milk will start turning pink after 30-40 mins. Now add cardamom powder and cook for another 5 mins.
4.Add sugar and mix well. Try adding 1 cup of sugar;if required add another half cup.
5. Roast cashews and raisins in ghee and decorate!

Ada Prathaman-Jaggery version

Ingredients:

Rice ada - 1 cup

Jaggery -one and a quarter cup

Water -5 cups

Cashews,raisins,coconut pieces and ghee

Cardamom powder

Milk/Coconut milk(preferably)-1/2 cup

Procedure:

We get rice ada (rice flour flakes) in Indian stores.

1.Boil 3 cups of water in a pan. When it starts boiling, put the ada, switch off stove and close the lid. Leave it aside for 30 mins. Open the lid after 30 mins and see if the ada has become tender; then drain out all the water.

2. Heat the rest 2 cups of water in a pan; when it starts boiling add jaggery and allow it to dissolve well. Drain out the sediments if any. Once jagery dissolves completely in water and starts boiling, add the ada.Do not make thick syrup.

3.Allow the ada to cook well in jaggery water for about 10 mins; add cardamom powder.

4.Roast coconut pieces,cashews and raisins in ghee.

5.Switch off stove and take out the pan. Add coconut milk/milk and coconut,cashews and raisins Do not add milk while the prathaman is in stove because milk will break down if added with hot jaggery.

Yummy prathaman ready.

Bajji

A favourite tea time snack of South India. Can have any vegetable as stuffing. The most popular stuffings are - Onion, Plantain, Green chilli (Bajji milagai), Brinjal, Potato.


Ingredients:
Besan flour - 1 cup
Rice flour -a fistful
Baking soda- a pinch
Red chilli powder -1 tbsp
Salt,asafoetida for taste
Any of the above vegetables cut in round shape excep plantain which can be rectangular
Oil for deep frying

Procedure:

1.Mix all the ingredients except vegetable and oil. Add sufficient water to make a loose dough mix. Must be looser than dosa dough consistency so as to dip the vegetables.
2.Coat each piece of vegetable with the bajji mix and deep fry in oil.
3.Serve hot with sauce/chutney.

Kara Kozhukattai-Urad dal stuffing/Ulundhu pooranam

Ingredients:

Rice flour -1/2 kg or raw rice 1/2 kg
Urad dal -1/4 kg
Asafoetida,Salt for taste
Red chillies -10

For tempering:
Mustard,curry leaves and red chillies

Procedure:
1. Make rice flour mould as mentioned for sweet kozhukattai
2.Soak urad dal overnight and grind it along with asafoetida,salt and chillies.
3.Temper mustard, curry leaves, chillies in a teaspoon of oil and add the ground dough. Sttir it for 5 mins. Ensure it does not get burnt.When the dough starts thickening, switch off stove. Allow the mix to cool down and make small balls (pooranam/stuffing).
4.Make rice flour maouls, stuff it with pooranam and steam it in idli plates for 5 mins.

Sweet Kozhukattai-Coconut stuffing/Thengai pooranam

An interesting yet time consuming sweet dish especially prepared for Lord Ganesh. Also known as kadubu/mothagam.

Makes 20-25 medium sized kozhukattais

Ingredients:
Raw rice - 1/2 kg
Salt- a pinch
Coconut-1 fully grated
Jaggery-1/4 grams
Cardamom powder- 1 tsp
Oil- 2 tbsp


Procedure:
1. Soak rice in water for 2 hrs and drain all the water. Dry it and powder it. You can use readymade rice flour available in stores which may not be as good as homemade one.
2.Boil water and add jaggery.When the whole jaggery dissolves, sieve and take out all sediments. Boil again jaggery syrup until it reaches one-string consistency i.e. if u take a pinch of jaggery syrup with 2 fingers, it should form a thread or string between your 2 fingers.Now add the grated coconut,cardamom powder mix well.Allow it to cool down for 15 mins; start making small balls out of the mix. Dip your hand in a bowl of water after making every ball so that the next ball wont stick between fingers. Ensure that the water does not collapse the balls or make the jaggery mix watery.Keep it aside until the whole jaggery mix gets over.Now 'pooranam'(stuffing) is ready.
3.Sieve the flour and take out all the coarse particles.
3.Boil 1/2 litre of water in a pan, add a pinch of salt and start adding rice flour little by little in the boiling water . Do not allow any lumps.Mix well and make it into chpathi dough consistency. Add more water if required. The dough should be soft.
4. Pour a spoon of oil on your palms and rub both palms together. Take a small lemon size of rice flour dough and start pressing it in one palm with other hand's fingers.Make a small cup out of it.Insert the pooranam and close the rice flour cup. Make more kozhukattais and bake it in steam using idli plates.

*Rice flour dough should be soft and moulable without any lumps. If required add spoons of water and oil.

Besan Ladoo

Ingredients:

This recipe makes 20 medium sized yummy ladoos.

Besan flour - 2 cups

Ghee - 2 tbsp

Cashews& raisins - 1/4 cup

Finely powdered sugar - 2 cups

Procedure:

1. Dry roast besan flour in a saute pan until you get a nice roasted aroma of the flour. Keep on stirring or else the flour will get burnt. This is will take approximately 7 mins.

2. Heat ghee separately and add cashews. When cashews start getting a pink shade add the raisins. Raisins will start fluffing up and cashews would have turned golden by now.

3.Pour this ghee mixture in besan flour and add the powdered sugar. Switch off the stove and immediately take the mixture off the stove. Mix it well. Allow itto cool down for 5 mins and start making small balls.

*Start making balls when the mixture is luke warm. Or else you wont be able to make the balls. If you find it difficult to make balls, heat a tbsp of ghee, add it to the mix an immediately start making balls. It is only the heat that holds the flour tight.

Neyyappam

The most favoured sweet of Kerala which is served alost in all temples.This is a simple yummy recipe.

Ingredients:

Wheat flour/atta - 2 cups
ripe banana- 1 big or 2 small ones
Jaggery - 1 cup
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Sugar crystals-2 tsp
Water as required
Oil for frying

Procedure:

1.In a pan add jaggery and pour water to the level jaggery sinks. Heat the stove and aloow the jaggery to dissolve completely. Switch off the stove and allow the mixture to cool .Sieve the jaggery water andtake out all the sediments if any.
2.Now add wheat flour and banana to jagger water and mash well with hands or you can put it in blender. The dough should have the consistency of vada dough.
3. Make balls like bonda and deep fry in oil. If you are using appam mould, the can be a little watery like dosa batter.Fry till brown (not golden brown;requires deep frying)
4.Once all appams are fried, transfer it to a serving bowl. Pour the ghee on top along with the sugar crystals. Now the appams are coated with ghee and sugar crystals which will make them yummy!

*Some people add a handful of rice flour to the batter. But I have avoided because (a) it will make the appams hard (b) the sweet will have crispy edges whereas authentic appams are totally soft

Coconut Cheedai

A favorite snack of Tamilnadu made during Krishna Jeyanthi! One of the riskiest and complicated snack which is worth taking pains.

Ingredients:

(From top left to bottom right in picture 1)

Urad dal powder-1/2 cup
Shredded coconut-3/4 cup
Rice flour-2 cups
Oil-1/2 litre
Butter-1 tbsp
Salt- 2tsp
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Asafoetida-1/2 tsp
Water as required

Procedure:

1. Soak 1/2 kg of raw rice in water; drain out all the water, dry and powder it. Or you can use ready made rice flour.
2. Roast a cup of urad dal and make fine powder out of it.
3. Sieve rice flour and dal powder and extract the fine flour. Do not allow any piece ofdal or rice or any coarse particle in the flour. Else, cheedai will burst while frying.
3.Mix the flour well along with butter, salt,asafoetida,cumin and enough water to get the consistency of chapathi dough.However do not make it very soft like chapathi dough.
4.Make small lemon sized balls from dough and deep fry until they turn golden brown.

Pal Payasam/Rice kheer

Makes 4 cups
Cooking time -40 mins


Rice- 1/2 cup
Milk-5 cups
Sugar-3/4 cup
Cardamom /elaichi powder-1/2 tsp
Ghee, cashews and raisins-to garnish

Cooking procedure:

Pal payasam is a yummy dish which requires lot of attention to be cooked perfect. The perfect stage is where the payasam turns pinkish. This is my mother's recipe who is an adept cook.So how to get that pink color?

1.Cook rice in 2 cups of milk in a pressure cooker until 1 whistle. Keep the fire very low.
2.Open the cooker, add the rest of the milk,cardamom powder and stir well.Always cook in low flame.
3.Stir now and then for about 15 mins; the payasam slowly starts turning pink. Now add the sugar and cook for another 5-10 mins. Keep stirring in between. Roast cashews and raisins in ghee and garnish the payasam.


Dos & Donts:
1.Do not try to add water.
2. Always keep a minimum of 1:5 ratio for rice and milk.
3.Always cook in the lowest flame; else,the whole flavor will be lost and the payasam will get burnt.
4.Always have your attention on the kheer while cooking to avoid burning.
5.Do not add too much elaichi powder. It will spoil the taste if added more than adequate.
6.A pinch of saffron can be boiled in milk and can be added along with the second dose of milk.This will be an added flavor and color to the dish.

Thattai

It is a favourite South Indian Savoury made from rice flour especially made for Krishna Jeyanthi.

Ingredients:

Rice flour- 2 cups

Urad dal powder-1/2 cup (dry roast urad dal and make into fine powder)

Chilli powder-1/2 tsp

Hing- a pinch

Salt- for taste

Channa dal - 2 tbsp

Curry leaves- 1 sprig

Oil- for deep frying

Method:

1.Soak channa dal in water for 10 mins. Heat the rice flour for a min in pan or microwave for 30 seconds.

2.Mix all the above ingredients, add water and a tsp of oil and make it into soft dough (like chapathi dough)

3.Take a lemon size dough,roll it well with hand into a small ball and spread it on a piece of plastic sheet/polythene bag like a small disc.Make small holes on it using fork/toothpick.

4. Deep fry all the thattais one by one till golden brown, spread on paper towels until the oil is sucked.

Crispy thattais ready! These can be stored for months and never gets spoiled. No need to refrigerate.

தேங்காய் திரட்டிப்பால்

Like an easy palgova, this is an easy but very tasty sweet dish which tastes like coconut burfi

Ingredients:

Shredded coconut-1 cup
Condensed milk-1 (14 oz) tin
Orange food color, cardamom powder
Ghee-1 tbsp

Procedure:
1.Roast coconut in a frying pan lightly until it all the moisture content is absorbed and it turns dry. However do not roast until it turns brown.
2. Now starting adding the condensed milk with left hand while stirring the pan with right hand. Mix coconut and condensed milk well.
3.Add cardamom, 1 tsp ghee and color. Condensed milk will give a sticky touch to the mix;so keep stirring for 7-10 mins until the stickness goes.
4. Grease a plate with ghee and pour the coconut mix. Allow it to cool down for 30 mins. Then refregirate for 2 hrs.
5.Take out the plate and make diamond shaped pieces with a knife (grease the knife with butter/ghee before cutting).Decorate with cashews,cardamom and raisins if required.

Unlike the time consuming coconut burfi, this will consume less time without comprimising on taste.

Vishu & Tamizh puthandu spl- Arisi, Parupu Payasam

Vishu Aasamsagal and Thamizh puthandu nalvazhthukkal!

Ingredients:
Raw rice - 1 cup
Moong dhal- 1 cup
Cocunut milk/ Milk - 1 cup
Jaggery - 1 cup
Grated coconut, cashews and ghee for garnishing

Procedure:

1.Cook rice and dhal together
2.Add jaggery in boiling water and let it dissolve completely. Sieve the jaggery solution.
3.Now add the cooked rice, dhal to the jaggery solution.
4.Add coconut milk and allow it to boil
5.Roast cashews and grated coconut in ghee and garnish

Easy Palgova

Since this is my first post, let me start with a sweet.

Ingredients:

Condensed milk- 1 tin
Curd - 2 tbsp
Ghee - 1 tbsp
Cherry,raisin,cashew for garnishing

Cooking time: 5 mins

Procedure:

1.Mix all the above ingredients in a microwaveable bowl.
2.Beat well with a spoon.
3.Microwave for 3 mins.
4. Take out the bowl; mix well again with spoon and microwave again for 2 more mins.
5.Garnish with cherry,raisin & cashew

Tip: Ensure that the bowl used is big enough as the mixture might overflow in the process of coagulation.