Paal Kozhukattai

Ingretiends:

• Rice flour - 1 cup
• Coconut - 1/4 cup
• Jaggery - 3/4 cup
• Green gram dhal - 1/2 cup
• Milk - 2 cup
• Elachi - 2
• salt - 1 tsp

Method:

Cook the green gram dhal (Paasi paruppu ) well in water. Mash it well.

Run the coconut coarsely in mixe. Take a bowl and mix the flour, salt and the coconut. Add little water as the coconut may have water content. Make a dough. Make small small kozhukattai like pills (Tablets).

Keep the dhal boiling, Pour the milk in it. Keep stirring. When it is boiling nicely drop the kozhukattai in it. Do not mix it as soon as you put as it may break the kozhukattai. After a minute leave a flat ladle preferably Dosa ladle do not stir or sauté scrape the vessel from the bottom so that you don't disturb the kozhukattai. 

Now grate the jaggery or break them into small pieces and mix it inside the boiling dal milk and kozhukattai.

Season with elachi powder.

Note: If you feel that there may be dust and sand in jaggery, Crush the jaggery and heat it with little water (say less than 1/4 glass). When the jaggery dissolves leave it to settle and filter and pour it into the kozhukattai. Instead of milk if you add coconut milk the taste will be really yummy.

Thayir vadai

Ingredients:

• Curd - 2 cups
• Vada - 4
• Small onions - 4
• Oil - 2 sp
• Mustard - 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 string
• Asafoetida - 1 pinch
• Coriander leaves - for garnishing

Method:

Boil water in a vessel. Drop the vadas in it. Take it out and press slightly to squeeze the water out. In a bowl beat the curd well. Heat oil in a pan add the mustard, asafoetida, curry leaves. Once the mustard splutters then add the sliced small onions and saute for a minute. Pour this in the curd. Arrange the vadas in a palte and cover it with this curd. It has to soak well for atleast an hour to taste better.

Note: The remaining vadas can be made as thayir vada, and the process of dropping it in hot water helps to take away the oil from the vada. 

Vadai

Vadai a native favorite dish of south India also known as Ulundhu Vadai is an often snack at ma home. It is always served in the morning accompanying Breakfast.

Ingredients:

• Urudh Dhal - 1 cup
• Green Chilli - 2
• Small onions - 1/2 cup
• Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup
• Curry leaves - 3 strings
• Salt - to taste
• Oil

Method:

Soak urudh dhal for half and hour. In a grinder grind the urudh dhal and the green chilli. Do not pour much water. Just sprinkle water now and then. 

grind it smooth and fluffy add salt when it is almost ground.

Slice the small onions very thin. Chop the coriander and curry leaves.

Add the onion, coriander and curry leaves in the batter by mashing with hand. Mix well.

Dip your hand in water take a ball of the batter, press it like a patty with your thumb, make a whole with the thumb and drop it in hot oil. If you are not comfortable doing it with hand, take a polythene sheet or probably a milk cover, take a ball of the batter keep on it make a patty and a whole take it and put it in oil.

When cooked for about half a minute turn over the other side. Turn it twice or so till it is golden yellow color and the bubbles cease drain and take it out.

Note: Do not pour much water when you grind as it may absorb lot of oil. In that case add a spoon or two rice flour mix and then make the vada. Even when you leave the batter out for a long time and make vada it will absorb oil. So if you feel there is too much of batter keep it immediately in the freezer as soon as you grind it. To add more taste you can also add a table spoon of grated carrot also.

Pongal

Ingredients:

• Raw Rice - 1 cup
• Green gram dhal (Paasi paruppu) - 1/4 cup
• Oil - 3 tbsp
• Salt - to taste 
• Ghee - 3 tbsp
• Cashew nuts - 10
• Pepper - 2 tsp
• Jeera - 2 tsp
• Green chilli - 1
• Ginger - 1/2" piece
• Curry leaves

Method:

Wash and clean rice and dhal. In a cooker pour 5 glasses of water for 1 glass of rice and the dhal. and cook it. Add the oil and salt when it starts boiling. Cook well till all the rice is cooked and water is absorbed. Keep stirring it. 

Blend pepper and jeera coarsely. In a kadai heat ghee fry the cashew nuts, drain and keep aside. In the remaining ghee add the whole pepper, chopped green chillies, ginger, crushed pepper and jeera and curry leaves. Sauté for a minute and mix it into the pongal. Add the fried cashew nuts also with it.

Note: You can also pressure cook the pongal but the rice will be whole and not mashed. People who do not like to chew on ginger when you cook the rice and dhal drop in a whole piece of ginger and take it out after it is cooked. Pongal is a heavy dish and the ginger helps in easy digestion. And if you don't add whole pepper just add crushed pepper alone.

Parangikai Puli Kuzhambu

This is to be served with rice, the vegetable side dish to accompain this could be some this less spicy like cabbage or beans or carrot poriyal. This kuzhambu will taste good only when it is spicy, for that matter any Puli Kuzhambu. And it will be yummy to have with hot idly with ginglee oil over the idlies.


Ingredients:

• Yellow Pumpkin - 500 gm
• Tamarind - a lemon sized
• Rock Salt - 2 tsp
• Small Onions - 1/2 cup
• Garlic - 5 - 6 pods
• Tomato - 1
• Kuzhambu chilli powder - 1 tbsp
• Red Chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
• Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp
• Split urudh dhal - 1/2 tsp
• Fenukreek - 1/2 tsp
• Pepper - 1/2 tsp
• Red Chilli - 2
• Curry leaves - 2 strings
• Oil - 4 tb sp
• Jaggery - 1/2 tbsp

Method:

Cut the yellow pumpkin into cubes. Take the skin off.

Peel the onions and garlic. If they is big then cut into two else keep it whole.

In a kadai pour the oil, season it with urudh dhal, fenugreek, pepper, red chillies, asafoetida and curry leaves.

Then add the onions and garlic. Keep in high and sauté briskly. Now add the pumpkin pieces. Hold the vessel with cloth and toss once every five minutes. Sauting with a ladle may break the pumpkin pieces.

In a bowl pour water to the tamarind and salt. Make solution of it. Darin and squeeze and mash the tomato in it. To that add Kuzhambu chilli powder, Turmeric powder and chilli powder to it. Mix with a spoon and check for salt and spice.

Mean while keep tossing the pumpkin so that it gets cooked well. You can close it with a lid and also cook from half way.

When it is cooked 3/4th pour the tamarind and spice solution into the kadai. Add water if needed the pumpkins must be immersed. Let it to boil well till the oil comes and floats on top and it thickens.

Add the grater jaggery to it, let it to boil for another 5 minutes and turn off.

Note: You can add a little of gingelly oil if you feel it is too spicy, that will also add taste to the kuzzhambu. Adding jaggery is optional. For Kuzhambu chilli powder you can refer my Kuzhambu podi recipe. Other wise Add 2 tsp of chilli powder and 3 tsp of coriander powder.

Paneer Tikka

Ingredients:

To marinate

• Paneer - 200gm (1 pack)
• Sour Curd - 1/2 cup
• Red Chilli powder - 2 tsp
• Food Color (red) - 1 pinch
• Ginger garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - to taste

Other ingredients:

• Onion
• Tomato
• Capsicum
• Lemon
• Oil or butter
• Tooth pics

Method:

Soak the paneer in water for 15 minutes. Keep the block of paneer on a towel for few minutes. Beat the curd well and pour in a cup, flavor that with Chilli powder, salt, food color, ginger garlic paste, mix well. Cut the paneer into 2" square pieces of 3 to 4 mm thick. Dip each piece in the curd mix and lay it on another plate. Cover it and let it to stay for a minimum of half an hour to one hour.

Cut the onions into square pieces. De seed the capsicum and tomato and cut into square pieces. in a thava pour a spoon of oil or a knob of butter and sauté these onions tomato and capsicum well sprinkling a little salt over it.

In the same thava add few drops of oil or butter and lay the paneer along with the marination over it. turn on both sides and cook till it browns. Brush oil when needed.

In tooth picks arrange paneer, onion, tomatoes and capsicum alternatively.

Squeeze lemon and serve with mint chutney.

Stir fried Spicy Baby Corn

Ingredients:

• Baby Corns - 10
• Onion - 1
• Capsicum - 1
• Red Chilli Sauce - 1 tbsp
• Tomato Puree - 1 tbsp
• Chilli flakes - 1 tsp
• Garlic - 1 pod
• Green Chilli - 1
• Aginomotto - 1 pinch
• Corn Flour - 1 tsp + 1 tbsp
• Butter - 1 knob
• Salt to taste

Method:

Clean the baby corn and slit them length wise into four piece.

Cut the onions and capsicum length wise. Chop finely or grate the garlic

Melt butter in a pan add the chilli flakes and garlic sauté for a minute. Add the onions and chilli, sauté till light brown.

In another pan melt a little butter. Take the baby corn in a plate and sprinkle the cornflour mix well using fingers. Sauté till golden yellow in the melted butter.

To the onions add the sauces, salt and aginomotto, mix well.

Now toss in the corn and capsicum into it. Dissolve one tea spoon of corn flour in 1 table spoon of water and sprinkle. heat it not more than a minute as the flour may start to stick on the pan and burn.

Maavu urundai

Ingredients:

For the flour

• Paasi paruppu (Green gram dhal) - 1 kg
• Raw rice - 1 cup

To make the urundai

• Flour - 1 cups
• Ghee - 1/2 cup
• Sugar - 1 cups

Method:

Dry roast the dhal in a kadai. Take care that it is not overly roasted. Initially keep in high flame and keep stirring, then simmer it. Roast till the smell of the dhal begins to disperse in the air. When you over roast to brown color the taste of the final dish goes bad. 

Same way roast the rice also. 

Now cool it and give in a shop and get it ground to a fine powder.

See to that it is only rice and not any other ingredients was run through the machine, as that flavor or color may be imparted on the maavu urundai flour. Its always better you take 1/2 kg of rice and run through the machine before grinding the flour for maavu urundai.

Once ground to a fine powder, Sieve it in a sieve to a fine powder.

Once cooled and air dried put it in an air tight container and store for later use.

Take one cup of the flour in a basin. Grind sugar to a fine powder in a mixe and measure one cup. Now sieve the flour and sugar together so that they blend well. Heat the ghee slightly. Sprinkle spoon full of ghee in a small area of the flour and rub gently. Gather the flour with the ghee and press to make a ball. Repeat this for the remaining flour.

Store the urundais made in an air tight container.

Note: Making maavu urundai may seem easy, and yes it is actually easy but one have to be very careful while roasting the dhal and rice, and see to that rice has been ground in the machine before you grind the flour. And do not pour the ghee all together. You should not make it as a chapathi dough as it will not form a firm round ball if the ghee is too much as the ghee melts the shape may keep changing. So you have to only rub the fat in the flour. Gather the flour and make a ball. 

Kothumai Dhosai

Ingredients:

• Wheat flour - 1 cup
• Small onion - 3 to 4
• Mustard - 1 tsp
• Oil
• Salt
• water

Method.

                                      

To the wheat flour add 2 to 2 1/2 cups of water and salt in a bowl and mix well. If needed use your hand to break the lumps. 

Peel and slice the onion. In a kadai add a spoon of oil and let the mustard splutter. Then add the sliced onions and sauté well. Add this to the wheat flour batter.

Heat the dosa thava and pour a ladle full of batter spreading it well as you pour. Remember we are not going to spread it with the ladle as for the normal dosa. pour a spoon of oil.When cooked on one side and turn over and cook on the other side.

Note: The higher the number of holes in the dosa the crispier it gets, for which the batter should be loose. The kodhumai dosai tastes good with Red Chutney. (Refer Milagai thuvayal )

vegetable Au Gratin

Ingredients:

• Carrots - 100 gm
• Beans -  100 gm
• Cabbage - 3 leaves
• Capsicum - 1
• Mushroom - 4 to 6
• Cooked Noodles - 1/4 cup
• Tomato Ketchup - 6 tbsp
• Red chilli sauce - 2tbsp
• Cheese - 2 cubes
• Mozeralla Cheese - 3/4 cup
• Bread crumbs - 4 tbsp
• Butter - 1 knob
• Salt
• Pepper

For the white Sauce:

• Butter 1 tbsp
• Corn flour - 1 tbsp
• Milk 1 cup
• Salt and pepper - to taste

Method:

Cut the carrots into thin slices of one inch long. Cut the beans as strips of one inch. Boil carrot, beans and cabbage in little water with salt. Drain and keep aside.

De seed the capsicum and cut into thin strips.

Cut the mushrooms into 4 pieces. In a pan melt butter and slightly brown the mushrooms in it.

Make the white sauce. In a thick bottomed pan melt butter add the corn flour and stir well till bubbles come. Simmer the stove add the milk all at once and stir well lumps may form. Shred one cube cheese and add along with milk. Season with salt and pepper.

Butter a baking dish. Layer it with a thin layer of white sauce. Layer with one vegetable, followed by tomato ketchup (mix red chilli sauce along with this), noodles, other vegetable, mushroom, next vegetable and then pour all the white sauce evenly over it. Cover with grated mozzarella cheese and sprinkle the bread crumbs over it.

Bake at 180 degree celcius till the bread crumbs brown slightly. else micro wave it in grill or combination till the cheese melts.

Note: Salt to the dish is added in the sauce and in the vegetables. Do not boil capsicum. You can also flavor with oregano in the white sauce which will impart a beautiful smell. The mushroom is optional as are the vegetables. \You can also add potatoes if you like it with cheese. Increasing the quantity of white sauce after every layer of vegetables and also cheese improves the taste. But diet conscious people should avoid making Au Gratin often. This is a heavy dish. So it could be served for lunch or dinner.

Malli Sadham

Ingredients:

• Basmathi Rice - 1 cup
• Coriander leaves - 1 Bunch
• Onion - 1/4 cup
• Ginger - 1/2" piece
• Small Onions - 1/2 cup
• Garlic - 2 pod
• Green chillies - 4
• Tomato - 1/2
• Cloves - 2
• Cardamomk - 1
• Cinamon - 1"
• Bay leaf - 1
• cumin seed - 1 tsp

Method:

Soak Basmathi rice in 1 3/4 cup of water for 15 min.

Wash and clean coriander leaves. Grind coriander leaves, ginger, green chillies and cumin seed to a fine paste.

Heat oil in a cooker add the spices. Crush the garlic and add with the skin. Add the chopped onion and sauté for a minute. Add the chopped  tomato and cook till the tomatoes are cooked. Now add the ground paste and cook till the raw smell changes.

Add the rice along with the soaked water. Add salt Mix well. Close the cooker and simmer for 15 minutes without weight.

Turn off the stove and put the weight. Open after 10 minutes. 

Garnish with fried cashews and coriander leaves. Serve hot with Raitha.

Note: The onion and tomato are just for flavor add a very small tomato or half. and half onion is more than enough. For more taste and flavor add a spoon of ghee with the oil.

French Fries

Ingredients:

• Potatoe - 3
• Corn flour - 6 tb sp
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Oil to fry

                                     

Method:

Peel and cut the potatoes into long strips. Soak it in salt water for 2 minutes. Take it out and pat dry on kitchen towel.

In a dry plate put the dried potato strips sprinkle salt and pepper and corn flour. Mix with fingers so that the flour coats the potatoes. Do not add water.

Heat oil in a kadai and fry the potato fingers. Keep the flame high while frying. When it turns to golden color drain and take it out of the oil. Serve hot with Tomato Ketchup.

Note: You can also Indianise the fries with Indian flavor by using Chilli powder instead of Pepper or Chilli flakes, little methi leaves, or crushed or dried pudhina leaves.

Paneer Mattar Masala

Ingredients:

• Paneer - 200 gms
• Green Peas - 100gm
• Onion - 1
• Tomatoes - 2
• Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
• Jaggery - 1 tsp
• Tamarind juice - 1 tsp
• Coriander leaves
• Chilli powder - 2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste
• oil - 3 tsp
• Cinnamon - 1" piece

Method:

Heat 2 glass of water with 1/2 spoon of salt. In that hot water put the paneer cut into cubes and let it soak for 3 minutes. Drain and keep aside.

Slice the onions. In a kadai heat 1/2 spoon of oil and sauté the onions till they are slightly brown. Cool and blend them to a paste. Heat the remaining oil in the kadai add the cinnamon stick, onion paste and ginger garlic paste. Sauté well. Then pure the tomatoes and add to the kadai. Cook till the raw smell goes and water evaporates. Now add the chilli powder and turmeric powder. 

Add the paneer, peas, salt and a little water. Close and cook till the peas are tender. Add the tamarind juice and jaggery. Sprinkle the garam masala and turn off the stove. Garnish with Coriander leaves.

Note: Adding jaggery gives a slight sweet taste the minute you taste a spoon full, then the sweetness wont be felt. People who doesn't like that sweet taste can avoid jaggery.

Chicken curry type B

Ingredients:

• Chicken - 1/2 kg
• Onion - 3
• Tomato - 2
• Chilli powder - 2 sp
• Salt to taste
• Cinamon 
• Bay leaf
• Oil - 2 tbsp

Method:

Wash and clean the chicken. Slice the onion. Chop the tomatoes. Heat oil in a kadai add the spices followed by the onion. When the onions slightly browns add the chopped tomatoes and chilli powder. Cook till the tomatoes are soft and tender. Now add the chicken and little water. Close and cook. When half cooked add salt and check for spice, if needed add little more chilli powder as per taste. and let itt boil well and thicken.

Goes good with chapathi.

Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

• Chicken - 1/2 kg
• Small onions - 1/2 bowl
• Garlic - 6 to 10 pods
• Green Chilli - 2
• Coriander leaves 
• Curry leaves
• Coriander powder - 3 sp
• Chilli powder - 2 sp
• Turmeric powder - 1 sp
• Oil - 3 tb sp
• Split black gram dhal - 5 gm
• Fenugreek - 5 gm
• Salt to taste

Method:

Heat oil in a kadai. Add split black gram dhal, fenugreek seeds and curry leaves. Then add the onions and garlic and saute well till they are completely cooked. Add the chicken and all the powder spices except salt. Close and cook till tender with little water. Now add salt coriander leaves and cook open with little more water as per the consistency  that you need. Goes good with Rice for lunch and Idly Dosa for dinner.

Chicken Biriyani

Ingredients:

• Chicken - 1/2 Kg
• Basmathi rice - 2 cups
• Onion - 1 big
• Tomato - 1 big
• Garlic - 5 to 6 pods
• Oil - 3 tb sp
• Ghee - 2 tb sp
• Cloves - 2
• Bay leaf - 1
• Cinnamon - 1"
• Pudhina leaves - 1 cup
• Coriander leaves - 1 cup
• Green Chilli - 3
• Chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
• Curd - 1/2 cup
• Biriyani essence - 1/2 tsp
• Salt to taste

Method:

Soak the rice in water. For two cups of rice 3 1/2 glass of water. Clean the chicken.

Slice the onion and tomatoes. Crush the Garlic along with the skin.

In a cooker heat the oil and ghee together add the spices, followed by the garlic and onion. Sauté till the onions slightly brown. Then add the chillies and tomatoes. Cook till the tomatoes are tender.

Add the chicken, chilli powder, turmeric powder. Close and cook the chicken well. When the chicken is cooked well beat the sour curd well and pour into the chicken. Then add the salt. Add the pudhina leaves, coriander leaves, rice along with the soaked water. Mix well check for salt and spice. Close the cooker and keep it in sim for 15 minutes. Do not put the cooker weight.

After 15 min turn off the stove and put the weight. Open after 15 min sprinkle the essence and mix slightly with out breaking the rice. Serve hot with Raitha.

Aadi Kummayam

Ingredients:

To make the flour

• Urudh Dhal - 1 kg
• Paasi Paruppu (moong dhal) - 1 cup

For the dish

• Aadikummayam flour - 1 cup
• Karupatti - 1 cup
• Water - 3 cup
• Oil - 5 tb sp
• Ghee - 2 tb sp

Method:

To make the flour

Dry roast both the dhal separately. Grind in machine to a very nice powder. When cooled sieve and store in an air tight container.

To make Aadi kummayam

Heat the karupatti with 1/4 cup of water just till it dissolves and start to boil.
Take 1 cup of the flour. In a hard bottomed vessel (Cooker pan suits better) heat the oil and add the flour and keep stirring with a wooden spatula well. Do not let lumps to be formed.
Mean while heat the 3 cups of water.
When bubbles start coming in the flour add the karupatti filtering it for sand and dust. Keep stirring continuously and add the hot water all at once. Stir well. Small lumps may form but when u stir they break and dissolve. Add the ghee at last. serve it hot or you can spread it in a plate and cut it into pieces.

Note: Karupatti is not same as Jaggery. Karupatti will be dark in color and little harder. You can get it in Nilgiris or in Nattu Marundhu Kadai. There is another way of preparing this, you will have to dissolve the flour in water and also the karupatti liquid and then heat and boil it but it will be a bit painstaking job and will be full of lumps if u miss a stir. The method i have given will be much easy and more softer as the flour is first cooked in the oil. For even better taste you can replace the oil with ghee itself.
This is a very healthy dish for kids as it contains urudh dhal as its main ingredient. Especially for young girls as it helps in strengthening the bones

Thengulal

Ingredients:

Raw Rice - 8 cups
Urudh Dhal - 3 cup
Oil to fry
Salt to taste

                                      
Method:

Dry roast urudh dhal. (Do not roast much just till the dhal is heated). Powder the dhal and the rice together to a very fine flour in flour machine. (Cannot do it in a mixie) This is the flour for Thengulal which can be stored for long in air tight containers.

Flour

Dough

Thengulal kattai. Available in wood also in Metal

Filled with dough

Squeeze applying pressure on the handle moving in circular motion.

Once the oil bubbles cease drain and take out from oil

                                      

To make the thengulal, take a glass of the flour in a wide bowl or basin. Dissolve salt in water. Sprinkle that water and make dough. Heat oil in a kadai. Fill the Thengulal kattai with the dough. When the oil is hot enough squeeze out the dough through the holes giving pressure on the handle slightly moving in circular motion. turn the thengulal once or twice and drain out of oil when cooked. Once cooled store in an air tight container.

Note: The flour should be ground only in the shop and before grinding for thengulal run a Kg of rice through the machine twice or thrice so that atta, chilli etc that were ground earlier in the machine comes off with this rice, other wise those flavor might be imparted on the thengulal flour.  A wide kadai  is always better so that you can make four to five at a time. For extra tase you can add a knob of butter.