JFI for love – Murungai keerai poriyal

As this blog’s name says its for solely my dear Amma who is a lovely lady not just by looks but by heart too.
All mothers are lovely but when I think about her I bet I can’t even reach half of her heights as a mother. Having a great passion towards medical field she waited 50 long years to do something in it. I remember the day she left the house for her first day at her Accupucture classes. Hesitantly she walked away alone to the bus stop to reach the place. Before which she hadn’t travelled alone not even once in her life. she is now a Doctorate in Accupuncture, a loving mother, a wonderful wife and an adorable grandma. And of course she’s Dr. Vasantha too
I don’t have words to describe her love towards us. For me her love is the ultimate gift I could get. She makes this wonderful simple dish with homegrown drumstick leaves (added more love)
She loves murungai keerai and this poriyal is her (ofcourse mine too) all time favorite. A very simple yet very tasty and nutritious dish. I can have a big bowl on its own.

Ingredients:
Drumstick leaves – 2 cups packed
Garlic – 4-5 cloves
Msutard seeds – 1/4 tea spoon
Grated fresh coconut – 2 T spoon
Split dry red chillies – 2-3
peanut oil – 1 tea spoon
Urad dal – 1 tea spoon
Salt to taste
Roasted groundnuts coarsely pwodered – 2 T spoon

How to make it?
In the wide skillet heat the peanut oil. Once hot add the mustard seeds, red chillies and urad dal and saute till the seeds splutter. Now add the garlic cloves and saute till slightly golden. Add the drumstick leaves and saute till they wilt. Add salt and 1/4 cup water and mix well. Let it cook till the water dries up. Add the grated coconut and groundnuts and saute for few seconds and switch off the stove.

Serve warm with rice.
This is my entry for JFI Love hosted by Jigyasa and Prathiba. Thank you dears for the wonderful theme.

Honey I CLICKed it!

Atlast I fianlly settled down with an element for this month’s CLICK Au Naturel These duos really make me crazy every month announcing wonderful themes kindering my imagination to unknown extremes. I CLICK wonderful pictures in my imagination and when finally settle down with the camera and elements to take real ones, I feel something is missing and when I finally see the picture I definitely feel something very big is missing. Once I find whats that missing thing I would eventually be the winner

Enough of ranting and here’s picture.

I placed a drop of honey on an edible rose petal. These two were key ingredients for Gulkhand. Howzat looking ?

Paruppu keerai kootu – Pursulane dal

When Suganya wrote about this keerai and said there were not much recipes found for it, this strike my mind.

Amma makes a simple toor dal kootu with this keerai. As the name itself has “paruppu” (dal) in it it tastes best with toor dal and is ideal for paruppu kootu than any other keerai.
With a spicy curry or a simple pickle this can make a hearty meal. As its not commonly found in chennai markets I did not post the recipe this long. A simple recipe yet heart warming in this hot summer.
Ingredients:
Paruppu keerai leaves – 2 cups packed
Cooked toor dal – 1 cup
Grated fresh coconut – 2 Table spoon
Red chilles – 2 or 3 split into 2 pieces
mustard seeds – 1/4 tea spoon
Peanut oil – 1 teaspoon
Onion chopped – 1/2 cup

How to make it?
Heat a thick bottomed vessel and add the cooked toor dal along with 2 cups of water. Add the chopped onions and cook till a nice aroma raises from the cooked onions (around 5 – 7 minutes). Now add the paruppu keerai leaves and mix well. Add salt as per taste and cook till the leaves are cooked (around 5 mins). Now add the grated coconut and mix well. Boil for another minute and switch off the stove.

In a thick bottomed vessel heat the peanu oil and once hot add the mustard seeds and red chillies. When the seeds start popping pour the mixture on the keerai dal mix. Stir well and cover it for 15 mins. Serve hot with a spicy curry or pickle with warm rice.

Sarkarai valli kizhangu vadai (Sweet potato vada)

Yesterday was a tiresome day. Work is hectic and I was racing with time. Somehow I was determine to reach home by 6.30 pm after completing the day’s work. Apparently when I finished off the final report that need to be sent by the end of day the clock struck 6 and I was really happy to see that I can reach home.
I was pretty hungry and wanted atleast a cup of coffee but my time to reach home kept me going. But by the time I entered home I was hungry like a dog. God seem to bless my day with a wonderful snack that was awaiting me at home. Amma was having an eye on the sarkarai valli kizhangu (sweet potatoes) lying in the fridge but we were not ready for one more boiled version. She had made crispy delicious vadai out of it and some 4-5 were simple enough to satiate my hunger. With a hot cup of tea and her wonderful smile Amma made my day.

Ingredients:
1 cup grated sweet potatoe packed
1 cup besan flour
1 teaspoon chilli powder
a pinch of asafoetida
1 medium sized onion chopped finely
a bunch of coriander leaves chopped
10 curry leaves chopped
1 green chilly chopped
1/2 cup or more water to make the batter
Salt to taste
Peanut oil to deep fry the vadai (200 ml)

How to make it ?
Mix all the ingredients together thoroughly in a big bowl except water. Check for salt and adjust now. Add water little by little to make a thick mass. If you feel the 1/2 cup water is not enough to make a thck batter, add one T spoon at a time to get the desired consistency.
Heat the peanut oil in a wide skillet and once it is hot drop a small bit. It should sizzle and within seconds raise to the surface. If the oil is not hot it would sink in the bottom. Wait for some more time then.
Once the oil is perfectly hot for frying drop spoonful of the batter and deep fry till golden. Drain and serve hot with a cup of tea.

These were crispy when hot and loses its crispiness when cools but still the taste was great.

Vallarai keerai thuvayal

Vallarai keerai is a nervine tonic. This is a nervine stimulant. I am more familiar with a “thailam” in which other variety of this keerai is used. The brahmi thailam is used for weekly oil baths to reduce the heat in the body. Also it acts as a stress buster which calms your mind.
Amma is more particular in sending this keerai inside.

Courtesy:Rimbun Dahan
The usual keeerai kootu won’t work with this as it has a bitter taste. But this thuvayal worked very well. We can mix it with piping hot rice or have it as a side dish with rasam. Actually I couldn’t make out the keerai when I tasted the thuvayal.
More about this keerai here

Ingredients:
2 Handfuls of vallarai leaves (packed)
Urad dal – 2 teas spoons
Asofoetida – 1 pinch
Dry red cillies – 3
Mustard seeds – 1/4 tea spoon
Coconut fresh grated – 2 Table spoon
Tamarind – 1 inch
Salt as per taste
Gingelly oil – 1 Table spoon

How to make it?
In a thick bottomed vessel heat 1/2 table spoon of gingelly oil and add mustard seeds, asofoetida, dry red chillies. Fry them till the chillies turn maroon in color. Now add the vallarai leaves and saute them till they wilt nicely. Sauteing for 5 minutes in medium flame will ensure thorough cooking of the leaves. Now switch off the stove and let the mix cool to room temperature. Take the mix in a mixie along with the tamarind, salt and coconut and grind to a smooth paste.
Now again heat the remaining oil in the same pan and add the paste and fry for another 5 minutes till the paste turn into dark green color. Serve with piping hot rice with a rasam.

Spiced Tomato Uthappam – for Srivalli’s Dosa Mela

Dosas and Uthappams are very common in every South Indian household. Yet its always fascinating to have them in restaurants or in street food shop. Appa was working in Kollidam village and used to visit Mayavaram often as his head office is located there. He stayed there for some two years and during all his visits if he happens to be there in the evenings owuld never miss these Tomato Uthappams in a street shop. The street shop is owned by a brahmin and would serve only dosas and Uthappams. There is nothing new in the tomato uthappam served there except a special spice mix they used to flavor the otherwise bland tasting uthappams.

Appa will be all praises of it whenever we serve uthappam at home as the tomato version is not common at home. After hearing that few times I asked him about how the spice mix tasted. With the clues he gave I finally able to reproduce it and when I served it with coconut chutney he was delighted.

Ingredients:
Idli batter – 1 cup (Can make 3 Uthappams)
Tomato – the firmer variety chopped – 1.5 cups
Coriander and curry leaves chopped – 2 T spoon
Green chilli finely chopped – 1 T spoon

For the spice mix: (This is enough for 1 3 Uthappams)
Coriander seeds – 1 T spoon
Black pepper – 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds – 1 teaspoon

Toast them in a thick bottomed tawa till they start popping up and dry grind to a coarse powder.
Mix it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt (or as per taste) and keep it aside.

How to make it ?
Heat a tawa and coat it with little oil. Pour a laddle full of batter and spread a little. The Uthappma should be 10-12 inches on diameter and 1/4 inch thick. Immediately sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of the spice mix on it. Spread 1/2 cup of chopped tomatoes evenly on the dosa surface. Again sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of the spice mix. Sprinkle the chopped curry + coriander leaves and some chopped green chillies on it. Drizzle 1 tea spoon of peanut oil around and on the dosa and cover with a lid. Do everything in low flame so that the time u take to layer the dosa wil not affect the cooking time.

Let it cook until the bottom side is golden brown and crisp. The top would get cooked by that time. If not cover it with a lid for half a minute as soon as u do the topping and then cook it further with the lid removed until the bottom side is crisp.
Serve with your favorite coconut chutney. Sambar also is a good accompaniment. And this is my second entry for Srivalli’s Dosa Mela!

Peerkangai Thengai paal kuzhambu

It all started here. In one of the recently bought kid’s rhymes CD, I came to know that “Nungu” or Toddy Palm seeds is called as “Ice Apple”. But I could not google and get enough info. To my surprise I was lead to a recipe called “Nungu Kuzhambu”. The ingredients, method of cooking, the spice mix and my all-time-favorite coconut milk made me try it out the next day.
But I first wanted to check the flavoring with a vegetable. So “adapting” will not be a nice word for my trial but I totally replaced the base ingredients and still it was so forgiving. I am sold for the end result.
My favorite vegetable is Peerkangai (Ridge gourd) and I thought the fleshy palm fruit can be replaced by a similar looking/tasting veggie. And the stupid me understood that aniseed is star anise but hurray this discovery of the variation gave me wonderful flavoring spice powder which I would definitely use it in many more recipes! The rest were almost the same.

Here comes my recipe!

Ingredients:
Peerkangai / Ridge courd (peeled and cubed to bite sized pieces) – 3 cups
Thick coconut milk – 1 cup
The second coconut milk – 2 cups
Star anise – 4
Coriander seeds – 2 T spoon
Green chillies slit vertically – 3
Onion chopped – 1/2 cup
Cinnamon sticks broken into 1/4 cm length – 4/5 pieces
Peanut oil – 1 T spoon
Coriander and Curry leaves for garnish

How to make?
If you are using fresh coconut to extract milk do it with required water twice and collect the milk separately. The first milk would be very thick. The second one would be diluted.

In the thick bottom vessel dry roast the coriander seeds and star anise till you get a nice aroma or till the coriander seeds start poping. Let it cook and grind it to a fine powder in a spice/stone grinder. I ground it in a chutney jar in an Indian style mixie and I have fallen for the divine aroma when I opened the lid. Believe me, it was really wonderful. I think I can use it in almost all coocnut milk based veggie kootu herein after.

In the thick bottomed kadai add the oil and let it heat up. Add the cinnamon and fry till you get a nice aroma. Then add the chopped onions and saute till they turn pink. Add the green chillies and saute for another minute. Add the chopped peerkangai. Add half of the second coconut milk. Add required salt and let it cook covered for few minutes in high flame. After 5 minutes add the ground spice powder and the remaining second coconut milk and mix well. Let it cook thoroughly till the gravy thickens. Now add the first coconut milk and count 20 stirring continously. This will prevent the thick coconut milk from curdling and will give a creamy texture to the gravy. Switch off the stove and add the coriander and curry leaves and cover the vessel. Leave it for 15 minutes for all the belnding of favors. Serve it with appam or steamed rice.
We had it with a spicy tawa fried Brinjal slices and piping hot rice. It was simply divine.

Mudakathaan keerai dosai – For Srivalli’s Dosa Mela

When Srivalli announced the Dosa Mela I am really overwhelmed as dosas are south Indians all time favorite dish. It can be soft and spongy or crisp and thin. Either way its satisfying. The Uthappam varieties are eligible to challenge the pizzas with various topics. Yet you do not need a coke or pepsi to swallow the pizza bites. A dip in u’re favorite chutney or sambhar would take you to heavens.

Unlike these days Idli batter was made twice in a week when there were no refrigerators. The first day it would be fine to make idlis but the second day it would be fit for dosas and third day with onions and thaalipu it would turn into delicious uthappams. Yet they were delicious in all forms.

Usually in my grandma’s days for dosa she would prepare it differently. For the rice she will add equal portions of raw and par-boiled rice which would enable us to make thin crisp ones.

I know all my friends would share nice goodies but I thought this dosa is really rare and I have hardly heard about it in the blogging world. So this dosa mela would be a nice place to have a record of this.

This Mudakathaan keerai (Cardiospermum Halicacabum) is very good for reducing Vadham in the body and this dosa is the best way to consume the bitter leaves. Amma makes a wonderful “Kaara chutney” to send this spongy goodies inside. Again the sliced shallots and the chana dal here and there were great bites when you eat this.

Ingredients:

Mudakathaan keerai – packed 1/2 cup (grind it to a fine paste)

Idli batter – 2 cups

Shallots chopped – 1 cup

Chanadal – 1 T spoon

Red chillies split – 2

mustard seeds – 1/4 tea spoon

Curry leaves – 1 sprig

Peanut oil – 2-3 Teaspoons

How to make it ?

Mix the ground keerai paste to the idli batter. The batter would trun to a wonderful green. In a kadai heat 2 teaspoons of oil and add the mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering add the chana dal and fry till it turns golden. Add the chopped shallots and curry leaves and fry till the onions turn pink. Add this to the idli batter and mix well.

Heat a tawa and when u drizzle few drops of water it should sizzle and disappear in 4-5 seconds. This is the temperature when u can start making dosas. Coat the tawa with few drops of oil evenly (u can use a small cloth folded as a knot and dip it in oil and rub it on the tawa. Be careful not to burn u’re fingers). Pour a laddle full of batter and spread it around evenly to 1/4 cm thickness. Drizzle some oil around and cook for 2-3 minutes in simmering flame. Now flip to the other side and cook for another 1/2 a minute. If all is done in simmering flame this wuld be enough to turn it spongy. Now take it off and serve it with the kaara chutney (recipe follows).

Kaara chutney Ingredients:

Shallots – 10

Red chillies – 3-4

Salt as required

Tamarind – 1/2 inch

Garlic – 1 pod

Gingelly oil – 2 T spoon

How to make it ?

Take all the ingredients except the oil and grind it to a fine paste. Mix it with the oil and serve the dosas along. This is not a common dish and almost make makes it 3 to 4 times in a year. But we all look for it very eagerly

In memory of La Sa Ra – a Moong dal with a twist

There are a few writers who were foodies by nature. When they talk about the characters in their novels they create situation involving food and cooking. I love to read them whenever I am hungry Crazy right ?

One of my favorite writer is La_Sa_Ra and in one of his novels he had described a moon light dinner party. Every single item served in that party were usual ones but with a unique and winning twist which he explains wonderfully. One among is a simple moong dal served with soft chapathis. Its an ordinary dal with onions, tomatoes and ginger and garlic but there are few twists. It has crisply fried cashewnuts, fresh green peas here and there and grated green mangoes for a tangy touch.

When it happened for an early coming back home last friday night I was thinking about this and the craving started immediately. As soon as I came home to my surprise amma had cooked moong dal and was waiting for me to do the tadka to serve with dosas. Almost half the work done I settled down with rotis. Made the dough for rotis and started with this dal.

I knew I have all the ingredients in hand (even raw mango ). Here comes ther recipe! Moong dal with a twist!

Ingredients: 1 cup cooked moong dal till soft

Ginger grated – 1 teaspoon

Onion chopped – 1/4 cup

Tomatoes chopped – 1/4 cup

Coriander chopped – 2 T spoon

Green chillies – 2 (slit vertically)

Fresh green peas – a handful

Cashew nuts chopped – 2 T spoon

Grated raw mango (grate along with the skin) – 2 T spoon

Peanut oil for taalipu

mustard + cumin seeds  – 1/2 tea spoon

How to make it?

In the thick bottomed wide skillet heat the peanut oil. Once hot add the mustard and cumin seeds. When they start popping up add the grated ginger and green chillies and saute for a minute. Add the chopped onions and saute till soft. Now add the tomatoes and cook till mushy. Add the green pease and saute for 2 minutes. Now add the cooked moong dal. Add some water at this stage till you get the consistency of the dal you wish to be. Add required salt too. Let it cook until the green peas are cooked. In the meantime fry the cashew nuts till golden brown in a spoon of oil, drain and keep aside. Once the dal is done switch off the stove and add the grated green mango and fried cashews and garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve them with warm rotis! The crispy cahsewnuts and the tangy crunchy mango pieces were great while eating the dal. It tasted exactly as I imagined while I read the novel! A hearty meal!

Poondu milagai podi and Oven roasted Garlicky legumes – JFI Garlic

When Mathy started blogging after a break I am more than happy to see her “come back” post. And that too with a lovely ingredient for Jhiva and that is none other than the fabulous garlic. This is the all timer in Indian kitchen and we have it almost everyday.

The toor dal we cook, the rasam we make will for sure have this. Among all other ways of consuming this wonderful ingredient, this is our family’s favorite. Also only this way we have it raw. Almost a year back when I discovered somebody else too is a fan of this combination I am really overwhelmed.

But again we use our home made Sambar podi and not pure chilli powder which will be fiery hot. We have it as a side for spongy idlis usually mixed in gingelly oil. It makes a wonderful combo and we love it with piping hot idlis.

 

Ingredients:

10 cloves of garlic with skin

Required salt

3 Table spoon of Sambar podi

How to make it?

Take all the ingredients and pund them till the garlic turns to a roughly coarse paste mixed with the sambar podi. Mix with gingelly oil and have it with hot idlis. 

 

Since Mathy wanted 2 recipes one with raw and another with cooked garlic this one is for the raw garlic.

My experiments with my humble OTG continued this weekend. I soaked a handful of each dried green peas, black-eyed beans, brown peas and soya beans. After some good 2 hours drained it and spread on a towel to remove excess water. Then spread it in a thick bottomed baking pan and pushed it in the oven. Stirring it once in a while when almost half done (around 10 minutes) a sprnkled 1 teaspoon of peanu oil along with the above Poondu milagai podi and tossed well to coat the legumes. Roasted for another 10 minutes till they were crispy and it turned to be simply great.

 

The roasted galic flakes gave a wonderful flavor for these crispy legumes and it turned to be a great snack with a cup of tea. Amma loved it very much. Since I was experimenting the roasting with legumes in OTG I tried very little quantity and will soon do it larger batches as this would be a healthy snacks at home.

The above two are my entries for JFI-Garlic hosted by our dear Mathy.