Cucumber Pulippu Kootu

Kootu is a traditional south Indian side dish prepared with little oil, more dal and vegetables with less spices.  There are many varieties of Kootu like Pulippu Kootu, pooricha Kootu, and pal Kootu etc..  This Kootu is the main dishes during festival seasons and marriages. This Pulippu Kootu is a nutritious wholesome food; it contains lot of vitamins and proteins. ChowChow, Brinjal,  White pumpkin,  green Banana  can be used . You can  do mix match this vegetable s and make this kootu. Here I used Cucumber only.

Ingredients:

 Chopped Cucumber                     2 cups

Chick peas                                 ¼ cup (soak overnight in water)

Tovar Dhal                                  ¼ cup

Chenna dhal                               ¼ cup

Tamarind                                   small lemon size

Grated Ginger                             2 tbsp.

Curry leaves                               2 stems

Masalas

Grated Coconut                           ½ cup

Raw rice                                     1 tsp

Coriander seeds                          1tbsp.

Black gram dhal                          1 tbsp.

Curry leaves    -                          1 stem

Red chilies                                 6-8 nos

Black Pepper                              1tsp

Hing (Asafetida)                      - ¼ tsp

Oil                                           2 tsp.

Seasonings:

Coconut Oil                              2 tbsp

Grated Coconut                         2 tbsp

Mustard Seeds                          1 tsp

Curry leaves                             few

Red chilies                              2 nos.

Method:

• Pressure cooks the Tovar dhal and chenna dhal separately. Keep aside
• Pressure cooks the Chickpeas with little salt and keeps aside.
• Fry the all masala ingredients until golden brown color. Grind them into a paste. .
• Soak the tamarind with little water and extract 1 cup of the juice from that.
• Add pumpkin pieces in the tamarind water. Add salt in it and bring to boil.
• Add the ground masala mixture, cooked dhal, and boiled chick peas to the vegetable water.
• Mix well and simmer in low heat and let it cook for few more minutes.
• Mix well remove from the fire.
• Heat the coconut oil, add all seasoning ingredients. Fry it and add it to the Kootu.

Tip: 

You can add Peanuts,  Dry green peas  or white peas.. All should be soaked  for about 5 to 6 hours and cook well and add to the Kootu.

Onam wishes 2012

Onam Recipes

Asoka Halwa

This Halwa, made with Moong dhal (paasi Paruppu) and it is a specialty from Thanjavur district.    This is also famously called as "Thiruvayaru Halwa”. I bet, definitely you would come across this Halwa in every wedding that happen in Tanjore side. It is also called moong dal halwa in different parts of the country.It takes a long time and lot of patience to prepare this Halwa.

Ingredients

Yellow split Moong dhal                     1 cup

Milk                                                 1 cup

Saffron                                            a pinch  

Wheat flour                                   -  1/4 cup

Maida                                              1 Tablespoon

Water                                             ¼-1/2 cup

Sugar                                              1 1/2 cup- 2 cups

Red food color:                               as desired (optional)

Kesari powder -                               2 to 3 pinches

Ghee -                                            1 cup

Cardamoms –                                  8 no (powdered)

Cashews & Sliced Almonds        10 to 15 (broken into bits and fried in ghee)

Method:

•  Wash the Moong dhal and add milk and saffron. Cook the Moong dal in a pressure cooker until soft. Mash the cooked dal and keep aside.
• Dry roast the wheat and Maida for a minute. Mix wheat flour in the water or milk to make a smooth, runny paste.
• Heat this flour mixture in a frying pan, stirring continuously, and bring to a boil. 

• Add the mashed Moong dal, mix well and cook over medium flame.
• Once cooked, add the sugar, then half the quantity of ghee, and stir well.
• Add the food color and the remaining ghee slowly and stir continuously, until the mixture forms a ball and comes off the sides of the pan. At this point the ghee will start oozing out.
• Take 1 tsp. of ghee in a pan and again roast the nuts and cardamom powder. Add to the Halwa and switch off the flame. Asoka is ready now.
• Pour the mix into the greased tray or vessel. You,cut  this into diamonds, squares, or rectangles.

 Note:

• It will probably require a little extra ghee too. You can make a larger quantity of this recipe and store it refrigerated for several weeks. Just add a little milk to the Halwa before reheating it.

I am sending and linking to " Sending to Dish it out – Sugar and Butter and Vardhini’s page"

Thenkuzhal Murukku

Murukku is a traditional snack which prepared for festivals, especially Diwali and Krishna Jayanthi. Thenkuzhal is a tasty and crispy snack make from rice and Urad dal flour.  This post has been lying in my draft since Diwali and finally posted it today.   For Thenkuzhal Mavu, readymade mavu won’t be good. But if there is no other go add a handful of urudh dhal powder more. Add little hot oil or ghee while getting the batter ready. In this recipe, I used ready made rice flour.

Ingredients:

Rice Flour -                     4 cups

Urdh dhal                      1 cup

Cumin Seed                   1 tsp.

Salt -                               to taste

Butter -                            4tbsp.

Asafetida(Hing)              1 tsp.

 Cooking Oil                   for deep fry

Method:

• Put the frying pan in the stove. Keep the stove in low fire .Dry roast the Urad dhal to a nice golden brown color and powder it in the blender and sieve it .The urudh dhal should be roasted in such a way that it should never get red at the same time be well roasted .  (OR) you can use store bought Urad flour and roasted it.
• Take a large mixing bowl and mix rice flour, Urad flour, cumin seeds, salt, asafetida powder, butter. and water . Knead well to form smooth dough.  Heat oil and keep it ready.

• Check the oil temperature before dropping the Murukku. Try with a small sample.
• Press out the dough using a Thenkuzhal press in the hot oil, fry well.
• Cook until the hissing sound ceases.
• Remove from the fire and drain.
• Crispy Thenkuzhal are ready! Cool them and store them in air tight containers so that they remain crispy. 

 Tips:

•  Always fry the Murukku on medium high flame, otherwise it will brown the outer layer, and dough will be partially cooked inside.
• Do not mix the whole flour at a time to make dough. Do them in batches.
• Do not over crowd them while frying.
• Do not keep the dough for a long time.

Uppu Seedai

Uppu Seedai is one of the main traditional bakshanams made especially during Krishna Jayathy’s day.. There are two varieties of seedais – sweet and the salt version. Sweet seedai is called “vella seedai”.The salty version is called “Uppu seedai”.  I have heard stories about seedai bursting from my friends. Here are the tips to avoid Uppu Seedai(s) from bursting in hot oil.

Tips:

• Homemade or store bought flour, it should be sieved properly.
• Do not roll them tightly. While rotating them in your palm, keep it as gentle as possible.
•  Use, instead of dry coconut, uses coconut oil for the dough.
• Dry the balls before frying them.

Here is the recipe for the Seedai.

 Preparation Time   :  15 mins
 Cooking Time        : 30 mins
 Recipe Category    :  Festival Recipes, Neivedyam 
 Recipe Cuisine       : South Indian  

Ingredients:

Rice Flour                   2 cups

Urad Flour                  2 tablespoon

Sesame seeds             1 teaspoon (optional)

Cummin See               1 teaspoon

Salt                            To taste

Butter                         1 tablespoon

Asafoetida                   a pinch

Coconut oil                  1 tablespoon

Cooking oil                  for deep frying.

Method

• I have used store bought rice and Urad flour.
• Fry the Urad flour in medium heat for 2 minutes.
•  Dry roast the sesame and cumin seeds for a second.
• Mix everything along with salt, asafoetida, butter.
• Add water very little by little to form a smooth dough.
• Form into a small balls of marble size. While rotating them in your palm, keep it as gentle as possible.
• Keep them on a clean cloth or paper towel for 10 minutes.
• Heat oil in medium flame and fry the balls.
• Put as many cheedais as possible , the oil can hold at a time.
• When frying the balls , keep moving the balls in oil to ensure uniform frying.
•  Fry until they become golden brown or till the bubble stops, and hissing sound ceases.
• Drain them in a tissue paper and transfer them to an airtight container.
• Now Yummy Cheedai is ready to eat.

Uppu Seedau

Kara Pori- Spicy Puffed rice

Kara Pori is one the most popular street-side snack in southern part of India.  Whenever I feel like eating something, I prepare this snack. This is easy to prepare, and simple, delicious and of course healthy too.

Ingredients 

Puffed rice (Pori)                            - 4 cups heaped

Fried gram (pottu Kadalai)                - 1 cup

Peanuts                                         – 1 cup

Mor Milaghai                                   - 4 no

Red chillies                                     - 2 no

Asafetida                                     – ¼ tsp.

Oil                                              - 3-4 tsp.

Turmeric powder                            -1/4 tsp.

Curry leaves                                      - few

Salt and chillis powder                      to taste

Method

• Heat oil in a wide pan adds Peanuts, and fried gram Curry leaves. Fry them for 3-4 minutes.
•  In the same pan, add more oil, add MOR Milaghai, red chilies, curry leaves and fry for a minute.
• After that ,add the puffed rice with turmeric powder, hing, salt and red chili powder.
•  Low the stove heat and, mix it all together and let it sit in the heat for 5 minutes or till it becomes crispy.  Store it in an air tight container.
• Serve it hot wit some hot chai 

Wheat Dosa( Gothumai Dosai)

A very simple and nutritious dosa in whole wheat flour. “Wheat Dosa" is one of the popular dosa varieties and it is quick to make as like the usual dosa. This dosa does not require fermentation or prior prep – an instant dosa. This dosa is very good for diabetic patients.

Ingredients;

Wheat flour                           - 2 cup

Rice flour                              – ½ cup

Rava                                     – 1 tsp.

Finely chopped green chilies      – 1 tsp.

Chopped curry leaves               – 1 tsp.

Grated Ginger                          – 1tbsp

Hing                                      – 1 /4 tsp.

Jeera                                       1 tsp.

Salt                                         to taste

Water                                      – for mixing

 Method:

• Mix all above ingredients together.
• The batter should be watery. Make sure there are no lumps.
• Heat the griddle, spread the batter gently in a circular form, drizzle 1 tsp. of oil.
• This dosa take a little longer to cook than the normal dosa.
• And gently flop to the other side and drizzle oil and cook until it turns brown.
• Tasty and healthy wheat dosa is ready.
• Serve hot with chutney and Sāmbhar.