Paruppu urundai kuzhambu

This is an elaborate kuzhambu, but is worth the effort and time you put in. It goes very well with rice and potato fry. I have always relived the Sundays this kuzhambu was made during my childhood days.  I am going to make it again this weekend too.

Ingredients:

Thuvaram paruppu/Toor dal - 1 cup
Red chillies - 2 nos
Asafoetida powder 2 pinches
Tamarind - A big lemon sized ball
Salt - to taste
Sambhar powder - 2 tsps
Oil - 1.5 tsps
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Procedure:

1.) Soak Toor dal/ thuvaram paruppu  for about 20 mins
2.) Grind it together with red chillies, turmeric and  1 pinch asafoetida powder  to the consistency that you can take it in ur hand and roll it into a ball easily.... Its okay if it is not ground smoothly.
3.) Make the ground mixture into a balls/ urundais the size of a smaller lemon and keep it aside in a closed mixing bowl.
4.) Make a syrup out of tamarind and let the syrup be a lot watery than usual as it takes in a lot of boiling.
5.) In a wide large saucepan, add oil and heat it for tempering
6.) Add mustard seeds to split.
7.) Add asafoetida powder.
8.) Add the tamarind syrup, sambhar powder and bring it to boil in medium to high heat.
9.) When it is boiling, add some salt and let it boil for a minute.
10.) Bring the heat to medium. Then add the paruppu ball/urundai one by one. First add one ball/urundai. It will sink to the bottom. It takes a bit of boiling to come to the top. Only when it floats while boiling, take it out and keep it aside. It means that, the ball is cooked completely. Then drop the second one. If the saucepan is big enough to take 3 or more urundais/balls at a time, then u can do so. But it should not hit each other and break. Take care that the next batch is dropped only when the first batch is completely taken out and kept aside. IMPORTANT POINT IS DO NOT STIR WHILE THE BALLS/URUNDAIS ARE BOILING. IT WILL BREAK.
11.) When all the urundais/balls are done boiling, then put them all in together in the kozhambhu... by this time, the tamarind syrup should have reached the kozhambu consistency.
12. Get the heat to low and let the saucepan sit on the stove for 2 minutes and remove from the heat.

Paruppu urundai kozhambu is ready.

Nellikkai(Amla/ Indian gooseberry) thokku(pickle variety)

Here I am,  posting another recipe for Amla

Ingredients:

Nellikkai big ones frozen 5-6nos

Refined oil 50gms
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Red Chilly powder 3 tbsps

Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
Asafoetida powder 1 pinch

Salt 1.5 tsps or to taste

Procedure:

1.) Boil nellikkai with turmeric powder for 15 mins or until it gets extremely soft.
2.) Remove it from the heat, let it cool. After it cools down, remove the seeds, mash it and keep it aside.
3.) Take some oil in a satti/vaanali and heat it. Add mustard seeds and after it splatters, add asafoetida powder.
4.) Add the mashed nellikkai and mix along with salt.
5.) Add red chilly powder and mix well.
6.) Lower the heat to medium low and keep mixing until the raw flavour of the chilly powder is gone and the oil starts oozing out.
7.) If u have the patience to cool it down :) then ur delicious nellikkai thokku is ready.

Nellikkai thokku

This is a pickle variety and can be stored for months in an airtight container. You can mix this thokku with plain rice and sesame oil and have it with poricha ulundhu appalam for a divine gastronomic experience. It can be had as a side dish with chappathis, yogurt rice, idli, dosa and a variety of ther dishes.