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.

Oats dosai

Oats dosas are the tasty delicious heavenly dosas made within minutes almost with no preparation needed. So it goes as one of the fall back dishes for me for emergency situations too.

Makes 5 dosas
Soaking time: 15 mins
Total preparation time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

Oats      -  1 cup

Rice/wheat flour - 1/4 cup
Natural Yogurt/Curd  - 1/2 up
Ghee/ Clarified butter - 1 tsp

Pepper jeera powder - 1 tsp
Salt                            - to taste


Method:

1.) Soak oats for 15 minutes with just 1.5 inches water above its level
2.) Grind it in a blender with rice/wheat flour yogurt and salt to the consistency of a dosa batter using the water that was used to soak oats.
3.) Heat a small iluppa karandi or satti or a shallow fry pan and add ghee to it.
4.) When ghee melts and is hot, add pepper jeera powder and fry.
5.) Pour the hot mixture into the batter and stir immediately.
6.) Make dosas :)

Oats dosas are seved with onion and coriander chutney.

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.

Nellikkai (Indian gooseberries/Amla) thayir pachadi

Here is our version of superfruit from India. The more we consume, the more are we the benefactors. How much ever we say about this fruit is so little. Amla enhances food absorption, balances stomach acid, fortifies the liver, nourishes the brain and mental functioning, supports the heart, strengthens the lungs, regulates elimination, enhances fertility, helps the urinary system, is good for the skin, promotes healthier hair, acts as a body coolant, flushes out toxins, increases vitality, strengthens the eyes, improves muscle tone and it acts as an antioxidant.

It provides remedies for many diseases so it is widely used in ayurvedic medicines. Nellikkai/Amla is very rich in Vitamin C. It contains many minerals and vitamins like Calcium, Phosphorus, Iron, Carotene and Vitamin B Complex. Amla is also a powerful antioxidant agent. Many health problems are conduced by oxidative damage (when body cells use oxygen they produce by-products that can cause damage). Antioxidant agents prevent and repair such damages. Vitamin C is a good antioxidant agent and so is Gooseberry/Nellikkai/Amla.

Recipe:

Servings:  2-4 

Ingredients:

Nellikkai/Indian gooseberry/Amla Frozen (Big ones) - 1
Coconut thuruval/ dessicated coconut powder -2 tsp/ 1 tsp
Pachai milagai (Green chillies) - 2 small ones or 1 big one
Salt- to taste
Curd/Yogurt - 1 measuring cup

Procedure: 

1.) Cook nellikkai when u keep rice/dhal in ur pressure cooker for samayal in a seperate cup
or boil it in water for maybe 10mins.
2.) Remove the seed when it has cooled down.
3.) Grind coconut thuruval/dessicated coconut powder along with green chillies without adding water.
4.) Mix the ground powder with nellikkai and salt 
5.) Mash it up and make the mixture to a round ball and leave it for 10-15 mins for the flavours to infuse.
5.) Add curd and mix it well for the raitha consistency. If u feel that it is too creamy, then add water to ur desired consistency.

PS: U may feel that its too much curd/yogurt for one  nellikkai... But the taste is too strong and u would want to dilute it with so much thayir :)

Oats adai

Serves: 5-6

Ingredients:

Oats                                                       - 1 cup
Mung dhal split yellow                            - 1/2 cup
Green mung beans whole/ Pachai payaru - 1/2 cup
Toor dal/ Thuvaram paruppu                   - 1 cup
Chana dal/Kadalai paruppu                     - 2 tbsps
Masoor dal                                              - 1/4 cup
Red Chillies                                             - 10- 12 nos
Asafoetida powder                                  - 1/2 tsp
Ginger                                                     - 3 inch piece
Curry leaves                                            - 2 sprigs
Salt                                                         - 2 tsps or to taste
Oil                                                          - 50ml

Method:

1.) Soak Items 2-6  for 2-3 hrs.
2.) Soak oats for 10 mins
3.) Grind all of them together with red chillies, ginger, curry leaves and salt to the consistency of a dosa batter.
4.) Add asafoetida powder and mix well and rest for 5-10 mins to let the flavors infuse.
5.) Place a tawa/griddle on the stove and heat with a medium heat setting.
6.) When the tawa/griddle is hot, add a tsp of oil to make it on non-stick and spread.
7.) Take a ladle full of batter and make adais.

Oats adai is very very light on the tummy when compared to the normal rice adai. It has the added nutritional benefits of oats.

Variations in oats adai:

There can be as many variations in oats adai as your creativity can reach. I am listing some.
Add a bunch of rougly cut coriander leaves including the stem to the batter and make adais.  The most yummy and flavorful coriander leaves oats adai.

Add a cup of cut and cleaned banana blossom/ banana flower/ vazhaipoo florets to make it the mesmerising vazhaipoo oats adai. Imagine the double dhamaka health benefits of oats and vazhaipoo in one single mouth-watering item!

Gonkura- Tambram style!

Hi all,

Apologies for closing Iyer mess for a long long time, typically for no reason at all! Promising to post more often from now on.

Gonkura leaves is what we call as 'pulicha keerai' in tamizh and Red sorrel leaves in English. It is a great source for iron and dietary fibre. You would have come across gonkura pickle in grocery stores. This recipe offers a different style of consuming Gonkura.

Ingredients:

Gonkura ( Red sorrel) leaves - 2 clusters (big bunches)

Sesame oil - 50 ml

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Red chillies - 7 -8 nos

Black pepper - 30- 40 nos depending on your taste

Tamarind - 1 lemon sized ball
Asafoetida Powder - 1 pinch

Steps to a tantalising yummy Gonkura:

1.) Separate gonkura (Red sorrel) leaves from their stems and discard stems.
2.) Wash them thoroughly before the preparation and drain.
3.) Add half the amount of sesame oil in a stir fry pan and heat.
4.) Add red chillies, black peppers, tamarind and gonkura leaves and mix them in medium heat until the leaves loose its green color, become brownish and reduces in volume. This takes between 4-7 minutes.
5.) Grind them in a blender with  little water to make it a loose paste.
6.) Add the reminder oil in the stir fry pan and heat.
7.) Add Mustard seeds and let it split.
8.) Add asafoetida powder and the ground sort of runny paste and let it simmer at low-medium heat for 10mins or until oil oozes out.
9.) Serve hot .
10.) If it is for later use, cool it down and store it in an airtight container. It can be refrigerated too. Even without refrigeration it stays good for a month.

Gonkura can be mixed with rice and had with poosanikkai morkootu, had as a side dish for idli, dosai, chappathi, upma, curd rice and can be used as a substitute for pickles.

Poosanikkai( White pumpkin) morekootu

Ingredients:

White pumpkin /Poosanikkai                               - 1/2 kg

Natural yogurt/ Curd                                           - 2 cups
Coconut shreddings/ Dessicated coconut powder - 1.5 tsps
Green chillies                                                       - 2 nos

Cumin seeds                                                        - 1tsp
Salt                                                                      - to taste
Turmeric powder                                                 - 1/4 tsp

Tempering:

Refined/ Coconut oil                                           - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds                                                    - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves                                                       - 1 sprig

Steps to an awesome morkootu:

1.)Dice white pumpkin/ Poosanikkai
2.) In a saucepan, boil the diced poosanikkai, turmeric and water just enough to immerse the poosanikkai until it cooks well.
3.) Add salt to this ( just for the pumkin portion.. We will add salt to yogurt too.. so please take care not to add more now)
4.) Grind coconut shreddings/dessicated coconut powder, cumin seeds and green chillies to a powder.
5.) In a mixing bowl mix yougurt with salt and the ground powder.
6.) Add this mixture to the cooked poosanikkai and bring the heat to low, mix them well and let it froth.( Frothing takes about 5 mins.. but the heat should be low)
7.) Take a small saute pan for tempering and heat. Add oil and mustard seeds to split. Then add curry leaves. Remove from the heat and pour the contents on top of the morkootu and serve.

Morkootu can be had with plain rice, gonkura rice (tambram style) , adai and with many other rice and tiffen varieties.