DIAMOND CUTS

INGREDIENTS

1. Maida - 1 cup
2. Wheat flour - 1 cup
3. Salt
4. Butter - 1 tea spoon
5. Black sesame seeds - 1 table spoon
6. Oil - for frying

METHOD

1. Make a dough with maida, wheat flour and salt. Add butter and sesame seeds and knead again.

2. Make thin chapathis with the dough. Prick all over with a fork.

3. Using a knife make parallel cuts horizontally and diagonally  to get diamond shaped pieces.

4. Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the pieces. Drain on a kitchen towel.

UZHUNNU VADA

INGREDIENTS

1. Uzhunnu (Urad dal) - 1 cup
2. Small onion - 8-10
3. Green chilly - 1 or 2
4. Ginger - 1/2 " cube
5. Curry leaves - 1 sprig
6. Black pepper - 1 tea spoon
7. Salt
8. Oil

METHOD

1. Soak dal for 1 hour. Grind to a fine thick paste with salt and minimum amount of water.

2. Chop onions, ginger, chilly and curry leaves. Mix this and the pepper corns carefully with the dal paste.

3. Heat oil in a pan. Make vadas with hand or using a vada maker. Deep fry in oil.

PARIPPU VADA

Ethakka appam (pazham pori) , parippu vada, sughiyan and bonda are the four popular snacks Keralites prefer. There are tea shops and coffee shops in Kerala which are famous not for their coffe or tea but for the tasty parippu vada or pazhampori they serve. It is very easy to make these snacks at home.

INGREDIENTS

1. Split peas dal (peas parippu/vada parippu) - 1 cup
2. Red chillis - 2
3. Ginger - 1/2 " cube
4. Small onion - 6-7
5. curry leaves - 2 sprigs
6. salt
7. Oil - for frying

PREPARATION

1. Soak the dal for at least 2 hours. Drain the water and spread on a kitchen towel.

2. Chop the ginger. Crush onion and chillis.

3. Grind the dal with salt for 10-12 seconds ( see pic) Dont grind to a fine paste. Just crush into small pieces.

4. Mix dal with ginger, curry leaves, onion and chillis with your fingers. Dont press too much. Divide into 8-10 parts.

5.Heat oil in a pan.

6.  Take 1 portion of dal and shape into a ball. Place it on the palm and make a thin round shaped vada by pressing with the other hand,. Remember not to apply too much pressure.

5. Fry vada in oil When both sides are done transfer to a plate lined with paper towel.

MADAKK SAN

Madakk san or madakkichuruttu (or love letter) is a type of pan cake with coconut filling. It is usually made with a batter containing egg and milk. My mom used to make the eggless variety as a snack or even breakfast item.

INGREDIENTS

1. Maida / wheat flour - 1 cup

2. Salt

3. Cardamom - 1

4. Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

5. Sugar - 1 table spoon

6. Ghee/dalda/oil

7. Milk/Water

METHOD

1. Mix maida, salt and enough milk/water to get a loose batter

2. Crush the cardamom. Mix it with the coconut and sugar

3. Heat a thava and smear some ghee using a cloth. Spread some batter on the thava. Sprinkle some ghee and allow to cook for a minute. Flip, wait for 5 seconds and flip again.

4. Reduce heat and spread some coconut in the middle portion. Fold from both sides, press with a spatula and flip carefully. Wait for 5-10 seconds and transfer to a plate

MIXTURE

Making mixture is easy eventhough it takes a lot of time. It is better to keep all the ingredients ready before starting the actual cooking. Different types of mixtures can be prepared by changing the ingredients.

INGREDIENTS

1. Kadalamavu (besan flour) - 21/2 cups
2. Ajwain - 1 tea spoon (optional)
3. Asafoetida - 1/2 tea spoon
4. Chilli powder - 3 tea spoon
5. Butter/Dalda - 1 tea spoon
6. Rice powder - 2 table spoon
7. Potato - 1 medium
8. Cashewnut - 1/4 cup
9. Ground nut - 1/4 cup
10. Pottu kadala - 1/4 cup
11. Thick aval (poha) - 1/4 cup
12. Curry leaves
13. Oil
14. salt

METHOD

1. To make boondi

 Mix 1/2 cup besan with water to get a loose batter

2. Omappodi/sev

Mix 2 cups besan flour, rice powder, powdered ajwain (optional), 1 tea spoon chilli powder,salt and butter. Add a little water and knead to get a uniform dough. (not toohard or too soft). Fill this in a sevanazhi.

I(f no ajwain is  used add 1/4 tea spoon asafoetida)

3. Skin and slice the potato. The pieces should be thin and medium sized.

4. Heat oil in a wide pan. Check whether the oil is hot enough by putting 1 drop of the boondi batter in it If the boondi comes up immediately the oil is ready.

5. A kannaappa (slotted spoon) is required to make boondi. Usually a special kannappa called "laadoo kannaappa" is used to make boondis. The normal slotted spoon is also fine.

Place the slotted spoon above the hot oil and place some boondi batter on it. Spread it with a spoon. Drops of the batter will fall into the oil. Fry them and transfer to a kitchen towel using another slotted spoon

6. Hold the sevanazhi (with the sev dough) above the oil.Squeeze the sev till it fills the whole oil. Fry it for some time and flip. When both sides are done transfer to a kitchen towel. Repeat the process till all the dough is used up.

7. Break the sev into small pieces and transfer to a big bowl along with the boondi 

8. Fry the potato, cashewnut, groundnut, pottukadala, aval and curry leaves one by one . Allow the oil to drain and add to the sev.

9. Add the remaining salt, chilli powder and asafoetida. Toss well and mix.

ETHAKKA APPAM

This is a tasty snack made with ripe banana (ethappazham/nenthrappazham). The method is very easy and the preparation takes hardly 10 minutes.

INGREDIENTS

1. Ethappazham - 4 (make sure it is ripe and sweet.)
2. Maida - 1 cup
3. Rice flour (pathiri podi) - 1/4 cup
4. Salt - 1 pinch
5. Sugar - 1 table spoon
6. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tea spoon
7. Coconut oil - for frying (ghee is best)

METHOD

1. Mix items 2-6 and add enough water to make a loose paste.

2. Remove the skin and cut the banana (lenghtwise) into 2 or 3.

3. Heat oil in a wide pan. Put a drop of the batter to check if the oil is hot enough. Keep the heat at medium. Otherwise the appam will absorb more oil.

4. Coat the banana pieces with the batter and fry in the oil . Flip only once.

MOLAKAI (CHILLI) BAJJI

My right hand still bears an L shaped scar which is the result of a severe burn I got while making molakai bajji for the first time. It was just after our marriage and I was trying to impress my husband with my culinary expertise (to be frank I had no idea about Palakkad Iyer cooking. I hadnt even seen a bajji molakai before.) My husband helped me with the batter and  filling Then one of his friends came and I was left alone with the frying part. I was confident after making the first batch and happily  started frying  the second While I was putting one bajji in the oil another one burst and I dropped the one in my hand. Hot oil was all over my hand and it took almost a week for the burns to cure.

Bajji can be made with a number of vegetables like brinjal, plantain (monthan kaaya), onion etc.

INGREDIENTS

1. Bajji molakai 5-6

2. Dosa batter - 2 table spoon

(if dosa batter is not available use 2 table spoon rice flour and a pinch of baking soda)

3. Besan (chick peas flour or kadalamavu) - 1 cup
4. Chili powder - 1 tea spoon
5. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tea spoon

6. Asafoetida (perumkaayam) - 1 pich

7. Salt

8. Tamarind - 1 table spoon

9. Jaggery - 2 table spoon
10. Oil

PREPARATION

1. Mix the basan, dosa maavu, salt, chilli powder, turmeric powder, asafoetida and enough water to make a thick batter . Keep it for 4-5 hours. (If you are using baking soda the batter can be used fresh)

2. Mix the tamarind, jaggery and 1/2 tea spoon salt. Divide this into 5-6 equal parts.

3. Wash and wipe the chilis dry. Make a small slit on the chili with a knife. (If the chili is big make 2 slits) Take 1 portion of the tamarind mix and push it into the chili through the slit. Repeat for all the chillis.

4. Heat oil in a pan. Coat the chillis with the batter and deep fry (till golden brown) flipping in between.

THATTA

Thatta is a snack item normally made by soaking and grinding par boiled rice. This recipe makes use of readymade rice flour (used for pathiri/idiyappam) thus reducing the time and effort required. (I got this recipe from a cook book by Smt. Aandaal Rangaswamy)

INGREDIENTS

1. Rice flour - 2 cups ( I used Double Horse brand chemba rice flour. Thats why the colour is dark. White flour gives golden brown thattais))
2. Urad daal powder - 1/4 cup (urad daal roasted and powdered)
3. Ghee - 2 table spoon
4. Chilly powder - 1/2 tea spoon
5. salt
6. Asafoetida - 1/4 tea spoon
7. Chana daal - 2 table spoon
8. Oil - for frying

PREPARATION

Soak the chana daal in water for 1 hour.
 In a bowl take 3 table spoon water and add the salt and asafoetida. To this add the rice flour, urad daal powder, chilly powder, ghee and soaked chana daal. Knead well adding more water if necessary. Cover with a lid This dough is to be used immediately.

Heat the oil in a wide pan. (medium flame)

Take  a gooseberry sized ball of dough and place on a plastic bag  kept on a flat surface. Cover it with the same plastic bag by folding it. Press it with a heavy vessel with a flat base. (  the normal rolling pin can not be used to flatten the dough . The thatta will crack ) Take the thatta carefully with your hand and put into the oil  To avoid puffing up the thattai may be pricked with a fork before putting in the oil Repeat til there are 4-5 thatais in the oil Fry till crisp, flipping in between.Keep on a kitchen towel to absorb excess oil. Store in a dry container.