KADALA THORAN

 I make this thoran as a side dish for uppuma. Rava uppuma, kadala thoran , pappadam and pazham is a very good combination as breakfast. 

INGREDIENTS

1. Black chana (kadala) - 1 cup

2. Water - 2 1/2 cups

3. Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

4. Small onion - 3-4

5. Garlic - 1 clove

6. Red chillis - 2 + 1

7. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tea spoon

8. Garam masala powder - 1/4 tea spoon

9. Coconut oil - 1 1/2 table spoon

10. Mustard seeds - 1 pinch

11. Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

METHOD

1. Soak kadala for 8-10 hours. (small kadala is best for thoran). Pressure cook with water for 10-15 minutes. Add salt and mix. Heat without lid for some time to drain  excess water.

2. Heat 1/2 table spoon oil in a pan and stir fry the coconut, 2 red chillis, onion and garlic till  coconut starts changing colour (dont make it brown. The thoran will taste like theeyal) Turn off heat , add turmeric and garam masala powders and mix. ( If you dont want to add garam masala powder, fry a pinch of fennel seeds with coconut etc ) Grind coarsely.

3. Heat 1 table spoon oil in another pan and splutter mustard seeds. Fry red chilli and curry leaves. To this add cooked black chana and stir well.

4. Add coconut paste in the middle and cover with chana . Close with a lid and cook for 2-3 minutes on low flame.

5. Mix and cook again on low heat for some more time.

CHEESE PUDDING

This recipe can never go wrong. It takes only 5 minutes to prepare and less than an hour to set.

INGREDIENTS

1. Philadelphia (spreadable) cheese - 200 gm

2. Sweetened condensed milk - 1 cup (3/4 of the can shown)

3. Foster Clarks Pineapple jelly - 1 packet (85 gm)

4. Hot water - 1/2 cup

5. Ice water - 1/2 cup

6. Marie biscuits - 8

7. Milk - 1-2 table spoon

METHOD

1. Take the pineapple jelly powder in a bowl. To this add 1/2 cup boiling water and stir until dissolved. Immediately add the ice water and stir again.

Note - It is written on the packet to take 1 cup each of hot water and cold water. But we need only half the amount of water for this recipe.

2. Blend  the cheese in a mixie. To this add conensed milk and the jelatine solution and run the mixie for a minute.

3. Powder the biscuits. Soak this in milk and spread on the pudding bowl It should form a firm bottom layer.

4. Pour the pudding mix over the biscuit layer carefully and refrigerate.

KOVAKKA PEERA PATTICHATHU

This is an easy dish similar to thoran

INGREDIENTS

1. Kovakka (tindora) - 1/2 kg

2. Thinly sliced onion (sawala or small onion) - 1/4 cup

3. Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

4. Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

5. Ginger chopped - 1 tea spoon

6. Split green chillis - 3 or 4

7. Coconut oil - 1 1/2 table spoon

8. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tea spoon

9. Salt

10. Water - 1/4 cup (optional)

METHOD

1. Clean and cut kovakka into thin 2 cm long pieces. Mix it well with all other ingredients . Add water only if needed.

2. Transfer everything into a thick pan and cook covered on low heat stirring occassionally.

3. When the kovakka is soft remove lid and cook for some more time on medium heat stirring all the time.

PAAL PAAYASAM

INGREDIENTS

1. Raw rice (unakkalari/ pachari) - 1/2 cup
2. Sugar - 1 cup
3. Milk - 5 cups
4. Ghee - 1 table spoon
5. Cashew nuts - 10
6. Kismis - 10-12
7. Cardamom - 1

METHOD

1. Wash the rice well. Crush cardamom.

2. Take sugar, rice, milk (4 cups) and cardamom in a pressure cooker and heat without putting the weight. When steam starts coming put the weight and increase heat to high.

3. Wait for the first whistle. Reduce heat to low and allow to cook for 20 minutes.

4. Allow to cool for 20 minutes. Add the remaining milk and boil for 5 minutes.

5. Fry cashewnut and kismis in ghee and pour into the payasam.

THAYIR SADAM

 

Thayir sadam is the easiest rice preparation and is very good for lunch boxes.It stays fresh for hours and can be packed for long distance travels too.

INGREDIENTS

1. Cooked rice (Raw rice/ Basmati rice/Jeerakasala rice) - 2 cups ( best if a little over cooked)
2. Salt

3.Curd - 1 cup ( 1/2 cup curd and 1/2 cup boiled and cooled milk if planning to eat after 6-7 hours)

4. Oil - 1 table spoon (use sesame oil if packing for long distance travel)

5. Mustard seeds - 1/4 tea spoon

6. Urad dal - 1 tea spoon

7. Red chilli/thayir mulaku (mulaku kondattam) - 1 or 2

8. Asafoetida - 1 pinch

9. Green chilli chopped - 1

10. Ginger finely chopped - 1/2 tea spoon (optional)

11. Curry leaves - 1 sprig (optional)

12. Butter - 1/2 tea spoon (optional)

PREPARATION

1.Mix rice, curd, milk, salt and butter

2. Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds. Fry urad dal and dry red chilli/thayir mulaku.

3. Add green chilli, ginger and curry leaves and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add asafoetida and remove from fire. Pour over the rice and mix.

KADALA CURRY (FOR PUTTU)

INGREDIENTS

1. Black chana – 1 cup

2. Coconut chopped – 2 table spoon

3. Salt

4. Coconut oil – 1 ½ table spoon

5. Small onion/ sawala chopped – ¼ cup

6. Coriander powder – 1 tea spoon

7. Red chilly powder – 1 tea spoon

8. Garam masala powder – 1 tea spoon

9. Mustard seeds – ½ tea spoon

10. Red chilly whole – 2

11. Curry leaves – 2 sprigs

METHOD

1. Soak black chana for 8-10 hours. Pressure cook with chopped coconut for 10 minutes. Add salt.

2. Heat 1 table spoon oil in a pan. Saute the onion till it is brown. Reduce heat and add the powders. Stir for a minute and switch off stove. Allow to cool and grind to a fine paste in the  mixie with 10-12 cooked chana.

3. Transfer the ground masala paste and chana to the pan. Add enough water and cook on low heat for 4-5 minutes.

4. Heat the remaining oil , splutter mustard seeds and fry whole red chillis and curry leaves . Pour this over the curry.

VAZHAIPOO VADAI (VAZHACHUNDU VADA)

I heard about vazhaipoo (banana flower/kudappan/vazha chundu) vadai for the first time in the movie "Kandukondin Kandukondein"and wanted to give it a try. I used to make cutlet with vazhappo, but vada was something new and turned out to be tastier than cutlet.

INGREDIENTS

1. Split peas dal(peas parippu) - 1/2 cup

2. Vazhaipoo - 1/2 cup (chopped and washed in butter milk, then in turmeric water and 3-4 times in water )

3. Green chilli chopped - 1

4. Curry leaves chopped - 7-8 leaves

5. Garlic chopped - 1 clove

6. Ginger chopped - 1 tea spoon

7. Onion chopped - 2 table spoon

8. Garam masala or fennel powder - 1 pinch

9. Salt

10. Oil - for frying

METHOD

1. Soak the dal for 2 hours and allow the water to drain.

2. Cook the vazhaipoo in microwave high for 1 minute after mixing with a pinch of salt and 1/4 tea spoon oil.

3. Grind the dal coarsely with salt and garam masala powder. Add  vazhaipoo, onion, chilli, garlic , ginger and curry leaves and mix.

4. Heat oil in a pan (medium high). Take a lemon sized ball of vazhaipoo - dal mixture and shape like parippu vada. Deep fry in oil and drain on paper towel.