Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Quick Adai


This yummy recipe I learnt from my mom in law .The adais come out very delicious
Ingredients

2 cups raw rice
1/2 cup Chana dal
1/2 cup Tur dal
3 Red chillis
2 Green chillis
Corrainder or Curry leaves
Oil to roast adais

Procedure
  • Soak all three in water and leave for about 3 hours.
  • After 3 hours the rice and dal would have soaked a lot of water and would have swelled in volume
  • Finely grind the rice and dal, green chilli, red chilli, hing with water to make a good dough
  • Add finely chopped Corrainder or Curry leaves
  • Make the adais on a flat hot pan.Grease sides of adai with oil
  • Serve hot with coconut chutney or Molga Podi/Gun Powder

Monday, March 9, 2009

Gobi ka Paratha

Gobhi parathas (stuffed cauliflower bread) make a great Sunday breakfast. This is my favorite paratha.

Makes 6 parathas.

Gobhi Paratha

Ingredients:

  • Dough:
    • 1 cup whole-wheat flour
    • 1/2 cup water (Use more as needed)
    • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • Filling:
    • 2 cup shredded cauliflower
    • 1/2 teaspoon ajwain
    • 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (Jeera)
    • 1 chopped green chili
    • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (green coriander)
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • Also needed:
    • 1/4 cup whole-wheat flour for rolling
    • Oil to cook

Method

Dough

  1. Mix flour, salt and water together to make a soft dough (if the dough is hard add a little more water). I like mixing the dough by hand.
  2. Knead the dough for a few minutes on a lightly greased surface to make a smooth and pliable dough.
  3. Set the dough aside and cover with a damp cloth. Let the dough rest for at least ten minutes.

Filling

  1. Mix all filling ingredients together by hand. After mixing let the filling settle for about 5 minutes. Note: Shred the cauliflower using a shredder (electric or manual). However, do not use a food processor to blend the cauliflower, as the cauliflower will become too moist and hard to work with.
  2. Squeeze the cauliflower mix in order to take out as much water as possible.

Making of paratha

  1. Divide the dough and cauliflower mixture into 6 equal parts.
  2. Roll the dough into 3 inch diameter circles. Put the filling in the center. Seal by pulling the edges of the rolled dough together to make a ball. Proceed to make all six balls.
  3. Each ball needs to settle for two minutes before rolling. Note: If you don’t wait long enough the cauliflower mixture will seep through the edges when rolling the parathas.
  4. Heat the skillet on medium high. Note: An iron skillet works best. To see if the skillet is ready, put a couple of drops of water on it. If the water sizzles right away, the skillet is ready.
  5. To make it easier to roll the balls, first roll them in dry whole-wheat flour.
  6. Lightly press the ball on the sealed side and keep it on the topside when rolling. Roll the ball light handed in to 6 inch circles. To reduce the stickiness on the rolling pin or rolling surface, sprinkle dry whole-wheat flour on both side of the semi-rolled paratha.
  7. Place the paratha over the skillet. You will see the color change and the paratha will bubble in different places.
  8. Then turn the paratha over. Paratha should have golden-brown spots. Wait a few seconds and put 1 teaspoon of oil over paratha and spread the oil on the topside. Flip the paratha and lightly press the puffed areas with a spatula.
  9. Flip again and press with the spatula making sure the paratha is golden-brown on both sides.
  10. Cool the Parathas on a wire rack so they don’t get soggy.
  11. Parathas can be kept outside wrapped in aluminum foil or a cover container for 2 days or they can be refrigerated for 5-6 days (wrapped aluminum foil). To re-heat warm on a skillet or toaster oven.

Variations

Replace cauliflower with white radish (mooli), the method remains the same.

Kara Adai for Nombu


At the auspicious time when the Masi (Tamil) month ends and the phalguni starts, South Indian ladies observe and celebrate this nombu.The name Karadaiyan means kar(red riceadai (made with red rice).This is a snack item,can be made at any time of the year.

Salt adai:
Ingredients required for making ten adais or kozhukkatais:
  • Raw rice powder; one cup
  • Karamani(dried cowpeas)-Two table spoonful.
  • Ginger;one small piece
  • Green chillies :Two/Three
  • Mustard : One teaspoon
  • Urad dal:One teaspoonful
  • Coconut:grated,half a cup
  • Asafotita powder:one pinch Salt to taste
  • Oil :One tablespoon.
  • Water :For one cup rice flour one and a half cup water should be added
Procedure:
  • Roast the cowpeas or red chori in a pan for 5 mins till it starts giving out an aroma
  • Soak the dried cowpeas in water for four hours minimum.
  • Cook the cowpeas till they are tender,strain the water and keep aside.
  • In kadai take one table spoon oil,add the mustard and urad dhal,when the oil is hot,once the mustard seeds crackle and the urad dal turns red
  • Add green chillies,grated ginger and keep stirring for a minute.
  • Now add water in the kadai,add salt,grated coconut,asafoetida powder
  • Add the cooked cowpeas(karamani) to the water.
  • Let the water boil.
  • Once the water starts boiling reduce the flame of the stove,add the rice flour slowly,stirring all the time.
  • Keep it covered for a few minutes for the rice flour to cook,once it is cooked,remove and keep aside.
  • Spread,ideally a plantain leaf or a clean plastic sheet ,smear it with oil and take the rice flour prepared and kept.
  • Make the paste thus made into medium sized oblong balls,or spread the paste on the leaf or plastic sheer as small rounds
  • They should look like small appalams but on the thicker side.
  • Now steam these kozhukkattais (adais)for eight to ten minutes either in rice cooker or in the Idli steamer.
  • Once they are done remove and store.
  • When the adai is offered to God as Nivedhyam,keep small dash of white or yellow butter on top of the adai.

Friday, March 6, 2009

Rice Kheer or payasam

This is a tasty sweet dish which my husband loves. So I make it often as prasad or just dessert.
Here goes the recipe:

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

Cooked Rice - 1 cup
Whole Milk - 2 cups
Sugar - 3 tbsp or to taste
Raisins - 1 tbsp
Chopped Pistachios - 1 tbsp
Chopped Almonds - 1 tbsp
Powdered Cardamom - 1/8 tsp
Saffron - a pinch

Method:

1. In a heavy bottomed pan, on medium heat, add in the the Milk and the Rice.I cook the rice in a pressure cooker.Half cup rice and 1 cup water with 2 whistles of the cooker.
2. Grind the Saffron with a little bit of Sugar and add it to the Milk.
3. Meanwhile, soak the Raisins in a little bit of water to help puff them up.
4. Keep stirring the pan and make sure it does not burn at the bottom.
5. Cook till it is of desired thickness.
6. Once it reaches the desired thickness, add in the Sugar. Mix well.
7. Add in the Dry fruits - Raisins (without the water), Pistachios and the Almonds.
8. Turn off the flame and add in the Powdered Cardamom.
9. Serve hot or cold.

Tips:
1. If you are making the rice just for the Kheer, over cook the rice just a little.
2. This is a great recipe if you don’t have a lot of time but alternatively, you can add in raw rice and cook it in the milk and it tastes great. But be very careful and and keep stirring frequently.
3. If you like a smoother texture of rice in the kheer, just mash it lightly before adding it to the Milk.

Mosaru bajji:

This side dish goes very well with pongal or khichdi

Ingredients:
3/4 cup finely chopped cucumber
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped tomato(optional)
2-3 strands coriander leaves
3-4 curry leaves
1/2 tea spn oil
1/2 tea spn mustard seeds
1 cup yogurt(curd)
2-3 green chilies
Salt

I didn’t add tomato and coriander leaves when I prepared it here.

Method:
Mix cucumber, onion, tomatoes, coriander leaves and chili with salt. Add yogurt(curd) and mix well.
Heat oil and add mustard. When they start popping add curry leaves, fry for a minute and them to the yogurt mixture and mix well.

HuLi gojju

HuLi gojju:This is an excellent side dish for pongal or steamed rice.A sour and spicy dish .

Ingredients:
1 and 1/2 cups of slitted onions
1 tea spn oil
1 garlic clove(optional)
1/2 tea spn mustard seeds
4-5 curry leaves
1/2 tea spn tamarind extract (or 2 tbl spn of thick tamarind juice)
1/2 tea spn chili powder
1/2 tea spn sambar powder(any ready made sambar powder can be used)
1 cup grated coconut
2-3 strands coriander leaves
Salt

Amount of chili powder and sambar powder can be increased or decreased to suit individual taste.

Method:
Heat oil and add mustard seeds. When they start popping, add curry leaves and chopped garlic. Fry for a minute and add onions. Fry till onions turn slightly brownish. Add tamarind and around 2-3 tbl spn of water. Add chili powder, sambar powder, coconut, chopped coriander leaves and salt. Cook for around 7-8 mins.
This gojju should also be semi liquid. I made it a bit less-watery to suite my taste.

Spicy pongal

Ingredients:
3/4 cups moong daal(yellow)
1 cup rice
1/2 tea spn mustard seeds
2 tea spns cumin seeds
1/2 tea spn black pepper
5-6 curry leaves
3-4 green chilies
1/4 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup grated coconut
2-3 strands coriander leaves
1 tea spn oil
Salt

Method:
Soak daal and rice separately. Crush black pepper roughly (I used black pepper powder instead).
For best results, make the Pongal directly in cooker.
Heat oil in cooker, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and when they start popping, add curry leaves, crushed black pepper, green chilies. Fry for a minute. Add onion and fry till they turn brownish.
Drain water off the daal and add it to the onions and fry for a minute. Now drain off the water from the rice and add it to the mixture and fry for few seconds. Add 8 cups of water (for 1 cup rice, 8 cups of water should be added).
Add coconut, chopped coriander and salt. Close the lid of the cooker and cook for 2 whistles. The Pongal should be in semi-liquid state when cooked.
Serve hot with HuLi gojju or Mosaru bajji.