Chammandhi (coconut) Podi - a Kerala Special ! Grated coconut - 2 ½ - 3 cups ( fully developed coconut is a must) Urad dhal - 3/4cup Tamarind - lemon size Red chillies - 7,8 Hing - 1 tsp Salt Oil - 2 tsp Roast dry coconut on a medium flame first & then on low flame till it turns light brown. Roast in oil the red chillies & urad dhal first till the dhal turns light brown. Thean add tamarind & hing. Switch off & cool. Grind everything to a powder with salt.
Vellaval (Jaggery Aval) - a recipe from " time immemorial" ! Medium thick poha (aval) 1 cup Grated coconut ½ - 1 cup Powdered jaggery 1 ½ cups (or to taste) Cardamom powder 1 tsp Chopped cashews 2 tbsp Ghee 2 tbsp Grind the poha in the mixi to a coarse grain like consistency. Add the same volume of water to soak (the volume will vary slightly for different types of poha) Add ¼ cup of water to the jaggery, boil & strain. Allow this to boil. When it becomes slightly syrupy,add the soaked poha breaking lumps if any. Mix well add coconut & cardamom powder. Cook till moisture dries up. Remove &add chopped cashews fried in ghee. This can be made in the microwave easily. Note: The idea of grinding in the mixi is to give the final product a more “ puttu-like” texture. If you prefer, you can use poha directly. I am posting the photo to show that even an old fashioned dish can be made to look attractive in a get-together with simple “ dressing up".
Elai-vadam - Can be " fan-dried" ! Boiled rice - 1 cup Raw rice - 1 cup Salt, hing Ajwain or white seasame seeds - 2 tbsp Wash & soak rices together overnight. Next morning grind very fine with salt, adding water. Allow to stand for 24 hrs. Grind again the same ground paste, for just 5 mts. Add hing & ajwain or seasame seeds. Dilute to thin dosa batter consistency. For steaming elai-vadam stands are available now or you can spread a thin 4’ circle in a banana leaf. Steam well. Then arrange them all over a cloth & fan-dry completely. Since they are steamed, they dry faster than raw karuvadaams. The photo is posted below - some raw ( few with red chillies) & some fried.
Puliyogare Powder - Courtesy, my Bangalore friend ! Fry each separately in a kadai adding 1 tsp oil only for red chillies: Gram dhal - 1/3 cup Urad dhal - 1/3 cup Red chillies - ¾ - 1 cup ( to taste) Jeera - 1 ½ tbsp Pepper - 1 tbsp Hing - 2 tsp Methi seeds - 2 tsp Seasame seeds - ½ cup Copra - ½ cup Haldi - 1 tsp Other ingredients: Tamarind - 50 gms (big orange size) Jaggery - 1/3 cup Rock salt - ¼ cup To temper: Oil - 4 tbsp Mustard seeds - 2 tsp Roasted peanuts - ½ cup ( more or less, to your taste) Cashewnuts - ¼ cup Curry leaves - few Tamarind can be (1) made into small pieces, roasted dry in a kadai or microwaved (2) small pieces can be deep fried crisp Grind the roasted ingredients with tamarind, salt (also lightly fried) & jaggery. Heat oil, temper given ingredients, add the powder & mix thoroughly. Remove, cool & bottle. Keeps in the fridge for 2 months. Whenever required add the powder to cooled rice along with a little salt, fresh curry leaves & some raw oil.
This sounds very good Chitraji. Sounds easy and more practical than the puliyogare gojju. Shall try it soon. Thanks for another gem of a recipe
Thankyou, Kamla ! Dear Kamla, Just when I was planning to post it, somebody asked for T N pulikachal. Since I did'nt want similar recipes to follow in quick succession, this was in cold storage. Vidya's letter made me post this immediately. Love, Chithra.
Aval Karuvadam - many may not know it ! Poha or aval - 2 litres Sago - 1 cup Lime - 3 – 4 White pumpkin - 3 cups (grated & squeezed to remove excess water) Finely chopped coriander leaves - 1 cup Grind to a paste: Green chillies - 15-20 ( or to taste) Salt, hing. Cook the sago in water till it dissolves completely. Cool, add the ground paste. Wash & drain the poha completely. Add to the cooked sago. In 10 mts it will become like a dough. Add well squeezed pumpkin, lime juice & allow to stand. Take small quantities in a bowl, add little water & “ pinch “ into small portions. Sun dry very well.
difference between raw rice and boiled rice and normal eating cooked rice? Hi1 Can u please tell me the difference between raw rice and boiled rice and the normal cooked rice which we eat daily. I know how boiled rice looks but cannot understand what is raw rice and how to differentiate.
Hello Swati ! Dear Swati, If you are from South India - this explanation will be understandable for you. Raw rice is " pacharisi" ( not cooked) which we cook into rice or saadam. Boiled rice ( that is also not cooked) is in tamil " puzungal arisi" which is generally used for tiffins like idli. It is also called parboiled rice. Rice with the brown cover ( nellu in tamil) is cooked whole & then the rice is separated as white grains. This is called boied rice or parboiled rice. I will be happy if somebody can explain it still better ! Love, Chithra.
Ragi Morkali - a special diabetic dish ! A brief mention of morkali is given in " old is gold" thread - no: 11. This is prepared just like rava morkali, but a little less oil is sufficient. Ragi flour - 1 cup Sour butter milk - 1 cup Water - 1 cup Salt Hing 1/2 tsp To temper: Oil - 2 tbsp Mustard seeds - ½ tsp Urad dhal - 2 tsp Curd chillies - 7,8 Curry leaves - few Keep ragi flour mixed with buttermilk, water, salt & hing ready. A whisk is very good for this. Heat a kadai, add oil & the tempering ingredients. When the chillies are almost black, add the mixture with one hand, thoroughly whisking with the other hand. Keep on stirring till halwa consistency is reached. Empty on a greased plate. When cold, cut into pieces. Variation: If you do not have curd chillies, you can use half red chillies & the rest green chillies.