Kaipakya fry

Kaipakya or Pavakka is better known as bitterguord for its characteristic bitter taste. This is one vegetable which most of the people hate. Me too.. But there are some dishes that tastes wonderful. One such simple recipe is here...

Ingredients:
Kaipakya - 150 grams
Chilly powder - 25 grams
Oil - 20 grams
Curry leaves - few
Salt and turmeric powder to taste.

Method:

• Finely chop the kaipakya.
• Add enough water and cook the kaipakya. 
• When the kaipakya is almost cooked, add salt and turmeric powder and cook for another minute.
• Switch off the stove and drain the extra water. This water will take away most of the bitterness of kaipakya.
• Now spread the cooked kaipakya in a plate and sprinkle the chilly powder on top of it evenly and leave it for about 10 minutes.
• In a kadai pour oil. Once the oil is heated add the curry leaves.
• Add the kaipakya and fry for about 15-20 minutes.
• keep stirring every 1 minute, so that all the sides of the kaipakya is fried.

Serve with curd rice or rasam rice.

Aval Upma

This is a quick to make breakfast/evening snack and hence often finds it place in our dining table.
Here goes the way I make it.

Ingredients:
Aval: 100 grams
Onions: 30 grams
beans: 25 grams
carrots: 25 grams
green chillies: 5 grams
ginger: 5 grams
Turmeric powder and salt to taste

To temper:
Oil: 10 grams
Mustard: 5 grams
Urad dal: 3 grams

Method:

• Wash the aval, soak in water for about 5 minutes. Squeeze the water out, spread it in a plate, sprinkle little salt and keep it aside.
• Fine chop the onions, beans, carrots, green chillies and ginger.
• In a kadai, pour oil and add mustard. Once the mustard splutters, add the urad dal and fry until the dal turns slightly pink.
• Add the onions, green chillies and ginger and saute until the onion turns translucent.
• Add the beans and carrots as well as the salt and turmeric powder and mix well. Sprinle little water, cover and cook until the beans and carrots are cooked.
• Add the aval and mix well until the vegetables and aval are evenly mixed.

Aval upma is ready to be served.

Note:
We can garnish the aval upma with curry leaves and coriander leaves. I didnt have stock of this.
Add lemon juice if people love tangy taste.

Beef Biriyani

I am not a fan of beef. But people at home love it. So I manage to prepare some stuff.
This time I had some cooked beef in my refrigerator and quickly made a biriyani. Not sure if this can be called a biriyani since I made this with boneless meat and didn't follow the conventional steps. But people at home loved this. So thought of publishing the same and here goes the recipe.

To cook beef:
beef: 250 grams
ginger/garlic paste - 25 grams
chilly powder - 25 grams
garam masala powder - 15 grams
coriander powder - 30 grams
Turmeric powder and salt to taste

Ingredients for biriyani:
Basmati rice - 250 grams

Onions – 75 grams
Tomatoes - 50 grams
Green chillies – 10 grams
Ginger-Garlic paste – 10 grams
Ghee – 10 grams
Fennel seeds – 2 grams
Cloves – 2 grams
Cardamom – 1 no
Cinnamon – ½ inch
Star anise – a piece
Nutmeg – 1 gram
Bay leaf – one
Coriander leaves – few
Cashewnuts - 20 grams
Raisins - 20 grams
Salt – to taste

Method:

• Cook the beef with the ingredients mentioned in "To cook beef" and keep aside.
• Wash, the rice. Drain and keep it aside.
• Crush fennel seeds, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, star anise and nutmeg.
• Finely chop onions, green chillies and tomatoes.
• In a pressure cooker, add the ghee. Add the cashewnuts and raisins. Fry until they turn brown. Drain and keep aside.
• Add the remaining ghee to the pressure cooker. Add the bay leaf, chopped onions, green chillies and the ginger-garlic paste. Saute for about a minute.
• Add the tomatoes and fry for about a minute.
• Add the rice and saute for about 2 minutes until nice aroma comes out.
• Add the cooked beef and the required amount of water. 
• Let the water boil and reduce to half the amount.
• Now close the pressure cooker and cook for one whistle.
• Open the pressure cooker and garnish with coriander leaves, fried cashews and raisins.

Enjoy beef biriyani with raita and papadam!!!

Linking this recipe to favourite rice recipes event guest hosted by Sweet 'n' Savoury!!!

Podavalanga vellari koottu curry

I was checking some old recipes in my blog and realized that exactly a month ago I published my first post.  I should say good going for a month. Felt happy. I would like to thank all the readers and blogger friends who have given me valuable feedback.

Kootu curry is a traditional dish in the southern side. It is again a dish made out of a combination of coconut, lentils (gram dal or green gram dal), and vegetables which have more of water content in them like ashgourd, snakegourd, bottlegourd etc… I tried this recipe with snakegourd and Kani vellari. Kani vellari is another form of cucumber.

 Ingredients:

Kani vellari – 400 grams

Podavalanga – 150 grams

Gram dal – 50 grams

Cumin seeds – 5 grams

Coconut – 50 grams

Red chillies – 2 nos

Turmeric powder and Salt to taste

To temper:

Oil – 10 grams

Mustard – 5 grams

Curry leaves – few

Method:

• Soak the gram dal for about 30 minutes.
• Chop the Kani vellari and Podavalanga.
• In a pressure cooker, add the gram dal and the chopped vegetables. Add salt and turmeric powder and pressure cook for about 2 whistles.
• Meanwhile coarsely grind the coconut, cumin seeds and red chillies.
• Add the grinded coconut paste to the boiled vegetables and gram dal and allow it to boil. Add water accordingly.
• In a kadai, pour oil and add mustard. When the mustard splutters add the curry leaves. Pour this into the koottu curry.

Koottu curry can be served as a side dish for rasam rice or it can be had with chapathi also.

Pottukadala Chamandi – Roasted gram Chutney

I wanted to make some different chamandi for dosas and came up with this recipe. Pottukadala or odachakadala is normaly available at homes. And I have heard in most of the hotels in tamil nadu they use pottukadala to make chutneys so as to lessen the amount of coconut…

Ingredients:

Pottukadala - 50 grams

Coconut - 50 grams

Small Onions (shallots) - 20 grams

Red chillies - 2 nos

Ginger - 5 grams

Tamarind - a small sized ball

Salt to taste

To temper:

Oil - 5 grams

Mustard - 2 grams

Curry leaves - few

Method:

• In a non-stick kadai, pour little oil, add onions and ginger and saute until the onions are translucent.
• Add the red chillies and tamarind and saute for 2 more minutes.
• Grind the pottukadala, coconut and the sauted items with salt.
• Add water as required.
• In a kadai pour oil, add mustard seeds.
• When the mustard splutters add curry leaves and pour this into the chutney.

Serve with hot dosas or idlis…

Vellari Morucurry

Morucurry (malayalam) or Morkuzhambu (Tamil) is a dish made as an accompaniment for rice. This is a dish made from coconut and curd. We can use various vegetables for this like ashgourd, ladies finger, etc… This time I used Kani vellari...

I pressure cooked the vegetables and hence the preparation time was very less when compared to the Vazhakka Morkuzhambu that I have posted earlier. Here goes the recipe...

Ingredients:
Kani Vellari – 500 grams
Tomato – 50 grams
Coconut – 100 grams
Curd – 100 grams
Green chillies – 2 nos

Turmeric powder and Salt to taste

For Tempering:
Oil – 10 grams (Coconut oil preferably)
Mustard – 5 grams
Red chillies – 2 nos
Curry leaves – few

Method:

• Peel and Chop the Kani Vellari into bigger cubes. Pressure cook kani vellari along with chopped tomatoes, alt and turmeric powder.
• Grind the coconut, green chillies. Add the curd little by little while grinding. Add the total curd finally at the end and whip once.
• Add the ground paste to the cooked vegetables and ad water as required and allow it to boil.
• Switch off when the curry starts to boil. Don’t allow it to boil because the curd it will curdle.
• In a pan, pour oil. Add the mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds splutter, add curry leaves and red chillies. Saute for about a minute and add this to the gravy.
• Mix just before serving.

Serve hot with rice and some dry side dish!!!

Vendakka Sambar

The other day I had some cooked toor dal in the refrigerator and with this I made sambar in about 10 minutes. Here goes the recipe

Ingredients:
Toor dal - 50 grams
Tamarind - one lemon size ball
Ladies finger - 50 grams
Onions - 50 grams
Tomatoes - 25 grams
Sambar powder - 10 grams
Turmeric powder and Salt to taste.


For Tempering:
Oil – 10 grams
Mustard – 10 grams
Cumin seeds - 5 grams
Curry leaves – few
Red chillies - 1 no

Method:

• Pressure cook the toor dal until soft and mushy. I usually pressure cook toor dal and store it in refrigerator so that I can quickly make some curries.
• Chop the ladies finger, onions and tomatoes.
• Microwave the chopped vegetables for about 3 minutes. Add salt and sprinkle little water while microwaving.
• In a kadai, pour oil and add mustard. When mustard splutters add Cumin seeds, Curry leaves, Red chillies. Fry for about a minute.
• Add the tamarind paste,  turmeric powder and salt. Let the mixture cook for about 2 minutes until the raw smell of the tamarind goes off.
• Mash the toor dal with the back of a ladle and add this to the tamarind paste.
• Also add the cooked vegetables and mix well.
• Let the sambar boil. 

Instant sambar is ready!!! Serve hot with rice...

Pacha payar sundal

Here goes the recipe for one of the favourite evening snack made from green gram.

Ingredients:

Pacha payar (green gram) – 100 grams

Grated coconut – 20 grams

Green chillies – 2 nos

Oil – 5 grams

Mustard – 5 grams

Channa dal – 2 grams

Curry leaves – few

Turmeric powder and salt – to taste

Method:

• Soak the pacha payar for 8-10 hours or overnight.
• Pressure cook the pacha payar with salt and turmeric powder for one whistle and simmer for about 2 minutes.
• The pacha payar need not be very mushy.
• In a kadai, pour oil and add the mustard.
• Once mustard splutters, add the channa dal, curry leaves and slit green chillies.
• Fry for about a minute. Add the grated coconut and fry for about 2 minutes.
• Add the cooked pacha payar. Mix well and keep for about a minute.

Hot sundal is ready!!

This would also be a great side dish for curd rice or Kanji... 

Paneer Capsicum Pulav

I love packing some mixed rice to lunch. I generally do some combinations of available vegetables, spices and rice. This is one such innovative combination which I tried and it turned out to be fabulous. I ended up eating this rice without any side dish!!!

Ingredients:

Rice – 150 grams

Capsicum – 50 grams

Paneer – 100 grams

Onions – 75 grams

Green chillies – 10 grams

Ginger-Garlic paste – 10 grams

Ghee – 10 grams

Fennel seeds – 2 grams

Cloves – 2 grams

Cardamom – 1 no

Cinnamon – ½ inch

Star anise – a piece

Nutmeg – 1 gram

Bay leaf – one

Coriander leaves – few

Salt – to taste

Method:

• Wash, the rice. Drain and keep it aside
• Crush fennel seeds, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, star anise and nutmeg.
• Finely chop onions, green chillies and capsicum. Chop the paneer into cubes.
• In a kadai, pour half of the mentioned ghee and fry the paneer cubes until they turn slightly yellow.
• In a pressure cooker, add the remaining ghee. Add the bay leaf, chopped onions, green chillies and the ginger-garlic paste. Saute for about a minute.
• Then add the capsicum and the rice. Saute for about 2 minutes until nice aroma comes out.
• Pour the required amount of water. Add salt and the crushed spices.
• Allow the water to boil. Then add the paneer. Close the pressure cooker.
• Wait for one whistle, then simmer the stove and keep the pressure cooker for 2 minutes.
• Switch off. After cooling, open the cooker and garnish the rice with coriander leaves.

An interesting lunch pack is ready! Serve this with raita of your choice.

Note:

You can also add the fried paneer in the end along with the coriander leaves. I felt by adding the paneer with the other spices, the paneer also had absorbed the flavours of the spices and gave a good taste.

Since I took only about 15 minutes to prepare this variety rice, I am posting this for Fast & Quick Healthy Dishes by Kalpana Sareesh who is guest hosting the event for Priya - Priya's Versatile Recipes

Baby potatoes fry - Microwaved

The other day I prepared this in about 7 minutes and it was a great hit!!!. So sharing the steps with you all.

Ingredients:
Baby potatoes - 200 grams
Red chilly powder - 10 grams
Oil - 5 grams
Salt - to taste

Method:

• Peel the baby potatoes.
• In a microwave sage bowl, put the peeled potatoes.
• Sprinkle salt and a teaspoon of water.
• Cover and microwave high for about 5 minutes.
• In a kadai, pour oil. Add the microwaved potatoes and red chilly powder.
• Fry for about 2 minutes or until the potatoes turn slight brown.

This is a very good accompaniment for lemon rice, curd rice and also rasam rice.

Note:

• If we don't cover and microwave, the potatoes would be dry.
• This can be done for normal potatoes also. The potatoes would have to be cut into pieces and microwaved.

Oats Upma

Oats has gained entry in our kitchen... So my first preparation is oats upma. It was delicious...

This would be a very healthy breakfast item since I made this with just one spoon oil!!
I followed my steps of making normal upma, just replaced rava with oats...

Ingredients:
Oats - 100 grams
Carrots - 50 grams
Beans - 50 grams
Onions - 25 grams
Tomatoes - 25 grams
Green chillies - 5 grams
Ginger - 5 grams
Salt - to taste

To temper
Oil - 5 grams
Mustard - 2 grams
Urad dal - 2 grams

To Garnish:
Coriander leaves
Mint leaves

Method:

• Dry roast the oats for about 5 minutes and keep it aside.
• Finely chop all the vegetables.
• In a kadai, pour oil, add mustard.
• Once mustard splutters, add urad dal, finely chopped green chillies, ginger and onions.
• Saute for about 5 minutes until the onions turn translucent.
• Add the remaining vegetables. Add salt and sprinkle a handful of water.
• Cover and cook until the vegetables are cooked.
• Now add the oats. Again sprinkle a handful of water.
• Cover and cook. Oats get cooked very soon. So the dish should be ready in about 2 minutes.

Garnish with coriander leaves and mint leaves and serve hot.

OATS UPMA is ready!!!

Maida dosa

I make this dosa whenever I get up late in the mornings.... So one of the breakfast items that goes on weekends. 

Ingredients:
Maida flour - 250 grams
Curd - 100 grams
Baking powder - a pinch
Oil - to grease
Salt to taste

Method:

• Mix the maida flour, salt and curd.
• Make the batter consistency like dosa batter. Add water if needed.
• At the end add the baking powder, stir and keep aside for 10 minutes.
• In a dosa pan, pour the batter and make slightly thick dosas.
• Grease with oil or ghee.

Maida dosa ready in minutes!!! These dosas turned out to be very soft...

Kadala Chamandi - Peanut Chutney

I tried this chutney for the first time and it tasted great. Dosas ran away in a jiffy!!!

Ingredients:
Peanuts - 50 grams
Coconut - 50 grams
Onion - 20 grams
Red chillies - 2 nos
Ginger - 5 grams
Tamarind - a small sized ball
Salt to taste

To temper:
Oil - 5 grams
Mustard - 2 grams
Curry leaves - few

Method:

• In a nonstick kadai, fry the peanuts for about 5 minutes. Remove their skin. Keep aside.
• In the same kadai, pour little oil, add onions and ginger and saute until the onions are translucent.
• Add the ginger, red chillies and tamarind and saute for 2 more minutes.
• Grind the peanuts, coconut and the sauted items with salt.
• Add water as required.
• In a kadai pour oil, add mustard seeds. 
• When the mustard splutters add curry leaves and pour this into the chutney.

Kadala chamandi is ready!!

Lemon Rasam

A simple recipe for rasam

Ingredients:

Toor dal – 50 grams

Tomatoes – 50 grams

Rasam powder – 10 grams

Lemon – 1

Green chillies – 2 (slitted)

Turmeric powder and salt  - to taste

To temper

Ghee – 5 grams

Mustard – 2 grams

Cumin seeds – 2 grams

Curry leaves – few

Coriander leaves – few

Method:

• Pressure cook the toor dal until it is soft and mushy.
• Chop the tomatoes and microwave for about 2 minutes.
• Mash the toor dal and cooked tomatoes nicely.
• In a kadai, add the mashed toor dal, rasam powder, salt, turmeric powder, green chillies.
• Add sufficient water and allow it to boil. Switch off the flame.
• In another kadi, add ghee.
• Once the ghee is hot, add mustard.
• After mustard splutters, add cumin seeds and curry leaves. Transfer this to the rasam.
• After about 5 minutes add lemon juice.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Paneer butter masala.

 I remember in our school days, whenever we went to a restaurant, the first thing we ordered was naan and paneer butter masala. This was a very famous north Indian dish which we all loved and north Indian dishes were a rarity at home. Ah well times change…

Ingredients:

Onion – 75 grams

Tomatoes – 50 grams

Paneer – 100 grams

Ginger – 5 grams

Garlic – 5 grams

Milk – 50 grams

Butter – 25 grams

Cloves – 2 nos

Cardamom – 1

Cinnamon – 0.5 inch

Fennel seeds – 2 grams

Coriander powder – 10 grams

Chilly powder – 10 grams

Turmeric powder and salt to taste

To garnish

Coriander leaves

Mint leaves

Butter – 5 grams

Method:

• Chop the onions and tomatoes.
• Dice the paneer into cubes
• In a kadai, add half the butter.
• Fry the diced paneer until it turns slightly brown. Drain and keep it aside.
• Add the remaining butter. Once the butter heats, add onions, garlic, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, fennel seeds.
• Saute for a few minutes until the onions are mushy. Now add the tomatoes and sauté for about 2 minutes.
• Remove from heat. Cool and grind this into a fine paste.
• In the same kadai, add this paste and add the milk, turmeric powder, salt, coriander powder, chilly powder.
• Mix well and let it boil. Now add the fried paneer and let it boil for another 1 minute.
• Remove from flame. Garnish with coriander leaves and mint leaves.

Before serving drop in a spoon of butter in the bowl and then serve.

This dish is a good combination for rotis, chapathis, naan and alo with ghee rice.

Sarkkara payar

Made a quickie sweet the other day, since I had some boiled pacha payar (green gram) ready. Kiddoos would love this.

Ingredients:

Green gram (pacha payar) – 50 grams

Jaggery – 25 grams

Coconut (grated) – 20 grams

Cardamom powder - little

Salt – a pinch.

Method:

• Soak the green gram (pacha payar) overnight.
• Pressure cook the green gram until it is soft and mushy.
• In a kadai, add the jaggery and little water. Let the jaggery melt.
• Add a drop of milk to remove the impurities.
• Let the jaggery boil for about 2 minutes.
• Add a pinch of salt, the coconut and the boiled green gram.
• Stir and let the mixture thicken.
• Add cardamom powder and remove from heat.

Serve hot or cold.

Cabbage Capsicum thoran

I thought of not publishing this since this is a very simple recipe. But just now received a comment that “side dish is awesome. Liked it better than the plain cabbage thoran”. This would also join the healthy diets list.

So here goes the recipe.

Ingredients:

Cabbage – 500 grams

Capsicum – 150 grams

Turmeric powder and salt to taste

For tempering:

Oil – 2 grams

Mustard – 2 grams

Green chillies – 1 slitted

Curry leaves – few

Method:

• Finely chop the cabbage and capsicum
• In a kadai, pour the oil. Add mustard, once it splutters add the green chillies and curry leaves.
• Add the chopped cabbage, capsicum along with salt and turmeric powder.
• Sprinkle a handful of water. Cover and cook on low flame.

Cabbage capsicum thoran is ready.

Note:

We can add onions and coconut to make the thoran interesting.

Vellaiappam.

Vellaippam oe Appam (Aappam in Tamil) is made in various ways. I am posting one of the ways which I regularly follow. This is a very favourite breakfast item in Kerala. Oflate people have started including this for parties also.

Ingredients:

Raw rice – 250 grams

Coconut – 25 grams

Yeast – 5 grams

Sugar – 5 grams

Salt to taste.

Method:

• Soak the rice for about 4-5 hours.
• Heat half a glass of water. The water should be luke-warm and not hot.
• Add sugar and yeast and mix well. In a few minutes time you should start seeing the yeast rising up.
• After about 10-15 minutes froth will be formed.
• Grind the rice and coconut into a fine paste.
• Mix the yeast water and leave it aside for about 6-8 hours.
• The batter should have fermented and risen up.
• Just before making the appams ad salt and mix well.
• The batter should be little thin unlike the dosa batter.

• To make appams you need a appachatti which is actually a shallow bottomed kadai.
• Heat the appachatti.
• Pour one ladleful of the batter and rotate the appachatti so that a thin layer forms on the sides and the centre is bit thicker.
• Cover and cook. Appam is cooked only on one side.
• The middle part will be fluffy and the sides would be crisp and thin.

Serve delicious velaiappam with stew.

Tri colour Rice

Yippee my 25^th post……… In 15 days… not bad eh..

Now over to the recipe.

I was thinking for some time what to name the rice variety that I had made, since it is not pulav but similar to pulav. It’s not fried rice but the ingredients are the same. After thinking for some time I named it the tri colour rice since the major ingredients are carrot, beans and rice.

Ingredients:

Raw rice /Basmati Rice – 200 grams

Carrots – 75 grams

Beans – 75 grams

Onions – 50 grams

Tomato – 30 grams

Coconut – 20 grams

Urad dal – 5 grams

Gram dal – 5 grams

Coriander powder – 5 grams

Green chillies – 3 grams

Spices

Cloves - 4

Cardamom - 2

Cinnamon – 0.5 inch stick

star anise - 1

Bay leaf - one

nutmeg - little

Fennel seeds - 2 grams

To garnish

Ghee – 5 grams

Coriander leaves

Mint leaves

Method:

• Wash the rice, cook it with 2 cups of water and little salt. Transfer the cooked rice to a large bowl and allow it to cool.
• Chop the beans and carrots to fine pieces. Microwave these for about 3 minutes.
• Dry roast all the ingredients listed in the “spices” along with gram dal, Urad dal, Coconut, Coriander powder. Cool and grind these.
• Chop the onions and tomatoes.
• In a kadai pour a little ghee, add the chopped onions and sauté for about 2 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, salt and cooked vegetables. Sauté for another 2 minutes.
• Now add the powdered mixture and sauté for about 2 minutes.
• Mix with rice and garnish with coriander and mint leaves.

Tri colour rice is ready to be served.

I served this with paneer butter masala curry and beet root raitha.

Note:

• I generally add tomatoes to most of the dish I prepare. Tomatoes can be avoided.
• I used French beans which has a bright green colour and ooty carrots which has a nice orange colour.

Ladies finger – Microwaved

Oflate many people have become diet conscious. Need to be since our day to day life involves very few to no exercise and the traditional food we consume is very rich in carbohydrates and fats.

But then we should not avoid fats completely. Because these are essentially needed to absorb certain minerals/vitamins which are soluble in fats.

So here I am starting a series of low carbohydrates/low fat and healthy recipes which I follow.

Ingredients:

Ladies finger (okra) – 250 grams

Coriander powder – 2 grams

Garam masala powder – 2 grams

Chilly powder – 2 grams

Oil – 2 grams

Salt – to taste

Method:

• Wash, dry and chop the ladies finger into smaller pieces.
• In a microwave safe bowl, put the chopped ladies finger, add the needed amount of salt and microwave for about 5 minutes.
• In a non-stick kadai, add the oil. When the oil heats up a little, add the powders and stir.
• Now add the cooked ladies finger and stir fry for about 2 minutes.

Low fat ladies finger is ready! This would be a nice accompaniment to sukha chapathi.

Note:

100 grams of raw ladies finger has 31 kcal.

1 gram of fat/oil has 9 kcal

Maladu

This is my favourite sweet. I remember in my school days I used to visit one of my friend’s house in particular on Diwali eve to have this sweet because maladu was always there in her mom’s Diwali list. I found that this is very easy to make recently and tried it for this Diwali. I am sure henceforth maladu will always be there in my Diwali sweets list.

This sweet is made from fried gram (odachakadalai/pottukadalai) and can be made in minutes.

Ingredients:

fried gram dal (odachakadalai/pottukadalai) – 2 cups

Sugar – 1.5 cups

Ghee – 1 cup

Cardamom powder – 2 grams

Cashewnuts – 5 grams

Method:

• Grind the fried gram dal along with the sugar into a nice powder in a mixer.
• Transfer the powder into a bowl.
• In a pan, heat a little ghee, fry the cashewnuts until brown and add this to the bowl.
• Heat the remaining ghee and add this to the bowl.
• Mix the mixture well with a spoon. Make sure the ghee has spread evenly to the complete mixture.
• Now make small balls of this mixture. Make the balls when the mixture is hot/warm otherwise the powder won’t stick together.
• If the mixture goes cold, heat it once again and then make into balls.

Delicious maladu is ready. Serve after about an hour or so, because the ladus will harden a little.

Khara Sev

I have not seen this snack in the Diwali list of savouries at many places. This is rather considered a tea time snack. This is a simple recipe and spicy too.

Ingredients:

Gram flour - 200 grams

Rice flour – 75 grams

Red chilly powder – 20 grams

Ajwain (omam) – 5 grams

Cumin seeds (Jeera) – 2 grams

Pepper – 2 grams

Asafotida (hing) – little

Oil – to fry

Turmeric Powder and Salt to taste

Method:

• Dry roast the Ajwain, Cumin seeds and Pepper and powder these coarsely.
• Sieve the gram flour, rice flour and remove all lumps.
• In a bowl, mix the gram flour, rice flour, salt, turmeric powder, powdered mixture and hing. Mix evenly.
• Add little by little water and mix the ingredients to get a dough which can be pressed using the traditional mould.
• In a large bottomed kadai, pour oil and heat. Check the heat of the oil by dropping a little dough and if it raises immediately then the oil is ready.
• The mould to be used is called thenkuzhal mould. It has slightly larger holes compared to the oma podi /idiyappam mould.
• Put the dough in the press and mould and press it in hot oil.
• Try to make smaller pieces of khara sev if not make a big one like murukku and later break it off.
• Allow the khara sev to cook in oil . Keep the heat medium to low.
• Cook the khara sev until the bubbles in the oil stops.
• Drain and place it on a tissue paper to remove excess oil.
• Store in a air tight container.

Spick Khara Sev is ready!!!

7 cup Burfi

I tried this sweet for the first time. It came out pretty good and family/friends also appreciated this. This made my day rather made my Diwali!!!

I chose this recipe from Kaveri and Roshni. I chose this because the recipe has few ingredients and the procedure is very simple. The only apprehension was when to transfer to the greased tray. If we transfer it a bit early we would get a halwa like consistency and if we are late the barfis would be very hard. I guess I managed it.

So here goes my version. Didn’t deviate much from the links that I referred to.

Ingredients:

Besan – 1 Cup

Scraped Coconut – 1 Cup

Milk – 1 Cup

Ghee - 1 Cup

Sugar – 3 Cup

Method: 

• Sieve the besan and make sure the besan doesn’t have any lunps.
• Grease a tray or a plate and keep aside.
• In a heavy bottomed Kadai, add the besan, scraped coconut, sugar, milk and ghee. I used a nonstick kadai.
• Mix all the ingredients well. Place the Kadai on heat, and start cooking on medium heat. Keep stirring.
• After a few minutes the mixture will become smooth and will start boiling.
• You can also cook on high heat until the mixture starts boiling, then on medium heat thereafter.
• Keep stirring. Don’t stop stirring otherwise the mixture will become hard on one part alone.
• In the next stage, the mixture will start thickening.
• Keep stirring. Next the mixture will get thick, and leave the sides. The mixture becomes frothy on the sides.
• At this stage, remove from flame and transfer into the greased tray.
• There is one more way to find is the mixture is ready. Have a cup of cold water nearby. Drop a little of the mixture into the cold water. If the mixture retains the shape when touched upon, then it is the right consistency to remove from heat.

• Allow to cool for a few minutes, say 10-15 minutes and then mark the pieces with the help of a sharp knife, while still warm.
• Cool completely, (I waited for about 4 hours) remove the pieces carefully and store in airtight containers.

Delicious burfi is ready!!!