Kootu

1. Poricha kootu:

Poricha kootu is usually prepared with the Pudalangai (snake gourd). We rarely get this vegetable in the place where I live. So whenever I find this vegetable in the market I buy it to make Poricha kootu.

Ingredients:

• 500g Pudalangai (snake gourd)
• 50g moog dal (pasi paruppu)
• 1 cup grated coconut
• ¼ tsp hing (asafoetida)
• 1tsp black pepper powder
• 1 tsp jeera (cumin seeds)
• 1-2 red chilies (dried)
• Salt to taste
• 2 tsp rice flour (for thickening)

For tempering:

• 2-3 tsp oil
• ½ tsp rai (mustard seeds)
• 2tsp udar dal
• 1 sprig curry leave

Method:
Wash and cut the Pudalangai (snake gourd) vertically and slice it.
Cook moog dal and keep it aside. In a copper bottom vessel or in a non stick vessel cook pudalangai with salt and hing.Add enough water to cook the vegetable. Now grind the grated coconut, jeera, and red chillies with little water. Transfer this ground masala paste into the cooked dal. Pour this mixture into the boiling vegetable. Add 1 tsp black pepper powder to the boiling kootu. Stir it now and then. Make thin paste of rice flour with little water and pour it into the boiling kootu. Let it boil for one more minute, and then remove it from the flame. Temper it with rai, udar dal and curry leaves. Now the Poricha kootu is ready.

If you cannot grind the masala just heat the oil in a kadai and add rai, udar dal, jeera, red chillies. When the rai splutters add grated coconut and curry leaves. Sauté it for one minute. Then temper it into the kootu.

Kuzhambu (Sambar) variety

Kuzhambu (Sambar) which we Iyengars call it as Negizhcurryamudu, because it is a gravy preparation. It is prepared with tamarind (imli), lentils (dal), masalas, and vegetables like brinjal, lady’sfinger (okra), raddish, drumstick, white pumkin, yellow pumkin, capsicum, carrot, onion, sweet potato, spinach etc. There is slight difference between kuzhambu and sambar. Kuzhambu is prepared either with kuzhambu podi (sambar powder) or by tempering the ingredients. Sambar is prepared with freshly ground masala with coconut.

1. Pulikeerai: (Spinach with tamarind and dal)
Pulikeerai is prepared by tempering the below given ingredients. Sock tamarind (imli) in water for ½ an hour and extract the juice. Keep it aside. Cook tur dal about 100 g with ¼ tsp haldi. Wash and chop 250g of spinach. Wash and cut 50g of okra (lady’s finger) and 4 medium size brinjal into small cubes.

Ingredients:

• ½ tsp rai (mustard seeds)
• 2 tsp udar dal
• ½ tsp hing (asafoetida)
• 4-6 green chillies (chopped)
• ½ tsp fenugreek (methi)
• 4-6 tsp oil

Salt to taste.
2 tsp rice flour.
Method:
Heat the oil in a kadai. Add rai, udar dal, hing, methi and chopped green chillies. Let the rai splutter. Then add okra and brinjal and sauté them for 1 minute. Add spinach . Pour imli extract into the spinach mixture. Add salt to taste. Let it boil for sometime. Add cooked tur dal and let the whole thing boil for few more minutes. Stir it now and then. Take 2 tsp of rice flour in a cup .Make it a paste by adding little water and pour it into the boiling spinach. Stir it thoroughly and let it boil for 1 more minute. Now the pulikeerai is ready.
Take a spatula full of cooked rice in a plate and add 2-3 ladles full of pulikeerai, mix them with ½ tsp ghee (butter oil). Have it along with side dish Poricha kootu

Pakode

Green peas-corn-chickpea pakode
Winter is the time when we get fresh green peas, sweet corn, green chickpea, tender onion and tender garlic. So one evening I thought of making pakode with these. To my surprise it tasted Yummy. So why don’t you try this and have it along with a cup of coffee.

Ingredients:

• 2-cups sweet corn (sheared from cob)
• 1-cup green peas
• 1-cup green chickpeas
• 3 tender onion
• 2 tender garlic
• 4 green chilies
• ½ inch ginger
• 1-teaspoon black pepper
• 2 sprig curry leaves
• Few green coriander leaves

Oil to fry
Salt to taste.

Now grind all the above ingredients into thick paste by adding little water. Transfer this dough into a bowl. Add salt to taste. Now add channa flour (besan) little by little to the dough and whisk it thoroughly till the water in it is completely absorbed.

Method:
Heat the oil in a kadai. Keep the flame in medium. Make small balls of this dough and deep fry them till they turn into light brown in color. Serve them hot with tomato sauce.

Beetroot Kurma

BEETROOT KURMA
Being a sweet vegetable beetroot can be eaten both raw and cooked. As per nutritionist the cooked beetroot has more nutrient value than raw. We make salads and soup with beetroot. My family likes beetroot kurma along with chapattis. Try this recipe and enjoy your lunch or dinner.

Ingredients:

• 2-beetroots (medium size)
• 2-potatoes
• 1-cup green peas
• Salt to taste (1-2 teaspoons)
• Hand full of green coriander leaves.
• 5-6 tablespoons of oil to cook the masala
  

For grinding masala

• 2-onions
• 2-tomatoes
• 7-8-cloves of garlic
• ½ inch ginger
• 4-green chillies
• ½ cup grated coconut
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ teaspoon dania
• 1-teaspoon saunf (aniseed)
• ½ inch cinnamom
• 2 cloves of loung
• ½ teaspoon poppy seed (kuskus)
• 2-cardamoms (elaichi)
  

For tempering

• ½ teaspoon rai (mustard seed)
• Few curry leaves.
• 1-teaspoon oil

Method:
Peel potatoes and beet root. Cut them into small cubes. Cook with peas by adding enough water in a cooker.
Grind all the masala into thick paste.In a non-stick kadai pour 5-6 tablespoons of oil and cook the masala paste for few minutes. Add salt. Mesh the cooked vegetables and pour it into the boiling masala. Stir it thoroughly. Lower the flame. Cook for few more minutes. Temper the kurma with rai and curry leaves. Garnish it with green coriander leaves. Serve with hot chapattis or parotas.

Chocolate Aval (Poha) Payasam.

Iyengar means Tamil vaishnav Brahmin

Cooking food is an art. Most recipes contain the same vegetables, dals, spices, etc. But the taste differs the way one cooks food. At my home my boys tell me that if I cook food in a hurry it tastes yummy.... but it would not be the same if I cook the same recipe in a lazy and leisurely mood. As the tradition is at Indian households, I learned to cook from my mother and my mother-in-law. Eventually I picked up some interesting recipes from other relatives and friends.But I have tried new recipes of my own too. Here I would like to share with you, some of my own methods of preparing food .


CHOCOLATE AVAL(POHA) PAYASAM.

Ingredients.

• 1-cup aval(poha)(rice flakes)
• 3-cups milk.
• 1-cup sugar.
• 7-8 teaspoons chocolate powder--(drinking chocolate powder or milo or any that you use at home for your children)
• 4-tablespoons ghee (butteroil)
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom and joifal (jadikai/nutmeg) powder.
• Roasted cashewnuts,raisins,badam.
• 1-small apple
• 1/2-banana - sliced

Method

First rinse the aval(poha) and soak it in water for half an hour., In a non-stick kadai roast cashewnuts,raisins,badam in (butter-oil) ghee and keep them aside. Now in the same kadai pour 3-cups of milk and boil it till it is reduced to half the original quantity. Then add 1-cup of sugar and let it boil for 3-4 mins. Now add 7-8 teaspoons of chocolate powder and stir the mixture throughly. Add ghee to it and let it boil for 1 min. Next add the soaked aval(poha) into the boiling mixture. Stir the mixture constantly till it becomes thick. Now add cardamom and joifal powder. you can now switch off the flame.
Garnish with sliced apples, bananas , roasted cashewnuts, raisins and badam.



Serve hot.