Gongura Pachadi

 

The bell rang, I opened the door. A small girl was holding a bouquet. The bouquet was hiding her face. She gave it to me.

What she was holding a bunch of gongura leaves, not a bouquet.

I smiled, and I thanked her. It was my neighbour’s daughter. My neighbour had sent across this bunch they had picked up from a shop.

I was making this pachadi for the first time and didn’t know what to expect. Let me tell you this - the leaves are tangy. Really really tangy. And I loved it! The pachadi tasted better the next day and it was the star of the meal.

I have been hunting for these leaves ever since and have never seen it around. It’s available all year through (as is the case with almost all vegetables now), but its best in summer.

Check out what others are doing for the month long marathon at the Blogging Marathon page.

Recipe source: Cooking 4 All Seasons

Ingredients:

• Gongura leaves             :        a bunch, washed and cleaned
• Green Chillies               :         6-8 (or more depending on the sourness of leaves)
• Salt

For tempering

• Red chillies                 :          3-4
• Mustard seeds            :          1 tsp
• Urad dal                       :          1 tsp
• Onion                           :          1 small chopped
• Hing                             :          a pinch
• Garlic cloves               :           2-3
• Oil                                :          2 – 3 tbsp

Method:

1. Wash and clean the leaves. Pluck the leaves and discard the stems. Let the leaves drain in a colander.
2. In a kadai, heat about one tbsp of oil and saute the leaves and the green chilies till they change color completely and are soft. Keep aside. You can also cook this by adding half a cup of water and letting it boil.
3. Once its cool, grind this to a coarse paste with salt. Do a taste test and add more salt if needed. If the leaves are really tangy, then you need to increase the spice level.
4. In a kadai, add another tbsp oil and once its hot, add the hing, mustard seeds, urad dal. Once it crackles, add the chopped onion, garlic and red chilies. Saute till brown, Add the ground gongura leaves to this and saute for 5 minutes.
5. You can serve this as a pickle or mix with rice like a podi. Tastes good both ways.

Vazhakka Pulissery

Summer is officially here, till now what we had been just prelim rounds. You feel as if you will just melt away if you are in the sun. If you are in the house, you feel stuffy and sweat a lot.

A whole lot of cooling recipes will be included in the daily cooking. Our fridge is loaded with ready-made squashes, curd in a hundred small bowls and lots of buttermilk.

Yogurt features a lot in summer cuisine. A mor – kuzhambu (or pulissery as its known in Kerala) is one way of using up excess yogurt. You can add a whole lot of varieties of vegetables to it, I have used raw bananas here. You can use slightly ripe bananas, ripe mangoes, yam, ash gourd, pumpkins or a combination of these.

Check out the recipes from other participants for this month’s 30 day marathon in the Blogging Marathon page.

Serves : 2-3

Ingredients:

• Raw bananas (or vegetables of your choice)  :         2 cups, diced
• Yogurt                                                                    :          1.5 cups
• Turmeric Powder                                                 :         1/4 tsp
• Salt

To grind:

• Coconut grated                                    : 1/2 cup
• Green Chilies                                       :  2
• Jeera                                                      :  1/2 tsp

For tempering:

• Oil                                                         :   1-2 tsp
• Mustard seeds                                    :   1 tsp
• Fenugreek seeds                                :    1 tsp
• Red chilies                                           :     2
• Curry leaves                                        :    5-6

Method:

1. In a pan, add the diced banana pieces. Add water till the vegetables submerge, turmeric powder and salt. Cook until vazhakka is soft when touched. Don’t over cook, though.
2. Grind the coconut with chilies and jeera. Once the vegetable is cooked, add this paste to it and bring it to a boil. Cook for 2-3 minutes. You may have to add water if there isn’t enough in the pan.
3. In the same mixie jar, blend the yogurt for a few seconds. You can do this in a bowl too using a ‘mathu’ or whisk. Basically you need to break the yogurt so that no lumps remain.
4. Add this to the boiling curry and let it cook for a minute in low heat until it reaches the boiling point. You will have to stir to avoid the yogurt from splitting/curdling.
5. Take the pan off the heat once it reaches boiling point. Even if the pan sits in the hot stove, yogurt might split.
6. In a small tadka pan, heat the oil and add the red chilies and mustard seeds. Once the seeds crackle, add the fenugreek seeds and curry leaves. Once it turns brown, take off the heat and add to the pulissery.
7. Serve with rice and a side dish.

Aloo Gobi Mattar – Cauliflower with peas and potatoes

I was looking for ways to use up the single cauliflower that was left in the fridge. A little bit more rustling through the freezer and some peas too showed up to be used. Added some potatoes which were shouting ‘pick me up please’ and made an easy curry for dinner.

Dumped the left over in the fridge and served with dosas the next morning. Surprisingly, it paired very well with dosas and I loved that combination than with chapatis..It was almost like a gobi masala dosa.

So relish this curry made with winter vegetables (though its available through out the year now a days!) and check out what others are serving for this month long marathon.

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• Cauliflower florets            :          2 cups
• Diced potatoes                  :           2 cups
• Green peas                         :           1 cup
• Onion                                  :           2 big
• Tomatoes                           :            3 big
• Ginger garlic paste          :             1 tsp
• Coriander powder           :            1 tsp
• Chili powder                    :             1 tsp
• Garam Masala                 :             1/2 tsp
• Salt
• Oil
• Turmeric powder           :             1/4 tsp

Method:

1. In a microwave safe bowl (or in a pan), add the roughly chopped onions and tomatoes and ginger garlic paste with a spoon of oil. MW high for 3-4 minutes until everything is cooked. Let it cool and then grind it to a paste, keep aside.
2. Steam the cleaned cauliflower florets, diced potatoes and green peas for about 7 minutes or until its cooked, yet firm.
3. In a kadai, add one tbsp of oil. Add half a tsp jeera seeds and once it splutters add the onion-tomato paste. Once it starts to boil, add the chili, coriander powders and salt. Mix.
4. Add the cooked vegetables and two cups of water. Let it come to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and let it simmer for 5 minutes. You may have to add more water if you want a gravy curry.
5. Do a taste test, adjust seasonings. Add garam masala and coriander leaves. Give a final stir and cook for 2 more minutes. Serve hot with rotis.

Mixed Bean Vegetable Chili

My brother is in Bangalore and we are in Chennai. Visits are common since it’s just 6 hours of travel. Many a times I have packed sleeveless t-shirts for my son then find out that its shivering cold (for us, at least) in Bangalore.

Being used to Chennai’s tropical hot weather, cool weather is not something we are used to. So now a days the standard practice is to call my SIL and ask for the weather status there.

Whatever she says, I pack all the full sleeve or half sleeve t-shirts and pants. And if its past October, I carry the jacket too. Just in case, you know!

So for someone who is used to Summer all through the year, presenting Winter foods is something funny. Yet, here I am, with another winter recipe – Vegetable Chili. This pairs very well with basmati rice.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page to find out who else is participating in this month’s 30 day marathon.

Recipe Source: All Recipes

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• Mixed beans (pulses)           :          500 gms (cooked weight)
• Tomato puree                        :          200g (1 packet) or 4 tomatoes pureed
• Vegetable stock (or water) :           300 ml ( 1.5 glass)
• Onion                                     :            1 diced
• Capsicum                               :            2 diced
• Pickled jalapeno                 :            8-10 pieces
• Garlic                                      :            1 tsp crushed
• Coriander powder, chilli powder, cumin powder :      1 tsp each
• Bay leaf                                  :            1
• Olive oil                                 :            3 tbsp
• Salt and pepper

Method: 

1. I had picked a packet of dried mixed beans from Nilgiris supermarket. It was a mix of chana, small rajma, dried green peas and some other varieties.
2. Wash and soak the mixed beans for about 6 hours or overnight. Pressure cook the next morning for about 4-5 whistles or till the beans are completely cooked. Keep aside. Once this is cool, it can be frozen too.
3. For the chili, heat the olive oil in a big pan. Add the onions and garlic and saute till pink. Add the diced capsicum and the spice powders. Cook for 3-4 minutes stirring often. Add a spoon of water if the masalas stick to the bottom of the pan.
4. Add tomato puree and bay leaf. Once it comes to a boil, add the beans, stock, jalapeno and seasonings. Bring it to a boil. Cover with a lid and reduce the heat. Let it simmer and cook for another 20-30 minutes, checking the seasonings and adjusting in between as needed.
5. Serve on a bed of cooked basmati rice along with a salad.

Linking this recipe to Swathi’s Favorite Recipes hosted this month by Pallavi. The theme is Bookmarked Recipes.

Fresh Garlic Chutney and Dal

 

I have never really thought about seasonal foods. The reason could be because we have only one season with three varieties.

We have Summer, Peak Summer and ‘Not so hot’ Summer. And that covers all the 12 months of the year.

But if you strain your brain, then you will find patterns that you have been doing all your life and yet never realized it.

Peak summer means ice cream and juices. And a lot of yogurt based curries too - not only because yogurt is cooling, but also because it turns sour faster in summer. Water melons and Mango also mark the beginning of Summer here.

There is no concept of winter foods, since there is no winter. Yet the rest of the world celebrates different food for different seasons. So join me this week as I share with you some of the seasonal foods.

Kick starting this week of Blogging Marathon with fresh green garlic chutney and a dal with green garlic tempering. I bought this from (yes you guessed it right!) Ahmedabad during our BM 25 Meet.

Fresh green garlic is available only in winter there and I had never seen it before. I prepared this meal in February but kept it in the drafts sections since Valli mentioned seasonal foods for BM 27.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page to know the seasonal foods other participants are posting today.

Recipe Source: Tri Daali Dal and Green Garlic Chutney from Ribbon’s to Pasta’s 

For the Chutney:

Ingredients:

• Fresh green garlic      :         250 gms
• Green Chillies             :         4
• Salt
• Ghee                             :         2 tbsp

Method:

1. Wash and clean the garlic. Grind it along with the chillies and salt.
2. Heat ghee in a pan, bring it to smoking point and turn off the heat. Add the ground garlic paste to it and cover the vessel with a lid.

For the dal:

Ingredients:

• Split green gram                        :              1 cup
• Bengal Gram                               :              1/4 cup
• Split black gram (black urad) :              1/4 cup (I used moong dal, since I didn’t have this!)
• Tomato                                        :             1 big, chopped into chunks
• Green Chillies                             :             2
• Ginger                                           :             1″ piece
• Turmeric powder                         :            1/4 tsp
• Salt

Tempering:

• Ghee                                            :          3 tbsp
• Fresh garlic                                :          a handful
• Coriander leaves                      :            handful
• Hing                                           :            a pinch

Method:

1. Wash and soak the dals together for an hour or so. Add chopped tomatoes, chopped chillies and ginger, turmeric powder and pressure cook with enough water (to cover the dals plus one inch more).
2. Pressure cook for two whistles and then reduce the heat to minimum and cook for another 5-10 minutes. The dals should be cooked thoroughly. Mash with a ladle for everything to mix. You may have to add some water and boil the dal, to get it to the correct consistency.
3. In a separate small pan, heat ghee. Add hing and fresh green garlic and let it sizzle. Take off the heat and add it to the dal. Add handful of coriander leaves too and cover with a lid until its time to serve.

Pazham Pori- Banana Fritters

The mail came sometime in December with a request for response within two weeks. And I replied almost two months later, that too after getting a reminder.

I am talking about the mail from Pallavi, who blogs at Cook-Eat-Burrrp regarding this space being featured in her series ‘Beyond the URL‘.

Yeah, you read it right. This space( ie, My Kitchen Trials) being featured in her space!!

First I thought it was spam, then I decided it was a mistake. But still,the mail took my vanity to a whole new level. Coming to think of it, I don’t think I even sent a proper response to her mail, I was that shocked!

Soon, I started pondering over the questionnaire. ”Tell us something about yourself”, it read. And I wrote “My name is Rajani”.

So, now you know why I took two months to finish off the entire thing! It was ‘one word a day’ for a long time :-).

In case you are interested in reading the whole (errrr…..) interview (I can’t believe it even now!!Really!), head out to Pallavi’s space and read it at leisure.

I am serving ‘Beyond the URL’ along with a plate of Pazham pori, something you can never say ‘No’ to! Check out the recipe and the link when you have time. And check out the Blogging Marathon page to know what other participants are doing!

Ingredients:

• Ripe bananas. : 2
• Maida(AP flour) : 1 cup
• Sugar. : 2 tbsp
• Turmeric powder : 1/4 tsp
• Oil. : to deep fry

Method:
For this recipe, the nendran variety of bananas are used. And the riper it is(without being mushy), the better.

Prepare the batter first. Mix the flour, sugar, turmeric powder with a pinch of salt. Add about a cup of water and make a batter which is a bit thinner than idly batter or cake batter consistency.

The batter should coat the banana slices without falling off totally. You might have to add a bit more of water if the batter is thick or a bit of flour if it is too thin.

Heat oil for deep-frying.

Peel and cut the banana into two. Cut each piece lengthwise into four pieces. So totally, you will have 8 thin, kind of rectangular, pieces.

Dip one sliced piece in the prepared batter and deep fry till golden. Repeat with other pieces.

Serve hot with a steaming cup of tea.

Attukal Pongala

The minute Valli said that the second week’s theme for BM 27 is going to traditional, I knew I wanted to write about Attukal Pongala.

This is a yearly festival which falls sometime in late Feb or early March. Ladies from all over the state come and make an offering of pongala to the goddess. You can read about this more here and check out some well captured pictures here.

For me, this is also a time to catch up with two of my old room mates. The three of us try to make it at least every alternative year, if not every year. Our conversation is usually limited to a few standard statements. “My fire is running out, let me light from yours” or “my eyes are burning” or “when will the water boil?” or “do you think it’s burning?”, but it’s still comforting to be with them and do this together whenever we can.

Making the pongala is like going back in time, before the cooking gas or kerosene stove entered the kitchen. You will be cooking in a clay pot (a new one), you will make a stove out of bricks and use dried leaves Of the coconut tree as fuel for the fire.

Even the ingredients are usually not measured using glasses and all. It’s again the old method of ‘boil the water, add the rice’ kind. Now a days, you even get Pongala kit, which consists of half kilo rice, some jaggery and ghee and nuts.

When you put the rice in the pot, you ask for the Godess’s blessing. There is a magnetic pull to participate every year.

It’s a tradition which I would like to keep alive as long as I can.

These are clicks from my neighboring area where a lot of ladies made Pongala.

I usually cook only in one pot, but there are many who make 50 or even one hundred pots of Pongala. They do this in really small pots, with about a handful of rice in each pot.
 

Ingredients:

• Raw rice                                    :       1/2 kg
• Jaggery                                      :      1 big ball, powdered
• Ghee                                           :      200 gm
• Banana                                      :       2 small
• Cardamom                                :      1/2 tsp
• Cashews,raisins                       :      1-2 tbsp each
• Coconut                                     :      1/2 cup, optional

Method:

1. The first task is getting the fire going on. Once that is done, fill the pot with water until its half full.
2. Wash the rice and when the water comes to a boil, add the rice. Let the rice cook. You will have to stir in between. You can add some ghee also.
3. Once the rice is cooked and the water boils and spills over, add the jaggery. Mix and then add all the other ingredients. Stir frequently till its cooked. Stop feeding the fire once the payasam is almost done.

Join me in a thirty-day marathon with twenty plus other members. Check out the Blogging Marathon page for more details.

Patra

Kiddo’s annual summer vacation started last Wednesday. And the very next day, I packed my bags, dumped in all of kiddo’s toys in it and headed home.

My brother, SIL and my two-year old niece, Bhagus, were already here when I reached. Kiddo was really looking forward to playing with Bhagus and has been talking only about her for the past one week.

Bhagus was also looking for ‘anna…anna…anna..’ in the whole house from the day she came.

So happiness was in the air when these two met. A lot of hugging, kissing, excitement and offering of toys to each other happened.

Exactly an hour later, kiddo came to me and said:”I don’t want Bhagus for my cousin!”. I could hear a faint:”Anna docha venda” (translated by her mom as: Don’t give dosa to anna”), sound from the kitchen.

And so the summer vacation started. At moment there is a break since my niece has left for Bangalore. I am looking forward to the events that will take place when she will be back a month later.

Coming to the recipe here, its Patra(or Paatra), an anytime snack  made with gram flour and colocasia leaves. This post is under the traditional recipes for Blogging Marathon 27. Check out the others here at the Blogging Marathon page.

Recipe Source: Ribbon’s To Pasta’s

Serves :    4 – 6

Ingredients:

• Colocasia leaves         :        4
• Gram flour (besan)   :       1 cup
• Chilli Ginger paste.  : 1/2 tsp
• Chili powder             : 1/2 tsp
• Jaggery                      : 1/2 cup
• Tamarind                  : 2-3 tbsp
  Salt

Method:

• Prepare the leaves first. Wash the leaves thoroughly and then carefully slice off thick veins, if any,on the backside of the leaf. Make sure not to tear the leaf while doing this.
• Mix everything except the leaves in a big bowl and add water to make a thick paste. Add salt to taste.
• The paste should not be runny, it should be of a dosa batter or cake batter consistency.
• Apply this paste on the backside of the colocasia leaves. You have to fold both the sides by two inches to the centre. Fold two inches from the top. Then roll the leaf into a tight roll, like a Swiss roll.
• Steam for about 8-10minutes till done. Once its cool, slice these. Prepare a tadka of curry leaves, mustard leaves and sesame seeds in about a tablespoon of oil. Add this to the sliced paatra and serve.

Poricha Kootu

Every family has its own traditions.

Me and hubby have started this new practice of going for a walk after dinner. Its time to unwind and connect with the family.

At my place, it was having your meals together. My brother is specific about this even now.

At my in laws place, they have this tradition of making poricha kuzhambu and keerai masial every Saturday.

Slowly, I find that Fridays are Poricha kootu days for me, because I end up with a little of each vegetable and I find it easier to use it up for a kootu. You can use any vegetable that you use for Avial here.

Check out the recipe and tell me one tradition that your family follows.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for more recipes from fellow participants.

Serves : 4-6

Ingredients:

• Mixed Vegetables       :          2 cups (Carrots, beans, raw banana, potatoes, chow-chow, cucumber, snakegourd etc)
• Moong Dal                   :          1/4 cup (optional)
• Mustard seeds            :          1 tsp
• Curry leaves                :          5-6
• Oil                                 :          1 tsp
• Salt

To grind:

• Coconut                        :         1/2 cup
• Green chilies               :         1
• Cumin seeds/jeera    :          1 tsp
• Black pepper              :          2 (optional, it’s usually not used)

Method:

1. Wash the vegetables, peel and dice them into same sized pieces. Wash the dal. Pressure cook the vegetables and dal together with a pinch of turmeric powder and 1 cup water for about 2 whistles, or until cooked.
2. Grind the coconut, chilies and jeera with 2-3 tbsp of water to get a smooth thick paste.
3. In a kadai, pour about a tsp of oil, add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Once it crackles, add the cooked vegetables along with the water its cooked in. Add the coconut paste and salt. Let it come to a boil.
4. Do a taste test and adjust seasonings. This is a mild curry, but still if you want to increase the spice level, add half teaspoon of chili powder. If you want it as a gravy, add some more water and let it come to a boil.
5. Serve with rice, pickle and papad.

Carrot Halwa – Gajar ka Halwa using Delhi Carrots

The day i made this halwa, i was traveling to Trivandrum. We had guests coming over and i had made this for them as dessert. In the hurry burry, i forgot to click pictures of the halwa. And i was almost rushing out of the door and then came running back home, clicked a picture of the halwa and then ran out again.

And not only the fact that i made a desert for our guests that made this halwa special for me, I used the carrots I bought from Ahmedabad, where I was for our BM 25 Meet.

Funny I am doing the post too in a hurry, because in another ten minutes, we have to leave to catch our train to Trivandrum. Poor hubby is left to fend for himself in this hot and sweaty Chennai.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page to know all about our monthly culinary adventures :)!

PS: I meant it when I said I am in a hurry. So will be updating the recipe later.  (Done…finally!)

Serves :  8

Ingredients:

• Carrots                 :              1 kg
• Milk                      :              1 ltr
• Sugar                    :              1/2 kg
• Ghee                     :              2-3 tbsp
• Cardamom powder     :   a pinch
• Cashews, raisins          :    1-2 tbsp each

Method:

1. Wash, peel and grate the carrots. I minced them fine in the food processor.
2. Add 3/4 th of the milk and the grated carrots directly in a pressure cooker and cook for 3 whistles.
3. Once the pressure drops, check whether the carrot is cooked completely. You may have to add the rest of the milk if the carrots look really dry. Else you needn’t add it.
4. Add the sugar, cardamom powder and cook, stirring now and then to avoid burning. Once it starts getting thick, stir frequently. When almost all the moisture is absorbed, the halwa is done. Take off the heat.
5. In a small pan, add the ghee and roast the cashews, raisins. Add this to the halwa and mix.
6. Serve hot with a scoop of ice cream, it’s a great combination!