coriander thokku recipe

I learnt this delicious recipe from my aunt. Nowadays whenever this spicy tokku is prepared at home, I am remainded of my late father. This was was one of his favourite dishes. This goes very well with plain rice with ghee and also with Roti/chapati/puri/idly and dosa.

KOTHAMALLI THOKKU DRY

(FRESH CORIANDER LEAVES PICKLE DRY/PESTO)

INGREDIENTS

Coriander leaves - 1 bunch

Red Chilli  - 20 pcs

Urid dal - 2 tsp

Tamarind - ½ lemon size (10 gm)

Sesame oil - 5 tsp

Salt to taste

PREPARATION

1. Clean, wash and spread the coriander leaves in the cloth for an hour so that the moisture will evaporate.  (if we dry completely under the sun the shelf life will be more).

2. Roast chilly and urd dhal like golden colour with 1tsp sesame oil and keep aside.

3. Saute coriander leaves with 4tsp sesame oil until raw smell goes off  and keep aside for cool.

4. Powder coarsely the red chilly first.

5. Add coriander, tamarind, salt and grind without adding water.

6. Finally add urid dal and grind.

7. Make small balls and keep it in tight container.

Happy Cooking! 

-Jay

chenai setti masiyal recipe

When I was 8 or 9 years old, for summer vacation I visited my grandma's place in Chennai, then called as 'Madras' :) where I first tasted this dish and it was so well prepared, from that time I am extremely fond of this dish. This goes very well with roti, chapatti, pulka and also with  plain hot rice.

CHENAI SATTI MASIYAL (mashed yam stew)

INGREDIENTS

Yam - 200 gram

Toor dal - 25 gram

Lemon - 1 extract juice

Green chili - 2 cut into pieces

Urid dal - ½ tsp

Ginger pieces - ½ tsp

Grated coconut - 3 tsp

Asafoetida, Curry leaves, Oil and Salt

METHOD

1.      Pressure cook Yam and Toor dal separately with a pinch of turmeric powder.

2.      Smash yam and toor dal and keep aside.

3.      Heat thick bottom kadai with 1 tsp oil. (I use coconut oil which gives good aroma).

4.      Crackle mustard seed, urid dal and asafoetida.

5.      Add curry leaves, ginger pieces, green chilly, grated coconut and sauté for a minute.

6.      Add yam, toor dal and salt.

7.      Mix well and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.

8.      Switch off the stove and add lemon juice.

(here is a close up :) )

TIPS

1.      Just the addition of *tamarind juice instead of lemon juice, yam masiyal can get a different taste.

2.      *Extract little tamarind juice and cook until raw smell goes off.

3.      Other preparation are same as mentioned above

HAPPY COOKING!

-Jay

Babycorn masala

Yesterday I went for grocery shopping We bought some vegetables, raw mangoes, paneer, etc.  We were so tempted by the fresh baby corn in the vegetable shop. We decided to make some delicious side dish. Check out the BABYCORN WITH PANEER MASALA recipes and write to me your comments and suggestions.

BABY CORN MASALA

INGREDIENTS

Fresh Baby corn -  6 pcs cut into half

Fresh paneer -10 pcs cubes as you like

Tomato - 3 medium  

Carrot - 1 medium cut into pcs.

Onion - 1 medium

Ginger pcs. - ½ tsp

Green chilly -1 slit

Chilly powder - ¾ tsp

Coriander powder - 2 tsp

Garam Masala  - 1tsp

Cardamom  - 1

Cinnamon - 1"

Garlic flakes  - 3

Poppy seed - ½ tsp

Cashew nut - 6 to 8 pcs

Butter to fry and Salt to taste

GRIND
1. Soak poppy seed and cashew nut in a water for an hour and drain the water.

2. Add 1 boiled tomato & little milk and grind smoothly. Since the poppy seed and cashew nut make little quantity to grind, the boiled tomato is added.

METHOD 
1. Boil tomatoes, carrot and garlic. Keep aside carrot.  
2. Cool and grind smoothly with ginger pieces.

3. Heat 1tsp butter and sauté baby corn with pinch of black salt and keep aside.

4. Again heat 2 tsp butter add cumin seed, cardamom, cinnamon, green chili and finely chopped onion. Sauté until the onion changes colour.

5. Now add the tomato & garlic mixture, boiled carrot, red chili, coriander powder, garam masala and pinch of turmeric powder. Sauté until the raw smell goes off. 

6. Mix poppy seed and cashew nut ground paste and cook for 3 minutes.
7. Finally add baby corn and paneer and cook for 5 minutes.

8. Garnish with spring onion and butter. Serve as a side dish.

TIPS: Since we are using less butter/oil cook the masala in medium flame.

            If you want you can add butter more.

Happy Cooking!

         

stuffed brinjal roast + delicious Jay ho Brinjal event

Hello friends,
First of all a big thank you for sending so many entries for the jay ho Brinjal event!
I had been away from blogging due to some important happenings such as marriage of my daughter and a need to visit my mom etc., But then, I cant wait to share my new recipes with you all!
To start with, check this wonderful array of entries to the event:

jay ho brinjal 2010 - free slideshow

Here is the whole list of all possible combos with eggplant. I hope you do enjoy them all!

Also for my part here is stuffed brinjal recipe :)

Enna kathirikai is a classical favorite in many homes in South India. This recipe takes a some extra effort to make, but the taste is worth the effort! This could be used for inside stuffing for  Roti roll also.


KUTTI  ENNA  KATHARIKAI ROAST

(STUFFED SMALL BRINJAL ROAST)

INGREDIENTS

Small Brinjal - 500 gram

Sesame oil - 8 tsp

Mustard seed - ¼ tsp

Curry leaves few

Dry Roast the following and ground coarsely, add salt and it becomes curry powder for stuffing.

Toor dal - 1 tsp

Gram dal - 1 tsp

Urid dal - 2 tsp

Red chili - 8 to 10 pcs

Sesame seed - ½ tsp

METHOD 
1. Slice the brinjal into 4 pcs without  removing its cap.

2. Stuff the curry powder and keep aside.

3. Heat thick bottom kadai with 8 tsp sesame oil. 
4. Place the stuffed whole brinjal.

5. Sprinkle little water on top and cover with lid for uniform cooking.
6. After two minutes turn the brinjal other side without breaking.

7. Once the brinjal is finally cooked and roasted,  add remaining curry powder, pinch of salt  and  turmeric powder, 1tsp curd and curry leaves. 
8. Mix gently and serve as a side dish.

TIPS: Curry powder can be prepared and stored for stuffing in other vegetables also. 


We all love this recipe at home Try this and let us know how it was.


Happy cooking!

Jay ho Brinjal - September -December 2010 event

Prajusha's - Brinjal Vindaloo and thoran

Azee's - Eggplant Burji

Vidhya's - Poricha kuzhambu

Satya's - stuffed brinjal curry

Supriya's - Vangayache Kaap

Nandini's - brinjal mirchi ka salan

Priya's - eggplant paruppu curry

Anshu's - Dolma stuffed tomatoes

Akheela's - eggplant rice

Nivedita's - Brinjal masala

Ruby's - Chapate baingain

Leens' Brinjal fry and aubergine pachidi

Rumana's - brinjal deep fry

and finally my entry - stuffed brinjal roast

see you soon with another exciting event!



happy cooking,
Jay

Wheat Adai Receipe

WHEAT ADAI

INGREDIENTS

'Punjab' Wheat - 2 cups

Whole Black urid dal - ¾ cup

Toor dal - ¾ cup

Gram dal - ¾ cup   

Whole Green moong dal - ½ cup

Red chili - 2 pieces

Black pepper - 1 tsp

Urid dal broken -1 tsp (soak separately)

GRIND

1. Wash and soak wheat for 8 to 10 hours.
   
2. Wash and soak other dals separately with enough water.
   
3. Grind wheat finely.
   
4. Drain the water from dal and use the same for grinding.
   
5. Add soaked dals, chilly, pepper and  grind coarsely.
   
6. Adjust the consistency.
   
7. Add salt, asafoetida, curry leaves and broken urid dal
   

METHOD

1. Apply a drop of oil on the pan/tawa and allow to heat up.
   
2. Take 1 ladle of adai batter and spread thickly to the centre of the pan.
   
3. Put grated fresh ginger on top along with toppings as per your choice such as drum stick leaves or mint leaves.
   
4. Make a small holes at the centre and at the sides, add some sesame oil drops into them.
   
5. Allow to cook in medium flame.
   
6. Once the adai is cooked and turned roast, flip smoothly the other side and cook by putting tsp sesame oil.
   

Tips

1. Adding black pepper to the batter alone gives unique taste. Using red chili + black pepper is another delicious combination.
   
2. This is a wholesome food with  side dishes such as raita + fruits or vegetable salad + curd.
   
3. We can serve with grated paneer/cheese for kids.
   

For people who are dieting or diabetic and others who avoid rice, I formulated this receipe,

Hope you will also try it in your kitchen,
Happy Cooking!
-Jay

Palak Paneer Recipe

Living very close to the vegetable market makes it comfortable to pick fresh "Palak"/broad leaf spinach which is available only in the evening. I immediately use that up for dinner to make delicious "Palak Paneer" without Ginger-Garlic paste which is relished by all members of my family.

PALAK PANEER

INGREDIENTS

Palak/broad leaf spinach - 1 bunch (wash and take only the leaves)

Paneer - 100 gram cut into small cubes

Onion -1 medium size cut into small pieces

Green chili - 2 slitted

Cumin seed - ½ tsp

Garam Masala - ½ tsp

Coriander powder - ½ tsp

Cashewnut - 4 pcs 

Tomato blanched - 1

Butter to sauté, lemon piece and salt to taste

GRIND

1. Grind cashewnut and tomato and keep aside.

2. Chop palak and sauté with 1tsp butter, cool them and blend coarsely. Set aside.

METHOD

1. Place the paneer in hot water for 5 minutes, drain and keep aside OR sauté paneer pieces with 1tsp butter and a pinch of black salt.

2. With 1 tsp butter add cumin seed, green chili and onion and sauté till onion turns light brown color.

3. Add cashew nut & tomato mixture, garam masala, coriander powder and sauté for five minutes.

4. Mix blended palak and cook for just few minutes in low flame.

5. Finally add paneer, gently mix and cook for one more minute.

6. Serve with butter on top/lemon wedges. Goes well with rice/bread varieties.

Tips

This can also be prepared with ½ tsp Ginger-Garlic paste and should be added while sauting onion.

Happy Cooking!
-Jay

Kozhakattai recipe

Kozhakattai is a peculiar sweet or savory rice dish from South India. It is made specifically for festivals like Varalakshmi Vradam (celebrating the Goddess Lakshmi) or Vinayaka chaturthi or Ganesha Pooja (the birthday of the God Ganesha). In my childhood days at Shimoga (Karnataka)  after Ganesha Pooja, after eating a good number  of  kozhakattai at home, we as children used to make visits to many homes and temples possible where Ganesha Pooja was celebrated. The more Ganesha Pooja visited, the more blessed and powerful we felt. The next day at school, we discussed with our classmates who was the most powerful of us all!

Kozhakattai, as I mentioned in the beginning of this post, is a peculiar, multi-step dish. It is prepared by cooking a rice batter in low flame until it thickens. Then, the resulting dough is flattened, filled with sweet or savory stuffings and steamed. The resulting filled rice pouches are called kozhalattai. The recipes are definitely worth the effort. Like the old Indian advertisement jingle "No one can eat just one" :)

Given below are the recipes for sweet/savory and a baby-savory version called "ammani" kozhakattai. I have described the modern and traditional method of making these.
 

SWEET COCONUT KOZHAKATTAI
(Tamil to English: Kozhakattai - sweet or savory-filled rice pouches)
 

INGREDIENTS FOR 15 Nos

Raw Rice - 1 cup
Fresh grated coconut - 2 cups
Jaggery powder - 1 cup
Cardamom - 1 piece

COCONUT JAGGERY FILLING (POORNAM):

1. Boil jaggery powder with ¼ cup water.

         

2. Remove the sediments by filtering through a sieve.
3. Return the filtered syrup to the stove, mix it with the grated coconut and allow it to thicken by stirring continuously.

4. The resulting mixture should be as shown.

RICE BATTER/DOUGH

1. Soak the rice in water for an hour.
2. Grind the rice smoothly by adding some water.

3. Add 1½ cup of water, 1tsp oil and a pinch of salt (salt is optional).
4. Pour the mix in a thick bottom kadai (skillet).
5. Cook on a low flame by stirring continuously until you get a thick dough and it is almost 70% cooked (as shown in the picture above).
6. Cover with a lid and keep aside for 10 minutes.
7. The texture of the dough should be soft after 10 minutes. If not sprinkle some warm water on the top and knead into an even dough as shown below.

(In the traditional approach the water is brought to a boil, then rice powder added to it and cooked into a dough by stirring continuously)

8. Divide the dough and make tomato-sized balls.

9. Flatten the balls using a chapatti maker (tortilla maker) and place the coconut jaggery filling inside.

10. Alternatively, apply oil drops on your palms to lubricate. Take a rice ball and make a depression, by pressing the centre of the rice ball with your thumb finger. With the help of the other three fingers, lightly press and rotate until you get a cup shape (as shown above).

.
10. Bring the edges together as shown.

11. Steam cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes and serve.

SAVORY (SALT) KOZHAKATTAI

INGREDIENTS FOR 15 Nos

Raw Rice - 1 cup
Urid dal - 1 cup (50g)
Grated coconut - 4 tsp

SEASONING FOR SAVORY (SALT) KOZHAKATTAI:
Mustard seed ¼ tsp, Urid dal ¼ tsp, Asafoetida, pieces of green chili 1or 2 and salt.


METHOD:  Rice batter is same as mentioned in sweet kozhakattai. Stuffing and folding is different. Please see the photograph.



POORNAM FOR SALT KOZHAKATTAI

1. Wash and soak the urid dal for ½ hour.
2. Drain completely and grind coarsely with chili and rice.

3. Heat oil 2 tsp, and season with mustard seed, urid dal, asafoetida, green chili.

4. Add the ground mixture and salt.

5. Sauté continuously with manual mixing until the mixture is cooked.
6. Add the grated coconut and mix well.

7. The resulting mixture should be semi-dry as shown above.

Kids sometimes eat up the poornam alone, and from the left over rice dough we can make a delicious ammani kozhakattai.



AMMANI KOZHAKATTAI

1. Make mini balls with the left over kozhakattai rice dough. Please see the photograph below.

2. Season with 1tsp oil, mustard seeds, green chili and curry leaves.
3. Add the mini balls, grated coconut and salt.
4. Sauté for two minutes and serve
5. If the savory urid dal stuffing is left over, feel free to add it at the end.

Happy Cooking,
-Jay

 

 

 

thakkali dosa (tomato dosa)

This Independence Day (August 15th), we visited our family friend in Bangalore in Karnataka state. Their Grandma suggested that adding beaten rice (flattened rice flakes) gives a unique taste to tomato dosa, which normally I used to prepare without. This recipe is easy and will be a favorite amongst children!

THAKKALI DOSA (TOMATO DOSA)

(Tamil to English: Thakkali - tomato, Dosa - thin savoury crepe)
served with COCONUT/CORIANDER CHUTNEY

INGREDIENTS


Raw rice - 1 cup (50 gram measuring cup)
Parboiled rice - 1 cup  
Beaten rice - 1 cup
Fenugreek seeds - ½ tsp
Tomatoes - 5 to 6, medium size
Red chili - 4 pcs


Coconut/coriander chutney
Roasted gram (split-roasted chickpeas) - 4 tsp
Coriander leaves - 4 sprigs
Fresh coconut - 1/2 cup
Green or red chili
Salt

METHOD


1. Wash and soak raw rice, boiled rice, beaten rice and fenugreek seeds in water together for at least 1 hour.
2. Grind finely in a food processor along with the red chilies and tomatoes.
3. Add salt and mix well
4. Pre-heat a dosa tawa (or frying pan) and wipe it with a bit of oil.
5. Prepare a dosa following the instructions in my carrot adai recipe
6. Serve with chutney or any other gravy. For the chutney, grind coconut, roasted gram, green chili and salt. Add coriander leaves in the end and grind once more, so that the green leaf particles will be visible.

Happy cooking,
-Jay

manathakali vathakuzhambu (black nightshade in a spicy sauce)

"Vathal" in Tamil refers to vegetables soaked in a yoghurt-spice mixture and sundried for several days until its dehydrated completely. This "vathal" is used to make vathakuzhambu along with tamarind and sambar powder. During the last manathakali season, I prepared some manathakali vathal. So there I am posting proudly my recipe with some home made manathakali!*.

My daughters like manathakali very much. Now my son-in-law also joined this "like" group. Manathakali can be roasted with 1 tsp of ghee and mixed with steamed rice. Besides being extremely tasty, the manathakali, also aids digestion.

MANATHAKALI VATHAKUZHAMBU
(Tamil to English: manathakali - black nightshade, vathakuzhambu - spicy sauce)

INGREDIENTS


Home made manathakali -  ½ cup (50gm measuring cup)
Tamarind -  lemon size 20 gm soak in water and extract the juice
Sambar powder - 2 tsp
Sesame oil -  8 tsp
Red chili - 2, split in half
Mustard seeds ¼ tsp, fenugreek seeds ¼ tsp, turmeric powder ¼ tsp,
jaggery as per taste, asafoetida, curry leaves, and salt to taste




METHOD


1. Soak the tamarind in water (approx. 2 to 3 glasses) for half an hour, then extract the juice by gentle pressing.
2. Heat sesame oil in a thick bottom vessel, add the manathakali to it. Allow it to be roasted until golden brown, then season with mustard seeds.
3. Add fenugreek, chili, asafoetida, curry leaves, turmeric powder. Saute for one min.
4. Now add tamarind juice, sambar powder, salt and jaggery. Stir occasstionally and cook on medium flame until the raw smell of the tamarind goes off.
5. The final sauce should be semifluid.
6. Serve with hot rice or curd rice (recipe follows soon).

TIPS
 
1.Vathakuzhambu can be prepared with vegetables, dry herbs, kuzhambu vadams and vathal.
2. Vegetables like pearl onion**, drum stick, lady's finger/okra, pumpkin or mixed vegetables can also be added
3. The sauce can be stored in the refrigerator up to a week.
4. Manathakali vathakuzhambu plus keerai masiyal is the best combination with steaming white rice!

* manathakali "vathal" is prepared during the season, it can be stored for many years :).
**pearl onion - chinna vengayam

keerai masiyal (spinach puree with spices)

KEERAI PACCHAI MASIYAL
(Tamil to English: keerai - spinach, pacchai - green, masiyal - puree)

INGREDIENTS

Spinach - 1 bunch (arakeerai, mulakeerai, sirukeerai if you can get them OR use regional varieties of spinach)
Coconut oil - 2 tsp
Dried red chili - split into two pcs
Asafoetida, pinch of turmeric powder, mustard seeds, curry leaves and salt to taste


METHOD

1. Clean, wash and chop the spinach. 

2. Add ½ glass of water, a pinch of turmeric powder, ½ tsp oil and salt into a deep vessel, as its comfortable to mash the spinach in that.  

3. Mash with a wooden pestle*, until you get a gravy consistency. This will cook very fast.  Just sprinkle some more water if it is not sufficient while cooking. If you find this method too difficult or you have no time for it, just grind the cooked and cooled spinach in a food processor. Dont grind too much, so that you can taste the natural masiyal. 

4. Season with mustard seeds, red chilly, asafoetida and curry leaves. If you like, add ½ tsp cumin seeds. Serve as a side dish.

*(in Tamil maththu)

See you with a new recipe,
happy cooking,
-Jay

cheese ragi dosa recipe

 

Yesterday I was wondering what to cook for a quick evening tiffin/snack.
At 5 pm I decided the menu and at  6.30 pm finished eating plain ragi dosa with chutney.
But, when my daughter returned from office she wanted "cheese" dosa. No problem I had the batter ready :).


RAGI DOSA (PLAIN AND CHEESE)
(Tamil to English: Ragi - Millet flour, Dosa - thin savoury crepe)

served with COCONUT CHUTNEY

INGREDIENTS

Ragi dosa batter
Ragi flour - 3 cups
Urid dal - 1 cup
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp

Coconut chutney
Fresh coconut - 1/2 cup
Green or red chili
Salt


METHOD

1. Mix the ragi flour with 1 cup of water and salt until it becomes a smooth and wet batter. Keep aside.
2. Soak urid dal and fenugreek seeds for 45 minutes. Grind them together with a bit of water.
3. Mix the ground paste with the ragi batter and make a plain ragi dosa (You can find the spreading technique in my carrot adai recipe).
4. Flip to the other side and add 1tsp of oil to the sides. Allow to cook until soft or crispy as per your preference.
5. When it is ready serve hot with chutney. For the chutney grind all ingredients, season with mustard seeds and curry leaves.
6. For cheese ragi dosa prepare it soft and when both sides are cooked spread grated cheese on top of the dosa. Allow the cheese to melt and serve hot.

See you soon with different variations of Ragi dosa,
Happy cooking,
-Jay

Banana stem 'raita' (yoghurt dip)

VAZHATHANDU RAITA 
(Tamil to English: vazhathandu - banana stem, raita - yoghurt dip)

INGREDIENTS

Banana stem – 1 small (30 cm long)

Curd/yoghurt –  1 cup

Lemon ½

METHOD
1. Take a glass of water and add ¼ tsp lemon juice. The banana stem oxidies and changes color once cut.
2. Cut the banana stem into small pieces and immediately put into the water so that the natural cream colour of the stem will stay.
3. Whisk the yoghurt for 2 minutes and add salt. While serving, mash the banana stem with the back of a spoon, mix well and serve.

A refreshing raita for a summer lunch! Goes very well with carrot adai!

Happy cooking,

-Jay

Carrot adai (Rice-Lentil Pancakes)

I would like to share my memories with you of how the idea of making this nourishing and naturally colourful adai struck me. I had been to my mother's place at Shimoga (Karnataka State) for the birth of my first baby. I still remember the  pleasant, cool and mist-loaded day. My brother was grinding the "adai" batter and adding carrots to it. I savored the adai which was not only deliciously colorful but also loaded with all the goodness of the carrots. When my daughters grew up, I wanted to give them this nutritional and tasty adai instead of the regular one. Children always like colorful food on their plates. That's why I am always  concerned about food presentation, both the way it looks while cooking and also during serving. Because individual tastes are different, I included tips for making different varieties of adai according to the  requirement of your dear ones. Also, don't forget to check the other general tips for this recipe ;)

CARROT ADAI

INGREDIENTS:

Rice - 2 ½ glass
Toor dal - ½ glass  
Gram dal - ½ glass  
Moong dal - ¼ glass  
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp       
Broken urid dal - ¼ glass – soak separately
Red chilly - 10 pcs
Carrot - 2, medium size, peel and cut into pcs
Ginger - 3 tps, cut into small pcs 
Spring onion, Curry leaves, Coriander leaves and Asafoetida

PREPARATION and GRINDING:

1. Wash and soak rice, toor dal, gram dal, moong dal and fenugreek seeds for 2 hours.
2. Grind the carrots, red chilly and salt. Add the soaked rice and dal mix and grind coarsely.  
3. Add the broken urid dal and mix with the adai batter along with curry leaves, asafoetida.

METHOD:
1. Apply a drop of oil on the frying pan/"tawa" and allow to heat up.
2. Put 1 ladle of adai batter to the centre of the pan and spread it in a circular manner. Immediately put a small quantity of spring onions, ginger pieces, grated carrots (optional), coriander leaves on top.
3. Make small holes in the centre and four sides of the adai. Put some sesame oil drops in the holes. These will help the adai cook better, since its lentil-loaded. Allow to cook on medium flame.
4. Once the adai is cooked and turns golden brown, flip to the other side. Cook by dousing 1 tsp sesame oil on the sides or top. Flip once or twice. Serve with butter and jaggery.

TIPS:

1. Just adding broken urid dal w/o grinding adds to the taste and look.
2. We can make different varieties of adai by adding onions, fresh mint leaves, drumstick leaves, grated cabbage or very thin pieces of capsicum.
3. Adai batter should be a bit thicker than dosai batter (coming soon).
4. I don't grind the ginger pcs along with the other ingredients because it dominates the entire batter. By adding ginger on the top, we can relish the mild flavor of ginger.
5. Adai batter can be kept for a week in the refrigerator.  The adai tastes wonderful even when the batter ferments

My daughters always like to have adai with butter and milagaipodi (chilli-lentil powder). Also curd/yoghurt goes very well with this.


Dont forget to say how you liked this recipe. Do you make any other variations of adai in your kitchen? Let us know and do come back soon for my wheat adai recipe :)


Lets meet soon with my next post,

happy cooking!

-Jay