Vella Adai-Karadeiyan nombu recipe

Yes  I am back but I am always very slow in posting the recipes on time..I was meaning to post the recipe during the eve of karadaiyan nombu but being lazy that I am I kept on postponing and finally I am posting it hear…Along with kara adai We make vell adai and with butter as an accompaniment We serve it after neivedhyam to god…My mom is an excellent cook when it comes to making festival recipes and I again I phoned her and got the recipe and made it…



Ingredients:

Grated jaggery	1 cup
cardamom powder	1 tsp
grated coconut	1/2cup
boiled cowpeas/karamani	1/2 cup
raw rice powder	1 cup
ghee	1tsp

Method:

1.Take a wok and add the raw rice powder…Roast it in medium heat..Make sure you do not change the color…Collect it in a plate and allow it to cool.

2.In another wok add grated jaggery and water…Ensure you add water only till the jaggery gets immersed…Wait till the jaggery melts.,..Take a strainer and filter the jaggery water(this is to remove the impurities).

3.Again add the jaggery water in the wok,followed by cardamom powder and grated coconut..Wait till it boils..Add boiled cowpeas followed by rice flour…Stir it well…

4.At one stage all the flour will get completely mixed and it would become a solid mass but still with bit of moisture…Switch it off at this stage…Add ghee and mix the dough again..

5.When the dough becomes lukewarm make patties out of it…You can either create a hole or hole like impression..the choice is yours…

6.Steam it in idli steamer for 20 minutes…then take it out and cool it…Serve it :)

Notes:

1.Add only very little water to the jaggery…If the water is high then you will need to add more rice flour…

Neer Mor-Excellent thirst quencher for Summer

Neer Mor is an excellent thirst quencher for this summer…I am trying myself hard to avoid all the junky,oily,caustic food and replace it with juices and neer mor…Summer makes you to lose your energy so easily so always keep yourself hydrated with this sooper cool drink…Whenever there is a deficiency for curd mom converts the curd to neer mor…We even mix the neer mor with rice and have it as curd rice(or is it the butter milk rice :p )…Now off to the recipe.

 

Ingredients:

 

Curd	1 tbsp
Water	1 glass
Asafetida	a pinch
Salt	as needed
Coriander leaves(finely chopped)	1tsp
Green chilies(finely chopped)	1 small sized
oil	1/2tsp
mustard seeds	1/2tsp
ginger chopped	1 small piece finely chopped

 

Method:

1.Take 1 tbsp of curd and beat it so well.To the curd add 1 glass of water and again beat it so well..

 

2.To the curd mixture add asafetida,salt,chopped coriander and chopped green chilies.

 

3.In a wok add oil and once it gets heated add mustard seeds and allow it to splutter.Add this seasoning to the butter milk…Milk well.If needed you can chill it and serve it…

 

Notes:

Instead of adding chopped chilies and coriander leaves as is you can add chopped chilies,coriander and ginger pieces into a mixer and make a paste of it and add it to the buttermilk.

I did not add ginger.But it surely enriches the taste.

I have given only the rough quantities,please feel free to add and reduce the quantity as per your need.

Karadeiyan nombu special-Kara adai

When I was in my mom’s place amma use to make kara and vella adai for karadaiyan nombu…After marriage I heard from my MIL that they do not celebrate karadaiyan nombu…But still I had the urge to make these lovely adais and made it on a normal day…
Significance of karadaiyan nombu:
Savitri brought back his husband Sathyvan alive on this day from the hands of Yama…So all married women celebrate this nombu for the well being of their husband…Unmarried woman pray god to get nice life partner…Sacred yellow thread is tied around neck on this day…I remember chanting below sloka while We tied  the yellow thread.
Urugadha vennaiyum oradaiyum naantharuven
Orunaalum yen kanavar piriyamal yirukavendum

Kara adai and vella adai is made as neivedhyam…Butter is placed as an accompaniment ..




Ingredients:

Rice flour(making of rice flour is mentioned below)	1 cup
mustard seeds	1/2 tsp
grated coconut	1/2 cup
green chilies	2 medium sized
ginger	a very small piece
salt	as required
water	3/4th of a cup
oil	1 tsp
Cow peas/Karamani(soak it overnight and next day boil it and keep it ready)	1/2 cup

Method:

1.Soak raw rice in water for 2 hours..After 2 hours wash the rice and drain it from water…Spread the rice in clean cloth for  20 minutes…After 20 minutes take the rice and grind it to a fine powder,the rice will still have moisture at this stage…I usually give it in rice mill…

2.Take a cup of rice powder…Add it in a wok and dry roast it…Ensure it does not change the color…Take it in a plate.
3.Peel the skin of the ginger and roughly cut it into pieces…add grated coconut,ginger pieces  and green chilly and grind it to a nice paste..

4.In another wok add oil and once it gets heated add mustard seeds and allow it to splutter…add water and wait till it starts to boil…add the ground paste and allow it to boil for a minute…keep the stove in low flame and start adding the roasted rice flour and stir well…add boiled cowpeas at this stage..ensure that the water mixture is completely observed and u see more of the rice flour…It should be solid with moisture content in it…Allow the dough to cool.

5.Smear your hands with oil or ghee and mix the dough well.

6.Pinch a small ball from the dough..Form patties and if needed a little hole in  the centre or create an impression like a hole in the centre.

7.Arrange the patties in the idli steamer and steam it for 20 minutes or till it is cooked well.

8.Serve it hot :)

Note:You can also add lime juice to the cooked rice flour mixture before steaming.

How to make maa vadu-Seasonal recipes :)

My mom makes maa vadu during every summer.In addition to maa vadu she also makes vadams and this time she has sent me a big pack with lots of vadams in it :)I always follow my mom’s recipe as she exactly tells me the proportion and obviously the dish comes out well…When I saw fresh maa vadu in Mylapore market I could not control myself and got a  good quantity of it.Phoned my mom for the recipe and immediately made it.Here you go with the recipe.

Ingredients:

 

Fresh maa vadu	3 cups
Salt	1.5 cups or adjust accordingly
Turmeric powder	2 tsp or adjust accordingly
Red chili powder	1.5 cups or adjust accordingly

Method:

1.Wash the maa vadu well and pat it try with a kitchen towel and ensure it does not have any water.

2.Add the maa vadu in a plastic vessel…To this add turmeric powder,salt and red chilli powder and give it a good stir so that everything is mixed well.Close the vessel.

3.For 4to 5 days every morning and in the evening mix the content well so that it does not form any white layered foam which will spoil the recipe.By this time you will see maa vadu floating in the chilli salty water…All because of the added salt.

4.After 5 days replace the contents in a plastic bottle and store it in a refrigerator and start using it once the maa vadu has completely observed the salt and chili powder.

5.Once refrigerated it can hold good for approximately an year.

Notes:

1.I have given the approximate quantity of salt and chill powder because it many vary depending upon the maa vadu.So adjust it accordingly.The more salt and chili powder the maa vadu would look so slurpy and tasty.

2.Initially do not add the maa vadu in ever silver vessel as it may create a hole because of the salt content.I used a plastic vessel.So be careful with the vessel type that you use.

Savoury Appam and Karthigai Deepam a perfect pair

After reading the title people don’t smirk at me for not having posted this during the eve of Karthigai deepam…Yesterday after a short noon nap I felt I need to have something savoury and not sure why I longed for Appam…Immediately I called my mom for the recipe and she gave me the exact proportions…I followed it the same way and It turned out good…My mom makes this authentic dish on Karthigai deepam and I remember gobbling 10 at a stretch…No kidding 10 I tell you…So such is my love for this appam or call it Kara appam…My mom usually deep fries this in oil and makes this dish oily rich but I wanted to cut down some oil and so used my Paniyaram pan…Though the original recipe calls for the deep fry thing :)Now off to the recipe.

 

To make this you need:

Raw rice powder	1 cup
Maida/All purpose flour	1/2 cup
Wheat flour	1/4 cup
Sooji/Rava	1/4 cup
Salt	1 tsp or as per you need
Green chilies	2 medium sized
Grated coconut	1/2 cup
Oil/Ghee	1 tbsp
Water	1 cup or as per the need
Asafetida	a pinch
Curry leaves(finely chopped)	a spring
Coriander leaves(finely chopped)	1/4 cup

Method:

1.In a wide bowl add Raw rice powder,maida,wheat,flour,sooji and salt…Mix it well.

2.Using a mixer grind grated coconut and chilies…If needed you can add water and form a paste out of it.Add this paste to the flour and mix it well.

3.Add water to the flour and coconut mixture and form a batter similar to that of idli batter consistency.Make sure you see no lumps.Add asafetida,curry and coriander leaves and mix the batter well.

4.Heat panniyaram pan and grease the moulds with ghee.Pour the batter into the brim of the each moulds and wait till the edges turn golden brown color.Flip it using a spatula and wait till the other sides gets cooked well…If needed you can grease the appam with ghee.Remove it and serve it hot with any chutney of your choice.

 

Notes:

1.Instead of using panniyaram pan you can heat the oil in a wok and once it gets heated,you shall take a ladle full of batter and drop it in the oil as a round shape…Wait till it turns golden color and flip it for the other side to get cooked and turn golden color.Drain it and serve it.The choice is all yours :)

2.I used ghee instead of oil.Again the choice is yours :)

Thiruvathirai Kali-Broken rice in jaggery sauce-Festival recipe

Thiruvathirai aka Arudhra darisanam is a day when Lord Shiva performed his astounding dance and enthralled his devotees…On this day it is a custom in our home to prepare Arudhra kali(broken rice in rich jaggery sauce) and yezhuthaankootu(gravy with 7 vegetables of your choice)…This was the first time I prepared this kali and it was good…My MIL made the yezhuthaan kootu as I was running late to office…I got the recipe from my mom and followed the same way and as always it turned yummy :)

 

Ingredients:

Raw rice(pacha arisi)	1 cup
Jaggery	1.5 cups(grated)
Water	5 cups
Ghee	1 tbsp
Cashews	1 tsp broken
Raisins	1 tsp broken
Cardamom powder	1 tsp
Grated coconut	1/2 cup

Method:

1.Dry roast raw rice in a pan till you could see it to turn golden color.Cool it and grind it to rava(sooji) consistency…Do not grind beyond that as it turn into powder…

2.You can use either venkalapaanai(traditional pot ) or cooker…I used cooker…Add the grated jaggery and 1/2 cup of water…Wait till it melts…Filter the jaggery water(this is to ensure to remove the impurities)…

3.Add the jaggery water in the cooker,then add cardamom powder followed by grated coconut and add remaining 4.5 cups of water…Wait till it starts boiling…At this stage add the broken rice powder and give it a nice stir…Close the lid and cook it for 4 to 5 whistles…

4.Roast cashews and raisins in ghee till cashews turn golden color and raisins becomes fluffy and keep aside.

5.Once the pressure is released smash the content and again switch on the stove in low flame and add the roasted nuts and give it a quick stir and switch off.

Notes:


1.For 1 cup of  broken rice add 4 to 5 cups of water…Only then the kali would turn gooey.

2.You can cook the same in the traditional pot aka venkalapaanai…Once after filtering the jaggery water and when it starts boiling add broken rice and cook it medium low fire till it is fully cooked and gooey and finally top it with nuts.

Paneer butter masala-Roti side dish recipe

I always never tried things that uses Paneer for the only reason I do not know how to make paneer or related dishes until the D day…The studious me wanted to try things that I have not tried before and all of a sudden I made paneer at home and it was a super flop…I did not use muslin cloth and that was a disaster…From then I understood where my mistake was and tried couple of times and the third time the paneer was just awesome…

The only thing I felt is for 1/2 a liter milk I got only 7 to 8 medium sized cubes :(…I will write a post on making paneer sometime :)I was meaning to try paneer butter masala and naan for quite sometime and yesteday I had the chance of making it…The paneer butter masala that I made tasted divine(at least for me :p") and it tasted like the one we eat at restaurants :)I am so happy and contended with the result.

 

 

Ingredients:

Paneer	15 medium sized cubed pieces
Butter	2tbsp
Tomato	8 medium sized
Onion(not the shallots but the big one)	2 medium sized
garlic	6 flakes with skin peeled
salt	as required
Turmeric powder	1/2 tsp
Coriander powder	1 tsp
Garam masala	1 tsp
Red chili powder	1 tsp
Fresh cream(optional)	1 tbsp
Coriander leaves	1/4 cup
Cashew paste	2 tsp

Method:

1.Peel the skin of the onion and dice it to 4 pieces.Add the onion and tomato(do not cut the tomato but wash it and place it as such) in a wok and add water till it gets immersed…Boil it for 5 to 7 minutes till they are cooked…After that switch off and then drain water and cool it…Remove the skin of the tomato and grind the onion,tomato and garlic to a fine paste.

2.Take another wok add butter,once it gets heated add the ground tomato onion garlic mixture followed by turmeric powder,coriander powder,red chili powder,garam masala,cashew paste and salt…Mix it well so that all the masalas are well blended with the ground paste.

3.Fry panner in butter till it becomes golden color and drain the butter…Add the fried panner to boiling water for 5 minutes and drain it…This ensures panner remains soft..

4.Once the gravy(ground paste) is cooked well add the fried panner and mix well and cook it for 5 minutes till paneer is blended with the masala…Add fresh cream if adding and mix it well…Switch the stove off and decorate it with coriander leaves :)

Notes:

You can also use ghee in place of butter but well we cannot call it as panner butter masala :p Jokes part when you run out of butter you can use ghee in place of it…I do not find any major difference in it :)

I did not use fresh cream or milk…My gravy itself was thick and so I did not use it…

Do not skip cashew paste as it gives a lovely color to the dish and makes the dish more creamy :)

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