Colocaesia Crispy Fry/Chembu Roast

Ingredients:

Colocaesia (Seppankilangu/Chembu/Arbi) - 1/2 kg
Oil - To deep fry
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Red Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp





Method:

Wash thoroughly the colocaesia.

Pressure cook them in a cooker separator plate while cooking rice.  If cooking separately, pressure cook for 2 whistles with just enough water.

When the pressure of the cooker is completely released, remove the cooked colocaesia and pour cold water over.  Leave for 5 to 10 minutes.

Peel the skin of the colocaesia and cut them into pieces.

Refrigerate the cooked colocaesia pieces for 10 minutes.  This step is optional.

Heat oil in a kadai and deep fry the colocaesia pieces until golden brown and crisp.

Remove from oil and drain the excess oil.

Sprinkle salt and chilli powder over the fried colocaesia and mix.

Serve hot.



This crispy fry is crunchy on the outside and soft inside.  Serve with sambar rice or with rasam or can be had as such as crunchy bites.

Pirandai Thuvayal (Chutney)

Recipe Credits

Mrs. Santha Ramanujam (Kumudham Snegidhi Kara Saaramaana Thuvayal) 


Ingredients:

Pirandai (cleaned and chopped) - 1 tbsp
Curry Leaves - 1 handful
Scraped Coconut - 2 tbsp
Urad Dal - 2 tbsp
Red Chillies - 5
Fenugreek - 1/2 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Coriander Seeds - 1 tsp
Gingelly Oil - 1 tsp
Salt - 1-1/2 tsp
Tamarind Extract - 1-1/2 tbsp
 Asafoetida - 1 small piece

Method:

Heat gingelly oil in a kadai.

Add asafoetida, dry red chillies, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, and urad dhal and fry for a minute.

Then, add curry leaves, pirandai pieces, and coconut scrapings one after one and fry well together.  Remove from fire and allow to cool.

Grind them all together coarsely in the mixer jar along with tamarind extract and salt.  Add enough water while grinding.

Splutter mustard seeds in little gingelly oil and mix to the ground pirandai chutney and serve.

This chutney can be mixed with hot plain cooked rice or had along with curd rice.

This chutney/thuvayal (thogayal) helps in good digestion.


Notes:

Choose tender pirandai for cooking as the thick, matured ones will cause itching in the throat.  String the pirandai and scrape or peel the sharp angular edges on all sides.  Discard the nodes and leaves (instead the leaves can be used to make soup along with other green leaves or in this chutney itself).  It is advisable to grease your hands with gingelly oil to prevent itching.  Wash and cut into small pieces and use.

Vendhaya Vendai Kuzhambu

Ingredients

Ladies Finger - 6 to 8
Onion - 1 (big)
Tomato - 1
Thick Tamarind Extract - 2 tbsp
Thuar Dhal - 2 tbsp
Salt - To taste
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Jaggery - 1 small piece

To Temper

Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp
Urad Dhal - 1/4 tsp
Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tsp
Asafoetida - 1 pinch
Curry Leaves - Few

Grind Together

Red Chillies - 7 to 8
Fenugreek - 1/2 tsp
Bengal Gram Dhal - 1 tbsp
Garlic - 2 flakes
Small Onions - 4 (peeled)
Grated Fresh Coconut - 1 tbsp


Procedure

Peel and slice onion lengthwise.

Cut ladies fingers into 1-inch pieces.  Chop the tomato finely.

Wash and cook thuar dhal with just enough water.  You can keep it along with rice in the pressure cooker.

Fry all the ingredients given to grind together (except coconut) in little oil and then grind along with grated coconut to a smooth paste.

Heat oil in a kadai and add the ingredients given for tempering.

Add sliced onions and chopped ladies fingers and fry together for few minutes.

Add tomatoes and stir for 2 minutes.

Dilute the tamarind extract with little water and add.  Cook till the vegetable is soft.

Add cooked thuar dhal, salt, ground paste with enough water and allow to cook till raw flavor goes and the gravy thickens.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot with hot rice, dosa, or pongal.


Notes:

When using fenugreek (vendhayam) in any recipe, do not over fry since it become bitter.  Add at the end, after frying other spices.

Bisibele Bhath

Adapted From

100 Rice Delights by Mallika Badhrinath

Ingredients:

Rice - 1 cup

Thuar Dhal - 1/2 cup

Tamarind - 1 big lime sized

Mixed Vegetables (chopped) - 1 cup

Green Peas - 1/4 cup

Small Onions - 1/2 cup (peeled)

Salt - 1 tbsp (or as per taste)

Ghee - 3 tbsp

Cashewnuts - 1 tbsp

For Masala Powder:

Red Chillies - 10

Coriander Seeds - 1 tsp

Fenugreek - 1/4 tsp

Urad Dhal - 1 tsp

Bengal Gram Dhal - 1 tsp

Cinnamon - 1 inch piece

Cloves - 2

Grated Coconut - 2 tbsp

Fry all the above ingredients in half a teaspoon of oil until light brown.  Powder them.

Method:

1.  Pressure cook peas and chopped vegetables in just enough water until 3/4th cooked.  I used brinjals, cabbage, drumstick, and carrots.  The original recipe calls for just potatoes instead.  Use vegetables of your choice.

2.   Wash and pressure cook dhal with rice in 6 cups of water for 10 minutes in medium flame until soft.

3.   Soak tamarind and extract thick juice from it.

4.  Heat oil in a kadai and fry the peeled onions for 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the tamarind extract and bring to boil.  Cook until the raw flavor goes from it.

5.  Add salt, asafoetida, cooked peas and vegetables, and the powdered spices.

6.  Pour this to the cooked rice mixture as soon as it is removed from the pressure cooker.  Mix well to incorporate them all together.

7.  Heat ghee, fry the cashewnuts and garnish.  Add curry leaves and chopped coriander leaves if desired.

8.  Serve hot with chips or pappad or fried vadams or onion raitha.

Notes:

I used a big onion sliced lengthwise and fried until golden and crisp in hot oil.  I used these fried onions to garnish the bisibele bhath.  They gave a real flavor to the dish.

If desired, add a teaspoon of idli chilli powder to increase the spiciness of the rice.  This is purely optional.

Ghee Rice

Source:

Mrs. Bagyalakshmi Anandam


Ingredients:

Basmati Rice - 1 cup

Carrot - 1 (finely chopped)

Fresh Green Peas - 1/4 cup

Ghee - 2 to 3 tbsp

Salt - 1 tsp or to taste

Cardamom - 2

Cinnamon Sticks - 2


Method:

1.  Wash and soak rice in 2 cups of water for about 10 to 15 minutes.  Then, drain the rice and save the soaked water.  Keep aside.

2.  In a pressure pan, heat 1 tbsp ghee.  Add cardamom (whole) and cinnamon sticks and saute.

3.  Add the drained rice and fry till light golden.

4.  Add the soaked water (used for soaking the rice) and salt, chopped carrots, and fresh green peas.  Close lid of the pan.  Put on the weight when steam comes out and pressure cook for 5 minutes on low medium flame.

5.  When the pressure is completely released, open the lid and add the rest of the ghee and mix until all the ingredients are uniformly spread over.

6.  Serve hot with mixed vegetable gravy.

Notes:

Seeraga samba/Jeerakasala rice (biriyani rice) or the regular rice can also be used instead of basmati rice.  Adjust water accordingly.

Beetroot Podimas

Source:

Mrs. Revathy Shanmugam, Aval Vikatan (30 days 30 Poriyal)


Ingredients:

Beetroot - 1/4 kg

Red Chilli Powder - 1 tsp

Cooked Channa Dal (kadalai paruppu) - 1/4 cup

Grated Coconut - 1 tbsp

Salt - To taste

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp

Urad Dal - 1/4 tsp

Curry Leaves - Few


Method:

1.  Wash, peel skin, and grate beetroots.

2.  Heat oil in a kadai and splutter mustard seeds, ural dal, and curry leaves.

3.  Add grated beetroot and fry on medium flame until cooked.

4.  Add salt and chilli powder and mix well.  Fry for 2 minutes.

5.  Then, add the cooked channa dal and grated coconut and mix well until combined.

Serve hot with sambar rice or curd rice.

Beetroot Poriyal/Koora

Source:

Mrs. Vanaja Subramanian, Aval Vikatan (30 Poriyal Varieties)


Ingredients:

Beetroot - 1/4 kg

Salt - To taste

Grind Together:

Red Chillies - 2

Grated Coconut - 2 tbsp

Sombu (Saunf) - 1/4 tsp

Seasoning:

Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad Dal - 1 tsp

Curry Leaves - Few

Coriander Leaves - 1 sprig

Oil - 1 tbsp


Method:

1.  Chop beetroots and pressure cook.

2.  Grind together coarsely the red chillies, grated coconut, and sombu.

3.  In a kadai, heat oil and splutter mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves.  Add the chopped and cooked carrots and stir well.  Add salt and coarsely ground paste and mix well.  Finally, garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

It is a best and healthy accompaniment in a lunch menu to be served with steamed rice.