Beans Paruppu Usli

Always think of my dear athai paati... when I make paruppu usli... She taught me a small trick... and it works the same way...every single day... hehehe... I even got amma to try this recipe... and am really glad amma, appa, Keke (my lil bro) and Mr.B like this a lot... Always make this with mor kozhambu or vatha kozhambu... It tastes like heaven :)

What I used

3/4 cup channa dal
1/4 cup toor dal
1/2 cup fresh string beans chopped
4 dry red chillies
2 tbsp of oil
mustard seeds
A pinch of hing
curry leaves
Salt to taste

How I made it

Soak the dal and chillies in cold water for 2 hours. Then drain this completely ( there should be absolutely no excess water). Then grind this into a coarse mixture ( remember do not add water at all). In a non-stick pan, heat 1 tbsp of oil and add the mustard seeds. Once they splutter add the hing and curryleaves and then add the beans... Saute this for 2 minutes and add the coarsely ground dal mixture. Add a little salt and then place a lid on the pan and reduce the flame. Cook this for 5 - 10 minutes. Then remove the lid, add another tbsp of oil and then cook on medium flame. You can sprinkle a little bit of water at this point if you find it is too dry.Stir this and break up if you have any lumps of dal. Remonve when the dal and beans have cooked.

Soft and tasty Paruppu usli ready...

Tricks...
1. Amma generally steam cooks the ground dal before adding them to the beans. This makes the usli a little crispy... This is highly recommended when you make larger quantities.

2. Athai paati doesnt pressure cook the mixture, she just places the lid and cooks it in the pan on low flame.. This makes the usli softer ... this is recommended when you make smaller quantities. When you close and cook, the steam condenses on hitting the lid and this drops as water back into the dal and cooks it :)...

3. Never try to steam this mixture in the microwave...I tried this once and ended up with a lumpy hard mass of dal. Then I had to grind it again to get it to the right consistency.

4. You can also use Vazhappu (Banana Flower) to make paruppu usli... that turns out well too..

Microwave Mor Kozhambu

Microwaves have made life so much easier... When it comes to cooking for just 2 people or just yourself... It really comes handy... I have started experimenting the age old recipes in my lil microwave and they have turned out to tasting really authentic...Am Planning to post a few here..

What I used

2 tbsp of fresh grated coconut
1 green chiili
1/2 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
A small piece of ginger
1 cup sour curd (yogurt)
A pinch of turmeric
A pinch of Hing
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp of mustard seeds
a few methi seeds (fenugreek)
curry leaves
1 Tsp of oil
1/4 cup Any vegetable of your choice
(pumpkin, okra, carrot)

How I made it

Grind the coconut, jeera, green chilli and ginger into a paste. Microwave this chutney for a minute ( just to get the raw smell of ginger out). Whip in with the curd, add salt, turmeric powder and keep this aside for 15 minutes. In the meantime, cook the vegetables for 2 - 3 minutes in the microwave and add them to the curd mixture. Season this with a little mustard, methi seeds, hing and curry leaves. Just before you serve, heat the mixture in the microwave for 2 minutes. Just until it is slightly warm. Serve this with hot steaming rice and paruppu usli...

This makes a lovely... simple yet yummmmy lunch...

Tricks

1. Amma generally fries the okra... before adding to the mor kozhambu... That is simply declicioso...
2. Do not let the curd mixture boil ( or heat too much). This might curdle the whole thing. You should just slightly warm the mixture.
3. The mixture will initially be in a dirty white color, once you heat it, it turns into a beautiful lemon yellow "Mor Kozhambu"... So make sure you do not add too much turmeric... a small pinch goes a long way... :)
4. You can also use the normal stove top to make this :)

Healthy Bhel Puri

Chaats... how can one not like them...Its my all time favorite snack... I have been experimenting on various chaats these days, and people in my neighborhood... call me the "Chaat lady"... hehehe...Here is my recipe for a healthy bhel puri... or should I just say.. healthy bhel...:)

What I used
2 cups of bhel (pori)
1/2 cup grated carrot
1/2 chopped cucumber
1 tomato finely chopped
1/2 onion finely chopped
a handfull of roasted peanuts
2 tbsp of sev (oma podi)
corriander leaves for garnish
1tbsp of mint chutney
1 tbst of sweet n sour chutney
A pinch of salt
A pinch of chilli powder
A pinch of chaat masaala.

For the Mint Chutney

1/2 a cup of mint leaves
1/2 cup of corriander leaves
1 green chilli
Juice of a lemon
A pinch of salt
A pinch of chaat masala

For Sweet n Sour chutney

Tamarind ( size of one lime)
2 tbsp of jaggery
2 dried dates
A pinch of salt
A pinch of chilli powder
A pinch of chaat masala

How I made it

Mint Chutney : Wash and chop the mint and corriander leaves. In a blender add all the ingredients specified above, sprinkle a little bit of water and grind it into a chutney. Keep this aside in a small bowl.

Imli Chutney: Soak the tamarind in 1/4 cup of boiling hot water. After 15 minutes, extract the puree. Add the other ingredients and grind in a blender. Remove this and heat this mixture until it comes to a boil. Cool this chutney and strain it.

For the Bhel:

Add all the veges, peanuts & bhel and the chutneys, and mix well. Check for taste and add the chaat masala, chilli powder and salt. Garnish with Sev and corriander leaves.

You can also add some crushed puris or mathis.

This recipe is simple, healthy and very tasty... Try it ... :)

Plain Dosa

Dosa is my all time favorite....Lots of Dosa innovations have happened over the years...masala dosa, chilli cheese dosa, tomato dosa, green dosa, onion dosa, vegetable dosa... these are just a few... But somehow, the taste of the simple plain home made dosa... can never beat anything...

Have it with a tsp of dosai podi, yogurt, and a lil sugar (for sweet people like me ;)..) ... You just wont believe... you will eat a minimum of 10 dosas....

What I used

1 cup of Urad dal
4 cups of Idli Rice
(Par boiled rice / Puzhungal arisi)
1 tsp of methi seeds
(fenugreek / vendayam)

How I made it

Wash and Soak Par boiled rice for 5 - 6 hours and Urad dal for 1 - 2 hrs. Add the methi seeds to the urad dal when and soak them as well. In the grinder(blender), grind the urad and rice seperately. Mix the two batters, add salt to taste and leave it to rest and ferment over night. On the next day morning, mix the batter well and add a little water to thin it out.

Place a flat gridle pan (tawa) and bring it to medium heat. You can use a non stick pan or the iron tawa. Spread a table spoon of batter on the pan. Make the desired size dosa, use a circular clockwise motion, and draw the batter from center to the circumference. Add 1/2 tsp of oil around the dosa. It takes 2 - 3 minutes for the dosa to brown on one side. Then gently flip the dosa to the other side, add 1/2 tsp of oil and cook for 1 minute. Remove and serve hot with chutney, sambar or the magic milagai podi..

Tricks:

Check out my tricks for idli batter. It is the same, except you can grind the rice smoothly for dosa.

If you are in a hurry, Try grinding the urad & Rice together... this works for dosa too...

At home, generally a amma makes idlis with the fresh batch, makes yummy dosa with a a day old batter , and the third day it becomes... Uthappam... and the fourth day... if there is any batter remaining... it becomes "kuzhi paniyaram"

Idli / Dosai Milagai Podi (Chutney Powder)

Here is my mom's recipe ... Her secret ingredients are coconut oil & sesame seeds and this gives a special aroma to the "idli podi"... this is so simple to make... Try this once and you will never think of buying from the store again....

We generally mix this with a little gingely oil (sesame oil) and serve this with idli, dosai, adai etc... I even eat this with chapathi and poori :)...

And some funny ways to mix chutney powder... Mr.B mixes a little curd/yogurt with it... and I top that combination by adding a little sugar to the mixture ;)

What she uses
1/4 cup channa dal
1/4 cup urad dal
10 - 12 dry red chillies
2 tsp of sesame seeds
1/2 tsp of coconut oil
1/2 tsp of sesame oil (or vegetable oil)
Salt to taste
A pinch of sugar
a smal piece of raw hing (or use powder)

How she makes it

In a pan dry roast the sesame seeds. Then add 1/2 tsp of sesame oil and fry the raw hing piece. Reduce the flame to medium - low heat, Add the chillies and saute for 2 - 3 minutes. Spread the chillies, hing and sesame seeds on a plate and let it cool. To the pan add 1/2 tsp of coconut oil, add the dals and roast them until they are golden brown. Cool this and add a pinch of sugar and salt. First grind (use a mixie or a spice grinder) the chillies coarsely and then add the dal and grind this into a slightly coarse powder. Check for taste. It might initially seem to be a little spicy hot, but once it rests for a day, the flavors and the tastes will blend with each other.

Tricks:

1. Keep the pan on medium heat, else the chillies and dal might get burnt and believe me, this causes a lot of smoke.
2. While tasting, if you find the powder very bland, then you can roast more chillies , saltand grind it again.
3. If you find it too spicy, then roast some more dal , salt and add it to the powder.
4. If you find it too salty, add 2 more chillies and a little dal.
5. Though you can store this for 3 - 6 months, mom prefers grinding it in smaller batches, in that way it stays fresh and spicy.

Mini Sambar Idli

Mini Sambar Idli... This is my little brother's favorite. My mom always used to make this just for him whenever she made idlis... To top it off...She would add a dollop of extra special love (ghee). the aroma would literally pull you into the kitchen...

What I used

Idli Sambar
30 Mini Idlis
1 tsp of ghee
Corriander leaves

How I made it

Use the mini idli molds instead of the regular idli ones. In a bowl of Idli sambar, add 15 mini idlis and soak for 2 minutes. Add 1/2 tsp of ghee and garnish with corriander leaves. Serve hot. Am sure the kids will love this.

Idli Sambar

Idli Sambar, got this recipe from my MIL, believe me it is out of the world.... I have really started liking this sambar a lot... The trick is to add moong dal in addition to the toor dal... and adding more tomatoes, and cutting down the tamarind...

What I used

One Onion - chopped
2 big tomatoes - chopped
1/2 cup toor dal
1/2 cup moong dal
Tamarind ( half the size of a golf ball)
A pinch of turmeric powder
1 tsp of sambar powder
3 tsp of oil for seasoning
1 tsp of mustard seeds
1/4 tsp of fenugreek seeds (methi)
Curry leaves and corriander leaves to garnish
Salt to taste
2 cups of water

How I made It

Pressure cook the dal seperately. Soak the tamarind in 1/2 cup of water for 15 minutes and extract pulp. In a small cooker add 2 tsp of oil, add the onions and saute until they are transparent, add the tomatoes and saute until they become soft. Slit the green chillies and add them to the gravy. Add the sambar powder, turmeric powder and saute until the raw smell of the sambar powder goes off. Then add the tamarind pulp and salt and cook for a few minutes. Mash the dal well and add it to the sambar. Add another cup of water ( check for sambar consistency). Taste it and add a little salt or dry chilli powder if needed. Pressure cook this in low flame (for one whistle). Once the pressure releases, Season the sambar with mustard & methi seeds. Garnish with curry and corriander leaves. Serve hot with Idli, Vada, or Pongal.

Tricks:

Pressure cooking the second time, helps all ingredients to blend well and the sambar is of smooth consistency.

In addition to onion & tomato, you can also add other veges like carrots, brinjal (eggplant), drumstick

Make some mini idlis and dip them in a bowl of sambar... Garnish with a tsp of ghee and some finely chopped onions and corriander leaves... Yummy mini idli sambar plate ready :)

Make some medu vada... Soak the vada for 10 - 15 minutes in hot sambar...Garnish with a tsp of ghee and some finely chopped onions and corriander leaves... Yummy sambar vada plate ready :)