Wheat Pongal

That was a great Holy Week vacation!!!  We are back from our vacation to the USA. I enjoyed the trip but didn't bother to take in many pictures since I wanted to soak myself completely in the beautiful nature and the new places that I got an opportunity to visit. The majestic Grand Canyon, the Death Valley, the beautiful Secoya Park, Californian Oranges and Vineyards - Nature is amazing. I marveled at the beauty of the man made wonders at the Hoover Dam, Golden Gate bridges and many other bridges at the Bay Area. I felt sad seeing the drought alert boards all through the state. I became ecstatic watching the mountains and the sunsets on three consecutive days that we travelled west. Yes we watched three sunsets on three different days while driving west. The medley of the colors from red to orange, to pink to pale pink dancing duets with the ever changing colors of the blue sky is a sight to die for.  I only wish we had more time to walk around rather than sit in the car most of the time of our packed journey covering the length and breadth of beautiful California.

My mind was playing its games that I had different moods at different times. While zipping through the streets and walking in the malls of California my mind longed for the tranquility of Guatemala's quiet evenings, I missed the smiling faces of the Chapins who are silent and polite even at restaurants that they talk with the inner voice. But while my vacation came to an end, I longed to stay for more time  to eat the good Indian food in the many Indian restaurants all over the US of A that I miss visiting here, to visit the temples and carefree attitude life over there.

Saffron's Biryani, Madras Cafe's Kushboo idlis ( I haven't seen such softer idlies even in Chennai, wonder how they ferment the batter in cold weather), Isckon's Govinda Meals, the dingy Udupi Palace's full meals and the masala dosas that served two a plate, Dal Bhat at a Nepalese restaurant, Eight Elements's spiciest Mirchi Bajji , the Mexican Chipootle Bowl - Wonder how the Indians are running system so well there.  I will miss all of them till I get to India or US next.

I made this quick and tasty Wheat Pongal for breakfast.
A very easy to make dish.

Ingredients 

Broken Whole Wheat - 2 cups

Moon Dal  - 1 cup

Jeera - 2 tsp

Pepper - 2 tsp

Salt to tast

Method

• Roast the moons dal to golden brown
• Add 6 cups of water to the moong dal and rice and pressure cook for four whistles
• Roast the pepper and jeera in 2 tbsp of ghee and it to the cooked pongal
• Add Salt and curry leaves 
• Enjoy with Sambar, Chutney or Gothsu

Poori Aloo - Tamil Style

Poori aloo is a dish that is served in many restaurants in South India.  Coconut Chutney is also served with  the same. I love both the combinations. Here is the recipe of the Tamil style Aloo that goes with poori.

Tamil Style Aloo Recipe :

6 potatoes medium size
ginger - a small bit
mustard - 1tsp
urad dal - 1 tsp
Bengal gram dal - 1 tsp
Curry leaves and cilantro to garnish
Tomato - 1
Oil - 1 tbsp
Green chilly - 3 nos.

Method

• Boil the potatoes and cut them into small cubes
• Heat a pan and add oil
• Once the oil is heated, add mustard, urad dal, bengal gram dal, ginger, green chillies and sauté
• Add chopped tomatoes
• Add boiled potatoes and salt 
• Add a little bit of water if the mixture is too thick
• Give it a boil
• Garnish with curry leaves and cilantro

Enjoy with Hot Pooris.

Paal Poli

Paal Poli is a very traditional dessert of Tamilnadu.  I made this for weekend tiffin and my entire family relished this dish. 

Ingredients 

Maida - 2 cups

Sooji - 3 tbsp

Pista, safrron and other nuts to garnish

Milk - 1.5 litres

Sugar - 1.5 cups

Cardamom - 1 tsp

Oil to fry

Method

• Make a dough with maida, shoji and a pinch of salt with enough water.
• Make small puris and spread little oil over them
• Fold the puris into triangle (just as you would do for parathas) and roll them again in the shape of a triangle
• Deep fry in hot oil
• I like my puris crisp, so I fried them till crisp.
• Boil milk in a medium flame till reduced to half and mix in the sugar and boil again
• Add the cardamom 
• Pour the milk on the puris arranged in a big plate and garnish with nuts and saffron.
• You could either serve cold or hot (My family prefers it hot)

Enjoy!!!

Aapam

Aapam is a very light breakfast. It is served with stew, coconut milk or kurma in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Ingredients
Raw rice - 2 cups
Cooked rice (kept overnight in the refrigerator ) - 1 cup
Rapid Rise Yeast - 1 tbsp
Salt
Sugar - 1 tbsp
Coconut grated - 1 cup


Method

• Soak raw rice in water overnight.
• Grind the rice with enough water
• When the rice is coarsely ground add the cooked rice and coconut and grind till silky
• Dissolve yeast in sugar and a cup of warm water
• Add yeast to the ground batter and salt to taste
• Let the batter ferment for 3 to 4 hours in room temperature.
• Take a ladle full of batter (see to it that it is in pouring consistency)
• Pour batter in a rounded non-stick pan and swivel it with both your hands to form a circular shape. The center part must be thicker and the outer parts must be thinner.
• Cover with a lid and cook on medium flame
• Once done, turn into a plate and serve with stew or Vellai Kurma or coconut milk.

Enjoy!!!

Vellai Kurma

Vellai Kurma or South Indian White kurma is a very popular side dish for Chapathis and Idiyappam served in most of the restaurants in Tamil Nadu. The name suggests that there is no added color to the kurma like turmeric or any other color.

The recipe given below serves 4

Ingredients :

Assorted Vegetables (carrot, beans, cauliflower, peas and potato cut into cubes) - 3 cups
Salt to taste
Green chillies - 2
Bay leaf - a few
Corn flower or maida - 1 tbsp mixed well in a cup of water
Oil - 2 tbsp

To grind :
Coconut grated - 1 cup
Cardamom - 2
Cinnamon - a small peice
Fennel seeds - 2 tsp

Method

• Pressure cook all the cut vegetables with 2 tbsp of water for just one whistle.
• Heat oil in a pan and sauté the green chillies and bay leaves
• Add the ground paste and sauté for a while 
• Add salt to taste
• Add the boiled vegetables and pour little water to get a gravy like consistency
• Pour in the corn flour / maida water and give it a boil till the kurma comes together
• Garnish with cilantro

Enjoy with hot chapatis or Idiyappams

Iyengar Puliyodarai

Ingredients

Tamarind - a size of a big lemon
Peanuts - 2 tbsp
Channa dal - 1 tbsp
Dhaniya - 1 tbsp
Sesame seeds - 1 tsp
Methi seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
Red Chillies - 15 nos. - break them into halves
Oil as needed


Method

• Soak the tamarind in a cup of water and take out a thick extract
• Roast the channa dal, dhaniya and 5 red chilles  and grind them to a fine powder
• Roast the sesame and methi seeds and grind them separately to a fine powder
• Heat oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds 
• Add the peanuts and the remaining red chillies (break them into halves) and fry for a while.
• Pour the tamarind extract and add turmeric and curry leaves and salt as per taste.
• When it boils add the daniya powder and let it cook till the oil separates and reaches a semi- solid consistency.
• Add the methi, sesame powder and switch off

Gojju is ready , mix as much as you need in plain rice and Enjoy!!!

Tip : The rice must not be sticking together while you mix. Cook rice and let it cool completely then mix the puliyogare gojju.

Quinoa Dosa

I had a pack of Quinoa lying unused that I bought from a health store a while ago. I have seen many posts about Quinoa dosa and also heard about how healthy it can be since the protein and fibre content is very high in quinoa.

Today I tried my hand at making this dosa and my family loved it a lot. It was very crispy and golden brown and very tasty.

Ingredients :

Quinoa - 2 cups

Rice - 2 cups 

Urad Dal - 1 cup

Soak all of the above for about 4 hours and grind to a fine batter.

Let it ferment for abut 6- 8 hours.

Make dosas in a pan and serve with chutney or chutney powder or Sambar.

Enjoy!!!

Medu Vada

Ingredients

Urad dal - 2 cups
Chillies - 2-4 nos
Black whole pepper - 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Ginger - a small piece
Salt - to taste
Curry leaves finely chopped - 1 tbsp


Method

• Grind urad dal with chillies, ginger and salt to a fine paste without much water.
• Mix the pepper, curry leaves and cumin seeds
• Shape them into vadas and deep fry in hot oil.

Enjoy!!!

Idly

I don't own a grinder. I have made idly using a Black&Decker mixer.

Ingredients:

Rice - 3 cups ( I have used raw rice since I don't get Idly rice where I live)
Urad Dal - 1 cup.

Method:

• Soak Urad dal and rice separately for 4 - 5 hours
• Blend them smooth in a mixer.
• Add salt and ferment them in  a warm place for 8 hours.
• Pour the batter in idly moulds and steam them for 10 - 15 minutes
• Remove them and serve with your favourite chutney.

Sambar

I am going to complete 15 years of matrimony this July. That's been a long journey. What's the connection between that and Sambar? You will know how.

Today I made Sambar and vegetable curry for lunch. Suddenly while preparing this dish which I can make even in my dreams, I remembered a cookery show where the Chef was trumpeting proudly about how many times he had made a particular dish and how much of an expert he is at that.

Though modesty would prevent me from calling myself an expert at anything at all, I was intrigued by that chef's comment.
I stepped into the kitchen only after my wedding. And we make Sambar at our house thrice a week on an average.

If I take that calculation into account I have made Sambar more than 2000 times. That's a big number.

So if anyone wants to learn Sambar, don't think twice to learn from me :-)

Measurements are hard to give, I have tried my best because I always eyeball the quantities for the dishes that I prepare. Tuvar dal does not exist in Guatemala. We are still waiting for an Indian to open up a store here. I stock up on tuvar dal during the yearly India trip or we buy it from the USA.
Guatemalan Indians must be the only group of people who go to the US to buy Indian groceries. A visit to the US or India or sometimes even Panama, our bags are sure to be filled up with Indian groceries.

Still it isn't easy as you think. I realized how precious every grain of 'dal' could be only after coming here. There is a lot of hassle sourcing the Tuvar dal. We end up getting caught in customs at Guatemala. The customs guy argues with you that it is a 'seed' and it cannot be allowed in Guatemala. For me anxiety works as always. I show up an anxious face, beg and argue with him, tell him that it is my 'baby's food', tell him that it is the only source of protein since I am a vegetarian. After a lot of talking he lets me away with my precious 'dal'. The airport is so small, now the guy knows me so well, smiles and not a question is asked these days.  Many of my friends  especially the men have had issues sourcing the dal into Guate and to their plight many kgs of dal are chucked into the bin without any pity. Poor men, must learn to show up anxiety.

But for the amount of Sambar we make, the stock does not last long and I end up making Sambar with 'Moong dal' which I get from the Chinese store here or worst case use the Guatemalan 'Lentejas'.



Ingredients:

• Tuvar Dal - 2 cups
• Water - 4 cups
• Tamarind - lemon sized
• Mustard - 1 tsp
• Red chilli - 2 nos.
• Salt to taste
• Sambar Powder - 1.5 tbsp
• Oil - 2 tsp
• Mixed Vegetables - 1 cup ( I have used carrots, beans and Zucchini)
• Curry leaves and Cilantro to garnish

Method:

• Pressure cook the dal in 2 cups of water till soft.
• Boil the vegetables in a cup of water.
• Soak the tamarind in a cup of warm water and squeeze out the juice. Throw away the pulp.
• When the vegetables are cooked 3/4th add in the tamarind water.
• When it comes to a boil, add the dal, salt and the sambar powder
• If you think that the Sambar is too thick, you may add in a little more water.
• Stir, bring to a boil and switch off.
• In a pan heat the oil and throw in the mustard seeds and the red chillies.
• When it splutters, season the sambar with this mixture.
• Garnish with cilantro and curry leaves.

Serve Sambar with hot rice, vegetable curry and papad.

Picture Illustrations

Idly Milagai Podi / Chutney Podi

If you are a south Indian and happen to stop by this post, your mind-voice might tell you 'What?? This is a different recipe. Phew!!! I can make my own Molaga podi or 'My mom's recipe is the Best'

True that. Every south Indian home has their own 'Molaga podi' recipe. So much so that there are differences of the recipe in the same family.

Even the oil used to mix the podi is different in different homes. In my mom's house, we use sesame oil to mix in the podi, but in my mother-in-law's house we use 'chuttennai' which is re-used coconut oil to mix in the podi.
I personally don't prefer the bitter taste of sesame oil and prefer refined vegetable oil.

Every Molaga Podi has a distinct flavour and taste of its own.
I have never made 'molaga podi' on my own. My mom always sends them to me and if that does get over, I buy the instant packs from the stores. But they never match the taste even closely to the home-made ones.

This is my mom's original 'molagapodi' recipe. I can eat it with not only Idlies or Dosas, even Adai, Chapathi or even plain rice.

I sometimes sprinkle a few spoons of this powder on my 'Pasta'  and eat it much to the bewilderment of my BH (Better half, now that I have started blogging, have to learn to thrown in a few popular blogging terms).

I am so addicted to this 'podi' and my children too, that we finish mom's supply so quickly and have nothing but the chill flakes.

I remember my mom making this podi and packing it to all her relatives and friends.

Okay this recipe is for the south Indians who don't like their household recipe or who don't get their yearly supply of molaga podi from their moms.
I am sure no one else will even try making molaga podi, as their knowledge is only limited to chutney and sambar accompaniments for Dosa/Idli as most hotels don't serve them.

Ingredients :

1/2 a cup of Chana dal
1/2 a cup of Urad Dal
Red Chilli - a handful
White Sesame seeds - 2 or three tbsp
salt - as per taste
Hing or Perungayam -  a pinch (people who eat pranic diet can avoid this totally)


Method:

In a wide open pan, sauté all the dals and sesame separately with very little oil till golden brown.
Be careful, they will turn to an ugly brown in a wink.

Then slightly fry the red chillies. Allow all of them to cool.

Grind them in a mixie. My mom doesn't grind them very fine and not too coarse. She grinds in such way that the powder looks fine but when you eat, the tiny bits of dal make the experience of eating molaga podi enjoyable.

The small bit of the dal makes the molaga podi crunchy and enhances the taste when mixed in oil.


Enjoy!!!!!