Rice Pudding is a simple and tasty dessert made of rice since centuries.
Ingredients: • Rice • Milk• Sugar• Ghee or Butter• Cashew nut• Sultana • Cinnamon powder. Boil the rice. Cook it till all grains are thoroughly cooked and about to mash. Pour in milk and add required sugar. Cook for a while and remove from flame. In a saucepan, melt 2 tbs of ghee and once it’s hot, add in cashew nut and sultana and fry it till sultana starts bloating. Pour in the tampering to rice. Mix it well. You can serve it hot or cold. While serving sprinkle a pinch of cinnamon powder. Happy Cooking!
• Urad dal 1 cup. Soak it for about 4 hours. • Onion finely chopped 1 medium size• Green chilly 2 nos chopped• Ginger 1″ length chopped finely• Curry leaves 1 sprig finely chopped• Coriander leaves 1 spring chopped• Dry coconut 2″ length chopped• Black peppercorn 1/2 tsp• Asafoetida 1/2 tsp• Rice flour 2 tbs• Salt to taste.
Wash the dal until water is clear. Grind the dal to a smooth consistency. Take in a mixing bowl and mix thoroughly for obtaining smooth and fluffiness. Mix all above ingredients and mix well. Heat oil in a wok on medium flame.Once oil is hot, using hand, scoop out a medium size ball shape of vada batter and slightly flatten it on your palm. Insert your thumb middle of the flattened batter to create a hole. Slowly drop it to hot oil and fry till it’s golden color.
To make Dahi vada, you may use the same vada provided its consumed same day.
However, if you need to refrigerate, and use next day, there should be some modifications making vada. Make vada without using onion.
Soak the fried vada in water for about 10 minutes. Squeeze out the water by pressing each vada in between your hands slowly.
Preparing yoghurt for Dahi vada:- • Yoghurt 500 gms• Red chilly whole 3 nos• Mustard seed 1/2 tsp• Curry leaves 1 sprig• Cooking oil 1 tbs• Salt to taste.
Heat a wok, pour oil and let get hot. Add the mustard seeds and wait for it to sputter. Add dried red chilly and curry leavesSaute till red chilies get dark brown. In a bowl, take yoghurt, add 4 tbs of sugar and a pinch of salt. Whisk nicely to form a smooth thick consistency. Mix the tampering with yoghurt. Sprinkle a pinch of chilly powder on top.
Now add the vada in yoghurt and ensure the vada us fully immersed. Hold it for about an hour to get the right smooth fluffy texture Happy Cooking!
Boil the eggs for about 5 minutes and immerse in cold water for about 10 minutes. Peel the eggs and keep ready. Heat a saucepan over low flame. Add butter and allow to heat. Add garlic and saute for a while till it’s light golden color.Add tamarind paste and cook for 5 minutes and add palm sugar to it. Ensure to maintain dripping consistency. In a wok, heat oil for frying the eggs. Once the oil is hot, use a spider and insert the egg in oil and fry till golden color. Remove and allow to drain. Dry out any excessive oil using a paper towel. Plate it and pour over the eggs with the sauce and sprinkle with chilly flakes. Happy Cooking!
This delicacy originated in State of Kerala and it’s served in most of all fine dining restaurants and even made available to backwater Houseboat guests. Normally, the fish used for this amazing dish is “Pearl Spot’ known as Karimeen’. But I use Pomfret instead. This is normally made with two different marinade. But I opt only one to avoid frying the fish and then wrap cooking.
Ingredients: • Pearl Spot large size weighing approx 250 gms 1 no cleaned and • Shallots 3 nos• Green chili 3 nos• Ginger 1/2″ length• Garlic 4 cloves• Aniseed 1/4 tsp• Black peppercorn 1/4 tsp• Curry leaves 1 sprig• Coriander leaves 2 sprig• Mint leaves 2 sprigs• Lemon juice 1tsp• Grated coconut 1/4 cup• Coconut oil 2 tbs• Salt to taste.
In a blender, grind all above except salt and oil to a smooth consistency. Make diagonal slits on fish.Dry out any excess water on fish and rub the marinade thoroughly also fill in under cavity and let marination last for an hour. Now take banana leaf and wilt it by moving over flame so that the leaves can be folded and doesn’t tear. Place the fish on leaf, drizzle coconut oil over both sides of fish and wrap it nicely and secure it by tieing it. Grease a saucepan properly with coconut oil and heat over low flame, place the fish wrap in it, cover and cook for about 5 minutes. Turn other side and cook for 5 minutes Garnish the fish with onion rings & lime wedge. Happy cooking!
This traditional Malabar fish curry is made without coconut to its perfection. Normally its done or recommended to cook in earthern pot. But owning to reasons, I’m cooking it on a normal kadai (wok)
Ingredients:
• Fish – Cleaned, washed and drained 500 gms• kudam puli / Pot tamarind (Gracinia Combogia) a lemon size washed and shredded. This gives a rusty, smokey and sour flavor. If its not available, You may use regular tamarind too. • Shallots Sliced 1 cup• Fenugreek roasted & powdered 1/2 tsp• Red chilly powder 2 tsp• Coriander powder 3 tsp• Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp• Mustard seed 1/2 tsp• Green chili slited 3 nos• Ginger 2″ length cut in julienne cut• Curry leaves 2 sprigs• Tomato 2 nos quarterly cut (optional) • Coconut oil 3 tbs• Salt to taste Heat 2 tbs oil in a wok in medium flame. Once oil is hot, add mustard seeds and allow to sputter. Add sliced shallots and curry leaves and saute till shallots gets soft. Add turmeric, chilly and coriander, fenugreek powder and saute for about 2 minutes. Pour two cups of water, kudam puli at this stage for it to cook. Once start boiling, stir properly and check for salt. Add fish, tomato, half the ginger julienne and cover the wok with lid, allow to cook for about 5 minutes. Once fish is cooked, pour a spoonful of coconut oil and give a slow stir without breaking the fish.Garnish with Green chilly & ginger julienne. Fish curry taste better if consumed after a day or two. Happy Cooking!
Truly traditional dish made out of dried shrimps and raw mango.
Ingredients: • Dried Shrimps 500gms• Raw Mango sliced in 1″ length • Grated Coconut 1cup• Shallots 10 nos• Turmeric powder 1 tsp• Chilly powder 1 tsp• Coriander powder 2 tsp• Fenugreek(roasted & powdered 1/2 tsp• Coconut oil 3 tbs• Salt to taste Take a hard bottom wok and heat over medium flame. Dry roast the dried Shrimps. Once its color change and you get roasted shrimp smell, put off the flame and allow it to cool. Roll a rolling pin over the shrimps, so that the head, tail and the legs get seperated and discard it. or else you may rub it with your hand and seperate. Wash the shrimps several times and allow to drain. Heat a pan on medium flame. Pour 2 tbs oil and add shallots and curry leaves, saute for a while. Once shallots get translucent, add mango, pour a cup of water and allow to cook for about 5 minutes. Now time to prepare the masala. In a blender, grind coconut, turmeric powder, coriander powder and chilly powder to a coarse paste. Add the paste to shrimps and mango. Add the fenugreek powder, salt to taste. Cook for another 10 minutes. Pour over a tbs of coconut oil in it and cover with lid. This curry would taste much more yummy if allowed to age for a day or two. Happy Cooking!
A savory snack originated from the town of Maddur in Mandya district of Karnataka. This vada is truly famous and its yummy too.
Ingredients:
• Equal quantity of All purpose flour ( Maida) Rice flour Semolina (sooji) • Chopped onions 4 medium sized• Green chili chopped onion 1tsp• Ginger chopped 1 tsp• Peanut /Groundnuts 1 tbs• White Sesame seeds 1tbs• Chopped curry leaves 2 sprigs• Ghee 2 tbs• Oil for cooking• Salt to taste
In a mixing bowl, add sliced onion, ginger, green chili, curry leaves and mix it well using hand. Let’s the onion shred apart and the water comes out and leave it aside.
Now in an another bowl, add all the 3 – AP flour, Semolina and Rice flour, add salt to taste and mix it with 2 table spoonful oil. Mix it thoroughly and add the onion to it. Knead the mix properly to form thick dough. If required add spoonful water, but it should be thick enough to portion it in to small ball and flatten to round shape with your hand palm.
Heat a wok with oil in medium flame. Once oil is hot, fry them for about 2 minutes and turn other side till it gets golden brown color. Serve hot with coconut chutney. Happy Cooking!
A lentil based dessert usually prepared during festivities. It’s prepared out of Channa dal, sweetened with palm sugar / jaggery and mellowed by fresh coconut milk.
In a pressure cooker, cook the dal for about 10 minutes. (5 whistle duration).The grain should be fully cooked and coarse in consistency.Once the pressure is realised, open the lid and put back on flame. Add palm sugar/jaggery paste ( dilute the paste and strain it through a fine sieve to remove any dust particles)and whisk thoroughly.
Once it started boiling, add the coconut milk, cardamom powder and as soon as it starts bubbling, put of the flame. Heat a saucepan on medium flame. Add ghee and once its hot, add dry coconut and saute till its semi brown. Add along the other – cashews and sultanas. Once sultanas get bloated, remove from fire and pour this tampering to payasam. Garnish with fresh cream. Traditionally, special small variety of banana used to be served along. Happy Cooking!
It’s a ginger based sweet & sour curry, commonly served during the “Ona Sadya’ the traditional feast on the auspicious day of ” Onam’ celebrated by the people of Kerala (God’s Own Country)
Take a hard bottom wok, heat over medium flame. Once it’s hot, add coconut oil and when it gets heated, add the chopped ginger and saute till it gets roasted and could hear crackling. Remove it from wok and allow to cool. Once it’s cold, grind it to a coarse mixture.
Now in a pan, add a tbs of oil and once heated, add mustard seeds, curry leaves and saute till mustard start sputtering. Add now turmeric powder, fenugreek powder, red chilly powder,asafoetida and saute for about a minute. Add now the grounded ginger, and mix well. Pour in the tamarind paste, add 1 cup water and allow to boil. Once it’s boiled, add palm sugar/ jaggery paste and mix well. Keep cooking until desired consistency. Once done, remove from flame and allow to cool. You may preserve it in an airtight jar and use for month long. Its ideal along with Steamed rice, Idly, Dosa and other dishes. Happy Cooking!
This delicious snack dish is prepared out of coarsely grinded bengal gram ( channa dal) along with onion, spices and herbs and deep fried.
Ingredients:
• Channa dal 2 cups soaked for about 2 hours and water drained. • Chopped onion 2 medium sized• Chopped ginger 1 inch length• Crushed garlic 6 cloves• Curry leaves 1 sprig chopped• Aniseed 1 tsp• Asafoetida 1/2 tsp• Salt to taste• Cooking oil for frying
Grind dal to a coarse paste with out adding water. Check for consistency in order to make ball shape. If you are not achieving that form, add a teaspoon of water. Add all other ingredients in to it and mix it thoroughly.
Heat a hard bottom wok in medium flame. Pour oil in to it and wait till it’s hot. Make small dough ball from the grounded mixture and flatten it keeping in your palm and insert in oil. Fry it for about 2 minutes and turn other side and cook for another 2 minutes. If you have large quantity, half fry the lot, keep the flame on high and do a final fry to get golden brown color. Happy cooking!