PULI SAARU / FENUGREEK – ONION RASAM

This saaru tastes excellent with plain rice.When i was pregnant , during the first three months,i didn’t like to eat sambhar/vathakuzhambu etc(u all know our taste changes during pregnancy) . My Mom-in-law used to prepare this for me.I had this saaru mixed with plain rice and curd rice only:)

This is my favorite.Very easy to prepare.When u run short of time to prepare lunch,u can do this saaru quickly.

Ingredients required:

• Tamarind – 4-5 seeds (soak in warm water)
• Big onion – 1 no(finely chopped)
• Green chilly – 2 nos (slit cut)
• Tomato – 1 no (chopped)
• Salt – to taste
• Mustard seeds- 1/4 tsp
• Methi seeds/fenugreek – 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal- 1/4 tsp
• Toor dal – 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves – a sprig
• Asafetida/hing – 1/4 tsp
• Oil – 1 tbsp
• Coriander leaves – to garnish

Method:

• Soak the tamarind in water and extract the juice from it.
• Heat a kadai with oil and add methi seeds first.when it starts to pop,add mustard seeds,urad dal,toor dal ,a pinch of asafetida and curry leaves one by one in the same order.
• Now add the chopped onions and saute till they are transparent.
• Now add the tomato and cook for 1 min.Add the tamarind extract with required salt and water.
• Add the remaining hing and boil it for 2-3 mins.
• After removing from fire,add 1/4 cup of water to it.
• Finally,Garnish with coriander leaves..

Mix with plain rice and enjoy ur day with Puli saaru!!

KITCHEN CLINIC:

Fenugreek seeds: Fenugreek seeds are a galactagogue that is often used to increase milk supply in lactating women.[3] Because the maple syrup-like flavor is strong and not always liked, the seeds are ground to a powder and administered in capsules. Many lactating women who take fenugreek in the quantities required to increase their milk supply notice that their skin exudes a distinct "maple syrup" odor. Fenugreek seeds are a rich source of the polysaccharide galactomannan. They are also a source of saponins such as diosgenin, yamogenin, gitogenin, tigogenin, and neotigogens. Other bioactive constituents of fenugreek include mucilage, volatile oils, and alkaloids such as choline and trigonelline. Fenugreek is frequently used in the production of flavoring for artificial maple syrups. The taste of toasted fenugreek, like cumin, is additionally based on substituted pyrazines. By itself, fenugreek has a bitter taste. Fenugreek is used as a digestive aid. Studies have shown that fenugreek is a potent stimulator of breastmilk production and its use was associated with increases in milk production of as much as 900%.  It can be found in capsule form in many health food stores. Supplements of fenugreek seeds were shown to lower serum cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein in human patients and experimental models of hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia . Although the benefits of lowering serum cholesterol in and of itself is controversial , Several human intervention trials demonstrated that the antidiabetic effects of fenugreek seeds ameliorate most metabolic symptoms associated with type-1 and type-2 diabetes in both humans and relevant animal models . Fenugreek is currently available commercially in encapsulated forms and is being prescribed as dietary supplements for the control of hypercholesterolemia and diabetes by practitioners of complementary and alternative medicine. In recent research, fenugreek seeds were experimentally shown in rats to protect against cancers of the breast  and, in human cell extracts, the colon .