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July 30, 2009

Energy Rasam - Moong Dal Rasam

I took this recipe from Aval Vikatan magazine under “Paati vaithiyam” section.We (Me & My MIL )call this rasam as ‘Energy Rasam’ .We have this rasam whenever we suffer from fever,cold,mouth and stomach ulcers.U can also have this rasam after recovering from jeopardizing diseases like small pox,chikunguniyaa,typhoid etc.This regains the lost strength to our body..It helps to improve the loss of appetite .The moong dal used here has got the tendency to cure stomach and mouth ulcers and the ginger induces hunger..Jeera/Cumin seeds is good for digestion..Overall it makes our body to work efficientlyThumbs-up

Very easy to prepare and tastes like Ven Pongal (Kaara pongal) when  mixed with plain rice and ghee..

Ingredients
  • Moong dal – 1/2 cup
  • Tomato  - 2 nos
  • Ginger – 1 inch size (finely chopped)
  • Jeera / Cumin seeds – 1 –2 tsp
  • Lemon – Half
  • Pepper Powder– 1 tsp (optional)
  • Salt and water - Required
To temper
  • Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
  • Jeera – 1/2 tsp
  • Asafetida/Hing – 1/4 tsp
  • Curry leaves – a sprig
  • Ghee – 1 tsp
Coriander leaves – to garnish
Method:
  • Heat a kadai and dry roast 2 tsp of jeera and grind it to a fine powder.
  • Pressure cook moong dal along with finely chopped ginger,tomatoes and salt for 1-2 whistles and mash it with a ladle.Add the jeera powder.
  • Now heat a kadai with 1 tsp of ghee and season with mustard and cumin seeds.Add 1/4 tsp of hing,curry leaves.
  • Add this seasoning to the dal mixture and let it boil for sometime.
  • Remove from fire and add the lemon juice(fire off!!).
  • Mix it well and garnish with coriander leaves.

NOTE:If u want it to have spicy,u can add black pepper powder ..But we don’t need it ...I dint have coriander leaves to garnish..
IMG_0202


YUMMY ,HEALTHY ENERGY RASAM IS READY TO SERVE HOT WITH PLAIN RICE AND A DOLLOP OF GHEE. 
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July 23, 2009

Idli Tikka - Colorful Mini Idli - Kids Lunch Box Recipes

Idly tikka 1


Yet anotherr unique , interesting dish from my friend Shalini….She just told me the recipe and i named it.. Wink Its a yummy kids friendly recipe…We liked it sooooo muchLove Struck.

Ingredients
  • Mini idlies – 30 nos
  • **Green chutney – 1 /2 cup
  • **Idly milagai podi – 3 – 4 tsp
  • Capsicum – 1/2 no (cube cut )
  • Big onion – 1
  • Oil – 1 tbsp
  • Tooth pick – 10 sticks
**Green chutney:
  • Coriander leaves – 1 handful
  • Big onion – 1 /2 no (less is also ok)
  • Green chilly – 1 – 2 no (adjust )
  • Salt  - as needed
Green chutney for tikka

Method
  1. Steam 30 idlies in mini idly plate..Set aside.
  2. Heat a kadai with oil.Add the capsicum and big onion ..Saute well.. Keep it apart..
  3. Heat the kadai with 1 tsp of oil /ghee and add 10 idlies to it..Sprinkle idly milagai podi over it and toss well..Make sure the idlies dont break.(I just shake the kadai to and fro) Transfer it to a plate..RED colored idly is ready!!
  4. Prepare green chutney with all the ingredients mentioned above and make it to a smooth thick paste..
  5. Take another 10 plain idlies and dip it into the chutney.It will turn into GREEN colored idlies..!!
  6. Take the last 10 white idlies..and arrange everything  with capsicum and onion in between tooth picks as desired..
idlies
Quick and yummy idly tikka is ready ;)
Idly tikka


Try and  let me know :)
See u all in my next post Wave
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July 20, 2009

Rice Upma / Arisi Upm With Adayar Anandha Bhavan Style Sambar

I learnt this upma from my MIL and sambar from my friend Krithiga. This sambar serves as an excellent combo for this upma. I usually make this sambar for idli/Dosa. But this time I tried for this upma. It was a divinely combination. It can be prepared within 15 mins. :)
Normally we all make coconut chutney/Tomato /Coriander chutney for upma. But I usually make different sambar. My hubby likes to have upma with sambar more than chutney. Also the juicy sambar when mixed with upma gives a heavenly taste, Slurpp!. Even I too love sambar for upma nowadays. 

Ingredients 

FOR UPMA
  • Raw rice – 1 cup
  • Toor dal – 1.5 tbsp
To temper:
  • Mustard  seeds – 1 tsp
  • Urad dal – 2 tsp
  • Channa dal -  1 tsp
  • Green chilly – 2 nos (Slit cut)
  • Curry leaves – a sprig
  • Ginger – 1 inch ( chopped finely)
  • Hing /Asafetida – 1/2 tsp
  • Oil – 1 tbsp
  • Water – 2.25 cups
Method
  • Soak rice and dal together for 1 hr. Run in the mixie only once (use inch/Juice option)..It should be just broken into two..Set aside..
  • Heat oil in a cooker base and add the tempering items in the same order.Add only half of the hing during tempering..
  • Then add the water.Mix well by adding a tsp of oil.Now add the remaining 1/4 tsp of hing and add the rice and dal mixture.Stir it well till the water gets absorbed by the rice,dal mixture..Now close the lid and cook for 1 whistle in low flame.
  • Remove and serve hot with sambar/Chutney!!



AAB SAMBAR RECIPE
Ingredients:
  • Toor dal- 1/4 cup 
  • Tomato – 2 nos (finely chopped)
  • Small onion – 10 nos (Peeled ) (U can use big onion too )
  • Adayar Ananda Bhavan Sambar powder – 1.5-2 tsp (if u dont have this sambar powder,u can use MTR,SAKTHI sambar powders ..)
  • Red chilly powder – 1/2 tsp
  • Jaggery - a small piece
  • Turmeric powder – a pinch
  • Hing /Asafetida – 2 pinches.
  • Salt & water – as  needed
To dry roast& grind:
  • Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
  • Chana dal - 1.5 tbsp
  • Methi seeds - 1/2 tsp
  • Hing - 1/4 tsp
  • Red chillies - 2 nos
To temper :
  • Mustard seeds – 1/4 tsp
  • Urad dal – 1 /2 tsp
  • Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp
  • Curry leaves – a sprig
  • Oil – 1 tsp
Ghee – 1 tbsp
Coriander leaves – to garnish
 Method:
  1. Take a pressure cooker and add the items given under “ingredients”..with salt & water.Soak for 15 mins(this helps the toor dal to cook well N mash).Cook for 2 whistles in low flame..Open and mash it well.
  2.  Ruoast all the ingredients in a drop of oil & grind it to a fine powder. Add this powder, jaggery after opening the cooker and let it boil well.Temper it and garnish with coriander leaves..
  3. Finally add a tbsp of ghee and mix well or u can temper with ghee.  This gives an added flavor to this sambar !!This is the most important step .Plz dont forget..

Note:
U  can add any veggies of ur choice to make it healthy..
For upma..Instead of soaking rice and dal for  1 hr,u can directly run it in the mixie once and repeat the same procedure.


TRIED & TASTED:

CARROT POLI FROM EC’S BLOG:

I should thank EC for posting this yummy sweet just for me. I was elated !!
I tried this on sunday evening. I made some small changes in her recipe. I added grated coconut and instead of grinding the boiled carrots ..I grated them.
It tasted excellent and i’ve decided to make it for my guests. 
Here is the recipe which I followed.This is for my future reference too. 
For stuffing:
  • Boiled and grated carrot – 2 nos (medium sized)
  • Grated coconut – 1/4 cup
  • Sugar – 10 tsp (adjust )
  • Cardamom – 2 nos powdered
  • Ghee – 1 tsp
For dough:
  • Maida – 3/4 cup
  • Cooking soda – a pinch
  • Salt – a pinch
  • Oil – 1 tbsp
  • Kesari color – a pinch
  • Water – as needed.
Method:
  1. Knead the dough by mixing all the ingredients and set aside for 30 mins.
  2. In a kadai take the grated coconut along with sugar. Let it mix well and sugar melt. Then add the boiled, grated coconut, ghee, cardamom powder. Stir it well till it forms a ball and becomes non sticky.
  3. Remove and set aside. Knead the dough again till it becomes soft.
  4. Now make the balls of even size and roll it a little.
  5. Place the stuffing in the middle and cover it by pulling all the sides of the dough. Make a ball and pat it to a thin chappathi on a greased polythene sheet..
  6. Heat a dosa tawa and cook the poli on both the sides by pouring little oil around it..
Yummy carrot poli is ready to eat.. 


Bye for now :)
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July 15, 2009

Appam Recipe Using Idli Dosa Batter & Onion Chutney | Appam Recipe With A Side Dish



(Recipe updated with new pictures and a video)
I learnt this recipe from my friend Shalini.She told me two methods of making aapam.I found this one as the easiest method .I tried this for breakfast yesterday and it was a super duper hitApplause.This appam recipe is without yeast and it is made with our usual idli, dosa batter.So if you have idli batter ready in hand,you can make this appam in the next 15 minutes.It is very easy and tastes divine with sweet coconut milk and onion chutney as side dish. Generally we make Vegetable stew as the side dish for appam.But my friend told me to try this onion chutney. It was a nice side dish for appam.This onion chutney tastes good for idli,dosa too. I have updated this easy appam recipe with a video. Please watch it below. 


Check out my other appam recipes



aappam-2 copy

onion chutney

Appam recipe with side dish


Appam recipe with side dish How to make appam recipe using idli,dosa batter easily - an easy side dish recipe is also given
Cuisine: Indian
Category: Breakfast
Serves: 10 nos
Prep time: 10 Minutes
Cook time: 5 Minutes
Total time: 15 Minutes


INGREDIENTS 
1 cup - 250ml
  • Idli batter  - 4 cups (I took the batter for making 10 appams.)
  • Grated coconut – 1 cup OR thick coconut milk - 1/2 to 3/4 cup ( Based on thickness of batter)
  • Salt – as needed
  • Sugar – 1/4 tsp
  • Cooking soda – 2 pinches ( 1/8 tsp)
INGREDIENTS FOR ONION CHUTNEY –EASY SIDE DISH FOR APPAM
  • Big Onion – 2 nos
  • Red chilly –  3-4 nos
  • Urad dal – 2 tsp
  • Asafetida /Hing – a pinch
  • Curry leaves – a sprig ( 10 leaves)
  • Tamarind – marble size
  • Oil – 2 tsp
  • Salt & water – as needed
METHOD

    • Take the fermented, fresh idli/dosa batter in a bowl and add salt ( If there is no salt in batter), sugar and cooking soda. Grind the coconut with 1/2 cup of warm water and take the first milk.Transfer half of the first milk into a separate bowl.U can use it as side dish by adding sugar and cardamom powder.
    idli,dosa aapam tile
    • Add the remaining half of the milk  into the batter.Again grind the coconut with 1/4 -1/2 cup of water and extract the second milk from it.Add this milk to the batter completely.  In total, it needs 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup milk.(Coconut milk should be added such that the batter should not become too watery.It should be little loose like our dosa batter) .Mix the batter well and leave it for 10 mins.
    • Now take a kadai / appam pan ( non-stick) .Pour a ladleful of batter in the center of the kadai.Lift the kadai and tilt it in circular motion so that the corners will be thin and thick in the center.Pour a tsp of oil around the appam and cover it with a lid.Simmer the flame. Cook on one side only.Once it gets cooked remove and serve hot!!
    idli, dosa aapam tile1
    Serve hot with coconut milk and onion chutney!!

    Enjoy !

    ONION CHUTNEY

    Usually we all make vegetable stew for aapam..But this chutney also goes very well..Try this and let me know:)
    • Heat a kadai with 2 tsp of oil and roast the urad dal ,red chilly with hing.Set aside.
    • In the same kadai add the sliced onions and saute well.Before switching off the flame just add the curry leaves and toss for a second.Then switch off the flame and cool down.
    aapam onion chutney tile
    • Now grind the  sautéed onion & curry leaves along with roasted items ,tamarind,salt & water …
    Flavourful Onion - curry leaves chutney is ready to go with Aapam..

Note
    1.If bubbles does not form in the dosa, add little more cooking soda. 
    2. If the bottom of the dosa sticks to the pan and doesn’t come out well,it shows coconut milk added is more than the required measure.So add little more idli batter ( Say 1/2 cup) and try it.

aappam plate


aappam milk

See u all in the next post Happy
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July 13, 2009

Pani Puri

pani puri set
I’ve tasted pani puri only 2 times in chaat corners and my MIL tried it once long time back.. I don’t remember how she made it. But it was very good. From then I had an eye on this and last week I tried on my own by referring a chaats special book which I bought in a train journey:).  In most of the blogs and websites i’ve seen the recipe of pani puri with a minimum of two chutneys.. I think this is the authentic way of making it. But in my book only one chutney is given. I found it easier and I made some changes to it. It came out very well.  My hubby liked it so much and asked for more.


The only part which I felt little time consuming is the making of puri. I told this to my husband and my sweet hubby bought some ready puris from a shop. So If you want to make the process very simple, you can buy the ready made puris which are available in stores.. But what I personally feel is that the store bought puris are harder and is of no salt.. These kind of puris degrades the taste of this yummy snack. May be the puri (unbranded) i bought  here is not good.. So I am not sure about this. Check in your place. Okay..now coming to the recipe and pics.

Ingredients
For puri:
  • Fine Rava/semolina – 1/2 cup ( Chiroti rava)
  • All purpose flour/Maida – 1/2 tsp
  • Salt & water – as  needed
  • Cooking Oil – to deep fry
For sweet & sour chutney
  • Coriander leaves – 1 handful
  • Mint leaves – 1 handful
  • Seedless Dates – 5-6 nos (soak in little warm water)
  • Tamarind – 2 seeds(-do)
  • Green chilly – 2-3 nos
  • Jaggery – small gooseberry size
  • Black salt - 1 tsp
  • Red chilli powder - 1/4 tsp
  • Dhania powder - 1/2 tsp
  • Cumin powder/Jeera powder - 1/2 tsp
  • Chat masala powder - 1 tsp
  • Lemon juice - few drops
  • Salt – little
  • Water - 3-4 cups
For stuffing the puri..
  • Big onion – 2  nos (finely chopped)
  • Coriander leaves – 1/2 bunch (finely chopped)
  • Sprouted green gram – 1/4cup (optional)
  • Boiled and mashed potato – 2 nos
  • Red chilly powder –1/2 tsp
  • Jeera powder – 1/4 tsp
  • salt – a pinch.
Method:
  • Mix maida , rava with required salt. Mix well, add required water little by little and make a non-sticky dough. Knead well for 2 minutes.Set aside for half an hour covering with a wet cloth.. (In the mean time you can prepare chutney)
  • Again knead for sometime to make it soft and smooth..
  • Roll it into thin chappathis (shouldn’t be too thin or thick)and using a round shaped mould cut the single chappathi into small puris..Take the puris and keep it on a polythene sheet by covering with a wet cloth..The puris should not be dried.
shape
  • Heat oil in a wok-Deep fry these puris in batches on both sides.. As soon as you put the puri in the hot oil, press it with a ladle ,the puri puffs up bubbling on sides. Once the bubbles ceases, turn it over and repeat the same. Cook in medium flame for long time to get crispy poori. Arrange it in a serving plate.!!
Chutney :
  • Grind all the items given under “for chutney” to a smooth thick paste by adding little water.The lemon juice should be added while grinding because it helps to retain the color..(if you want, you can omit the tamarind seeds and add more lime juice.)
  • Transfer this chutney into a bowl and you can keep this chutney for 3-4 days by refrigerating it.
  • Now take the required amount of chutney and dilute it with water, strain it and your pani is ready!! Check for salt, spice and sweetness. If anything is less, you can add it.. 
  • For spice, you can add red chilly powder and for sweet you can add powdered jaggery.
CHUTNEY -PANI PURI Pani 1
Stuffing:
  • Take the boiled potato in a bowl and mash it well without any lumps..
  • Add the redchilly powder,jeera powder and salt to it..
Take a puri…make a hole on the top side of the puri with ur thumb and stuff it with the mashed potato  mixture,sprouted grams,onion and coriander leaves in the same order.

Finally fill it with pani and serve immediately!!  ENJOY!!

Some puris dint puff up well as I expected . So I just crumbled those puris and took in a plate. I added little chutney, finely chopped onions, grated carrot and coriander leaves into it. Mixed it well and poured little pani over it!! It was very nice and tasty. It tasted more like papdi chaat. But Iam not sure wat is papdi chat. Friends, please let me know about it. 
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July 8, 2009

Tomato Dosa Recipe | Thakkali Dosai

TOMATO DOSA
I got this tomato dosa recipe from my friend Shalini…I tried last week and it came out very well. It was crispy , tasty and we liked it very much. This dosa can be prepared instantly after grinding the batter. Fermentation is not necessary. But I ground the batter 3 hours before making the dosa. This dosa comes out soft, not much crispy as you see in the above picture. I’ve gone through so many varieties of tomato dosa on net. Here comes my version of tomato dosa batter.


Ingredients
1 cup - 250ml
  • Raw rice – 1 cup
  • Tomato – 4 nos (small)
  • Red chilli – 5-7 nos (adjust to our taste)
  • Hing/Asafetida – 1/4 tsp
  • Salt & water – as needed
To Temper:
  • Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
  • Curry leaves – a sprig
  • Oil – 1 tsp
Method:
  • Wash and soak the rice for 2 hours.
  • Grind the tomato, red chilly, hing along with salt to make a puree.
  • Then add the rice and grind it like a dosa batter.
  • The batter should be loose and slightly watery..So add the water accordingly..
  • Heat a kadai with oil and temper with mustard seeds and curry leaves.
  • Add to the batter and mix well.Check for salt..
  • Now heat a dosa tawa greased with oil and pour the batter in a circular manner from outwards to inwards..
  • Pour little oil around the dosa if desired.. 
  • Serve hot with coconut chutney!!
COCONUT CHUTNEY

Ingredients
To Grind:
  • Grated coconut – 1/2 cup
  • Green chilly – 2-3 nos
  • Ginger – A small piece
  • Salt & water – as needed.
To temper:
  • Mustard – 1/4 tsp
  • Urad dal – 1/4 tsp
  • Curry leaves – few
  • Oil – 1 tsp
Method :
  • Grind all the items given under to grind to make a smooth paste and temper it..
Note : This dosa can be prepared instantly..No need for the batter to ferment..But I made the batter 3 hours before preparing dosa

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