Vazhaithandu Poriyal – Banana stem poriyal recipe

This is my MIL’s style Vazhaithandu poriyal recipe (Banana stem curry) which is a super healthy and excellent side dish for sambar rice. We try to include Banana stem in our diet at least once in a week as it is a rich source of fiber, Potassium and Vitamin B6. It helps to ease constipation and is good for treating and preventing Kidney stones.

Mostly I make banana stem juice with buttermilk and salt. Sometimes I make poriyal, kuzhambu, thayir pachadi or add in sambar. Recent days I started to make Vazhaithandu dosa as well. Soon I will try to post a collection of all the Vazhaithandu recipes in my blog for easy reference.

Today’s recipe is a very easy and simple Tamil nadu style poriyal recipe with Vazhaithandu. My MIL makes it without onion and garlic but I used garlic today. Also she uses red chilli for spicy taste whereas I used sambar powder for variation. It came out so well. We all loved it. Even Raksha who eats only dosa with Vazhaithandu ate this poriyal today without complaints.

Friends, do try this yummy and healthy raw banana stem poriyal for rice and enjoy with your family. But make sure you use tender and fresh banana stem for best taste.

Vazhaithandu poriyal / Banana stem curry for rice

Vazhaithandu poriyal / Banana stem curry for rice - Easy and healthy side dish using Banana stem.

 

Cuisine: Tamil nadu

Category: Side dish

Serves: Serves 4

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

 

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

Vazhaithandu / Banana stem - 1 Moong dal - 1 tbsp Sambar powder or red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp Salt - as needed Water - to cook Grated coconut – 1/4 cup To temper Coconut oil - 1 tbsp Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Urad dal - 1 tsp Chana dal - 2 tsp Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp Curry leaves - few Garlic - 5 cloves Coriander leaves - to garnish

HOW TO MAKE BANANA STEM PORIYAL

1. Remove the outer sheath of Banana stem.
2. Wash and chop into circles and dip in thin buttermilk.
3. Chop finely and keep it immersed in buttermilk till use.
4. Take the chopped banana stem in a plate and add salt, moong dal.
5. Mix well and keep the plate in a slanting way for 15 minutes. Water drains out. Discard the water. 
6. Heat oil in a kadai. Splutter mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, cumin seeds and curry leaves. 
7. Add garlic cloves and saute for a minute. Squeeze the banana stem and add to kadai.
8. Add turmeric powder and mix well. Sprinkle some water and cover the kadai. Keep the flame low and cook till moong dal and banana stem turns soft.
9. Lastly add the sambar powder and grated coconut. Mix well and cook for few more minutes.
10. Switch off the stove and garnish with coriander leaves if you like.
11. Serve with sambar and rasam rice. Enjoy !

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Remove the outer sheath of the banana stem and chop into thin roundels. Keep in buttermilk till use. Now take the roundels and chop finely into small cubes. Keep them immersed in buttermilk. Take the chopped banana stem in a plate. Add salt, moong dal and mix well. Keep the plate in a slanting way so that banana stem leaves water which collects in the plate. Discard the water. Heat oil in a kadai and when it gets heated, splutter mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, cumin seeds and curry leaves. Add chopped garlic and saute for few minutes. Squeeze the banana stem and add to the kadai. Keep the flame low and saute for few minutes. Add turmeric powder and mix well. Sprinkle some water and cover cook till dal and banana stem turns soft and cooked well. Lastly add the grated coconut, sambar powder or red chilli powder. Mix well and cook for few minutes in low flame till raw smell goes off. Switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves (optional). Enjoy !

Note

You can saute red chilli along with garlic and skip chilli powder / sambar powder for less spice. For variations, you can skip garlic and make it without onion and garlic. If you like, you can add one finely chopped onion along with garlic and make this poriyal. Healthy and tasty Vazhaithandu poriyal is ready !

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Green Gram Laddu With Jaggery | Pasi Payaru Urundai

Green gram laddu / Pasi payaru urundai (in Tamil) is a super healthy and easy sweet cum snack recipe. Last week I prepared this for my Guru pooja neivedyam. It can be prepared instantly under 15 minutes. I used Organic powdered jaggery / Naatu sakkarai. You can use sugar too.

Friends, you can pack this healthy green moong  ladoo for yours and kids snacks box. You can also prepare this ladoo as prasadam for festivals like Diwali, Gokulashtami, Navarathri and Ganesh chaturthi as its easy, healthy and quick to prepare. Ok, Lets check out how to make this easy and yummy Green gram laddu with jaggery with step by step pictures.

Green gram laddu with jaggery / Pasi payaru urundai recipe

Green gram laddu with jaggery / Pasi payaru urundai recipe for Kids snacks box and festivals.

 

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 10

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

 

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 250ml Green gram - 1/2 cup Powdered jaggery - 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup Cardamom - 2 Cashew nuts - few Ghee - 2 tbsp

HOW TO MAKE GREEN GRAM LADOO WITH JAGGERY

1. Heat a kadai and dry roast the green gram in low to medium flame till reddish brown with nice aroma.
2. Cool down completely. Grind to a fine powder along with cardamom.
3. Lastly add powdered jaggery to it and grind again to smooth powder.
4. Collect in a plate. Heat ghee and roast broken cashews. Add to the mixture.
5. Mix well and shape ladoo. Store in an air tight box. You can use up to 1 week.

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

To make green gram ladoo with jaggery, firstly heat a kadai. Lower the flame and add the green gram. Roast it till it leaves a nice aroma and turns reddish brown color. Roast patiently in low to medium flame else laddu tastes raw. Switch off the flame and remove in a plate. Let it cool down completely. In a mixie jar, take the green gram, cardamom and grind to a fine powder. Lastly add the powdered jaggery to the mixie jar. Powder it nicely. Remove and collect in a plate. Heat ghee in a small kadai and roast the broken cashew pieces till golden in color. Add to the green gram jaggery mixture. Mix evenly with a spoon as the ghee is hot. Once it turns warm, mix well with your hands and shape balls. Make ladoo and store in an air tight box. Enjoy up to 1 week.

Note

For variations, you can roast the powdered green gram in melted ghee, cashew mixture and shape ladoo once it cools down. Ladoo looks little moist and shiny. You can use powdered sugar instead of jaggery. Make sure you roast the green gram without raw smell.

Easy, super healthy and instant green gram ladoo is ready to relish !

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Akki Tambittu | Akki Hittina Thambittu | Karnataka Rice thambittu recipe

Nagara Panchami and Maha Shivaratri is one of the most popular festivals in Karnataka. Every year during Nag Panchami and Shivaratri, my neighbor used to pass this akki tambittu recipe as pooja prasadam. We all love it. I wanted to get the recipe from her and blog it for long time. Due to this pandemic situation, we are not able to get this prasadam from her for the past two years.

This year, I got the recipe from her and made it in my kitchen. I also offered this laddu / unde as prasad for my Thursday Guru pooja. My neighbor makes it big in size but I made it small as per my family’s liking. Friends, this tambittu is a super healthy ladoo recipe with all the goodness of jaggery, roasted rice, roasted gram, sesame seeds, peanuts, poppy seeds and desiccated coconut. You can give it to your kids snacks box as well.

Apart from this akki thambittu recipe, people also make Chigali ladoo/ sesame seeds laddu, hurigadale tambittu on this occasion. Soon I will try to share those recipes here.

Now lets see how to make Karnataka special akki tambittu recipe with step by step pictures. Prepare this special recipe for Nagara Panchami festival tomorrow and enjoy !

Akki thambittu recipe / Akki tambittu recipe

Akki thambittu recipe / Akki tambittu recipe for Nagara panchami and Maha Shivaratri festival prasada.

 

Cuisine: Karnataka

Category: Sweet

Serves: 8

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

 

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 250ml Raw rice / Sona masoori rice - 1/2 cup Grated jaggery - 1/2 cup  (Use 3/4 cup for more sweetness) Roasted gram dal / Hurigadale - 1/4 cup Peanuts - 1/4 cup Sesame seeds - 2 tbsp Khus khus /Poppy seeds - 1 tbsp Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp Ghee - 1 tbsp Desiccated coconut - 2 tbsp (Grated) Water – 1/3 cup

HOW TO MAKE AKKI THAMBITTU RECIPE

1. Heat a kadai and dry roast the rice till puffy. Transfer to a plate.
2. Dry roast sesame seeds and poppy seeds till they splutter.
3. Add roasted gram dal and roast for a minute. Reserve half and transfer to the rice plate.
4. Dry roast peanuts till skin crackles. Remove the skin and keep aside.
5. Dry roast coconut and set aside. 
6. Grind the rice, sesame seeds, roasted gram dal mixture to a fine powder.
7. Transfer to a plate. Grind peanuts coarsely and add to the plate.
8. Now add the roasted coconut, cardamom powder, reserved poppy+sesame seeds+gram dal and ghee. Mix well.
9. Melt jaggery adding water and boil till frothy. Let it cool down. Filter it and add to the rice mixture.
10. Mix evenly and make balls. Karnataka Akki thambittu is ready !

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Heat a kadai and roast the rice in low to medium flame till puffy. Remove in a plate. Dry roast sesame seeds and poppy seeds till it starts to splutter. Add the roasted gram dal and roast for a minute. Switch off the flame. Reserve half of this mixture in a plate and add the remaining in the rice plate. Cool down and grind to a fine powder. Transfer to a plate. Dry roast desiccated or fresh coconut for few minutes and add to the rice flour plate. Dry roast peanuts till its skin crackles. Cool down and remove the skin. Grind coarsely. Add the powdered peanuts to the rice flour mixture. Add cardamom powder, ghee and the reserved poppy seeds, sesame seeds and roasted gram dal. Combine and mix everything well. Take jaggery in a kadai. Add water to cover it. Boil and melt the jaggery. Boil for few minutes in medium flame till it becomes frothy and slightly thick. No need to look for any consistency. But make sure, jaggery syrup is not too thick. Thambittu will become hard to bite after it sets. So keep the syrup slightly thick like oil. Let it cool down completely. Now filter the syrup and add to the rice flour mixture. Mix well to coat the rice flour. No problem if the mixture looks wet and loose. Shape ladoo and arrange in a plate. This ladoo becomes hard after its set in few hours. So make sure the ladoo is soft to handle while shaping. Enjoy !

Note

For variations, you can skip grinding sesame seeds and poppy seeds. You can add the roasted ones as such. You can skip desiccated coconut or use fresh coconut instead. In that case, roast the fresh coconut till its dry.

Try this easy, healthy akki thambittu recipe for festivals and enjoy !

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Gooseberry Rasam Recipe | Nellikai Rasam Recipe | Amla Rasam Recipe

Gooseberry rasam / Nellikai rasam in Tamil / Amla rasam is an interesting and healthy rasam recipe. Recent days I am trying to include gooseberry in my cooking regularly as its rich in Vitamin C and helps to boost immunity. Usually I make nellikai thayir pachadi and nellikai thogayal. I don’t want to include gooseberry in pickle form considering its oil and salt. So when I was looking for some interesting gooseberry recipes, I came across this nellikai rasam recipe.

I had some pressure cooked gooseberry in hand. So I used that and tried this rasam recipe. Even though its my first attempt, rasam came out so well. Its easy to prepare too. Friends, do try this gooseberry rasam for a change. You will love it like me.

Gooseberry Rasam Recipe / Nellikai Rasam Recipe

Gooseberry Rasam Recipe / Nellikai Rasam Recipe for rice

 

Cuisine: Tamil nadu

Category: Rasam recipes

Serves: 4

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

 

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

To dry roast and grind Gooseberry (Raw or cooked) - 4 Pepper corns - 1 tsp Cumin seeds - 1 tsp Coriander seeds - 1 tsp Red chilli - 1 Garlic - 5 cloves To cook Ripe tomato - 2 Green chilli - 1 Cooked toor dal - 2 tbsp Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp Salt & water - as needed To Temper Ghee - 1 tbsp Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp Curry leaves - few Hing / Asafetida - a pinch Coriander leaves - to garnish

HOW TO MAKE GOOSEBERRY RASAM

1. Wash and chop tomato, green chilli. Pressure cook toor dal, gooseberry together and set aside.
2. Boil tomato, green chilli adding cooked toor dal paste, turmeric powder, salt and water.
3. Dry roast pepper, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, red chilli and grind it along with gooseberry.
4. Add this paste to the boiling tomato. Boil for a minute till frothy in low flame.
5. Temper mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, red chilli in ghee.
6. Add to rasam and switch off the flame. Garnish with coriander leaves.
7. Serve hot with plain rice adding few drops of ghee.

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

In a pressure cooker, take toor dal, gooseberry and required water. Pressure cook in low flame for one whistle. Mash the dal and set aside. Take the cooked toor dal, chopped tomato, slit green chilli, turmeric powder, salt and water. Roll boil till tomato is cooked well. Dry roast coriander seeds, pepper corns, cumin seeds and red chilli. Grind it adding cooked gooseberry to a smooth paste. Add to the boiling tomato mixture. Mix well and check for salt. Add more water and salt if needed. Now lower the flame and boil the rasam till its frothy.  Temper mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves and red chilli in ghee. Add to rasam.    Switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves. Enjoy !

Note

For variations, you can grind the spices without roasting it. But flavor of rasam varies. You can also grind the raw gooseberry instead of pressure cooking. But you should boil the rasam for few minutes till its raw smell goes off.

Try this easy and healthy gooseberry rasam recipe. You will love it !

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Flax Seeds Idli Podi | Flax Seeds Chutney Powder Recipe - Aali Vithai Podi

Idli podi / Gun powder is an inevitable side dish in my house. Though I make varieties of chutney and sambar recipes for idli, dosa we have the habit of eating at least one last idli with idli podi. So I always keep idli powder also known as chutney powder in stock. And I love to try varieties of idli podi recipes. Its been a long time I used flax seeds in my cooking. 

Flax seeds (Linum usitatissimum) also known as common flax or linseeds (Aali vithai in Tamil, 

Alsi ke Beej in Hindi, 

Agase bījagaḷu in Kannada, caṇa vittukaḷ in Malayalam, Avise gin̄jalu in Telugu ) are small oil seeds that originated in the Middle East thousands of years ago. Lately, they have gained popularity as a health food. This is due to their high content of heart-healthy omega-3 fats, fiber, and other unique plant compounds. Flax seeds have health benefits such as improved digestion and a reduced risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer. They can be easily incorporated into your diet.  Roasting and grinding them is the best way to make the most of their health benefits. (source : https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods/flaxseeds).

 Earlier I used to add roasted flax seeds powder in my poriyal and kootu. This time, I wanted to include it in the form of idli podi.

This Flax seeds idli podi is a healthy chutney powder recipe prepared with urad dal, chana dal, flax seeds and curry leaves. Garlic flavored idli podi is our family’s favorite. So I have added some garlic cloves in this flax seeds podi. You can skip if you don’t like it.

Friends, do try this healthy flax seeds idli podi recipe / flax seeds chutney powder for idli, dosa. You will love it. Check out the video too !

Check out my

Basic idli podi recipe

Garlic idli podi

flax seeds horsegram idli podi 

Pepper idli podi

Sesame seeds podi

Flax seeds idli podi recipe / Flax seeds chutney powder recipe

Flax seeds idli podi recipe / Flax seeds chutney powder recipe - Side dish for idli dosa

 

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Side dish

Serves: 1.5 cups

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

 

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 250ml Flax seeds - 1/2 cup White urad dal - 1/2 cup Chana dal - 1/4 cup Red chilli – 12 to 15 (6 spicy chilli, 6 byadge or Kashmiri chilli) Curry leaves - 1 sprig Asafetida / Hing – 1/4 tsp Garlic cloves with skin - 10 Salt - as needed Cooking oil – 2 tsp

HOW TO MAKE FLAX SEEDS IDLI PODI

1. Heat a kadai and dry roast flax seeds till it starts to pop.
2. Remove in a plate. Add 1 tsp cooking oil in the kadai.
3. Roast chana dal and urad dal. Roast till golden in low to medium flame. 
4. Remove in a plate. Heat 1 tsp oil. Add red chilli, curry leaves, hing and roast till crispy.
5. Add salt and switch off the flame. Let everything cool down.
6. Firstly grind the red chilli to a coarse powder.
7. Now add the roasted dals, flax seeds and grind to powder.
8. Lastly add the garlic cloves. Grind to a fine powder.
9. Remove in a bowl. Cool down and store in a box.
10. Enjoy with idli, dosa adding sesame oil. 

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Heat a kadai and dry roast the flax seeds till it starts to pop. Do in low to medium flame without burning them. Transfer to a plate. In the same kadai, add  1 tsp of cooking oil. Add chana dal, urad dal and keep roasting them till both the dals turn golden in color. Do it patiently in low to medium flame. It takes 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to the flax seeds plate. Now add 1 tsp of oil and add the red chillies, hing and curry leaves. Roast it till crispy without browning the chillies. Roast in low to medium flame patiently. Lastly add salt. Switch off the flame and let it be in the kadai for some time. It helps to make the chillies more crispy. Firstly grind the red chillies (use Byadge or Kashmiri chilli for bright color), curry leaves coarsely. Then add the roasted dal, flax seeds together to a powder. Lastly add garlic cloves with skin. Grind to a smooth powder by mixing the powder from the bottom. Don’t worry, garlic will be ground well. Now transfer the idli podi to a bowl. Let it cool down. Then store in an air tight box. Use up to 2 weeks to 1 month. Enjoy with idli dosa drizzling with sesame oil.

Note

For variations, you can skip garlic cloves and add asafetida alone. You can also add 2 tbsp of dry roasted sesame seeds and add it while grinding. It adds a nice flavor. Grinding red chillies firstly gives a nice, bright color to idli podi. For healthy variations, you can add roasted horsegram too. You can also add 2 tsp of roasted coriander seeds for variations.

Healthy and tasty flax seeds idli podi is ready to enjoy with idli dosa !

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Khus Khus Milk / KasaKasa Paal Recipe - Poppy Seeds Milk

Recent days my sleep got disturbed because of my lower back pain. I was unable to sleep continuously due to anxiety and panic attacks. Apart from meditation and other natural sleeping techniques, I was looking for some home remedies and foods to include in my diet. I came across this khus khus milk / khas khas milk (poppy seeds in English) / Kasakasa paal/ Gasagasa paal recipe in Gowri samayalarai YouTube channel. I tried it on the same day as all the ingredients were readily available with me. It came out so well with a nice flavor of poppy seeds and cardamom.

Basically poppy seeds are used in baked goods and traditional dishes worldwide. Both the seeds and their oil are said to offer various health benefits including promoting digestion, boosting skin and hair health, treating headaches, coughs to curing asthma and insomnia. As poppy seeds are derived from the opium poppy, its banned in some countries. In India, people use khus khus in their cooking regularly for grinding masala. It helps to give a thick and creamy texture to kurma and other gravies. 

To powder the poppy seeds, I dry roasted them first which was not mentioned in the original recipe. I also added some cloves for flavor. It smells and tastes so good. Everyone in my home including Raksha loved it. I am taking this milk at night 30 minutes before going to bed. My sleep quality is improved. I am planning to take this milk for another week till I go back to my normal sleep. But do not consume more. For adults, you can give 1/2 cup of milk. 

Friends, do try this khuskhus milk / Poppy seeds milk / Gasagasa paal at home for a good night’s sleep. Remember this milk alone doesn’t make wonders. You have to do meditation, try to divert your mind by listening to good music, watch movies or do your favorite activity that relaxes your mind. 

Ok, lets see how to make this easy and yummy Khas khas milk with step by step pictures.

Khus khus milk / Kasakasa paal recipe

Poppy seeds milk - Khus khus / khas khas milk recipe for good sleep and added health benefits.

 

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Beverage

Serves: 3

Prep time: 5 Minutes

Cook time: 10 Minutes

Total time: 15 Minutes

 

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup = 250ml Poppy seeds / Khus khus - 1/2 cup Nutmeg / jathikai - 1 small piece ( I used 1/4 th of one nutmeg) Cardamom - 5 Pepper corns - 10 Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp Cloves - 2

HOW TO MAKE KHUS KHUS MILK / KASAKASA PAAL

1. Heat a kadai and dry roast the poppy seeds in low flame for few minutes.
2. Add cardamom, cloves, nutmeg and roast it for a minute.
3. Switch off the flame and allow to cool down completely.
4. Now add pepper corns and turmeric powder.
5. Grind everything to a smooth powder. Remove and store in a box.
6. To make khus khus milk : Boil 1/2 liter milk. Add 1 tbsp of this powder.
7. Mix well and boil for few minutes till it changes color. Strain the milk and serve hot or warm !

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Heat a kadai and dry roast the poppy seeds in low to medium flame for few minutes. Make sure you don’t burn it. Add cloves, nutmeg and cardamom and roast it along with poppy seeds for a minute. This helps to powder easily. Switch off the flame. Allow to cool down completely. Add them to mixie jar and add in pepper corns, turmeric powder. Grind to a fine powder. Do not run the mixie continuously for long time. Poppy seeds releases oil and looks like paste. So grind it carefully. Mix in regular intervals and check if it becomes a powder. Now transfer the powder to an air tight box. You can store up to a week at room temperature. To make khus khus milk : Boil 500 ml milk in a bowl. Add 1 to 1.5 tbsp of this poppy seeds powder. Boil for few minutes till it changes color. Strain the milk using a metal filter. Serve the milk hot or warm. Enjoy !

Note

Dry roasting poppy seeds is optional but it helps to powder it well. If you want to wash the poppy seeds, wash it and spread them in a cotton cloth. Let it dry completely. Then you can roast it.

Try this healthy khus khus milk at home and enjoy its health benefits.

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