Vazhaithandu Thayir Pachadi | Banana Stem Raita

I love to eat all the vegetables. But Sendhil & Raksha run miles away when i prepare certain dishes using some vegetables..One such vegetable is banana stem / vazhaithandu. I have to think a lot before cooking these vegetables as how to make the dish appealing and make them eat. Last time when i went to salem my FIL bought me a tender banana stem.. When i was hitting my mind to try something new , my neighbour suggested this recipe.I tried it keeping my fingers crossed .To my surprise , sen said this is the second best recipe among the vazhaithandu dishes..I asked , which is the first one then ? He said its Vazhaithandu juice .. I must thank my neighbour for teaching me such a quick , easy n tasty dish. I started making this very often as this became my hubby’s favourite and an easy to prepare dish for me .There is no need to cook the banana stem.It has a crunchy taste.So this recipe can be made instantly.Only the cutting part takes some time.I used to cut it the previous day night & keep them immersed in buttermilk & refrigerate it till use . If u dont like to eat raw banana stem , pressure cook it for one whistle and proceed.Make sure u use a tender , fresh stem.This dish will be helpful for people under diet as the fiber content of banana stem helps to reduce the weight.It is very filling too.Try this recipe and let me know how u liked it ..

INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 200ml

Tender Banana stem | Vazhaithandu – 1 cup (finely chopped) Fresh thick curd – 1 cup Green chilly –  1 - 2 nos ( Slitted or finely chopped ) Ginger – 1 inch piece (optional) Salt – As needed To temper Cooking oil – 1 tsp Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp Urad dal – 1 tsp Hing – 2 generous pinches Curry leaves – few Coriander leaves – few

METHOD

Discard  the outer cover of banana stem and take the inner part separately. Cut into discs and remove the threads that comes in between the discs.Now chop them finely. Mix 2 tsp curd or a tbsp of  buttermiik in a bowl of water & immerse the chopped vazhaithandu pieces till use. ( This helps to avoid discoloration) Now heat a tsp of oil in a a kadai and temper mustard seeds , urad dal , hing and curry leaves , green chillies & ginger.saute well. Take the chopped banana stem pieces from the buttermilk , squeeze them well and add the tempered items .Mix well , add salt & coriander leaves..Before serving add the fresh curd & mix well and serve immediately.. Enjoy with dal rice or eat as it is !! The curd mixture tastes & smells more like thayir vada curd as the ingredients used for both are same

NOTE

Curd should be fresh and thick.This is very important for this dish. Squeeze the banana stem after taking out from buttermilk else it will leave the water and makes the pachadi watery.Banana stem pieces should be added just before serving , remember .. Adding hing and coriander leaves gives the flavour. Addition of ginger is optional . I have tried without adding ginger too. It tasted good.. If u want , u can make a paste of ginger & green chilli  & little coconut and add to curd..

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NELLIKAI THAYIR PACHADI | GOOSEBERRY PACHADI

Gooseberry pachadi / Nellikai pachadi is a very healthy and easy to make pachadi. Most of us have gooseberry pickle. But this one is of a different kind. My MIL always buy gooseberries in lots & cuts them into small pieces, grind it in mixie to get a wet powder (no need to add water).We spread it in a big plate (Thaambaalam) and keep it in sunlight for 2-3 days in day time. Keep in open air under the fan during night. Repeat this until its dried completely.

It will become a dry powder (we call it as “Nelli Mulli). We store this in an air-tight container and use it for months. As we all know, Gooseberry can be taken in any form, we include this at least twice a week in our lunch. This Pachadi can be made with the dried powder or fresh ones.
So here is the recipe,

Ingredients

• BIG Gooseberry (fresh) – 1 no ( If POWDER, use 2 tsp)
• Green chilly – 1 - 2 ( use 2 nos if it is small)
• Grated Coconut – 1 tbsp
• Asafetida – A pinch
• Curd – 1/4 cup
• Mustard seeds & urad dal – 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves – 1 sprig
• Oil – 1 tsp
• Salt – to taste

Method

• Cut the gooseberry into small pieces and remove the seed.
• Now grind it with green chilli, coconut piece and salt with a pinch of asafetida to make it a paste by adding enough water.
• Then transfer it to a small bowl and add the curd to it.
• Mix it well and season with mustard, urad dal & curry leaves.

Note: U can do the same with nelli mulli powder. Just replace the fresh gooseberry with 2 tsp of this. Add more chilly if you want it to be spicy.

 

This pachadi serves as a very good accompaniment for dal rice (paruppu saadham) with ghee. It can also be had with plain rice & ghee. That tastes excellent:)

So let us make this easy pachadi at our home & get all its benefits:)

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