Coimbatore Annapoorna Hotel Sambar Recipe – Restaurant Style Idli Sambar Recipe

Coimbatore Annapoorna hotel sambar was in my try list for years. Usually I make varieties of idli, dosa at least thrice in week. So I keep trying different side dishes, it may be either chutney or sambar. As a result of this, I could share a collection of South Indian style 50 chutney recipes and 30 idli sambar/Tiffin sambar recipes in my blog. In my idli sambar collection, I have already shared few hotel style sambar recipes like Saravana bhavan hotel sambar, Tamilnadu style hotel sambar ( Madurai, Tirunelveli), easy restaurant style sambar, Udupi hotel style sambar and AAB sambar recipes. But my collection won’t be a complete one without some of the most popular idli sambar recipes like Coimbatore Annapoorna Hotel Tiffin sambar and Madras Ratna Cafe Sambar. I have tasted this sambar only once from Hotel Sree Annapoorna Sree Gowri Shankar near Coimbatore Bus stand. 

Recently my friend Sudha suggested me to try this sambar recipe from Kannamma’s blog. Thank you so much Suguna & Chef Mr.Palanisami for sharing this wonderful recipe with us. After seeing the excellent feedbacks from many readers of Coimbatore, I got the confidence to try it. Just like other hotel sambar recipes, this one also calls for roasting, grinding and adding freshly ground spices. But the ingredients for sambar powder is different.

Actually my friend had advised me to use half the quantity of ingredients as the yield of this sambar will be more for a 2-3 members family. So I halved the quantity of sambar powder ingredients & dal, modified the cooking procedure slightly for ease. Raksha & Sendhil loved it a lot. Friends, do try this yummy hotel style sambar recipe at home (If possible with drumstick). Its one of the best side dish for idli/ mini idli, dosa, pongal and vada. You will love it for sure. Ok, Lets see how to make this yummy, Coimbatore special Annapoorna hotel sambar recipe with step by step photos and a video !! Don’t forget to go through the “Points to note” given below.

UPDATED :  Recently I tasted this sambar in Annapoorna hotel, Coimbatore. I felt the sambar was more sweet in taste and I could smell some ginger too. So I have updated this recipe based on the one I tasted. Also I tried this sambar with drumstick and updated a picture above. When I added drumstick, it tasted good with rice as well. So this sambar can be had with rice if you add drumstick. But reduce the quantity of jaggery if making for rice. Also see the actual color of sambar. I served it with brown rice idli below.

Please check the video recipe below.

POINTS TO NOTE

1. As per the original recipe, the quantity of drumstick should be twice that of toor dal. For this quantity, you should use 1 drumstick. Chop into small finger size pieces. Alternatively, you can use 2 brinjal, 1 medium carrot,1 medium sized potato. But flavor of the sambar may vary.
2. If you add drumstick, u can serve this sambar with rice too. Color of the sambar also varies.
3. This Sambar masala needs 12 ingredients. So please keep them ready in a plate before roasting. Roasting the spices perfectly is the key for this sambar.So do not burn them.
4. According to the original recipe, the quantity of tamarind and jaggery should be equal. But I reduced the jaggery as Sendhil doesn’t like the sweet taste in sambar.
5. I used long red chilli but original recipe called for using guntur chilli. So slight color deviation in the sambar was there. 
6. The original recipe called for pressure cooking tomato, onion and drumstick pieces separately for one or two whistles in high flame whereas I cooked them along with the dal by keeping them in a small box inside the cooker. Refer the pics and video for more detail. I did this to reduce the cooking time of sambar.
7. As a general rule of hotel sambar, it tastes the best when you give more standing time.So if you prepare this sambar for your guest, prepare it 3-4 hours in advance. Reheat it at the time of serving.
8. The yield of this sambar will be more as it thickens when cools down. So add little water at the end, mix well, check for salt and then serve.
9. If you want to make this sambar only for 2 people, use half of the quantity of ingredients mentioned.
10. Adding ghee at the end is a must. It gives awesome flavor to this sambar.
11. Garnish with coriander leaves without fail.

Annapoorna Hotel Style Idli Sambar Recipe

Coimbatore Annapoorna Hotel Idli Sambar Recipe - One of the best hotel sambar recipes !

Cuisine: South Indian

Category: Side dish for Idli, dosa

Serves: Serves 4

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS
1 cup - 250ml

To pressure cook Toor dal - 1/4 cup Water - 2 cups Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp Cooking oil - Few drops Tomato - 1 no ( Chopped) Big onion - 1 no ( cube cut) Drumstick - 1/2 no ( Chop into small finger size) For sambar powder Sesame oil/Gingely oil - 2 tsp Methi seeds - 1/8 tsp Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp Pepper corns - 3 nos Red chilli - 2 nos ( I used long variety, 3 Guntur chilli can also be used) Coriander seeds/Dhania - 2 tsp Chana dal - 1 tbsp Urad dal - 1/2 tbsp Grated coconut or dry coconut - 1 tbsp Curry leaves -  5 nos ( 1/2 sprig) Asafetida - 2 big pinches Jaggery - 1 tsp to 2 tsp (I used 2 tsp after tasting the original sambar) Ginger - 1/4 tsp ( chop finely, optional) Tamarind - Medium gooseberry size ( slightly bigger than small gooseberry size) Water – 2 + 1/2 cup ( To boil + grind) To temper Sesame oil/Gingely oil - 2 tsp Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Curry leaves - few Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp To garnish Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp ( finely chopped) Ghee - 1 tbsp

HOW TO MAKE ANNAPOORNA HOTEL SAMBAR - METHOD

In a cooker base, add toor dal, 2 cups water, 1/4 tsp turmeric powder and few drops of cooking oil. In a small box, add chopped onion, tomato, drumstick pieces or other vegetables if using. Add 1/4 cup water. Keep the box inside the cooker. Pressure cook in low flame for 2 whistles. Open the cooker and take the box out. Keep aside.Mash the dal with a whisk or ladle. Set aside. In a kadai, heat 2 tsp sesame oil. Roast methi seeds, cumin seeds, chana dal, urad dal, red chilli, pepper corns, dhania and roast till dals turn golden in color. Add pinched tamarind. Saute for a second. Add the curry leaves, hing, grated coconut, ginger and jaggery. Saute for 30 seconds. Grind this mixture to a smooth paste adding 1/2 cup water. Slightly coarse paste is also fine. In the same kadai, add the ground paste + 2 cups of water.Mix well and boil for few minutes. Add the cooked onion+ tomato + Veggies mixture.Boil for a minute. Add the mashed dal, required salt & boil the sambar in medium flame for few minutes. Heat oil in a kadai and when it gets heated , splutter mustard seeds, curry leaves. SWITCH OFF THE FLAME !  Add red chilli powder, mix well quickly and add this to the boiling sambar. Do not burn the red chilli powder. Boil the sambar for a minute. Last but not the least, add 2 tsp ghee,  chopped coriander leaves and mix well. Serve hot with idli ! This sambar becomes thick as it cools down. So add water to adjust the consistency before serving. Check for salt as well. Enjoy !

Note

Adjust the quantity of red chilli & chilli powder if you want more spicy taste. Do not add more tamarind. Tamarind should be minimum for idli sambar. This sambar becomes thick as it cools down. So add water whenever needed, mix well. Check for salt and serve.

Enjoy this yummy idli sambar with piping hot idli ! Tastes great.

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Gajar Ka Halwa Recipe Without Khoya In Kadai - Carrot Halwa With Milk

Carrot halwa recipe cooked in a kadai with step by step photo and a video !
Carrot halwa (Gajar Ka halwa In Hindi) is one of the most popular Indian desserts that is loved by all. Long back I had shared “How to prepare carrot halwa in pressure cooker”. That’s my go-to recipe for making easy and quick carrot halwa. 

Yesterday for a change, I prepared this traditional method of making carrot halwa in a kadai by using milk, sugar and ghee. I offered it as prasadam for my Friday Lakshmi Pooja. For making carrot halwa, Delhi carrots are mostly used by North Indians whereas I made it with our South Indian orange carrots(Ooty carrot). 

Traditionally it is prepared in a big iron kadai but I used my non-stick kadai that suits my Induction stove as I wanted to make a video recipe as well. So there are mild deviations from the perfect traditional ones but this one tastes and looks equally good. I have not used condensed milk ( Milk maid) Or Khoya/ mawa. So the preparation time and cooking time takes a bit longer than pressure cooker version. Still the final result makes you forget all the pain. Lets see how to make carrot halwa/ Gajar Halwa at home with step by step photos and video !!

Carrot Halwa Recipe - Gajar Ka Halwa

How to make carrot halwa - Gajar Halwa Recipe using milk

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: Serves 2

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 25 Minutes

Total time: 35 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 250ml Carrot - 4 nos OR Grated carrot - 2.5 cups Boiled milk - 1 cup Sugar - 1/2 cup (heaped) Ghee - 3 tbsp Cashews & Almonds/Badam - 5 each ( chopped) Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp

METHOD

Wash and peel the skin of carrots. Grate it using a big sized holes grater. Do not use a small hole grater because halwa turns mushy and the end of cooking. Grate and keep in a plate. In a kadai, heat 2 tbsp ghee and add the grated carrot.Saute well till the raw smell goes off and color of carrot changes to pale orange. It takes nearly 3-5 minutes.  Now add 1 cup of milk and mix well.Keep the flame medium and cover the kadai with a lid. Carrots get cooked in milk. Wait till all the milk is absorbed by the milk. Open the kadai every now & then, stir till bottom to avoid burning. Cooking takes nearly 10-15 minutes. Now add 1/2 cup (heaped)sugar and mix well. Sugar melts and mixture will become watery.Check for taste and add 2 tbsp more sugar if needed. Keep the flame medium and keep stirring till 3/4th of the moisture is lost. When the halwa becomes thick and starts to leave the sides of kadai, add cardamom powder, 1tbsp ghee and mix well. When the halwa becomes thick, gathers in the center with very little moisture, remove it and sprinkle chopped nuts. Serve warm with ice cream or cold ! ** Do not stir the halwa for long time to become thick & dry because when the halwa cools down, it will become hard & chewy.So remove it when there is very little moisture content. This halwa can be refrigerated and stored for a week.Reheat in a microwave for 1 minute and serve warm if needed. Enjoy !

Note

Add more sugar ( 2 tbsp extra) for more sweetness.Sugar can be added any time while cooking carrot halwa. You can use Delhi carrots instead of the regular orange carrot for bright color. Serve warm with your favorite ice cream to enjoy its best taste !

Enjoy this delicious carrot halwa with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Its a blissful combo !!

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Red Poha Upma – Sigappu Aval Upma – Red Aval Recipes

Poha( Flattened Rice/Rice flakes in English, Aval In Tamil, Avalakki In Kannada, Poha in Hindi) is used to make quick and easy, Instant breakfast recipes like Poha upma, Poha idli , Poha pongal etc. Mostly I make Poha recipes using white poha but red poha is considered to be high in nutrition with lots of health benefits.It is prepared from red rice.It is good for diabetes and is rich in fiber, vitamin B and minerals like calcium, zinc, iron, manganese, magnesium. Recently one of my readers suggested me to share some red aval recipes. So last time when I went to Salem, I bought a pack of Red Aval ( Sivappu aval in Tamil), Kambu aval and Ragi aval from Barathi supermarket. I followed my usual aval upma recipe and made this instant sigappu aval upma recipe quickly for our breakfast. It was very nice,flavorful and tasty. Above all, we got a satisfaction of having a healthy food. Ok, Lets see how to make red aval upma with step by step photos !

Check out my Instant, ready to eat Poha Mix Recipe !

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Avarekalu Palya - Avarekalu Dantina Soppu Palya Recipe

Here is an interesting avarekalu palya recipe / avarekalu curry for rice. Every year during Avarekalu (Indian Hyacinth beans/Surti/Lilva beans in English, Mochai in Tamil) season, I would like to try some new and unique recipes with it. As I say in all my Karnataka recipes post, my 7 Kannadiga friends ( School moms group) are the biggest source and inspiration for me to try and share Karnataka recipes in Chitra’s Food Book. According to me, each and every recipe I learn from them is a Gem. I have already shared few avarekalu recipes like Hitikida Avarekalu gravy for Ragi mudde, Avarekalu methi pulao, Avarekalu sagu, Avarekalu Huli from my friends. 

This year I learnt Avarekalu Dantina soppu palya ( Lilva beans/Surti – Amaranth Leaves curry in English, Mochai kottai -Thandu keerai poriyal in Tamil) from my friend Megha. As I had just a handful of leftover Avarekalu after Sankranti celebration, I wanted to use it effectively. So Megha suggested me to make avarekalu palya adding soppu so that the yield will be more and its a healthy option as well. She told they reserve the cooked soppu water to make bassaru recipe. But I used it to make Lauki gravy. 

Soon I will learn Bassaru from my friends and share it here. I still have avarekalu akki roti and avarekalu uppittu recipes in my try list. I will try to share them at least by next year during this season. Now lets see how to make this healthy, Karnataka style avarekalu Soppu palya. 

Avarekalu Danitina soppu palya

Field beans - Amaranth leaves Curry for rice

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Side dish for rice

Serves: Serves 2

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 15 Minutes

Total time: 25 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 250ml Avarekalu/ Field beans/ hyacinth beans - 1/2 cup Dantina soppu/ Thandu keerai/ Amaranth leaves - 2 cups ( chopped) Garlic cloves - 5 nos ( crushed) Big onion - 1 no ( Finely chopped) Red chilli - 2 nos ( Pinched) Curry leaves - few To Temper Cooking oil - 1.5 tbsp Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Urad dal - 1 tsp Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp Grated coconut - 2 tbsp

METHOD

Wash and chop the soppu leaves( Keerai leaves) and set aside. In a cooker base, take the avarekalu ( Mochai/hyacinth beans) and put the chopped leaves.  Add 1 cup of water to it and the required salt. Pressure cook for one whistle in low flame. Drain the excess water in a bowl, use it for making gravies. In a kadai, heat oil and temper mustard seeds, urad dal, cumin seeds and curry leaves.Add pinched red chillies, crushed garlic and finely chopped big onion. Saute till onion turns transparent. Add the cooked soppu+avarekalu, mix well. Check for salt and mix well. Lastly add the grated coconut and mix well. Serve with rice ! Enjoy !

Note

Crushed garlic and chopped onion gives a nice flavor to this palya You can skip onion & garlic if you want to make no onion no garlic version. In that case, add more grated coconut at the end. You can use arave soppu/Arai keerai instead of Dantina soppu/Thandu keerai.

Try this healthy,  Avarekalu soppu palya recipe for rice and enjoy !

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Brinjal Kurma Recipe / Kathirikai Kurma For Idli, Dosa,Chapathi

Many of you would have heard about and tasted brinjal kurma for biryani and rice. Even I have posted the same in my blog. But when I came across this brinjal kurma (Kathirikai kuruma in Tamil) recipe for idli,dosa and chapathi in a cookbook, it was new and interesting to me. 

As I am a big fan of brinjal recipes, I tried it immediately as a side dish for thatte idli for our weekend breakfast. It was very nice with mild flavor of masala/spices. I just loved it with idli and dosa. I hope it tastes good with chapathi/roti as well. 

Sendhil is not a big fan of brinjal, still he tasted this kurma without any complaints. So I thought of sharing this yummy, interesting brinjal kurma recipe especially for all the ardent fans of brinjal like me. I have used long green brinjal in this recipe. I guess you can try with purple variety brinjal too. Friends, do try this different kurma recipe at home and share your feedback with me. Ok, Lets see how to make Brinjal kurma with step by step pictures !

Check out my Brinjal kurma for biryani too !

Brinjal Kurma Recipe

Brinjal kurma/ Kathirikai kuruma for idli, dosa and chapathi

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Kurma varieties

Serves: Serves 2-3

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 20 Minutes

Total time: 30 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 250ml Long Green Brinjal – 2 nos Small onion Or Big onion – 20 nos / 1 no ( big)  Tomato – 1 no Curry leaves - Few Red chilli powder – 1/2 - 1 tsp Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp To grind Grated Coconut – 1/4 cup Pottukadalai / Fried Gram Dal – 1.5 tsp Soambu/Fennel seeds – 3/4 tsp Pattai /Cinnamon – 1 piece Garlic cloves – 3 nos Green chilli – 1 no ( use 2 for spicy kurma) To Temper Cooking oil – 2 tbsp Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp Urad dal – 1 tsp Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp Coriander leaves – to garnish

METHOD

Wash and chop brinjal into small pieces. Keep immersed in water till use. Chop onion & tomato. Keep aside. In a mixie jar, take all the ingredients given under “ To grind” and grind them to a smooth paste adding enough water. Keep it aside. In a cooker base, heat oil and temper mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves and cumin seeds. Add the chopped onions and saute until transparent. Add the chopped tomato pieces and saute till mushy. Then add the chopped brinjal pieces and saute till they shrink in size and reduce in quantity. It takes 2-3 minutes. Now add the turmeric powder, red chilli powder, salt and ground coconut paste.Mix well. Saute the mixture for a minute. Add 1 to 1.5 cups of water and pressure cook in very low flame for one whistle. Open the lid after the steam is released. If the kurma is too thick, add 1/4 cup of water, mix well and check for taste. Add more salt or chilli powder if needed. Garnish with coriander leaves. Give a boil and serve hot with idli, dosa or chapathi.

Enjoy !

Note

Adjust the quantity of green chilli if you want more spicy taste. You can use Garam masala powder if you wish. Just use 1/2 tsp. You can replace brinjal with finely chopped potato or parboiled cauliflower florets too.

Try this easy, one pot Brinjal kurma recipe for idli, dosa or chapathi. Enjoy !!

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Ellu Bella Recipe – Sankranti Ellu Bella Mix

Ellu Bella (Sesame seeds-Jaggery trail mix in English) is one of the most popular Makar Sankranti recipes in Karnataka.This is basically a mix of 5 main ingredients – Sesame seeds, Jaggery, Dried coconut pieces, Roasted Peanuts and Fried Gram dal.During Sankranti festival, this mix sold in small packets in all the shops.This ellu bella mix is exchanged with friends & relatives to celebrate this harvest festival and as a token of love for better bonding of relationship. In Kannada, they call this as Ellu beerodu in which they give a pack of ellu bella mix, betel leaves & nuts, fruits ( preferably banana), Sugar moulds ( Sakkare achu) and sugar cane to the near & dear. I have seen my friends ( School moms group) preparing this ellu bella mix 2-3 days before Sankranti and distribute to all. Being in Karnataka for the past ten years, I wanted to share their traditional sankranti recipes in my blog. So I asked my friend Archana to share the recipe and the method of making ellu bella.She explained patiently and clarified all my doubts on how to cut jaggery & coconut into small pieces etc. Thank you so much Archu. Some people add equal measure of all the ingredients whereas some use according to their preferences. I have just followed my friend’s recipe. I prepared ellu bella for the first time in my house successfully and distributed to Raksha’s friends as well. They all loved it very much.Next year I must try homemade sakkare achu. Now lets see how to make Ellu bella recipe at home with step by step pictures !
Check out my other Karnataka recipes too!

Ellu Bella Recipe

Sankranti Ellu Bella Mix Recipe

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: Serves 3

Prep time: 120 Minutes

Cook time: 5 Minutes

Total time: 125 Minutes

Chitra Ganapathy

INGREDIENTS

1 cup - 200ml Roasted peanuts - 1/4 cup Fried gram dal/Hurigadale - 1/4 cup White sesame seeds - 2 tbsp Dried coconut pieces - 2 -3 tbsp Jaggery pieces - 1/4 cup Sugar balls - 2 tbsp ( optional) Sugar coated Jeera or fennel seeds - 2 tbsp

METHOD

Take the whole dried coconut. Grate it using a grater to remove the skin. Slice it using a chips slicer to make thin slices.Chop into very small pieces using a sharp knife. Spread in a plate. Take the jaggery and cut into small blocks using a knife.Then cut them into very small pieces using scissors or nut cracker tool. I used scissors ( Achu vellam/Achu bella works the best. But I used round ones).Spread the jaggery pieces in the plate. Microwave peanuts in high power for 2-3 minutes.Remove in a cover or cloth and rub it well to remove the skin. Break them into 2 and keep aside. Sun dry the coconut & jaggery pieces for 2 – 4 hours OR Dry roast the coconut pieces without changing the color. Warm the jaggery pieces without melting.Sun drying is the best option though. Dry roast sesame seeds till it crackles. Set aside to cool. In a wide bowl, take the roasted, broken peanuts, fried gram dal, sugar balls, jeera mittai, dried coconut pieces and jaggery pieces. Mix well and store in a box. Distribute to your Family & Friends ! Enjoy !

Try this easy,traditional Karnataka special ellu bella mix at home and have a great celebration !

Distribute ellu bella with a pair of banana, betel leaves & nuts, sakkare achu & sugarcane piece as shown below ( sugar cane is missing in the pic )

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