Mar 9, 2009

Ulundu Vada

Ingredients:

Urad dhal - 1 cup
Big Onion finely chopped-1 medium size
Green Chilli finely chopped-1 medium size
Ginger finely chopped-half inch
Curry leaves finely chopped-2 table spoons
Baking soda - 2 pinches
Salt to taste
Oil as required for frying

How to Make:

Soak urad dhal in water for 5 hours.
Grind the soaked urad dhal into a fine paste (The batter should be thick. It should not flow freely from the spoon when you pour it down.)
Mix Onion, Green Chilli, Ginger, Curry leaves and Salt together.
Add the above mixture to the batter and mix well.
Add baking soda to the batter and mix well.
Heat oil in a kadai.
Dip your hands in water.
Take the batter of the size of a small ball in your palm and pat it to form a circle.
Dip your index finger in water and make a hole in the patted batter in the center.
Fry the patted batter in oil till golden brown on both sides

Vada Tips you should know


To get soft, puffy Vadas the batter should be very fine without grains.
Add baking soda just before cooking. Do not mix baking soda with the batter and leave it for a long time before cooking.

Mar 8, 2009

Pear and Mango Chutney

Ingredients:

250 gms. raw firm mango
250 gms. pears.
500 gms. sugar
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. red chilli powder
1 tsp. garam masala
1 tbsp. marshmelon (kharbooja) seeds.
1 tbsp. raisins.
2 cloves powdered
8 each almonds and cashews chopped finely.

How to make:

Peel and mash and pear.
Put 1 tbsp. sugar in a heavy saucepan.
Heat on a low flame, stirring and cooking till it turns brown.
Add 500 ml. water and boil.
When the sugar has fully dissolved in the water add remaining sugar.
When it begins to boil again add the mashed fruit, cashew, raisins, seeds, chilli and salt.
Boil till a thick jam consistency is obtained. Stir occasionally.
Add the clove powder and garam masala.
Cool a bit and transfer to clean airtight jar.

Time take for preparation: 1 hour
Shelf life: 1 month
Makes 1.5 kgs. chutney.

Mar 7, 2009

Spicy Sev

Ingredients:

2 cups gram flour (besan)
1/2 tsp. ajwain (omam) seeds
1 1/2 tsp. red chilli powder
1 tbsp. oil
salt to taste
2-3 pinches asafoetida
water to make dough
oil to deep fry

How to Make:

Mix the chilli, oil, salt and seeds into the flour.
Add enough water to make a dough which is quite gooey.
It should not be pliable but sticky.
Grease the inside of a Sev-press, fill with the dough.
Press into hot oil, and fry lightly on both sides.
Drain well and cool before storing.

Variations

You may adjust the chillies as per taste.
You may omit chillies to make bland sev.
You may add finely crushed dried herbs (eg. mint) for add flavour.
Note: A sevpress is similar to a vermicelli press, but it should be small enough to handle over hot oil.

Time taken for preparation: 15-20 minutes
Makes: 250 grams approx.

Mar 6, 2009

Sweet Pongal

Ingredients:

Moong dhal - 1/2 cup.
Rice - 1/2 cup.
Milk
Coconut
cashew
jaggery
raisins (khish-mish - dry grapes)
cardamom
ghee.

How to Make:

Fry the moong dhal (before washing) till it becomes little light brown (it will start smelling). Then soak rice and dhal separately for 10 minutes.
Thoroghly wash and keep it in cooker with the right water (lesser is o.k) and cook it seperately (in two different containers).
Meanwhile cut coconut in very small pieces and fry in ghee.
Fry cashew and raisins also separately.
Break the jagerry and put in water (very little) and make a syrup. This is done because sometimes jagerry has mud and stones. After we make the syrup strain it through tea strainer. Put the rice and dhal in a big vessel and add milk (may be one cup) and cook it till all the milk gets absorbed.
Add jaggery syrup and again cook till even it gets absorbed.
Add three big table spoons of ghee, powdered cardamon and cook again for a while.
Add fried coconut, cashews and raisins.
Serve hot in two cups with a spoon of ghee.

Enough for two people

Mar 5, 2009

Masala Vada


Ingredients

1 cup yellow gram (chana) dak
1/2 cup onion finely chopped
1/2 cup coriander finely chopped
1/2 cup dill leaves finely chopped
3-4 green chillies finely chopped
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
oil to deep fry

How to Make:


Wash and soak dal for 3-4 hours.
Keep 2 tbsp. dal aside, grind the rest,coarsely.
Mix all other ingredients, including whole dal.
Add 2-3 tbsp. hot oil to the mixture.
Heat oil, make pattie shaped rounds with moist palm.
Let carefully into the hot oil.
Fry first one side then the other till golden brown.
Serve hot with green chutney, tamarind chutney, or ketchup

Time taken for preparation: 20 minutes (excluding soaking time)
Makes: 15 vadas (approx.)