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Pepper Rasam

Sunday, November 02nd, 2008 | Author:

Ingredients:

  • Whole Black Pepper 1tsp
  • Jeera 1 tsp
  • Garlic 2 cloves
  • Tamarind 1 inch cube
  • Turmeric 1 pinch
  • Asafetida ½ pinch
  • Salt to taste
  • Oil
  • Curry leaves
  • Red chilies 2
  • Mustard seeds 1 tbsp
  • Urad dal 1 tsp

Procedure:

Paste:

  1. Grind the black peppers, jeera, and garlic into coarse paste.
  2. Add 1 cup water to paste
  3. Dissolve the tamarind in 3 cups of water and add to the paste
  4. Add salt and turmeric to the paste

Rasam:

  1. Add 3 tbsp oil to pan and fry mustard seeds, urad dal, red chilies (broken in half)
  2. When the mustard seeds are spluttering add asafetida, curry leaves, and add the paste
  3. When the rasam starts to boil turn off the stove
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Puliyodharai

Sunday, November 02nd, 2008 | Author:

Ingredients:

  • Red chilies
  • Bengal gram
  • Fenugreek
  • Gingili seeds
  • Tamarind
  • Mustard seeds
  • Curry leaves
  • Turmeric powder

Method:

The Powder:

  1. Roast in medium heat with a little oil each of the following separately and cool
    • 10 red chilies
    • 3 tsp Bengal gram (kadalai paruppu)
    • Fenugreek (vendhiyam) 1 tsp
    • Gingili seeds (ell)
  2. Powder them and store separately

The Paste:

  1. Soak 100 grams of tamarind in water for 30 min. Squeeze out the juice and add 300 ml water to  the juice
  2. Heat 6 tsp oil in a pan and roast 2 tsp mustard, 2 tsp Bengal gram, 5 red chilies broken into two pieces, curry leaves
  3. Add tamarind juice, half tsp turmeric powder and salt to taste
  4. Simmer till it becomes a paste.
  5. Store it in a separate container in a fridge

Procedure:

  1. Cook rice without getting it sticky
  2. Mix in uniformly 3 tsp of gingili oil to the rice and then the required quantity of puliyodarai powder
  3. Heat oil and roast mustard seeds, Bengal gram and 2 red chilies and curry leaves and add to rice
  4. Add required quantity of puliyodarai paste and mix gently
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Yogurt Kulambu

Sunday, November 02nd, 2008 | Author:

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • Vegetables: White pumpkin (poosanikai) or Eggplant or Drumsticks
  • Yogurt 4 cups
  • Toor dal 2 tsp
  • Raw rice 2 tsp
  • Jeera ½ tsp
  • Red chilies 4
  • Asafoetida a pinch
  • Chili powder ½ tsp
  • Curry leaves

Method:

  1. Fry toor dal, raw rice, jeera, red chilies and  safetida in a pan without oil separately and grind everything combined into paste. Add 2 cups water to paste and keep aside
    • If using  safetida powder then just add it to the mix in the end
  2. Cut vegetables into bite size pieces. Boil with a pinch of turmeric powder and salt till the vegetables are cooked and then strain to remove all water and keep aside
    • If using drumsticks then first fry without oil till half fried then add 1 tsp oil and a pinch of salt and fry
  3. In pan add oil and fry mustard seeds, urad dal, and jeera
  4. Add the vegetables and fry for 2 minutes
  5. Then add the paste from step 2
  6. Keep stirring without any break. The mix will start to thicken
  7. Add the yoghurt and reduce heat to medium. Keep stirring for 3 minutes
  8. When the gravy starts to heat up and vapors start to form turn off and remove from stove. Garnish with curry leaves
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Garlic Kulambu

Sunday, November 02nd, 2008 | Author:

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • Vegatables: Drumstick or Eggplant or Ridge Gourd (peerkangai)
  • Tamarind 2 inch cube
  • Chili powder 2 tsp
  • Coriander powder 3 tsp
  • Turmeric 1 pinch
  • Pearl onions 1 handful; cut into big pieces
  • Garlic cloves 10 (whole)
  • Mustard seeds 1 tsp
  • Fenugreek seeds 1 tsp
  • Red chilies 3

Method:

  1. Mix tamarind in 5 cups of water along with the vegetable, turmeric powder, chili powder, turmeric powder, salt
  2. Hear 4 tsp oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, and red chilies. Then add whole garlic till brown
  3. When spluttering stops add the vegetables and fry for 2 minutes
  4. Add curry leaves and onions and fry
  5. Once onions are browned add in the mix from step 1
  6. Cover with lid and boil for 5 to 8 minutes
  7. Once vegetables are cooked boil till gravy thickens

Note 1: Use gingely oil (nallanai) for better aroma/flavor in step 2

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Tamarind Kulambu

Sunday, November 02nd, 2008 | Author:

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • Vegatables: Drumstick or Eggplant or Ridge Gourd (peerkangai)
  • Tamarind 2 inch cube
  • Chili powder 2 tsp
  • Coriander powder 3 tsp
  • Turmeric 1 pinch
  • Pearl onions 1 handful; cut into big pieces
  • Karuvadagam 2 tsp

Method:

  1. Mix tamarind in 5 cups of water along with the vegetable, turmeric powder, chili powder, turmeric powder, salt
  2. Hear 4 tsp oil in a pan. Add karuvadagam and fry.
  3. When spluttering stops add the vegetables and fry for 2 minutes
  4. Add curry leaves and onions and fry
  5. Once onions are browned add in the mix from step 1
  6. Cover with lid and boil for 5 to 8 minutes
  7. Once vegetables are cooked boil till gravy thickens

Note 1: Use gingely oil (nallanai) for better aroma/flavor in step 2
Note 2: Fry karuvadagam and keep separate and adding in step 6 will keep the karuvadagam from getting over cooked / fried

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Karuvadagam Dal Kulambu

Sunday, November 02nd, 2008 | Author:

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • Toor dal 1 cup
  • Tamarind 1 inch cube
  • Red chili powder 1.5 tsp
  • Coriander 2.5 tsp
  • Turmeric powder 1 pinch
  • Asafoetida 1 pinch
  • Karuvadagam 2 tsp
  • Curry leaves
  • Vegetables: drumstick or eggplant or raw mango or ridge gourd (peerkangai) or broad beans (avarakai) or white radish (mullangi) cut into bite size pieces

Method:

  1. Cook toor dal and keep aside
  2. Mix tamarind in 5 cups of water along with the vegetable, turmeric powder, chili powder, turmeric powder, salt and boil till the vegetables are cooked
  3. Once the raw chili powder smell is gone add the cooked toor dal
  4. In separate pan add 3 tsp oil
    • Add karuvadagam,  asafoetida, curry leaves and fry
    • Once the spluttering stops pour it into the mix in step 3

Note: Before step 4 taste the mix in step 3 for salt/tamarind/chilli-powder. If anything is less then add more of the same and boil for 3 minutes

Note 1: Raw mango + Drumstick + Eggplant makes a good combo
Note 2: Ridge gourd + Eggplant is also a good combo
Note 3: Don’t use White radish by itself

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Sambar (for rice)

Sunday, November 02nd, 2008 | Author:

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • Drumstick or Eggplant or White Radish (mullangi)
  • Toor dal 1 cup
  • Tamarind 1 inch cube
  • Pearl onions 1 handful, skin removed and whole
  • Asafoetida 1 pinch
  • Tomato 1 cut in small pieces
  • Green chilies 4 slit along the middle
  • Red chilies 2
  • Red chili powder 1 tsp
  • Coriander powder 2 tsp
  • Turmeric powder 1 pinch
  • Sambar powder 2 tsp
  • Salt
  • Curry leaves

Method

  1. Cook toor dal and keep aside
  2. Mix tamarind in 5 cups of water along with the vegetable, turmeric powder, chili powder, turmeric  powder, salt and boil till the vegetables are cooked
  3. Once the raw chili powder smell is gone add the cooked toor dal and sambar powder and boil for 2 minutes
  4. In another pan heat 3 tsp oil
    1. Add 1tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp split urad dal, red chilies, green chilies and fry till the mustard seeds pop and urad dal is lightly brown
    2. Add the onions and tomatoes and fry till the onions brown
    3. Add the  safetida. Note: if using  safetida chunks instead of powder then add the chunks when adding the mustard seeds
    4. Add curry leaves
    5. Now add this mix to the gravy from step 3 and boil for 3 minutes.
  5. Garnish with cilantro

Note: If using okra then fry lightly in oil and add to the boiling tamarind water mix in step 5 after the mix has been boiling for 5 minutes

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