idli molaga podi

I miss Grand sweets.... im at a place in india where i dont even get a packet of aachi molaga podi... so imagine my horror of eating idli and dosai without any podi.....

so decided to make it myself, with a lot of help from dad anad a lil pilfering from a lot of internet articles, tried it and tweaked it a bit to suit the typical idli molaga podi.

Quantity outcome : 100 gm
Difficulty : Easy

Red Chillies : 20
Ulluthanparuppu : 1/2 a cup
Gram Dhal : 1 tsp
Coriander seeds : 1 tsp
Tamarind : goose berry sized.
1 tsp of salt.

Oil - 1 tsp.

STEP 1:
Heat oil. Add red chillies.
STEP 2:
Add Gram dhal, Ulluthamparuppu, fry.
STEP 3:
Add Coriander seeds.
Step 4 :
Add Tamarind fry for 2-3 minutes.

waita till everything is golden yellow. dont let it turn brown.

Step 5:
grind coarsely. add salt and give it a good round in the mixie.

and your molaga podi is ready :D

dont forget to store it in a dry container. **Cheers**

More kozhambu :)

I am becoming this person who writes aqll about the tam brahm to die for food... prolly because i am married to a person who cant live without his amma saapadu... only because she can make to die  for more kozhambu and avial and araichu vitta saambaar.... like really?!!!? if you keep running back home to eat ammas perfect cooking then when will i ever get a guinea pig to try my recipes on i say!!! so i asked him what it  would take for himn to stay here for lunch and he says amazing more kozhambu anad seipankazhangu curry... i said fine and readied myself for my personal battle with the kitchen and cooking thats been happening ever since i got married... and  i started off making more kozhambu....

btw, being a healthy foodie i try not using too much coconut or oil in anything i make so, i learnt after some thought and trial the second time i made it and tried without coconut at all and he didnt know the difference.... so try it.

Preparation time : 5 minutes.

okra - 250 gm (cut one inch length.)
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

oil - 2 tsp
Red Chillies - 2
mustard seeds -1 tsp
jeera - 1 tsp
curry leaves - 1 sprig
thick curd - 2 cups mix well and make into a smooth flowing paste.

coconut ( grated ) - 1/2 cup. (Optional)

STEP 1:
Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan. add okra and shallow fry it for 1 minute until the skins a little crispy. Add salt. I usually add 1/2 tsp salt. mix it up and heap it in the corner of the pan
STEP 2:
Add the remaining oil temper the mustards the red chillies jeera and curry leaves. Add turmeric powder. Mix the okra and the tempered chilly, jeera and mustard.
 This is where u add the grated coconut if u want to. It can be done without also. take it off the flame.
STEP 3:
Add curd. mix well.

P.S: If you dont add coconut the curd should be reasonably thick, The purpose of the coconut is to help in bringing the density in consistency which can be brought by using thick curd instead.

Making avial at home....

I assumed it was a super complicated dish... because i hadnt seen my mom make it in front of me... i love it... so when ever i say i want to have avial tomo... all i remember are my mothers expression when she thought of the amount of veggies that needed to be cut and cleaned :P and i used to tell her ill help and every time i used to cut myself by experimenting with a new way to cut vegetables fasaater :P.... my antics as a child were too many to number... but they come back whenever i think of my mom trying to cater to what my mom calls tanjore tongue... :D and the previous night the vegetables would be cut and i would get woken up by this yummy smell only to be greeted by the sight of avial on the table :D

so, when i wanted to take on an assignment five months into my marriage with nothing much to do because husband dearest leaves by 9 and is back after 16 hours leaving me to fend for myself...i thought it wwould take all morning to make... and had planned to make it on one of my home alone sundays... bcoz on sundays he would come back home for lunch.... got up early morning to start the process... cut the veggies and cleaned them... once that was done it was a matter of fifteen minutes!!!!! really!! unbelievable... started and by the time my rice was ready the avial was happily simmering away with the glorious smell that only avial can have!!!!

so, lets get started....
Total time : 17 minutes
Serves : 2

we need five different types of vegetables. ( All medium sized)
Potato - 4
Plantain - 2 (Vazhakaai)
Carrot - 2
Brinjal - 2 ( Egg Plant)
Snake Gourd - 1      
Cucumber - 1             (Must)

Coconut - Grated - 1/2 cup
Jeera / Cumin - 2 tsp
Green Chilly - 3

coconut oil - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - one sprig

STEP 1:
Try to cut each vegetable uniformly in size, it helps to cook them faster. start with the potato and work your way down. easier way to save time is to cut and boil simultaneously... so cube up the potatoes, put them in a container add salt and put them on medium heat and start the process of boiling. Meanwhile, cut the plantain. watch for a change of color with the potato... the color turns two shades lighter than the shade it started with. At this point you add the plantain, then the carrots, the brinjal, wait for the change in skin color. Do NOT wait for it to turn soft, proceed with adding the snake gourd. Add the cucumber. Mix. (takes around 10 minute tops)
Turn off the heat.
Drain the water from the boiled vegetables.

STEP 2:
Add water 3/4th the quantity of the vegetables in the container add salt,  start boiling it on medium heat.
Meanwhile:
Grind the coconut, jeera and green chillies into a coarse paste.... add it to the container of boiling vegetables...

STEP 3:
mix, its done.

Keep it on low heat until you serve it or minimum of 5 minutes.

When u take it off the heat add curry leaves and 2 tsp of coconut oil mix and serve.

P.S: The vegetables can be varied. alternatives that u can use are : Ash gourd, Beans, Yam, Drum stick.

Point of note is : the cucumber gives a good dense consistency and mushyness. so other than the cucumber everything else can be changed.