Uppu Kozhukattai

Ingredients:
Raw rice (normal cooking rice) - 100 ml cup full
Coconut – 2 or 3 spoons grated
Urad dhal – 5 tbsp
Green chilli - 1
Red chillis – 2
Hing
Salt 1 spoon

Method:
To make dough:
Soak the rice in water for 2 hours. Grind to a smooth paste to dosa batter consistency. Take a non stick pan, and 2-3 tbsp of oil. Add the batter to the pan, add a pinch of salt. Keep stirring in low flame till it gets cooked and the dough turns soft. Switch off gas, and keep the pan closed so that the dough becomes softer. After 5 mins, transfer the dough to another vessel and knead well.

To make poornam (filling):
Soak urad dhal in water for 10 mins. Drain water and grind along with green chilli, red chilli and hing. Steam the ground mixture in a pressure cooker. After 10 minutes, set aside to cool. Take a pan, add 1 spoon oil, and splutter ½ spoon mustard seeds. Add the cooked urad paste and stir well and remove from gas. Add grated coconut. Make oval shaped balls.

Make kozhukkattais in the same method as Vella kozhukkattai

Vella Kozhukattai

Ingredients:
Raw rice (normal cooking rice) - 100 ml cup full.
Coconut – 1/2 moodi
Jaggery – 3/4th of coconut quantity
Elaichi – 2

Method:
To make dough:
Soak the rice in water for 2 hours. Grind to a smooth paste to dosa batter consistency. Take a non stick pan, and 2-3 tbsp of oil. Add the batter to the pan, add a pinch of salt. Keep stirring in low flame till it gets cooked and the dough turns soft. Switch off gas, and keep the pan closed so that the dough becomes softer. After 5 mins, transfer the dough to another vessel and knead well. Kneaded dough should be a smooth ball without any lumps.

To make poornam (sweet filling):
Add grated coconut and jaggery powder in a pan and heat till it becomes poornam. After the poornam cools, add elaichi powder and keep aside.

Make cups of the dough and fill with poornam. Close the edges to shape the kozhakkattais.

Take an idly stand and oil the idly plates. Place kozhakkattais on idly stand. Heat water in pressure cooker, and keep the idly stand inside. Close and steam for 10 minutes (without the cooker weight). Switch off gas after 10 minutes. Let set for 10 more minutes. Serve (Pillaiyar first) hot or cold.

Thiruvaadarai Kali & Kuzhambu

Thiruvaadarai Kali:

Ingredients (Serves 3)
Rice – 1 cup
Jaggery powdered– 2.5 cups
Elaichi powdered – 5
Grated coconut – 1 cup
Ghee – 4 tsp
Cashews

Method:
Dry roast rice on a tava till light brown. Cool and powder to semi-fine rava consistency.
Add twice the quantity of water to the powdered rice, 2 tsp ghee. Cook in pressure cooker for 5 mins. Cool the cooked mixture.
Clean the jaggery if required by allowing it to melt in same quantity of hot water and filtering out the impurities. If jaggery is clean, heat ghee in tava and add cooked mixture, jaggery, coconut gratings and sauté well. The consistency should be semi dry (not soggy). Add fried cashews and elaichi to this and remove from fire. Serve with Thiruvaadarai Kuzhambu.

Thiruvaadarai Kuzhambu:
Ingredients:
It is a custom to use 7 different vegetables. Choose from: White pumpkin (pooshani), Yellow pumpkin (Parangikkai), Flat beans (avaraikkai), Mochai/kaalu, Chowchow, carrot, Beans, cucumber. – Total of 2 cups diced.
Toor dal – 1 cup
Tamarind extract – 1 lemon size
Sambar powder – 1 tsp

To Grind:
Red chilli – 4
Hing
Methi seeds – 1 tsp
Channa dal/Kadalai paruppu – 1 ½ tbsp
Dhaniya – 1 tbsp
Grated coconut – 2 tbsp

Method:
Roast in oil and grind masala ingredients. Cook tur dal in pressure cooker.

Add sambar powder,tamarind extract and vegetables to 3 cups water and let boil for 10 mins. Simmer, and add ground mixture and cooked mashed tur dal. Bring to a boil.
Garnish with mustard seeds and curry leaves.

Pesarattu

Ingredients:
Green gram (green mung dal) – ¾ cup.
Rice ¼ cup
Green chillies 3-4
Salt to taste

Method:
Soak gram and rice in separate utensils overnight. You can alternatively let the gram sprout and then use it. Drain excess water and grind gram along with green chillies and salt. Then grind the rice till smooth and add to the ground gram paste. Consistency should be like that of dosa batter. Prepare just before serving. Serve with coconut chutney or Idly milagai podi

Idly Milagai Podi

Ingredients (makes 250 gm)
Urad dal – 100 gm
Channa dal – 50 gm
Pottu kadalai – 50 gm
Ellu (black or white) – 50 gm
Hing – ½ tsp
Byadige red chilli – 6 or 7
Long red chilli – 6 or 7
Salt – 2 tsp
Sugar – ½ tsp
Gingelly oil for roasting
Groundnuts – handful (optional)

Method:
Roast each ingredient separately in gingelly oil. Mix all roasted ingredients and grind with sugar and salt. Store in an airtight container.

Ellu Podi

Ingredients (makes 250 gm)
Urad dal – 50 gm
Channa dal – 50 gm
Ellu (black or white) – 100 gm
Hing – ½ tsp
Byadige red chilli – 4 -5
Long red chilli – 4 -5
Salt – 2 tsp
Sugar – ½ tsp
Gingelly oil for roasting
Groundnuts – handful (optional)


Method:
Roast each ingredient separately in gingelly oil. Mix all roasted ingredients and grind with sugar and salt. Store in an airtight container.

Paruppu Podi

Paruppu podi, aka Dal powder can be mixed with rice and eaten.

Ingredients (makes 250 gm)
Toor dal – 200 gm
Urad dal - 4 tsp
Pepper – 2 tsp
Red chilli – 5 -6
Hing – ½ tsp
Salt – 1.5 tsp

Method:
Roast each ingredient separately in gingelly oil. Mix all roasted ingredients and grind with salt.Store in an airtight container.

Milagu Kuzhambu

Ingredients:
Gingelly oil 2-3 tbsp
Tamarind paste - 2 tsp (vary based on preference
Red chillies 2-3
Curry leaves for garnishing

Masala to grind:
Hing - a pinch
Dhaniya 2 tsp
Kadalai paruppu 1 tsp
Methi ½ tsp
Pepper 1.5 tsp
Jeera 1 tsp


Method:
Roast all masala, in 1 tsp oil.

Heat 2 tbsp Gingelly oil in a pan. Splutter mustard seeds. Add tamarind paste, and 1-2 glasses water. Add ground mixture, mix well and boil for 5-10 mins. Optionally add powdered jaggery.
Garnish with curry leaves and red chillies. Serve mixed with hot rice. You can store this for several days in the fridge if you let most water evaporate and make a thick paste.

Omam Kuzhambu

Omam aka Ajwain/Caraway is an excellent carminative.

Method to prepare:
In the Karuveppilai kuzhambu recipe, simply substitute curry leaves with 1 tsp of Omam. You can garnish with curry leaves.

Karuveppilai Kuzhambu

Ingredients:
Gingelly oil 2-3 tbsp
Tamarind paste - 2 tsp (vary based on preference

Masala to grind:
Hing - a pinch
Dhaniya 2 tsp
Kadalai paruppu 1 tsp
Methi ½ tsp
Pepper ¾ tsp
Red chillies 2-3 (or Byadige chillies 4-5)
Handful of curry leaves washed and dried


Method:
Roast all masala including curry leaves, in 1 tsp oil. Optionally add about 1.5 tsp sambar powder and roast.

Heat 2 tbsp Gingelly oil in a pan. Splutter mustard seeds. Add tamarind paste, and 1-2 glasses water. Add ground mixture, mix well and boil for 5-10 mins. Optionally add powdered jaggery. Serve mixed with hot rice. You can store this for several days in the fridge if you let most water evaporate and make a thick paste.

Pulikaachal

Puliyogare/Puliyodarai mix is also known as Pulikaachal. This mix can be stored in the refrigerator for upto a month. Take care not to touch the mix with your fingers while or after cooking, and to store in an airtight container for longer shelf life.

Ingredients:
Tamarind – 2 large lemons size
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Peanuts – ½ cup
Jaggery – 1 lemon size
Turmeric powdr- ½ tsp
Gingely Oil – 1 cup
Black Sesame seeds – 1 tsp
Hing – size of 2 pepper corns
Curry leaves 10 bunches
Salt to taste

To Grind:
Black Sesame seeds – 1 tsp
Methi – 1 tsp
Black Pepper corns – ½ tsp
Whole Dhaniya – 1 tsp
Channa dal – 1½ tbsp
Jeera – ½ tsp
Dry Red chillies – 6 or 7

Preparation:
Extract juice from tamarind and dilute it to make 2 glasses.
Wash curry leaves well, and let them dry for a while.
Roast groundnuts and 5-6 bunches of washed and dried curry leaves in 1 tbsp oil. Keep aside.

Method:

Take 1 tbsp oil in tava, and fry all the ingredients for grinding along with 4-5 washed and dried curry leaf bunches. Set to cool, and grind to a semi-fine powder.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in tava. Splutter mustard seeds, add sesame seeds, hing and 2-3 red chillies. Add turmeric powder and sauté. Pour the tamarind extract (2 glasses), add salt and jaggery and let boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the ground mixture and mix well.
If it looks dry, add more oil and simmer till the right consistency is reached. Turn off heat and add the roasted groundnuts and curry leaves.

To serve, cook rice and let cool well. Mix with 2 tsp gingelly oil. Add required pulikaachal and mix well. Enjoy with appalam or a vegetable of your choice or plain thick curds!

Sarkarai Pongal

Ingredients:
Mung dal/Payatham paruppu – 2 teaspoon dry roasted
Raw rice (normal cooking rice) – ½ cup
Milk – ½ cup
Jaggery – 1 cup
Pachai karpuram
Elaichi powder - a pinch
Cashews, raisins - handful

Method:
Cook rice, mung dal together along with milk and 3 cups water in a pressure cooker.
Powder the jaggery and add 2 spoons water and heat. After jaggery melts, add the cooked and mashed rice mixture and mix well. Add ghee and roasted cashwes and raisins. Add a pinch of pachai karpuram and elaichi powder.

Onion Pakoda

Ingredients:
Besan (kadalai maavu) – 50 gms
Rice flour – 100 gms
Maida – 10 gms
Groundnuts or cashews – 1 tbsp
Finely chopped onion – 3 small
Curry leaves
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Hing (asofoetida)
Oil to fry

Method:
Fry ground nuts or cashews in oil and keep aside. Mix all the flours in a bowl. Add chopped onions, chilli powder, salt, hing, curry leaves to the flour mixture. Add 1 tbsp of hot oil to the mixture. (The hot oil adds crispiness to the pakoda. This is a healthier option compared to the alternative of adding 1 tsp baking soda.) Add water gradually to make pakoda dough. (Dough consistency should be similar to paratha dough). Set aside for 5 mins.
Heat the oil in a pan. Reduce flame to medium after oil becomes hot. Deep fry small portions of the dough, and fry till pakodas becomes golden brown. Serve hot with coconut chutney and tea :)

Rava laddu

Ingredients:
Rava – ½ kg
Sugar – ½ kg
Ghee – 1 cup
Cashews – 50 gm
Elaichi – 5 or 6
(Sugar and ghee quantities can be varied as per taste)

Method:
Dry roast rava in a pan till light brown. Set aside to cool. Grind the cooled rava to a smooth powder. Powder sugar separately and mix with powdered rava. Heat ghee in a kadai, fry the cashews (cut into tiny pieces) and keep aside. Pour heated ghee along with fried cashews and powdered elaichi to the sugar-rava mixture. While the mixture is still hot, make laddus. If required, add more heated ghee so that it can be molded easily into a laddu. Alternatively heat the mixture in low flame on gas stove for few minutes and make the laddus.

Rava Kesari

Ingredients:
Rava/Sooji (unroasted) – 1 cup
Sugar – 2 cups
Ghee – ½ cup
Kesari powder/coloring powder - red colour
Cashews, raisins
Elaichi
(Sugar and ghee quantities can be varied as per taste)

Method:
Fry cashews and raisins in ghee and keep aside. Heat remaining of the ghee in a pan, add rava and fry till it becomes light brown. In a separate vessel, boil 2 and a half cups water. Simmer the pan with rava, and add the boiled water to the fried rava and stir well. Ensure no lumps are formed. After rava is cooked, add the sugar and kesari powder. Keep stirring and add the remaining ghee, keeping the gas in low flame. Add fried cashews and raisins.

Thogayal

Paati says: The difference between Thogayal and Chutney is that chutney almost always contains raw ingredients (for eg. coconut chutney which is served with idli/dosa), whereas Thogayal almost always contains cooked/roasted ingredients. Thogayal is primarily meant to be eaten mixed with rice. It can also be served as a side for Dosa, idly and the likes. There are innumerable types of Thogayal. The following are 2 basic Thogayal recipes. Alter them slightly to get brand a new Thogayal!

THENGAI THOGAYAL:
Ingredients:
White Urad dal (whole or split) - 2 tbsp
Coconut gratings - 1 cup
Red chillies - 3 or 4
Hing - a pinch
Salt -to taste
Cooking Oil - 1 tsp

Method:
Roast Urad dal, red chillies, hing in 1 tsp oil, till dal turns medium brown. Add coconut gratings, saute for 2 minutes. Turn off heat, let cool and grind in a mixer with salt. You can add litle water to aid grinding, but avoid as much as possible.

VARIATIONS:
Instead of coconut gratings,
* Add roughly chopped onions for Onion Thogayal. The onions should be well cooked before you transfer it to the mixer. Raw onions ruin the thogayal.
* Add roughly chopped vegetables for Vegetable Thogayal. Vegetables like carrot, bottle gourd, yellow pumpkin (parangikkai), are especially Thogayal-friendly.
* Add peeled, chopped pieces of ridge gourd (peerkangai). This makes a delicious thogayal especially if the gourds are in season.

In addition to coconut gratings,
* Add washed and chopped mint (pudina) or coriander (kothamalli) leaves. Saute till the leaves are soft.

Paati says: You get it now. Urad dal, red chillies and hing are common across all the Thogayals. The rest is upto your imagination!

PARUPPU THOGAYAL:
Ingredients:
Tur dal - 1 cup
White Urad dal (whole or split) - 1 tbsp
Hing - a pinch
Pepper - ½ tsp
Red chillies - 2

Method:
Roast all ingredients in 1 tsp oil till urad dal turns medium brown. Optionally add 2 tsp coconut gratings (traditionally Paruppu Thogayal has no coconut though!) and saute for a minute or two. Turn off heat, let cool and grind in a mixer with salt. You can add litle water to aid grinding, but avoid as much as possible.

Pooshanikkai Rasavaangi

Ingredients:
White pumpkin/ pooshanikkai - 1/2 kg diced into small cubes.
Sambar powder - 1 tsp
Haldi powder - 1/2 tsp
Tur Dal - 1 cup
Jaggery - 2 tsp powdered
Tamarind extract - 1 tsp (optional)
Oil - for roasting and garnishing

Masala To Grind:
Hing - a pinch
Whole Dhaniya seeds - 2 tsp
Kadalai paruppu/chana dal - 1 tsp
Pepper 4 -5
Red chillies 3-4
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Coconut – grated, 4 tbsp

Method:
Roast the masala in 1 tsp oil and grind to a fine paste, adding a little water.
Cook tur dal as you would for normal dal/sambar.

Cook pumpkin pieces along with haldi powder and Sambar powder. Add tamarind paste/extract if you wish to. You can cook in pressure cooker to one whistle or cook in a closed vessel with sufficient water. The vessel method results in better taste, though.

When completely cooked, add ground masala and cooked tur dal cooked. Add more water if required. Let boil for 5 mins. Now simmer and add powdered jaggery. Simmer for 5 more mins and turn off heat. Garnish with mustard seeds, hing and curry leaves.

Goes well with Rice and a Thogayal of your choice.

You can substitute pumpkin with Brinjal for Kathirikkai Rasavangi. You might want to cut brinjal into larger pieces to make sure they dont get mashed up.

Sambar Powder

Paati #3 holds the copyright for this one!

Ingredients (Makes ~3kg)

Whole dhaniya brown colored – 1 kg
Round red chilli – ½ kg (Very Spicy)
Long red chilli – ½ kg (Not so spicy)
Kadalai paruppu – 400 gm
Urad dal -200 gm
Whole Turmeric (long ones, not round) - 100 gm
Methi seeds – 100 gm
Pepper – 100gm

Method:
Dry in sun if possible, and grind everything together in a flour mill. No roasting, just raw, dry grinding. Alternatively (if you do not have access to a flour mill), get good quality powders of the individual ingredients and mix well.