Rasam podi/powder

Ingredients:

Jeera – 1 cup

Black pepper – 1 cup

Red chilli – 1 ½ cup

Corriander seeds- 2cup

Curry leaves – 1 cup

Toor dhal -1/2 cup

Asafeotida – 1 tsp

Method:

1. Take a tawa and roast each one of the ingredients separately.

2. Allow the roasted ingredients to dry in a plate.

3. Add little oil and fry the red chillies separetely.

4. If you take asafoetida powder you need not fry it. It can be added while making the rasam powder.

5. After few mins, when it comes to room temperature, add all the things together to the mixie jar along with asafoetida and make it into a fine powder.

6. Your home made rasam powder is ready. Add few tsps of this powder while making rasam.

Sambar Podi

Ingredients:

channa dhal - 1 cup

corriander seeds - 1 1/2 cup

Red chilli - 1 cup

asafoetida - 1 tsp

fenugreek - 1 tsp

Black pepper - 1 tsp

curry leaves - 1/2 cup

Method:

1. Take a tawa and roast each one of the ingredients separately.

2. Allow the roasted ingredients to dry in a plate.

3. Add little oil and fry the red chillies separetely.

4. If you take asafoetida powder you need not fry it. It can be added while making the sambar powder.

5. After few mins, when it comes to room temperature, add all the things together to the mixie jar along with asafoetida and make it into a fine powder.

6. Sweet smelling sambar podi is ready. You can use this podi when you want to make instant sambar in few mins.

Note: This powder can be stored in an air tight container.

Rava kesari

Ingredients:

Rava (sooji) - 1 cup

Water- 1 1/2 cup

Sugar - 1 cup

Ghee - 3 tsp

Kesari(saffron) colour - a pinch

Cashews, cardamom, badam - to garnish

Method:

1. Heat the tawa and add rava(sooji) and roast it.

2. Remove the rava from tawa on to a plate.

3. Take the tawa, add water and allow it to boil.

4. Add rava to the boiling water and keep stirring.

5. Mix the kesari color to little water and add it along with sugar.

6. Allow the rava to get cooked. It will take 3-5 mins to absorb the water.

7. Now take another pan, add ghee, cashew, cardamon and badam and roast it to golden brown.

8. Garnish the Kesari with the roasted cashews.

Delicious rava kesari is ready to taste..

Vathakuzhambu

Ingredients:

Tamarind -Big lemon size

Fenugreek - 1 tsp

Chilli powder -2 tsp

turmeric powder - a pinch

Urad dhal -1 tsp

Toor dhal - 1 tsp

mustard - 1 tsp

Gingely oil - 5 tsp

salt - to taste

asafoetida - a pinch

curry leaves- to garnish

Onion - 1 big (small - 10)

vendaikay - 5 nos.

Method:

1. Soak the tamarind and extract the juice adding water.

2. Take a tawa and add 5 tsp oil and add mustard, toor and urad dhal to it.

3. Now add fenugreek and chopped onions and ladys finger.

4. Let the Onion and ladysfinger get cooked for few mins.

5. Now add the tamarind juice to the tawa and add turmeric powder, asafoetida, chilli powder and salt.

6. Let them boil till the raw flavour of tamarind fades and oil suspends on the top.

7. Add curry leaves to garnish and serve with rice.

Note: If you want, you can add a bit of jaggery(after step 6) to enhance the taste.

Pudina rice/ Green rice

Ingredients:

Basmati-2 cup(soak for 1/2 an hour)
Chopped onion-1 1/2
ginger-garlic paste-1tbsp
cloves-2
cinnamon-1 small stick
oil-1 tbsp
ghee-1 tbsp
salt - to taste
corriander leaves

paste:
-------
pudina -2 bunch
green chilli-3-4
grated coconut- 3 tbsp

Method:
1. Pour 1 tsp of ghee and fry the soaked raw rice for 5 mins in medium flame
2. Remove the rice and keep it aside.
3. Now add rest of the oil and ghee to the pan.
4. Add cloves,cardamon and cinnamon to it.
5. Add onion and ginger garlic paste to it.
6. Add the grinded paste to it and stir it for 5-10 mins and then add 3 cups of water to it.
7. Once the water begins to boil, add salt and rice to it.
8. Pressure cook for 2 whistle and switch off the flame.
9. You can garnish with corriander leaves and roasted cashews.

Tomato thokku/thakkali thokku

Ingredients:

Tomato - 5
mustard - 1/2 tsp
red chilli powder - 2-3 tsp
Oil - 3 tsp
salt - to taste
turmeric powder - a pinch

Method:

1. Cut the tomatoes into big pieces and grind them.
2. Heat the tawa and add oil and mustard seeds.
3. Add the grinded tomato to the tawa and stir it in low flame.
4. Add turmeric powder, chilli powder and salt to it.
5. Cook it till the raw flavour fades and oil suspends over the thickening paste.
6. Serves as a good sidedish with idli, dosai, adai, etc.. and one can even mix it with rice and enjoy the lovely taste..

Traditional puliyotharai/Poliyogare/Home-made pulikaychal

Ingredients:

Tamarind- the size of one big lemon.
Gingely oil- 5 tbsp.
mustard-1/2 tsp.
urud dhal(ulutham paruppu)- 1 tsp.
channa dhal(kadala paruppu)- 1 tsp.
curry leaves- few.
groundnut- as desired.
salt- to taste.
fenugreek- 1/2 tsp.
corriander seeds-1/2 tsp.
red chillies- 3-5.

Method:

1.Roast fenugreek, corriander seeds and red chillies in 1tsp of oil and grind it in a mixer to get a powder.
2. Add the remaining oil in the tawa and splatter mustard in it.
3. Add the dhal varieties, curry leaves, salt, groundnuts and roast it till the dhal turns to golden
brown colour.
4. Remove the seeds of the tamarind and extract the juice from it by adding some water and add it to the tawa.
5. Boil it till the raw flavour of the tamarind fades and till it becomes thick like a paste.
8. Now add the prepared(fenugreek, corriander and chilly) powder to the paste.
9. Add one cup of boiled rice to the above mixture and garnish it with corriander leaves and serve hot.

Onion chutney

Ingredients:

onion- 4( chopped)
red chillies- 10
garlic- 5 small pods
salt- to taste
oil- 4 tbsp
curry leaves- few
mustard- 1/2 tsp

Method:

1.Take the chopped onions, red chillies, garlic and salt in a mixie jar and grind it to a paste.
2. Add oil in a tawa and add mustard, after it pops out, add the onion paste and curry leaves to it.
3. Keep it in a lower flame.
4. Stir continuosly till the raw flavour of the chillies and onion fades.
5. A very spicy onion chutney is now ready to be served hot with idly, dosai, adai,,etc.,

Spicy Dosai

Ingredients:

toor dhal - 1/2 cup ,
par boiled rice - 1/2 cup ,
raw rice- 1/2 cup
small ball of tamarind,
salt - to taste,
cumminseeds,
pepper - 1/4 tsp,
shredded coconut,
coriander seeds,
Red chillies - 10

Method:

1. Soak dhal and rice together in water for an hour and grind with all the above ingredients together.
2. Heat the pan and spread little oil.
3. Then spread the batter(dosa paste) and wait until it turns to golden brown and turn it to the other side.
4. Serve hot with mint or onion chutney.

Delicious Upma

Ingredients

Sooji - 1 cup
Oil - 3 tsp,
Green chillies - 2
Mustard seeds -1/2 tsp
Curry and corriander leaves
Onion -1
Channa dhal - 1 tsp
Cashew - 6-8
Salt -to taste
Water
Ghee

Method:

1. Heat a tawa and add sooji and roast for few mins.
2. Now remove the sooji from the tawa on to a plate.
3. Now heat some oil in the pan again. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves, channa dhal, green chillies and sliced onion.
4. Fry till the onions are a little golden brown and add the cashews.
5. Add enough water to the tawa and let it boil.
6. Add salt and sooji and fry for a min or two.
7. When the mixture thickens add little ghee and serve hot.

Potato Fry

Ingredients

Potatoes - 4-5
Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder -2 tsp
Salt -to taste
mustard - 1/2 tsp
Urad dhal - 1 tsp
oil- to fry
Curry leaves

Method:

1. Boil potatoes and cut then into pieces.
2. Add oil to tawa and add mustard seeds and urad dhal.
3. Add the chopped potatoes.
4. Add turmeric powder, salt and chilli powder to it.
5. Mix well and let it fry a bit to become little crispy.
6. Add curry leaves and garnish. Served as a wonderful sidedish with sambar..

Mullangi/Murungakkai sambar

Ingredients

Mullangi/Murungakkai
Red chillies- 4-5
Toor dhal- 1 cup
Channa dhal -2 tsp
Asafoetida- a pinch
Salt- to taste
Tamarind paste- as desired
Turmeric powder- a pinch
Mustard-1/2 tsp
Fenugreek- 1/4 tsp
Corriander seeds - 2 tsp
Grated Coconut -1/2 cup
Curry and coriander leaves
Little oil- 2 tsp

Method

1. Boil the dhal and mash it to a paste.
2. Chop the Mullangi into small rounds or coin like shapes and cook it. (Murungakkai into small pieces to cook)
3. Add oil in a tawa and add fenugreek (vendayam), red chillies, corriander seeds, channa dhal and curry leaves to it. Fry them till they become golden brown. Let the fried items cool down and then keep them grinded along with coconut.
4. Take the tamarind juice and add the grinded misture.
5. Add asafoetida, salt, turmeric powder to it. Add the mullangi/murungakkai to it.
6. Allow the mixture to boil till the raw flavour of tamarind fades.
8. Now add the mashed dhal and boil it for some more time.
9. Add little oil to tawa and fry the mustard seeds and garnish it along with coriander leaves and serve hot with rice, idly, dosa etc...!!

Carrot Halwa

Ingredients:

Finely grated carrots - 1 1/2 cups,
Sugar - 1 cup,
Mixture of milk and water - 1 cup (the proportion may be as you like),
Cashews- 6,
Cardomoms - 4,
Ghee - 3 tsp

Method:

Peel all the carrots and grate them finely. Pour 3 teaspoons of ghee in a frying pan. Add 6 cashews and powdered cardomoms.Fry till you get the smell of roasted cashews.Pour the mixture of milk and water. Add sugar. When the water comes to boil, add 1 1/2 cups of grated carrot and stir slowly and constantly in low heat until the mixture turns into a soft paste. After adding sugar, you may have to cook around 7 - 10 minutes to get the desired consistency for halwa. Do not heat the mixture too long, so as to prevent it from getting hardened.