Kootu

Kootu is made with different vegetables like, snake gourd (pudalangai) ridge gourd ( Peerkangai) cucumber (vellarikkai) ash gourd ( elevan) chow chow ( chayote) cabbage, mixed vegetables like potato, carrot and beans 

The basic ingredients remains the same.

The kootu today I made from vellarikkai and ridge gourd 

Ingredients

Vellarikkai ( cucumber), this one is a variety which we use for making sambar and pachadi - peeled and cubed two cups

Ridge gourd (Peerkangay) peeled and cut into circles - 2 cups

Moongdal - washed, cooked with water, turmeric powder - 1 cup

For the tadka

1 teaspoon of coconut oil

1/2 teaspoon of urad dal

1/2 teaspoon of mustard seeds

A few curry leaves

For the gravy

3 tablespoon grated coconut

A little jeera

One red dry chilli

A pinch of heeng powder

A few crushed peppercorns 

Add all and make a coarse paste by adding little water.

Method

In a kalchatti (stoneware) cook vellarikkai and ridge gourd by adding water and turmeric a little salt till they are tender.

Add cooked moong dal, and coconut paste, cook for a few minutes. Adjust salt.

In a small pan pour coconut oil, add mustard seeds and urad dal and jeera, heeng. Let the mustard splutter, Add curry leaves, crushed peppercorns,  pour it on top of the kootu. 

Note

You can make kootu with many vegetables, drumsticks can also be added in the above recipe.

Mambazha pachadi ( ripe mangoes, spices and tadka)

A delicacy in summer when we get abundant of mangoes.

The small ripe mangoes collected from the backyard will be put to use for this delicious pachadi.

Mambazha pachadi

5 small ripe mangoes ( wash and peel)

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2' teaspoon red chilli powder

Salt as required

A pinch of heeng powder

1 tablespoon jaggery powder

1 cup water 

For the tadka

1 teaspoon coconut oil

1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/4 teaspoon methi seeds

1/2 teaspoon urad dal

1/2 chana dal 

2 dry red chillies broken into halves

A few curry leaves

Process

In a kalchatti ( stoneware) pour a cup of water, add the peeled mangoes and cook.

Add turmeric, salt, jaggery powder, red chilli powder and bring to boil.

In a small heated pan pour coconut oil, add mustard seeds, methi seeds, urad dal, chana dal and broken red chillies. Once the mustard splutter, add curry leaves, pour it on top of the mambazha pachadi. 

Serve with rice.

Spicy panner in coconut milk

Spicy panner in coconut milk.

Ingredients

400 grams paneer cubed

2 tomatoes

1 large onion

A small piece of ginger sliced

2 green chillies

1/2 teaspoon of crushed peppercorns

1 bay leaf

2 crushed cardamom

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder

1/2 teaspoon coriander powder

1/2 Jeera powder

2 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves

1 teaspoon kasuri methi 

Salt as required 

Peanut oil/mustard oil/ghee 1 tablespoon 

Kashmiri chilli powder

1 packet Coconut milk ( I used dabur)

Process

Steam tomato, onion, ginger, garlic and make a puree. 

In a heated kadai pour oil/ghee add bay leaf, crushed peppercorns, cardamom, paneer cubes, turmeric, red chilli powder,Jeera powder and coriander powder, salt, and gently toss.

Once the paneer turns mild golden brown add tomato onion puree, cook for a few minutes. Adjust salt, 

Add a cup of coconut milk. Cook in slow flame for 2 minutes.

Add chopped coriander and crushed kasuri methi. 

Mix well. Serve with phulkas 

#paneerrecipes

#coconutmilk

#spicy

#creamy

#sides

#easyrecipes

Mixed vegetable kurma

Mixed vegetable kurma for dinner.

It's a delicious combination of cauliflower, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, capsicum, onion and garlic(optional)

I have used a few salad chillies for the vibrant reddish colour and they are very sweet.

Ingredients

2 potatoes

2 carrots

A handful of cauliflower florets

5 salad red chillies, cut into cubes or circles 

1 large onion thinly sliced

1 capsicum cubed

An inch of ginger sliced

Garlic a few pods

2 green chillies slit into halves

One cup of coconut milk, I used dabur coconut milk 

Garam masala 1/2 teaspoon

Salt as required

Turmeric powder 1/2 teaspoon 

For the tadka

A small piece of cinnamon stick

1 bay leaf

A few crushed cardamom

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

2 teaspoon ghee/peanut oil

For the garnish

A few curry leaves

Two tablespoons of chopped coriander leaves

Process 

Cut all veggies into cubes, steam cauliflower florets, carrots and potatoes together and keep aside. (This process gives a creamy texture to the kurma)

In a kadai pour oil/ghee, add whole spices like fennel seeds, cinnamon stick, crushed peppercorns, cardamom, bay leaves and thinly sliced ginger, garlic, two green chillies slit.

Cook for a few seconds. Add chopped onion and saute for a while. Add tomatoes, capsicum and chillies.

Cook for 2 minutes, add salt, turmeric powder, garam masala and mix well. 

At this stage add steamed veggies and gently toss. 

Then pour coconut milk, add a cup of warm water and bring to boil. Off stove.

Garnish with chopped coriander and curry leaves. Serve hot with phulkas.

#vegetablekurma 

#jayanthinarayan

#tamilnaducuisine

Vathalkuzhambu with vegetables

Vathalkuzhambu is a versatile life saver in our palakkad households. 

The best part of vathalkuzhambu is it can be stored in glass bottle for a week's time and can be served as a side dish with curd rice.

Ingredients

Drum sticks - 2 (cut into 3 inch pieces)

Brinjal - 3 (cut into four pieces)

10 bhindi (trim edges, cut into two inch long)

vathal - 2 tbsp(chundakay/marthankkali)

tamarind pulp (extracted from a gooseberry size)

turmeric powder - 1/2 tablespoon 

red chilli powder (kashmiri chilli powder) 1 tablespoon 

salt as required

For dry roast powder 

Chana dal - 2 tablespoon 

fennel seeds 1 teaspoon

jaggery a small piece 

Tuvar dal -  2 tablespoon 

Black broken urad dal - 1 tablespoon 

raw rice - 1 tablespoon 

Peppercorns a few

kayam (hing) - a small  piece

Dry red chilly - 5

curry leaves - a few

For the tadka

gingly oil - 1 tsp

mustrd seeds - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves a few 

Method 

1. Pressure cook tamarind using a glass of water for two whistle, off stove and extract tamarind pulp. Keep aside.

2. In a small kadai dry roast rice,tuvar dal, chana dal, fennel seeds, black peppercorns, hing,black broken urad dal, curry leaves and red chilly till golden brown. Remove from stove cool and coarsely powder using mixer. 

3. In kalchatti pour a glass of hot water add drum sticks, brinjal, bhindi,  turmeric powder and salt allow it too cook till tender.  Now add tamarind pulp. Reduce the flame. Slow cook for a few minutes.

4. Now you can add roasted powder. Add more water if needed as we are going to allow the vathal kuzhambu to boil and reduce the quantity. Allow it to boil for another 10 minutes. Add crushed jaggery, kashmiri red chilli powder, Adjust salt.

5. Now keep a small pan pour gingly oil add mustard seeds allow it to splutter add on top of the prepared vathal kuzhambu. 

6  In the same small pan pour a tsp of ghee/gingly oil add vathal and roast till its crispy. Pour the vathal in prepared vathalkuzhambu. Serve hot with hot steaming rice, a tablespoon of gingly oil and enjoy. 

Variation

You can add a handfuls of peeled shallots ( baby onion/sambar onion) and garlic, but roast it very well before adding to vathalkuzhambu. it tastes very good.

Cabbage moolaguttal

This year we had our first harvest of cabbage in our farm. Cabbage moolaguttal is a delicious side dish which is eaten with great interest in our households.

Today I made cabbage moolaguttal with drumsticks and jackfruit seeds, coconut and a quick tadka.

Cabbage moolaguttal

Ingredients

1/2 cabbage, grated or chopped

7 to 8 drumsticks pieces

5 jackfruit seeds cooked and cut into pieces

1/2 cup grated coconut

1 tsp jeera

1 cup tuvar dal cooked

For the tadka

1 teaspoon coconut oil

1 red chilli broken into two pieces

1/2 teaspoon mustard

1/4 teaspoon urad dal

A few curry leaves

Method

Wash and grate/chop cabbage, keep aside

Wash and pour 1 cup water in a 1/2 cup of tuvar dal, cook for two whistles in the cooker.

Cook drumsticks and jackfruit seeds, remove the skin from the jackfruit seeds.

Grate the coconut, coarsely grind in the mixer jar with jeera and red chilli. Add a little water if needed.

In a stoneware pour a cup of water, add chopped cabbage, turmeric and little salt, cook till tender, add jackfruit seeds, drumsticks. add coconut paste, boil, add cooked tuvar dal. Bring to boil. Off stove, adjust the consistency by adding hot water.

Keep the smallest pan for the tadka. Add mustard and jeera , one broken red chilli curry leaves.

Serve with rice and ghee.

Mango arachukalakki 

Baby potatoes roasted

I got baby potatoes from the market, it seems like freshly harvested lot,straight from the farmers. With a bit of black clay soil and smelling fresh. I have to wash the potatoes many times and gently used a knife to remove the soil. 

Boiled the potatoes by adding sufficient water to immerse the potatoes. Added a teaspoon of salt. Kept it for 3 whistles. Luckily the potatoes were just boiled and skin was intact.

I removed the potatoes and let it cool down, slowly and carefully removed the outer skin.

Proceeded to the kitchen to roast them.

These were the ingredients I used for this delicious roasted potatoes.

Baby potatoes roasted 

Ingredients 

1 kg boiled and peeled baby potatoes

1 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder

1/2 two turmeric powder

1 tsp jeera powder

1tsp coriander powder 

1tsp crushed peppercorns

1 tsp amchoor powder

1/2 tsp ginger powder

2 tablespoon peanut oil

2 red chilli broken into halves

2 tablespoon coriander leaves chopped 

2 tablespoon white and black sesame seeds 

Method

In a large flat pan pour peanut oil, keep the flame medium, once oil is hot, add jeera, crushed peppercorns, red chilli broken, and once jeera splutter, add all the dry masalas. Mix gently add peeled potatoes.

 Mix well coat the potatoes with the masala. Add required salt. 

Reduce the flame, cook in slow fire, till the potatoes are roasted. 

Add chopped coriander leaves. Adjust salt. 

Add black and white sesame seeds. Cook for a little more time and serve hot as a chaat.