Tapioca/kappa vachathu

I like kappa or tapioca cooked in low flame and a simple tadka given to it.
It's very high calorie food and provides you enough energy. There are many families in Kerala who eat kappa as their staple food.

The recipe I follow is very simple.

Kappa vachathu

Ingredients

1/2 kg tapioca/kappa

1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)

2 green chilies

1 tsp jeera

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp broken urad dal 

1 tbsp coconut oil

A few curry leaves

2 tbsp grated coconut 

Salt as required 

Tips

* Cook tapioca in medium flame, once it's tender discard water and add hot water and drain it further.

* Pick the tapioca which is extremely white inside. I always ask the seller to cut the edges and show me, the one with black marks  I generally avoid buying.

Method

*Wash and peel the thick outer skin of the tapioca. Cut into large pieces, further cut each piece into four pieces, remove the inner vein, cut into thin slices.

* In kalchatti (stone ware)  add water and add thinly sliced tapioca/kappa.

*Add turmeric and salt, cook till the tapioca is tender and well cooked.

* Discard the water and add some more hot water again strain the water.

*In the same stoneware pour oil, add jeera, mustard seeds and urad dal, let it splutter, add cooked tapioca/kappa. Adjust salt, add grated coconut and green chilies. Mix in. Finally add curry leaves.

*It's a dish in itself. You can eat it as it is or with side dish as well.

Note: you can cook large pieces of tapioca in pressure cooker and discard the water.  Once it cools down,  use a potato smasher to smash the tapioca and do the rest of the procedure as above. 

Notes

Cut and remove the skin out of the tapioca before proceeding to cook.

Wash throughly before cooking. 

Kadugu manga/ vadu manga pickle

A pickle from Palghat cuisine which still holds a special place in our hearts. The tender vadumanga pickle or kadugu manga pickle.

This recipe I am sharing here is followed in our family for years. I have mastered the art of making pickle from my mother and chitti(my mum's sister)

Our pickle counter will always have supply of avakkai, kadugu manga and nimboo pickle year around.

Ingredients

300 grams baby mangoes/vadumanga

1/2 cup Red chilli powder for spice

1/2 cup red chilli powder for colour

1/2cup black mustard seeds, 

powdered in mixer

3/4 cup Rock Salt/kaluppu

2 tablespoon gingely/ mustard oil

1 tablespoon methi seeds sprouts

1/2 tsp hing powder (optional)

2 tsp turmeric powder

Tips

*I have selected literally handpicked tiny mangoes from the vendor.

* Wash and pat dry every single mango before adding rock salt. 

Extreme cleaning is needed as a little water can spoil all your efforts.

Method

* In a sun-dried bottle or pickle jar add baby mangoes, rock salt and mix well. Allow it to shrink. Shake twice a day for about 4 to 5 days.

*Extract salt water on 5th day, we will be adding other spices to it.

* Dry roast red chilies,hing and make a fine powder.

*In the same mixer jar coarsely powder black mustard seeds

* Pour salt water from the jar add both chilli powder, for colour and spice, add coarsely ground mustard seeds powder, turmeric powder and hing. Mix in well so that there is no lumps.

*Mix in the salt water spice mix in the pickle jar, make sure the baby mangoes are immersed in it. Add methi sprouts, Finally add two tablespoons of mustard/ gingely oil.

* Store in the pickle counter for about 2 weeks. You can start using it. Shelf life depends on how clean you keep the jar, each time use a dry wooden spoon to remove required quantity of vadumanga/kadugu manga and close the lid.

*It's taste good with curd rice.

Bhindi do pyaza

 Bhindi or ladies finger is one of my favourite vegetable. The recipe shared here is the one we both have tried and tested in our kitchen!

I have recreated the dish today.

An year ago, on a beautiful evening my husband and I created this dish. I have posted the recipe in chef at large. 

Today I have gone through it and then tried it once more with a few more ingredients. It can be served with steamed rice and phulkas.


Bhindi do pyaaza. Narayan ke special dish,  Khud bhindi aur pyaaz kate kitchen mein voh ab masala crush kar rahain hai.. aur  hum bane photographer!!

Hum mixed dal aur phulkas banaye tab tak bhindi do pyaaza bhi ready ho gaya.

Bhindi do pyaaza recipe

Ingredients

Fresh bhindi 1/2 kg
1 capsicum
1 Tomato
2 medium sized Onion
2 Green chillies slit
A small piece Ginger
Oil 2 to 3 tablespoon

1/2 tsp amchur powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder

Fresh Coriander leaves (chopped)

For dry roast

1 tsp jeera
1 tsp Dhaniya 1 tsp
Hing one small piece
1/4 tsp methi
1/4 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp black pepper corns
Dry red chili 3(remove the stem)

Roast all together till crispy. Crush  dry roasted masala using mortar and pestle.

Method of preparation

*Wash and pat dry bhindi and slit bhindi.

*Chop onion, tomato into bit large pieces.

*Chop ginger and green chilli

*In a heated pan pour oil and add onion, green chilies and ginger. Cook till onion truns to mild brown. 

* Mix well now add bhindi, turmeric powder and mix all vegetables and cook for about 5 minutes in high flame toss it now and then. 

*Add tomato and capsicum. Toss in.

*Add ground masala toss again and reduce flame. 

*Cook for further 10 minutes till bhindi cooks into tender. You can add salt (Add salt only after bhindi is tender, as after cooking bhindi reduce its quantity.) 

*At this point add amchor powder. Mix all together and garnish with coriander leaves. Off stove. Serve with phulkas/rice.

Salad as snack

Evening snack

We are always tempted to eat what is easily available in the kitchen when we feel like eating a snack. Much thought is not given as to how we end up adding extra calories.

Keeping a few vegetables handy in the fridge and being a bit proactive makes a tasty crunchy evening snack.

So a few ingredients and a little flaxseeds and sunflower seeds is all that it requires.

Salad

Ingredients

1 cucumber
1tomato
1 carrot
1 apple
1/4 tsp sunflower seeds
1/4 tsp flaxseeds

Tips

I have used medium sized vegetables.

Increase quantity if you want to serve for more people.

Method

*Wash,peel and slice cucumber and carrots into desired shape.

*Slice Apple and discard core and seeds.

*Slice tomatoes, I love the juicy seeds.

*Mix in all vegetables and fruits, toss in sunflower seeds and flaxseeds.

Serve and enjoy a crunchy filling low calorie salad.





A bowl of salad with carrot, cucumber,apple, tomato. Garnish with sunflower seeds and flaxseeds

#saladbowls #eveningsnack #healthysalads #feedfeedvegetarian #nutrition #healthysnackideas #chefclub #chef #goodfood

South Indian Thali with horse gram rasam, puzhukku, long bean thoran.

The different  types of rasam made in our household is quite interesting. There is tomato rasam, drumsticks rasam, pineapple rasam, mysore rasam, kollu (horse gram) rasam, beetroot rasam and many more.

A south Indian spread, Ponni boiled rice steamed, horse gram rasam and thoran, long bean (payar) thoran, banana chips, mango pickle.

Kollu puzhukku

Ingredients

1/2 cup sprouted Kollu or Horse gram
 
2 tablespoon grated coconut 

1 green chili 

A little tamarind (add hot water and extract the pulp)

1 tablespoon coconut oil
 
Salt to taste

Method

*Wash and  soak the horse gram for 8 to 10 hours. Drain excess water. 

*Leave it for sprouting by gently placing a kitchen napkin for 24 hours, or more if you want.


*Add 3 to 4 cups of water and pressure cook for 3 whistles.

*Then cook in low flame for 15 mins. 

*Use a strainer and remove water, preserve it for making rasam.

*It should be soft and gently smash it using potato smasher. Keep aside.

*In a earthen pot of stone ware,  transfer the cooked horse gram, 1/4 cup of its cooked water, green chili, tamarind  and salt to taste. 

*Let this boil for a few minutes. Until the raw smell from tamarind goes off.  Add the grated coconut and simmer for a few minutes.

 *Finally add with coconut oil and mix well. Serve with rice and rasam. It healthy, nutritious and worth all the effort.

Short story - The kitchen challenge

The kitchen challenge
***

It's a Sunday morning, the most busiest day for her, special meals, gardners coming,extra dusting, cleaning while rest of the family enjoy their Sunday extended sleep!

She was silently sitting sipping her tea and thinking what to make for breakfast.

Her mobile had a few good morning messages and a special message from her friend, Uthara.

"Hey, babes, how are you doing?"

" I  am good, what's happening in our  girls group? "

"Oh, there is something which I am sure you will be interested!"

"What?"

"The kitchen challenge! You have to take a few pictures of your kitchen cabinets along with the containers. And how you have kept your kitchen. It's a sneak peek into your world."

"Huh!? Is it, but why you want to do this?"

"Just for fun, we will have our monthly lunch at our favourite joint, the winner gets a gift hamper and free lunch!"

Okay I will get back to you.

Sunitha, went to her kitchen, opened her left hand corner shelf, a few containers for tea, sugar,tea masala, old Horlicks bottle, green tea different flavours from all over the world. Humm, she sighed.

The right hand side one had coffee powder, all masalas in different shaped some in steel,some food graded,. From every single powder, turmeric, chili, coriander,jeera,garam masala and whole spices.

Next was a double door shelf, with all dals, some had rava, rice powder,besan, all little by little in one container. A few more dals moong dal with cover on top of chana dal, green gram whole with white urad dal.

The containers were labelled neatly, moong dal container had black chana, tuvar dal container had broken urad dal with skin!

She had no interest to open the next one which had sambar,rasam, molagaipodi and black pepper, and an entire shelf filled with pizza,pasta,Thai, Chinese seasonings.

She thought to herself, am I going to send pictures of this to the group?

Vegetables Coleslaw Sandwiches and orange juice

Today's dinner we shared with a few people in our neighborhood. I made a few sandwiches and distributed to construction labourers and other workers. Made second set for family.

We had it with orange juice.

Feeling happy that we could share our meal with less fortunate around us.

Sandwich

1 packet whole wheat bread

For the filling (coleslaw)

150 grams cabbage
1 carrot(peel and cut into very small pieces)
1tomato(chopped)
1onion(chopped)
A slice of raw mango(optional)
1green bell pepper chopped
1 tsp crushed pepper
Salt as required
3 tbsp Eggless mayonnaise

Tips

Use fresh vegetables, chop into fine pieces.

Method

*Mix in all ingredients and fill inside bread slice. I prefer not to cut the edges of bread.

* Once you spread the stuffing evenly slice the bread into two halves.

*Served with fresh orange juice.