Carrot Thengapal Curry(Carrot Coconut milk curry)

Preparation Time: 20 min

Cooking time: 15 min

Serves: 8

Ingredients measure:-

Carrot : 5 medium chopped as cubes

Big Onion : 2 medium cut lengthwise

Tomato: 3 medium chopped

Green Chilly :  2 split lengthwise

Ginger garlic Paste : 2 tsp,

Meat Masala Powder(Any Branded one):2-3 tbsp

Salt : 2 tsp

Olive oil/Cooking oil : 2 tsp

Coconut milk-half cup grated- first punch(onnam pal)- 1 cup

Coconut milk- second punch(randam pal)- 2 cups

Preparation:-

1)      In a kadai, pour oil, splutter mustard seeds and curry leaves.
2)      Dump in Green chillies, big onions, Ginger garlic paste and tomatoes and saute till translucent.
3)      Spoon in salt as required and masala powder. Saute till half fried.
4)      Pour in the second coconut milk and carrots and  cook till done.
5)      Simmer the flame and pour the first coconut milk and cook for 2 min with stirring.
6)      Garnish with curry leaves and serve hot

Note:- To make coconut milk- In a mixie, grind one cup grated coconut with half cup water and sieve to get the first milk. Then again grind the residual grinded coconut with two cups water and sieve to get second milk.

On pouring the first extract milk take extra cake to stir and cook in slow flame or else the curry will be a mess.

Pazham Pori/Ethakka appam(Coated Banana Fry)

Preparation Time: 30 min

Cooking Time: 15 min

Serves: 16 Nos

Ingredients measure:-

For Batter:

Rice powder: 1 cup

All Pupose Flour(Maida): 2 cups

Permitted Food Colour(Yellow): 1 tsp

Turmeric: 1tsp

Ripe Big banana (Ethakka) : 8 medium

Cumin Powder: 2 tsp

Sugar: 3 tbsp

Water: Sufficient to make it a tight batter

Oil : Sufficient for deep frying

Preparation:-

1)      Cut the ripe Big Bananas verticaly as in  image
2)      In a bowl, mix all the above items to make a not so loose batter.
3)      Keep it aside for 5 mins.
4)      Heat oil in Kadai.
5)      Dip each piece in batter, so that it get coated well, and slip in heated oil.
6)      Deep fry in slow flame flip it and fry both sides.
7)      Serve hot.

Vellarikka Pulissery/Moru Curry (Yellow Cuccumber Broken Curd Curry)

Preparation Time: 15 min

Cooking time: 10min

Serves: 8

Ingredients measure:-

For pressure cook:

Vellarikka(Yellow Cuccumber) : 1 cup

Turmeric powder : ¼ tsp

Red Chilly powder : 2 tsp

Salt : Acc to taste

For Grinding:

Green Chilly :  2 split lengthwise

Ginger garlic Paste : 2 tsp,

Green Chilly : 2 splited lengthwise.

Grated coconut: 1 cup

Broken Curd: 1 ½ cup(Whisked)

Cumin seeds : 1 tsp

Asafetida(hing): 1 pinch

Curry leaves : 2 tsp

Preparation:-

1)      Pressure cook the items under “Pressure cook” and keep it aside to whistle to go off.
2)      Grind the items under “for grinding” to a fine paste and keep it aside.
3)      In Kadai, Pour 2 tsp oil and splutter the  curry leaves, cumin seeds and Asafetida and dry red chillies.
4)      Mix in the pressure cooked items to the above and mix well.
5)      After that add the grinded coconut mix and blend well.
6)      Add sufficient salt and allow the water level to come down.
7)      Make it to a semidry state.
8)      Finally mix the beaten broken curd and cook in slow flame for another 5 mins.
9)      Take it off the stove and serve hot.

Neychoru (Ghee Rice)

Preparation Time: 20 min

Cooking time: 15 min

Serves: 6

Ingredients measure:-

Basmati Rice : 3 cups

Big Onion: 4 medium

Turmeric: 2 tsp

Ghee : 6 tbsp

Cinamon bars: 2 medium broken

Bay Leaf: 2 broken

Cashewnut: 4 tsp

Permitted food colour: 1 tsp

Fresh Water: 7 Cups

Preparation:-

1)      In a kadai, pour 2 tbsp Ghee and spoon in all the spices.
2)      After the spices are fried up a bit, Dump in half portion of the onions and sauté till translucent.
3)      Spoon in turmeric and salt and then saute.
4)      Fry the thoroughly washed and strained basmati rice in the above mix for 5 mins.
5)      Add 7 cups of fresh water to the above and 1 tsp permitted food colour, then cook the items closed in slow flame.
6)      Check in between and add water if required.
7)      In the meantime fry the onions and cashews in ghee or cooking oil and keep it aside.
8)      After the rice is cooked up garnish it with the fried items and coriander leaves.
9)      Serve hot with a spicy non-veg gravy and cucumber salad.

Idli (Rounded Rice-Dal Cakes)

Preparation Time: 10 min

Cooking Time: 5 min

Serves: 3

Ingredients measure:-

Idli Rice(Pachari) : 3 cups

Urad Dal: ¾  cup

Cooked rice: 2 tbsp

Salt: 1 tbsp

Gingely Oil: 1 cup

Preparation:-

1)      Through wash first and soak (min 4 hrs) the first two ingredients separately in a vessel in 6 cups of fresh water.
2)      Strain the water and grind half portions one at a time with 1 tbsp cooked rice and sufficient water (water level till the rice and dal is immersed completely) in a mixer/ wet grinder.
3)      Mix with fresh water and salt and then gently fold the batter without disturbing the air bubbles much.
4)      Keep the grinded batter for one night closed in room temperature.(For cold climate places, the batter won’t ferment, so its advised to add 1 -2 tsp baking soda and keep the batter overnight to achieve the desired result).
5)      Pour 1 ¼  ladle of batter to the holes of idli cooker already drizzled with gingely oil.
6)      After filling all the holes in levels with the batter, put the setting in Idli cooker and close the lid.
7)      Cook in slow flame for 30 mins approx., alternatively you can insert a fork into the idli and it should come out clean.
8)      Serve hot with chutney/ chammanthi or sambar.

Note:- The fermentation of the batter is really important to get fluffy idlies. Take extra care to grind urad and rice dal separately. Also grind the urad dal longer to get fluffy idlies. Also remember to use fresh water, as chlorinated water sometimes destroy the air bubbles thus hindering the fermentation. Natural Fermentation is the best and yield nice taste. Try to avoid baking soda fermentation as much as possible.

Sharkara Ari Paysam (Jaggery Rice Sweet)

Preparation Time: 15 min

Cooking time: 10min

Serves: 8

Ingredients measure:-

Brown Rice : 2 cups

Jaggery: 350 gm grated

Sugar : 2 tbsp

Ghee : 2 tbsp

Cardamom crushed: 2 tsp

Raisins: 2 tsp

Cahewnut: 2 tsp

Coconut milk-half cup grated- first punch(onnam pal)- 1 cup

Coconut milk- second punch(randam pal)- 2 cups

Preparation:-

1)      Pressure cook the rice well and keep it aside to whistle to go off.
2)      Strain it and cook it in a vessel with 2 cups water.
3)      In a kadai, pour 1 cup water and dissolve the jaggery allow it to take a semi thick form.
4)      Strain it straightaway into the cooking rice.
5)      Spoon in crushed cardamom and sugar and allow it to cook.
6)      Wait till all the liquids are absorbed and then pour second coconut milk and simmer the flame.
7)      At the same time fry the cashew and raisins in ghee and keep it aside as such.
8)      When the second coconut milk is also almost absorbed, pour in the first milk too.
9)      Keep on stirring and drop in the fried cashew and raisins with ghee.
10)  Mix it well and switch off the flame when it turns to a semi thick.
11)  Serve hot or chilled

Note:- To make coconut milk- In a mixie, grind one cup grated coconut with half cup water and sieve to get the first milk. Then again grind the residual grinded coconut with two cups water and sieve to get second milk.

On pouring the first milk take extra cake to stir and cook in slow flame or else the dish will be a mess.

Pazham Kanji (Left Over Rice In Brine)

Preparation Time: 10 min+ overnight

Cooking Time: 5 min

Serves: 3

Ingredients measure:-

Brown Rice : 2 cups

Water: Sufficient for batter

Small Onion: ½  cup crushed

Kanthari(Thai pepper): 3-4 crushed[I used normal green chilly as it was not available here]

Rock Salt: 1 tbsp

Oil : 1 tbsp

Preparation:-

1)      Crush Thai pepper and small onion.
2)      Keep it aside.
3)      Pressure cook rice with 4 cups water.(rice shouldn’t be overcooked)
4)      Wait for the whistle to go off and strain the rice.
5)      Take a earthern pot and pour 5 cups water and dump in the strained rice.
6)      Spoon in 1 tbsp rock salt and the crushed items.
7)      Leave it overnight, with the earthern pot closed.
8)      Next morning, have it with sour broken curd curry/ chammathi(chutneys)/any sour curries.