SAARU/ RASAM/ SOUTH INDIAN SOUP

Yeilds : 5 cups


Ingredients:

Tuvar dal: 1/4 cup
Tamarind: Lemon sized
Saaru powder: 1 1/2 tsp
Salt: as required
Tomato: 1 no.(medium sized)

For Tempering:

Ghee: 1 tsp
Mustard seeds:1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves: 7-8 nos.
Hing: 1/4 tsp

For Garnishing:

Coriander leaves : 1tbsp chopped

Preparation:

1. Pressure cook tuvar dal along with tomato (3 whistles).
2. Meanwhile soak tamarind in hot water. Extract the tamarind water and discard the pulp.
3. Take tamarind juice in a vessel and add saaru powder, salt and boiled tomato (after peeling off the skin). Bring it to boil.
4. Mash the tuval dal and dilute it by adding 2 cups of water and add it to the boiling tamarind juice. Bring it to a boil. Switch off the flame once well boiled.
5. Prepare tempering by adding ghee to a pan, Add hing, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, and curry leaves.
6. Add tempering to the saaru.
7. Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves.
8. Serve hot with rice (with ghee) or drink it as is like a soup.

YAM KOOTU

Yields : 6 servings

Ingredients:

Yam: 1 cup(cut into cubes)
Tuvar dal: 3/4 cup
Turmeric powder: 1/4 tspn
Tamarind: Lemon sized
Groundnut: 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds: 1/2 tsp
Udad dal: 1 tsp
Chana dal: 1tsp
Curry leaves: 8-10 nos.
Kootu powder: 3 tbsp
Fresh coconut: 2 tbsp
Salt: as required
Oil: 1 tbsp

Preparation:

1. Soak tamarind in hot water, extract tamarind water and discard the pulp
2. Pressure cook tuvar dal with the turmeric powder. (3-4 whistles).
3. Grind kootu powder, fresh coconut into a paste by adding little water. Keep aside.
4. Take a pan, prepare tempering by adding oil, mustard seeds, udad dal, chana dal, groundnut and curry leaves.
5. Once tempering is ready, add the chopped yam a little water and cook till yam becomes little soft. Alternatively to save time you can pressure cook the yam and add it to the tempering.
6. Add tamarind pulp, salt and the ground paste. Bring it to boil (7-8 min.).
7. Mash the boiled tuvar dal and add it to the above mixture. Cook for 5 minutes.
8. Serve hot kootu with steamed rice, add a little ghee to the kootu rice for an extra rich flavour.
9. Kootu can be served with rotis and chapatis too.

Notes:

• Kootu can be prepared with other vegetables such as french beans, Indian flat beans (avarekai), cluster beans, chow chow, kohlrabi and bitter gourd too. The method of preparation remains the same.
• The vegetables in Kootu are chopped pretty small size cubes, approximately 1 sq cm, this is so that the veggies blend with the gravy.
• The consistency of Kootu is much thicker than that of sambar.
• There is a practice to use some kind of whole pulse like garbanzo beans/chickpeas, kala chana, green peas or even groundnut along with veggies. Groundnut and fresh peas works out to be the easiest since it does not require overnight soaking. All other pulses needs overnight soaking and needs to be pressure cooked.

KOOTU POWDER / KOOTU PUDI / KOOTU MASALA

Yields : For making kootu to serve 5-6 people 

Ingredients

Urad dal: 3 tspn

Chana dal: 1 tspn
Black Pepper:1/2 tspn
Dhaniya: 1 tspn
Guntur chilli: 2 nos.
Byadige chilli: 3nos.
Hing: 1/2 tspn
Curry leaves: 10-15 leaves

Preparation

• Dry roast all the ingredients (except Dhaniya and Hing), till dals change colour.
• Add Dhaniya towards the end and roast for about a minute.
• Add hing to the mix and switch off the flame.
• Grind to a fine powder.

Notes

• If preparing kootu powder fresh for kootu, then you can add coconut before grinding. However, if you plan to stock the powder, then skip the coconut and use it only at the time of preparing kootu.
• Ingredients can be proportionately increased, when made in large quantity.

SAMBAR/HULI

Yields : 6 servings

Ingredients

Drum sticks: 10 pieces(cut into 2" long pieces)
Sambar onion/small onion: 8-10 nos.
Tuvar dal: 1 cup
Tamarind: lemon sized
Oil: 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds: 1/2 tsp
Fenugreek seeds: 1/4 tsp
Hing: 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves: 10 leaves
Sambar powder: 2 tbsp
Fresh coconut: 1/2 cup
Coriander leaves: 1 tbsp(chopped)

Preparation:

1. Soak tamarind in hot water. Extract the tamarind water and discard the pulp
2. Pressure cook tuvar dal and drum stick(3 whistles).
3. Grind sambar powder and fresh coconut into a smooth paste by adding little water while grinding.
4. Take oil in a pan and prepare tempering by adding mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, curry leaves, sambar onions and hing to it. Cook till onions are little soft.
5. Add cooked drum stick, tamarind water, sambar powder paste and bring it to boil. 
6. Now mash tuvar dal and add it to the above mixture.
7. Boil for about 5 minutes till it thickens a little.
8. Garnish with coriander leaves.
9. Serve hot with rice or enjoy it as an accompaniment to idlis, and all varieties of dosas.

AVALAKKI PAYASA

Every festival in our Hindu calendar calls for preparing payasa and it can be quite a challenge to not dish out the same payasa each festival. While there are many different varieties of payasas to prepare, the choice of payasa depends on the availability of time and the occassion. Avalakki payasa is one such payasa which can be prepared on any festival and is the easiest of them to make. It is of special importance on Krishnashthami as Avalakki is considered to be very dear to Lord Krishna.

You can refer to the blog for other Avalakki recipes like Gojju avalakki, Mosaru avalakki. Further you can find recipes for Krishnashthmi special fried snacks like Uppicheede, Bellada cheede, Chakli, Tengul, Ribbon pakoda, Thatte in this blog too.

Ingredients

Medium Poha/avalakki/Beaten rice/aval: 1/2 cup (powdered)
Milk: 1.5 cups
Water: 1/2 cup
Jaggery: 3/4 cup (powdered)
Badam powder: 2 tbspn
Kaju draksh: 10 nos. each
Fresh coconut: 1 tbsp
Elaichi/Cardamom powder: 1/4 tspn
Ghee: 1 tbspn

Preparation

• Take a pan, add the powdered poha and water and mix it. Now add milk and bring it to a boil.
• Switch off the stove and add badam powder and jaggery and mix well.
• Fry the kaju draksh in ghee and keep aside.
• Bring the mixture to a boil and add elaichi/cardamom powder, kaju draksh and mix.
• Garnish with fresh coconut.
• Payasa can be relished hot or cold.

BESAN KI KHEER/ KADALE HITTU PAYASA

Yields : 4cups

Ingredients

Besan/Kadalehittu: 2 tbspn
Milk: 2 cups
Water: 1/2 cup
Sugar: 1/2 cup or as required
Ghee: 3 tbspn
Kaju draksh: 2 tbspn
Badam powder: 2 tbspn
Cardamom powder: 1/4 tspn


Preparation

• Take 1 tbspn ghee in a pan and fry kaju draksh and keep aside.
• In the same pan add 2 tbspn ghee and fry besan till it becomes fluffy and colour changes a little.
• Add water and keep stirring so that no lumps are formed.
• Add milk little by little and keep stirring for 5-7 min.
• Switch off the stove and add sugar, badam powder and stir for a minute
• Switch on the stove and bring the payasa to a boil. Add cardamom powder at this stage.
• Garnish with the fried kaju draksh.

MOONG DAL DOSA

Yields : 5 dosas

Ingredients

Moong dal: 1/2 cup

Rava: 1/2 cup

Rice flour: 1/2 cup

Green chillies: 5 nos.

Ginger: 1 tspn chopped

Curry leaves: 20-25 nos.

Corriander leaves, finely chopped: 1/2 cup

Onion, finely chopped: 1

Salt: as required

Hing: 1/2 tspn

Preparation

• Soak moong dal for half an hour and grind it along with green chillies, ginger, curry leaves.
• Add rava, rice flour, hing, salt, onions and corriander leaves. Mix well and bring it to a consistency of dosa batter
• Grease dosa tava with oil and make dosas like usual cooking on both sides.
• Serve hot with coconut chutney or can be eaten plain as it is.

BENDEKAYI YELLU GOJJU

Gojju is a traditional South Indian Side dish/gravy which is usually eaten with rice. There are many varieties of Gojju that can be prepared.


Ingredients

Gojju powder: 3-4 tbspn
Ladies finger/Okra/Bendekayi: 12 (medium sized)
Tamarind: 1 lemon sized ball
Salt: to taste

For seasoning:
Mustard seeds: 1 tspn
Turmeric powder: 1/4 tspn
Curry leaves: 7-8 nos.

Preparation

• Chop the ladies finger into inch sized pieces.
• Add oil to a pan, Once oil is hot enough, add mustard seeds. Let it splutter. Add Turmeric powder. Your seasoning is ready.
• Stir fry the chopped ladies fingers and the curry leaves in the seasoning.
• Meanwhile soak the tamarind in hot water and extract tamarind juice and discard the pulp. 
• Once the veggies are cooked, add gojju powder, salt and tamarind juice and bring it to a boil.
• Let it boil for 4-5 minutes till it thicken

Notes

• Only certain vegetables work well for this ellu gojju. Ladies finger, bitter gourd, chowchow, sonde balekayi. 
• The dals used in the gojju powder adds thickness to it.
• You can add about 1-2 tspn jaggery powder before it starts boiling, if you like your gojju to be slightly sweeter.

YELLU GOJJU POWDER/ SESAME SEEDS GOJJU POWDER

Serves as a main course for 4

Ingredients

Udad dal: 2 tbspn

Chana dal: 1 tbspn

Sesame seeds, black : 1 tspn

Sesame seeds, white: 1 tspn

Dhaniya/Corriander seeds: 1 tspn

Guntur chillies: 3 nos.

Byadige chillies: 3 nos.

Hing powder/Aesofoetida: 1/2 tspn

Curry leaves: 2 spring, about 20-25 leaves

Turmeric powder: 1/2 tspn

Preparation

• Dry roast all ingredients separately, as each ingredient requires different temperature to get roasted.
• Roast dals till it'slight brown color. Curry leaves can be roasted along with dal.
• Sesame seeds should be roasted till they splatter. 
• Use a little cooking oil while roasting the chillies to avoid smoking, oil can be skipped if roasted in microwave.
• Dhaniya should be roasted lightly till you get aroma. 
• Add hing powder, turmeric powder, mix all and allow the mix to cool.
• Grind into a fine powder.

Notes

• Roast the dals till it changes colour.
• Use a little cooking oil while roasting the chillies to avoid smoking, oil can be skipped if roasted in microware.
• The powder should look a little more reddish, unlike the image above. I did not have Byadige chillies on hand and hence skipped using it.

SAARU PUDI/RASAM POWDER

Yields: 1.5 cup(approximately)

Ingredients 

Dhaniya/Corriander seeds: 1 cup

Guntur chillies: 1/2 cup

Byadige chillies: 1/2 cup

Black pepper: 1/2 cup

Jeera/cumin seeds: 1/4 cup

Fenugreek seeds: 1 tspn

Mustard seeds: 1/2 tspn

Hing powder: 1 tbspn

Curry leaves: 5-6 sprigs, about 50-60 leaves

Turmeric powder: 1 tspn

Preparation 

• Roast all ingredients separately, as each ingredient requires different temperature to get roasted. 
• Starting with mustard seeds, dry roast till it starts crackling and transfer into a large and wide bowl. Keep adding other ingredients to the same bowl after roasting.
• Now dry roast fenugreek seeds till it turns light brown and transfer to the bowl.
• Dry roast jeera till you get nice aroma and transfer to the bowl.
• Dry roast black pepper till it crackles and transfer to the bowl.
• Mix mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, jeera, black pepper, hing, turmeric powder, cool and grind into fine powder. (1)
• Dry roast the corriander seeds, slightly till a nice aroma comes. Coriander seeds is ground separately, as it requires more grinding to get a fine powder. (2)
• Use a little cooking oil while roasting the red chillies, to avoid burnt smell. If roasted in microwave, oil is not required.
• Dry roast curry leaves and mix with red chilli, cool. Grind into fine powder.(3)
• Mix all three (1), (2), (3) and grind to mix it properly.

HEALTHY PALAK METHI BREAD

Ingredients:

To grind:

1. Palak/Spinach: 1/2 cup
2. Methi leaves: 1/2 cup
3. Corriander leaves: handful
4. Curry leaves: 1 sprig i.e. about 10-15 leaves
5. Green chillies: 4-5 nos.
6. Fresh Ginger, grated: 1 tsp
7. Aesofoetida: 1/2 tsp
8. Salt: As required

Dry Ingredients:

1. Whole Wheat flour: 1.5 cup
2. Baking soda: 1/2 tsp
3. Baking powder: 1 tsp

Wet Ingredients:

1. Curd: 1/2 cup
2. Water: 1/4 cup
3. Oil: 1/2 cup

Preparation:

1. Beat the curd and water together. Add oil to the mix. Keep aside
2. Grind all the ingredients mentioned under 'To grind' section. Add the ground mixture to the curd-water-oil solution and mix it.
3. Fold in the dry ingredients into the above mix.
4. Grease a bread loaf pan and dust it with all purpose flour. Pour the batter into the pan and bake it in a preheated oven at 170°C for 30-45 minutes.

Notes

1. 1 cup = 180 ml
2. Baking time may vary from oven to oven.