Party Pulav

Ingredients:

• Basmati rice - 1 cup
• Carrot - 1/4 cup [ cut into 1/2 inch length ]
• French beans - 1/4 cup [ cut into 1/2 inch length ]
• Fresh peas - 1/4 cup
• Bay leaf - 1
• Cinnamon - 1 inch piece
• Clove - 2
• Cardamom - 3
• Cumin seeds - 1 sp
• Cashews - 10
• Raisins - 10
• Lemon juice - 1 tbl sp
• Sugar - 1/2 sp
• Fresh cream - 2 tbl sp
• Ghee - 2 tbl sp
• Oil - 2 tbl sp

Method:
Wash & soak the rice for 20 mins. Take one pressure pan heat oil & ghee together. Add cumin seeds, cinnamon, clove, cardamom, bay leaf, cashews & raisins & fry for 2 mins. When the cashews becomes brown, add the cut vegetables, salt, sugar, lemon juice along with soaked rice & 2 cups of water. Before closing the lid, mix fresh cream to that & close the cooker. Wait for 2 whistles to come.Then remove from the gas. After the pressure goes, open the cooker & enjoy the pulav. Serve hot with dal fry or other side dishes.

Puthu Kottai Sambhar

Ingredients:

• Ash gourd [ white pumpkin ] - 1/2 cup [ cut into dices ]
• Yam [elephant ] Senai - 1/2 cup [ cut into dices ]
• Yellow pumpkin - 1/2 cup [ cut into dices ]
• Tamarind paste - 1 sp
• Salt - as per taste
• Turmeric powder - 1 / 2 sp
• Green chili - 2 to 3
• Fresh grated coconut - 1 cup
• Raw rice - 1 / 2 sp
• Methi seeds - 1 / 2 sp
• Coconut oil - 2 tabl . sp
• Curry leaves - little
• Sugar or jaggery - 1 sp
• Mustard seeds - 1 sp
• dry red chilli - 1 [ broken ]

Method:
Take one pressure cooker, keep on the gas and add cut vegetables along with tamarind paste, salt, turmeric powder, sugar & enough water. Mix well & close the cooker & wait for 1 whistle to come. Meanwhile, grind the coconut & green chili in the mixer. Grind it to a smooth paste.When the pressure goes, open the cooker & add the grinded masala to that. If the kuzambu is thick add little water. Before removing, dry roast the rice & methi seeds. Make powder in mixer & add it to the kuzambu. Allow to boil for 10 mins in lower flame. Then season in coconut oil with mustard seeds & broken red chili. Garnish with fresh curry leaves. Serve with hot rice.

Puries

Ingredients:

• Wheat flour - 2 cups [ heaped ]
• Salt - as per taste
• Sugar - 1 / 4 tsp
• Ghee or vanaspathi - 1 tsp
• Milk or malai - 2 tsp
• Water - for kneading the dough
• Oil - enough for frying

Method:
Sieve (utensil used for straining) flour with salt. Mix sugar & ghee with the flour in a mixing bowl. Gradually add milk or malai, water & kneed to a soft dough. Keep for 5 mins. Then make small balls & speard  into  small puries. Deep fry in hot oil till golden brown on both sides. Serve hot with channa.

P.S: Little sugar is necessary for the puries to puff up well & to keep it crisp.

Ivy gourd, Little gourd [ kovakkai ] Dry Subji

Ingredients:

• Tender little gourd [ kovakkai ] - 1/2 kg.
• Raw pea nuts - 1 handful
• Salt - as per taste
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 sp
• Red chili powder - 1 tsp
• Dosai milagai podi - 1 tsp
• Grated fresh coconut - 2 tbl sp
• Oil - 4 tbl sp
• Curry leaves - little
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Broken black gram dal - 1 tsp
• Sugar - 1/2 sp
• Cut coriander leaves - little

Ingredients for dry masala powder:

• Coriander seeds - 1 sp
• Bengal gram dal - 1/2 sp
• Broken black gram dal - 1/2 sp
• Dry red chili - 4 to 5
• White seaseame seeds - 1/2 sp
• Roasted peanuts - 1 sp
• curry leaves - little
• Fresh grated coconut - 1 sp

[ fry all these ingredients in 2 sps of oil till it turns into gloden colour. Then make powder in mixer & keep aside]

Method:
Cut the little gourd in to round thin pieces. Soak 1 handful of peanuts in the water. Then keep one kadai on the gas, pour 2 sp of oil to that, heat it & add mustard seeds, broken black gram dal, curry leaves, when it splutters add  kovakkai along with soaked peanuts to that, fry for 3 mins, add salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, dosai melagai podi, sugar  & mix well. Keep gas in lower flame.When the sabji becomes soft & peanuts are boiled, add the grind dry masala powder to that & mix well. Put 2 sps of  fresh grated coconut &  mix well. Before removing from the gas garnish with cut coriander leaves & curry leaves.Your sabji is ready. Have it with rasam, sambhar rice.

Jain Channa Masala [ without onion & garlic ]

Ingredients:

• White kabuli channa - 1/2 kg. [ soaked in water for 8 hours ]
• Red tomato - 3 to 4
• Water melon seeds - 2 tbl sp
• Cashews - 6 to 7
• White seasame seeds - 1 tbl sp
• Poppy seeds - 1 tbl sp
• Ginger - 1/2 inch piece
• Salt - as per taste
• turmeric powder - 1 / 2 sp
• Red chili powder - 1 sp
• Everest channa masala powder - 1 1/2 sp
• Sugar - 1/2 sp
• Chopped corinder leaves - little

For wet masala:
Take one deep mouth vessel, pour some water, put tomatoes, cashews, poppy seeds, seasame seeds, water
melon seeds, 1 handful boiled channa,  ginger & keep on the gas. Boil nicely for 10 mins. Then remove from the gas, allow it to cool & grind it to a smooth paste & keep aside.

Method:
First wash the channa & add salt, turmeric powder, pour enough water & pressure cook in a cooker. [3 to 4 whistles] Then remove the channa from the cooker & keep aside. Keep the same cooker on the gas, pour 2 tbl sp of oil & add cumin seeds. When the seeds spulters add grind masala to that along with red chili powder, channa masala powder, sugar & mix well in a lower flame. If the gravy is thick add little water. Fry for 5 mins & add the boiled channa with the water. Mix well, check the salt & close the cooker. Wait for 1 whistle to come, then keep the gas in lower flame for 20 mins. Then remove from the gas. After the pressure goes, open the cooker & mix well. Your tasty channa masala is ready. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve hot with puries.

Potato Sag

Ingredients:

• Potatoes - 1/2 kg.
• Curds - 1/2 cup
• Tamarind paste - 1/2 sp
• Oil - 3 tbl sp
• Green chilies - 2
• Cumin seeds - 1/2 sp
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 sp
• Red chilie powder - 1 1/2 tsp
• Salt - as per taste
• Garam masala powder - 1/2 sp

Method:

Boil potatoes & peel the skin. Mash 2 potatoes alone & dice other potatoes. Then heat oil in a frying pan, add cumin seeds. When it splutters, add split chilies, turmeric, red chilie powder & garam masala in the oil . Fry for 2 seconds & add curd, mix well and add potatoes and tamarind paste. Fry well till oil separates. Garnish with cut coriander leaves. Have it with roti, bread & hot rice.

Keerai Milakoottal

Ingredients:

• Palak [ spinach ] - 2 bunches [ wash & cut finely ]
• Moong dal or toor dal - 1 / 2 cup
• Turmeric powder - 1 / 2 sp
• Salt - as required
• Curry leaves - little

For wet grinding:

• Grated  fresh coconut - 1 cup
• Cumin seeds - 1/4 sp
• Dry red chillies - 2

For seasoning:

• Coconut oil - 2 tbl sp
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Urad dal - 1 tsp

Method :

Cook palak for 5 mins adding very little water & turmeric powder. Then wash & cook moong dal till tender or pressure cook toor dal adding enough water. Grind together coconut, cumin seeds, dry red chili to a fine paste. Add the cooked  palak & blend for 2 mins. Mixed the grind mixture with the cooked dal. Add salt, turmeric powder & boil well. If  you want add  required  water at  this stage [make it to kuzambu constency]. Then season with mustard seeds, urad dal & curry leaves in coconut oil. Serve hot with rice.