Ginger Thovayal [ chutney ]

Ingredients :

• Tender ginger - 1/4 cup [washed, peeled and chopped ]
• Fresh grated coconut - 1/2 cup
• Black pepper - 1 tsp
• Black broken gram [ ulutham paruppu ]
• Green chillies - 2 to 3
• Tamarind paste - 1/2 tsp
• Dry red chillies - 2 to 3
• Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp
• Jaggery - as required
• Salt - as required
• Curry leaves - little
• Oil - 2 tblsp

For the seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Urad dhal - 1 tap

Method :

Take one kadai, heat oil and roast the red dry chillies till bright in colour. Then add asafoetida, and brown the black gram dhal,and pepper.  Then add chopped ginger,and over a  medium  flame and stir for 5 minutes.  Then add  salt, green chilli, tamarind paste and jaggery. Mix well and remove from the gas. Then add coconut and curry leaves. Grind all the ingredients into a coarse paste to make a thick chutney using very little water. Heat the reaming oil and pop the mustard seeds, and urad dhal and roast till golden. Add to the chutney and mix well.

Note :

This thovayal is very tasty and good for digestion.

Red Chillie Stuffed Pickle

Ingredients :

• Large red chillies - 1 kg
• Mustard seeds - 2 tbsps
• Cumin seeds - 3 tbsps
• Aniseed / Fennelseeds - 2 tbsps
• Dhaniya powder - 2 tbsps
• Jeera powder - 2 tbsps
• Methi seed powder - 1 tsp
• Ajvan - 1 tsp
• Dry red chillies - 5
• Mustard powder - 8-10 tbsps
• Raw mango powder - 4 tbsps
• Salt - 15 tbsps
• Asafoetida - 1 tsp
• Sesame oil - 1/4th cup 

Method :

• Wash and thoroughly dry the chillies. Trim the stems.
• Slit the chillies upto just under the stem. Do not cut right through them. Scoop out all the inner flesh and seeds and discard. Oil your hands a bit before you do this and you'll save yourself from the chillies' burn!
• Roast the dry red chillies, cumin seeds, mustard seeds and aniseed / fennel seeds on a slow fire. Cool and grind coarsely.
• Mix all the masala powder in a bowl with little sesame oil and stuff into each red chilli. 
• Put the chillies in a dry, wide-mouthed glass pickling jar [ the glass should be able to withstand hot temperatures, i.e. it should be kept under the sun as long as possible till the chillies becomes soft. ( 7 days would be sufficient ) ].
• Heat the remaining sesame oil in a pan and when it becomes very hot add the asafoetida and immediately turn off the fire.
• Pour this oil over the chillies in the jar.
• Seal the jar and keep it out in the sun for a week to ten days. The longer you keep it out in the sun the better the pickle tastes! Shake gently each day to make sure the oil coats the chillies well.
• Serve with plain chapati or rice

This pickle from North India's Uttar Pradesh sounds fiery but it is a classic case of more bark than bite! The best part is, it's easy to make.

Methi Paruppu Usili

Ingredients :

• Methi keerai - 1 bunch [ cleaned and chopped ]
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - as required
• Curry leaves - little

For the usili :

• Thuvar dhal - 1 cup
• Dry red chillies - 3 to 4
• ATsafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - as required

For seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Oil [ coconut oil] - 1/4 cup

Method :

Soak the dhal in hot water [ enough to cover the dhal ] for about 20 minutes. Then drain the water and blend coarsely along with the other ingredients for the usili. Then steam for about 10 minutes in a rice cooker or flatten the usili and zap in the microwave for 2-3 minutes. Insert a wooden fork and when it comes out clean. The usili done. Cool the steamed and crumble without limps by grating it or in the blender using the pulse speed. Then heat oil and pop the mustard. Add the usili mixture and stir well for 3-4 minutes. Set aside. Then heat a teaspoon of oil and the chopped methi leaves. Add salt and turmeric, stir for few minute till the methi is crispy. Take care that it is crunchy and not over cooked. Then add crumbled usili, and gently stir for 2 minutes over a medium heat. Add more salt if required. Add curry leaves and stir.Serve as a side dish or mixed with  rice.

Tip : Make the usili  in bulk and freeze. Add to cooked vegetables like beans, avarakkai, kothavarangai, cabbage, snake gourd or even a leftover red or yellow pepper. Usili can prepared with equal portion bengal gram.

Wheat Lapsi Payasam

Ingredients :

• Wheat lapsi medium size - 1 cup [ clean and soaked in water. ]
• Grated jaggery - 3/4 cup
• Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
• Ghee - for frying
• Saffron - little
• Thick coconut extract - 1 1/4 cup

Method :

Pressure cook lapsi adding 2 1/2 cup water. [ nicely cooked ] When the pressure goes remove from the cooker and pour it into a big non- stick vessel, add the jaggery to that and allow to boil, till the jaggery and cook in reduced flame till it melts completely. Then add the coconut extract for another 5 minutes. Remove from the fire. Fry broken cashew nuts in ghee, mix the cardamom powder in that hot ghee and add to the payasam. Garnish with saffron.

Note : Borneal flakes [ pacha karpuram ] [ optional ] can be add to the payasam. [ very little. ]
Soak saffron in hot milk for few minutes. Crush well and mix and mix with payasam when its boiling.

Thengai [ Fresh Coconut ] Cucumber Kuzhambu [ Mangalore Recipe ]

Ingredients :

• Cucumber or bottle gourd [ duthi ] - 1 cup [ cut into cubes ]
• Fresh grated coconut - 1/2 cup
• Dry red chillies - 4 to 5
• Tamarind paste - 1 tsp
• Salt - as required
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Jaggery - 1/2 tsp
• Coconut oil - 2 tblsp

For seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1  tsp
• Broken black gram dal - 1/2 tsp
• Big onion - 1 [ peeled and chopped ]
• Curry leaves - little

Grind Masala:

Grained Fresh coconut, dry red chillies & tamarind paste, make a smooth paste of it & keep aside.


Method :

First take one deep bottom kadai & add 2 glasses of water. Add vegetable pieces along with salt & turmeric & boil them till it becomes soft. Then add the ground masala, mix well & allow to boil for about 5-10 minutes in a low flame till the raw smell goes. Then take one small pan, add 2 tbl sp of coconut oil. When it becomes hot, add mustard seeds & urad dal & wait for a second. When the mustard seeds pops, add the chopped onion & fry tilll it turns into golden color. Before removing that, add curry leaves & pour into the kuzhambu. Your kuzhambu is to ready to serve. Serve it with hot steamed rice & roasted curry.

Caramel Kheer

Ingredients :

• Milk - 1 litre
• Sugar - 1/2 cup
• Milk maid - 1/2 cup
• Cardamom - 5 to 6 [ powdered ]
• Kesar - a pinch [ for garnishing ]

Method :

First take one non-stick vessel. Add sugar to that, heat and prepare a caramel syrup by heating on medium flame. When sugar changes into brown colour, add milk, condensed milk and stir till the milk comes to boiling position. Boil till it is reduced to half of its consistency. Add cardamom, saffron and remove from fire. Your tasty caramel kheer is ready to drink. Serve cool or hot.

Kathamba Vadai

Ingredients:

• Thuar dhal - 2 cups
• Bengal gram dhal - 1 cup
• Black gram dhal [ urad dhal ] - 3/4 cup
• Raw rice - 1/2 cup
• Grated fresh coconut - 2 table spoon
• Cashewnuts - 6 to 7
• Dry red chillies - 5 to 6
• Salt - as required
• Curry leaves - little
• Oil - for deep frying

Method :

Soak all the dhals, rice together in water for 3 hours. Drain water and grind coarsely along with salt and coconut. Add little water while grinding. Mix well, add curry leaves  and  make lemon sized balls. Flatten and deep fry in hot oil till crisp and brown on both sides. Serve hot with tomato ketchup.