Easy Sambhar

Ingredients :

• Toor dahl   - 1/2 cup
• Tomato - 2 [ medium ]
• Onion - 2 [ chopped ]
• Dry red chili - 5 to 6
• Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Tamarind paste - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - as required
• Vegetables - 1 cup [ brinjal, drumstick, ladies finger ]
• Green chilli - 2
• Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
• Curry leaves - few

For seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
• Small onion - 10
• Oil  2 tsp

For grinding masala :

Fry onion, tomato, red chili, curry leaves along with grated coconut in a mixer to a smooth paste and keep aside.

Method :

First boil the toor dal  in a small cooker adding 3 small onion, 1/2 tomato, 1 green chili, curry leaves and  turmeric.  Close the cooker and wait for 4 whistle to come.  After opening cooker, mash the dal, add salt, turmeric, vegetables, ground masala and tamarind paste and required water. Mix well and close the cooker and allow 1 whistle to come. After the pressure goes, open the cooker and garnish with coriander leaves. Keep a small kadai, add oil. When the oil becomes hot, add seasoning,  wait the mustard seeds to pop, and the onion change in to light brown then add it to the sambhar.  Serve with idli, dosa and steamed rice.

Cucumber Peel Chutney

Ingredients : 

• Peel of 2 cucumber - 1 cup
• Fried gram dal [ pottu kadalai ] - 1 cup
• Fresh grated coconut - 1 cup
• Green chili - 2 to 3
• Tamarind paste - 1/2 tsp
• Ginger - small piece
• Curry leaves - few
• Coriander leaves - little
• Salt - as required

Method :

Cut the cucumber peels in to small pieces and boil in the water for 5 minutes.  Then drain the water and grind in the mixer with other ingredients [ green chili, ginger, tamarind paste, coriander leaves, coconut pottukadalai ] to a smooth paste. Then  take a small kadai, add oil to that. When the oil becomes hot, add mustard seeds, channa dal and curry leaves. When the dal change in to gloden add it to the chutney. Serve with idli, dosa, and steamed rice along with ghee it will be very tasty. 

Menthaya Kuzambu [ Nelai style ]

Ingredients:

• Raw pumkin -  small piece [ cut in to cubes ]
• Sambhar onion - 5 to 6 [ peeled ]
• Ladies finger - 4 [ cut in to 1 inch pieces ]
• Brinjal - 2 [ cut in to cubes ]
• Drumstick - 1 [ cut in to 2 inch pieces ]
• Tamarind paste - 1 tsp
• Jaggery - little
• Salt - as required
• Seasame oil - 2 tbsp

For grinding masala:

• Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
• Tuvar dal - 1 tbsp
• Methi seeds - 1/2tsp
• Dry red chili - 4 to 5
• Grated fresh coconut - 2 tbsp [ optional ]
• Urad dal - 1 tsp

 [ Fry all ingredients in little oil to golden colour and grind in a mixer to a smooth paste ]

For seasoning:

• Seasame oil - 2 tbsp
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Methi seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Dry red chili - 1 [ broken ]
• Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves - few

Method:

First take a big kadai, add oil. When the oil becomes hot, add seasonings to that. When it pops, add vegetables to that and mix well. Stir for 5 minutes and add tamarind paste along with required water.  Allow to boil for 10 minutes or till the vegetables cooked. Now add the ground  masala to that. Mix well and check the consistency of the kuzhambu.  Allow to boil 5 minutes more till the kuzhambu gets ready. Finely add curry leaves to that and remove from the gas. Serve with steamed hot rice adding little ghee on the top along with roasted curry. 

Panagam

Ingredients:

• Jaggery powder - 1/2 cup
• Lemon - 2
• Dry ginger powder - 1/4 tsp [ sukku podi ]
• Cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp
• Pachai karpuram - a pinch
• Water - 3 cups
• Tulasi leaf [ basil leaves ] - few

Method:

First dissolve the jaggery in water. Then squeeze lemon, and add  powdered elachi , dry ginger powder, camphor and mix well. Filter it using strainer and add thulasi leaves. Served chilled.

P. N.  Adjust jaggery and lemon juice to your taste.

Dosa batter Mixie.

Ingredients :

• Raw rice - 2 cups
• Urad dahl - 1 cup
• Poha - 2 hand full
• Methi seeds - 1/4 tsp

Method :

Wash and soak rice, dahl, poha, and methi seeds together in a big  vessel for 5 hours. Once soaked, drain water completely and grind in a mixer using ice cold water. Add water little by little in short intervals. Batter should be smooth. Ferment for 10 hours.  Batter should raise and be airy, light and fluffy.  Before  making  dosa  add little water to the batter.  Then keep non- stick  tawa on the gas,  pour a ladle  of batter and spread thin dosa  add oil to the dosa. When its change in to golden in colour  remove from the tawa  and serve with chutney and sambhar.

Raw Jack Fruit Biriyani

Ingredients:

• Jack fruit - 1 cup [ peel the skin and make it small pieces and boiled in the cooker adding salt and turmeric  for 2 whistle drain the water and keep aside. 
• Fried onion - 1 cup
• Basmathi rice - 1 glass [ soak in the water for 15 minutes and cooked in the cooker and make it cool.
• Whole garam masala - 1 tbsp [ cinnamon small piece, cloves 2, black cardmom 1, green cardamom 2 and 2 bay leaf ]
• Salt - as required
• Ginger garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
• Cashew nuts - 6 to 7
• Resins - 1 tbsp
• Green chili - 2 [ slit ]
• Mint leaf - 1/2 cup [ chopped ]
• Coriander leaf - 1/2 cup [ chopped ]
• Beaten curd - 2 tbsp
• Biriyani masala powder - 1/2 tsp
• Red chili powder - 1/2 tsp
• Kesar - a pinch [ soaked in a milk ]
• Ghee  1 tbsp
• Oil - 2 tbsp

Method:

Take a big non-stick vessel & add oil to that. When the oil becomes hot, add whole gram masala,  cashews, resins, ginger garlic paste, slit green chili and boiled jack fruit. Mix well and add mint leaves, coriander leaves, and beaten curd. Then add fried onion [ spread ] then add cooked rice, red chili powder, again spread fried onion  then cooked rice , sprinkle kesar, biriyani masala powder [ sprinkle ] on top sprinkle ghee, close with tight lid and keep for 15 minutes in low flame. Then remove from the gas. Your tasty jack fruit biriyani is ready.

Simple Brinjal Chutney

Ingredients :

• Brinjal - 4 to 5 [ boiled and remove the skin ]
• Onion - 1 big [ chopped ]
• Dry red chiles - 4 to 5
• Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Grated fresh coconut - 2 tbsp
• Tamarind paste - 1 tsp
• Salt - as required
• Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Oil - 2 tsp

For seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves - little 
• Oil - 2 tbsp

Method :

First take a kadai, add oil to that. When the oil becomes hot, add cumin seeds, red chili, when it 's crackle add chopped onion to that and grated coconut also. Fry till onion change in to light brown remove from the gas and keep aside. Then grind  in a mixer along with tamarind paste, cooked brinjal and salt to a smooth paste.  Then take a small pan, and  add oil to that. When the oil becomes hot add seasoning along with asafoetida, and curry leaves. When the mustard seeds pop and the dal change in to golden brown  add it to the ground chutney and mix well. It's goes  well with idli, dosa and hot steamed rice. Add little desi ghee to the rice and mix with the chutney. It's tastes yummy.