Lemon Sevai and Thengai/coconut Sevai (Rice noodles )

Lemon Sevai

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Ingredients

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• Cooked Rice noodles  -      3 cups( Refer to the recipe with the provided link)
• Lemon juice                -     extracted from  1 lemon
• Ginger, chopped finely -     1 inch piece
• Green chillies               -     2 to 3 ( finely chopped)
• Curry leaves                -     5 to 6
• Coriander leaves          -     finely chopped
• Gingelly oil                  -     1 tsp
• Mustard seeds             -     1/2 tsp
• Chana dal                    -     1 tsp  ( kadalaparuppu)
• Split urad dal               -     1/2 tsp ( ulutham parupu)
• Asafoetida                   -     a pinch
• Turmeric powder         -     1/2 tsp

Method:

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• Heat oil in a kadai. Add asafoetida and mustard seeds.
• When it splutters add chana dal , urad dal and saute till golden brown.
• Add curry leaves,ginger,green chillies and turmeric powder.
• Saute for a second and add the cooked sevai/rice noodles.
• Mix well and break the noodles slightly.
• Switch off and pour lime juice.
• Mix well and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve with coconut chutney. coriander leaves in the chutney's recipe is optional.

THENGAI SEVAI 
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• Sevai/rice noodles - 3 cups
• Coconut oil                        -   2 to 3 tsp
• Mustard seeds                    - 1 tsp
• Red chillies                         -  3
• Urad dal, chana dal             - 1 tsp each
• Curry leaves                       - a sprig
• Shredded coconut              - 1/2 cup
• Cashews                           - 5(roasted to golden brown in a tsp of ghee)

You can also do this tempering without coconut and cashews.

• In a kadai, add coconut oil and mustard seeds.
• When it splutters, add the dals and saute till golden brown.
• Add curry leaves and red chillies.
• Saute for few sec and add shredded coconut.Fry for 2 to 3 sec more.
• Add the cooked rice noodles/sevai and mix well.
• Garnish with roasted cashews.

Serve with coconut chutney.

Sabhudhana/sago kichdi

Ingredients:

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• Sago / javarisi(in tamil) - 1 cup
• Red chillies - 3
• green chillies - 4
• Jeera - 2 tsp
• mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• chopped cilantro and shredded coconut - for gaarnishing
• salt - 1 tsp
• sugar - 1 tsp
• lemon juice - extracted from 1 lemon
• peanuts - 2 handful
• ghee /oil - 3 to 4 tsp

method:

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• Soak the sago in water over night.
• Drain the excess water completely.
• The sago should have puffed up really well.
• Chop the potato into very small pieces.
• Dry roast the peanuts and peel off the skin.
• Grind together the roasted peaanuts,red and green chillies,salt,sugar into a coarse powder.
• Add the coarse powder into sago and mix well thoroughly.
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• Heat a kadai,add ghee and mustard seeds, crushed jeera .
• When it splutters,add the potato pieces with a pinch of turmeric powder.
• Saute well sprinkling little water.Cook covered for 3 to 5 min till the potatoes get cooked.
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• Add the sago to it and keep mixing till it becomes tender.
• Take care when you mix.Do not mash it ,at the same time do not let it get burnt as it sticks easily to the kadai.
• Squeeze lemon juice and garnish with chopped coriander leaves and shredded coconut.

Serve hot.You dont need any side dish for this kichdi.

Vermicelli pulao with aloo and Italain green beans

vermicelli pulao is just like rice pulao.You can use any veggies of your choice.here I have used only potato and bean of chikudukaya (Italian green beans)

Ingredients:

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• Vermicelli - 1 cup
• potato - 1 big
• Italian beans - 200 grams
• Salt - taste
• ghee - 2 tsp
• whole spices - 2 cloves,i inch cinnamon stick,2 elachi, 1 bay leaf
• onion - 1 big,finely chopped
• ginger-garlic paste - a pinch
• green chillies - 4

Method:

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• Roast the vermicelli with a tsp of ghee till it turns golden brown in colour.

• Pound the whole spices(clove,cinnamon and elachi) in a pestle and mortar.
• Heat 1 tsp of ghee in a kadai,add the whole spices,bay leaf and saute for 2 sec.
• Add slit green chillies ,chopped onions and ginger-garlic paste.
• Saute till the raw smell goes off .Add the bean and potato slices .Saute for a min.
• Add water just enough to immerse the contents and cook covered for 5 to 10 min till the bean gets cooked.
• Add salt and water.( for every cup of vermicelli,add 2 cups of water) and let it boil.

• Add the roasted vermicelli .Mix well and cook till the vermicelli is cooked.
• Take care not to add more water as the vermicelli will get mashed.
• Seve hot with onion-tomato raitha garnished with coriander leaves.

Ragi sevai with readymade ragisticks

Ingredients:

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• ragi sevai - 1 packet (any brand....anil/concord / any other brand)
• salt - to taste
• veggies(optional) - carrot/beans/potato/ all the three
• onion - 2 big
• green chillies - 4
• asafoetida - a pinch
• oil - 2 tsp
• mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• chana dal - 2 tsp
• shredded coconut - 2 tsp( optional)
• curry leaves - a sprig
• Lemon juice - 3 tsp
• ginger - 1 inch piece,chopped finely

Method:

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• Soak the ragi sevai sticks in water for just 2 min.(not more that that)
• Squeeze the excess water and keep the ragi sticks in a perforated plate.
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• Steam for 10 min.
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• Add oil in a kadai.Add mustard seed,asafoetida .when it splutters add chana dal and saute till it turns golden brown.
• Add curry leaves ,green chillies ,ginger,onions and saute till it becomes translucent.
• If you use any veggies ,chop them finely and add into the kadai.
• Saute for 3 min,sprinkle water and cook covered till it becomes tender.
• Add the steamed ragi sevai,salt and mix well.
• Switch off the flame.Keep covered for 5 min.
• Pour lemon juice ,mix well and serve hot.
• Garnish with shredded coconut.
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Moong dal & Dhalia kichdi

Ingredients:

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• Dhalia(Broken wheat) - 1/2 cup
• Washed split moong dal - 1/2 cup
• salt - to taste
• Green peas - 1 handful
• Carrot - 1 medium sized,finely chopped
• Capsicum - 1 small,finely chopped
• French beans - 6,finely chopped
• Onion - 1 medium sized,finely chopped
• green chillies - 2 to 3,slit open
• water - 2 to 2.5 cups
• Ghee - 3 tsp
• Oil - 1 tsp
• Red chilli - 1
• asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Method:

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• Wash moong dal and dhalia twice or thrice.
• Drain excess water and leave in the colander for 5 min.

• Heat 2 tsp of ghee in a kadai.Add dalia and moong dal mixture.
• Saute well till it turns brown.Remove from fire and set aside.

• Heat oil and rest of ghee in the kadai.Add hing ,curry leaves and jeera.When it splutters,add onions,green chillies and saute well.
• Add capsicum and saute till it becomes tender.
• Add peas,carrots,beans and saute till they turn tender.
• Add salt,water and cook covered till they veggies are 80% done.
• Add the roasted moong-dalia mixture,add little water if required and cook covered till it gets cooked well.

Adjust the quantity of water as and when required.

Serve hot with sugar/pickle/curd.

Idiappam & Sodhi

Idiappam can be made with a special vessel "Idiappam maker" as shown below.This has a stand with plates and a squeezer in which we put the dough.

Or you can also use the traditional nazhi that we normally use for making muruku/karuvadam and the vadam stand.

Ingredients:

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• Idiappam flour - I used Readymade Idiappam flour.The recipe for making idiappam flour at home will be posted later.
• salt - to taste.
• Luke warm water - to make the dough.

Method:

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• Add the flour and salt to a wide open vessel.

• Add luke warm water little by little and knead to a dough as shown below.
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• It should not stick to your hands and you should be able to form a ball out of it.This will be the consistency of the dough.
• Choose the plate with thin holes for covering the bottom of squeezer.
• Put the dough into the squeezer and close the lid tightly by screwing it clockwise.
• Apply little oil onto the plates and gently rotate the handle of the squeezer so that the idiappam squeezes out through the holes in the bottom.
• Move the squeezer itself in circular motion as you do the above step.This is done to get round shape of idiappam.
• Repeat for all the plates and steam for 5 to 10 min.

Serve hot with sodhi/stew/coconut milk with sugar.

Greengram/Whole moongdal Kichadi

This recipe serves 2 to 3.

Ingredients:

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• Whole moongdal(with skin) /Greengram dal - 100 grams
• Rice - 200 grams
• Carrots,chopped - 2 medium
• Peas - 1 handful
• curry leaves - a sprig
• Coconut,cut into pieces of length 0.5cm - 1 tablespoon
• Salt - to taste
• Ghee - 2 teaspoon
• Pepper,crushed - 1 teaspoon
• Jeera - 1 teaspoon
• Hing - a pinch/1/2 teaspoon
• Green chilli,chopped - 1
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• dhania powder - 1 1/2 teaspoon
• Red chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Method:

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• Heat a teaspoon of ghee in a kadai and saute moongdal till it turns brown in colour and the raw smell goes away.
• Soak the roasted moongdal for 2 hours.Drain excess water.
• Wash rice and soak for 1 hour.Drain excess water.
• In a thick bottomed pressure cooker,add veggies,green chillies,soaked rice and dal,salt,dhania powder,red chilli powder and enough water.(The measures are ; for every cup of rice,add 3 cups of water and for every cup of dal,add 2 cups of water)
• Pressure cook the above contents.(1 whistle on a high flame and switch off after 15 min)
• Temper with mustard seeds,coconut,pepper,hing and jeera in a teaspoon of ghee.

Serve hot with curd ,pickle and pappad.

Milagu vellam

Ingredients:

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• Buttermilk - 1 1/2 cups
• pepper - 1 tablespoon
• Red Chilli - 1
• Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
• curry leaves - few
• salt to taste
• turmeric powder - a pinch
• vendhayam - 1/4 teaspoon
• Hing powder - a pinch

Method:

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• Add 1/2 cup of water in a thick bottomed vessel along with salt,turmeric powder,pepper and cook covered for 2 min.
• When it boils,add butter milk and keep stirring it for a min and switch off.(Do not let it to boil)
• Temper with mustard seeds,vendhayam,red chilli,curry leaves and asfoetida.

This is a very mild and simple recipe .Can be served with rice.Its also good to have it when you have fever or cold.

RavaSemiya Upma kozhukattai

This recipe serves two.

Ingredients:

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• Rava/Sooji - 1 1/2 cups
• Semiya/Vermicelli - 1/2 cup
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Chana dal - 1 tsp
• Ginger - a small piece
• green chillies - 2
• red chillies - 2 0r 3
• curry leaves - few
• Shredded coconut - 5 to 6 tsp
• salt - to taste
• water - 4 to 5 cups
• Hing - a pinch

Method:

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• Heat tava,add a tsp of oil and saute rava till it becomes brown.Repeat the same for semiya.
• Set them aside.Chop ginger and green chillies finely and crush it using a spatula or a stone.
• In the tava,add a tsp of oil and mustard.When it splutters,add chana dal,crushed ginger and green chillies ,hing and saute well.
• Add red chillies and curry leaves ,saute for 2 sec and add water.
• Add salt, shredded coconut and allow it to boil.
• When it boils ,add semiya and after 3 to 4 min ,add rava.
• If required add water and keep mixing so that no clogs are formed.Switch off when it becomes as shown below.The upma is ready to be steamed.Set aside to cool.

• Now make round dumplings as shown below.(Apply little oil on your hand)

• Keep the dumplings in a plate and steam it using a pressure cooker or an idly cooker for 5 min.(For steaming you dont need to use the weight in the cooker)

Yummy dumplings are ready .Serve it hot with rasam or morekootan.Here I have served with rasa kalan.

Kanji and Karamani fry

Kanji is a very light dish which can be had for dinner.This is made out of "Podi ari" which can be got in Kerala or any malayali shop in any place.

Since kanji has a bland taste,we need some strong side dish.Normally mango chutney / Chamandi ,Puzhuku can be made .I will post the recipies for this soon.Now I am posting a different recipe - "Karamani/Cow peas fry".

Recipe for Kanji

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This recipe serves two

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• In a small glass take 2-2 1/2 measures of Podi ari.
• Wash it well a couple of times.
• Pour water in the ratio 1:5.(Ari:water)
• Pressure cook the Podi ari.(After you get a whistle in a high flame, minimize the flame and switch it off after 10 min)

When the podi ari is cooked and if there is no water left in that,Boil water seperately and pour over cooked podi ari to get a semi solid consistency.Add salt and 1tsp of ghee according to taste.

Side dish-Cow peas fry

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Ingredients:

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• Cow peas - 21/2 measures of a small glass.
• Small Onions - 20 to 25
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• Red chillies - 3 to 4
• Curry leaves - few
• Coconut Oil - for frying(You can also use refined oil)
• Salt - to taste
• Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
• turmeric powder - a pinch
• Hing/asfoetida powder - a pinch

Method

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• Soak the cow peas for about 6 to 7 hours.
• Pressure cook the peas.(Just leave two whistles in the high flame).Do not over cook.
• Allow it to cool down for at least 15 min .
• Peel onions and chop them..
• In a frying pan ,Add 3 to 4 tsp of oil,add mustard seeds.When they splutter,add red chillies,asfoetida and curry leaves..
• Add the onions,fry them till they turn transparent.
• Add salt,turmeric powder and red chilli powder and saute for 2 min.
• Add the cow peas and mix with the onions well.
• Allow it to roast in sim flame.

When the cow peas turn roasted ,serve them hot with kanji.