Kothamalli thokku

Kothamalli is coriander and thokku is a saucy pickle. It can be mixed with rice or as an accompaniment to idli, dosa, roti etc. It also can be used as a bread spread.

Ingredients:

Kothamalli( coriander) washed under running water,drained and chopped - 3 cups
tamarind juice 2 table spoon or juice of one tangy tomato.
ginger - 1" piece chopped (optional)
red chilli powder - 1 table spoon Or according to the degree of spiciness can be increased or decreased.
asafoetida - 1/2 teaspoon
turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
salt to taste
Gingelly oil -- 3 table spoon

Method:
Grind coriander, tamarind and ginger in a mixer.

Heat a kadai and add gingelly oil, when it reaches smoking point,Add the ground mixture and saute for a while in the oil.
Now add turmeric, asafoetida and redchilli powder.
When the sauce bubbles add salt and allow it to boil till the sauce leaves the sides and the oil
floats to the top.

Allow the mixture to cool and transfer it to a clean dry container.

Has a shelf life of more than 3 months when cooked in oil properly and stored in an airtight container.

Pidi karanai masiyal

Pidi karanai is a traditional tuber available only in few places. It belongs to the yam family, just the size of your fists(pidi in tamil) and hence called pidi karanai. It gives a itchy feeling in your throat when not cooked properly, hence very important to remove the itchy property by adding tamarind juice or lemon juice.

Ingredients:

Pidikaranai - 10 nos
tamarind pulp - 3 tablespoon
Green chilli - 3 no's chopped
ginger -------- 1" chopped
salt to taste
mustard and urad dal for seasoning.
coconut gratings for garnishing

Method:

Boil and peel the pidi karanais. mash them when cool and keep aside.

In a kadai, add little oil and allow mustard and urad dal to splutter
follow it with sauteing green chilli and ginger.

Now add the tamarind pulp and little water to the kadai and let it simmer till it looses its raw smell.
To this mixture, add the mashed pidi karanai and simmer on for a few seconds till all the ingredients blend together.

Garnish with curryleaf/coriander and grated coconut. Serve with rice as an accompaniment or for chappati. I love having this by itself.

variation: can be alternatively cooked with lemon juice instead of tamarind extract.

Mahali kizhangu

Mahali kizhangu is a rhizome usually available in the market this season. It has medicinal properties and smells good. It is pickled with curd and is a good accompaniment for curdrice, rasam or for sambar rice. The elders in my family pickle this and unfortunately when i ask them for the exact measure of the ingredients, they say 'Ivvaluvu'( approximately) and show their hand measure. This comes by practice and is called 'kai thittam' or 'kan thittam' meaning approx. measure. I am roughly rounding the measure here.

The tubers brought from the market has to be immersed in water overnight. Next day morning, scrap the outer layer and then chop them to pieces. They have a thick stick like vein which should not be included. The cut pieces will oxidise on exposure to air, so advisable to put in water till pickling.

Ingredients:

chopped Mahali kizhangu --- 1 cup
salt ------------ 1 1/2 teaspoon
haldi ------------ 1 teaspoon
fresh thick curd ---- enough to coat the cup of mahali kizhangu
green chillies ---- 4-5 nos.


MEthod:

Mix haldi,salt, slit green chillies and fresh thick curd with the mahalikizhangu and allow it to marinate for two days.

After two days, the mixture will release water and the rhizome will soak in the flavours. At this stage,if required, you can add one more cup of curd and toss them well. This is now ready for use.

My mom's variation and speciality:
*you can even add 1 teaspoon of ground mustard to the above mixture.
*you can add chopped lemons, green pepper corns and manga inji(mango ginger)along with mahalikizhangu.

Store it in an air-tight jar.

Enjoy it with curdrice, rasam or sambar rice.

Deepavali marundhu/legiyam

This is a herbal concoction and signature dish specially done during diwali. It aids in digestion and keeps us away from all the tummy troubles that could arise on eating the various sweets and savories during diwali.

Ingredients:

Pepper - 2 teaspoon
jeera - 3 tea spoon
ajwain - 3 teas poon
coriander seeds - 1/2 cup
jaggery - 3/4 cup
ginger -100 gms
ghee - 2/3 tablespoon

Dry roast pepper, jeera, ajwain and coriander seeds and grind them together.
clean and grind the ginger to a paste. To this add the above ground pepper.

In a kadai, heat 2-3 table spoons of ghee and to this add the finely ground mixture and grated jaggery.

Keep stirring it till the jaggery dissolves in the mixture and it leaves the sides of the vessel.

When cool, tranfer it into an airtight bottle.

All the ingredients except ginger and jaggery are ground(dry) in a mixie jar

mixed with ginger and jaggery paste and boiled in ghee to thicken, generally made in a vengali uruli( bronze vessel) or kal chatti(stone vessel)

The end product ready to be taken before eating sweets and savories.

Maddur vada

Maddur vada is a deep fried snack very famous in a small town called 'Maddur' near Bangalore. It has a shelflife of anywhere between 5 -6 days and is very filling. Just one big vada fills the stomach.

Ingredients:

Rice flour ----- 1 cup
Maida -----------1 cup
upma rava or chiroti rava --- 1/2 cup
chopped onions( 1 no)
curry leaf - 1 sprig
chopped coriander 2 table spoons
salt to taste
Chopped green chillies from 2 numbers
oil for frying

Method:

Mix all the above ingredients in a bowl. Pat them flatly with your oiled palms or use a plastic sheet/plaintain leaf to pat them.

Slip them into hot oil for frying. When the sizzle of the oil drowns, remove them from oil.

Generally in Bangalore hotels it is served with chitranna(lemon rice) but one can eat it as an evening snack with coconut chutney or it tastes good even without any accompaniment.

The above maddur vada(clicked by me) was made at Tiffany's Maddur. I made them at home. will upload those pics shortly

Tip: when you use upma rava, the white rava appears prominently on the vada, else there is not much difference to taste between chiroti rava and upma rava.

Vadu manga

These are tender mangoes brined and spiced. A traditional accompaniment to curd rice especially common in most Tam-Brahm homes. It goes well with rasam rice also.





Ingredients:
tiny tender mangoes(Max of 1" in size or smaller) --- 1 measure/cup ( called ser in tamil)
Powdered crystal salt ------ 1 tablespoon
chilli powder --------------- 1 tablespoon
Gingelly oil/ castor oil ----- 1 tablespoon

Method:
Wash the mangoes and dry them on a cloth.
Coat the mangoes with oil.
Add salt and chilli powder over the mangoes and allow them to rest for 3 days with just a toss over every morning.
On the 3rd day the salt and mangoes will release water and the mangoes will be soaking in the spicy solution.
The more it soaks the more the mangoes will absorb the spices. Tastes yummy with curd rice.
The above preparation was made in Lalgudi with homegrown mangoes.

Tip: Powdered mustard can also be added. Gives a lovely aroma.

payattham paruppu payasam

Moong dal porridge(payasam). This is a traditional payasam made for all auspicious ocassions. It is also good for mouth ulcers.

Ingredients:

moong dal : - 1/2 cup

channa dal - 2 table spoon

jaggery ----- 3/4 cup

cardomam -- 2 nos

cashew nuts - 10 nos

small slivers of coconut or gratings

Milk - 1 cup

Method:

Pressure cook moongdal and channa dal in 1 1/2 cups of water.

Mash them well and boil them in a dish.

Add jaggery and slivers of coconut or gratings and boil them till the jaggery dissolves

Add milk when the mixture bubbles and switch off.

Garnish with fried cashews and cardomam