Payasam
There are several varieties of 'payasams'. One is in which rice, wheat or vermicelli is boiled with milk and sweetened with sugar. It goes by the name of 'pal payasam'. Another, is made of boiled rice or dal or wheat, to which is added jaggery and coconut milk. Both are flavoured with spices.
Pal Payasam
Ingredients:
Milk 3ltrs
Dried red rice 180gm
Sugar 700gm
Method:
Boil the milk. Add sugar and mix well. When it boils again, add the washed rice in it. Simmer in medium flame. Cook till the rice is done. Serve hot.
Semiya Payasam
Ingredients:
Vermicelli 1 cup
Cashew nuts handful
Raisins handful
Water 3/4cup
Sugar a cup
Saffron a pinch
Milk a cup
Cardamom two or three pods
Method:
Heat the ghee and fry the vermicelli till light brown.
In the meanwhile, boil the water. Add the vermicelli to the boiling water and cover it. Keep stirring occasionally. Once the vermicelli becomes soft , add the sugar and continue to stir. Put the saffron in the milk and dissolve it, add this milk to the vermicelli. Powder the cardamom and add it to the mixture. Then fry the cashew nuts and almonds in ghee and add these. Mix well and boil for about two minutes. Your payasam is ready and can be served hot or cold.
Wheat Payasam
Ingredients:
Broken Wheat 250g
Coconut 2 no
Jaggery 500g
Raisins 10g
Cashew Nuts 10g
Ghee 3tbs
Cardamom 5g
Dry ginger powder 10g
Cumin Powder 10g
Method:
Grate the coconut. Add1/2 glass warm water to the grated coconut. Extract the first milk. Extract the second milk by adding 1 1/2 glass warm water. Again repeat the process to extract the third milk.
IFry broken wheat lightly in one teaspoon ghee. Cook the wheat well in 1 1/2 liters of water.
When it is done add the third milk and the second milk to the wheat and bring to a boil. When it thickens to a semi solid consistency, add powdered jaggery. Add the first milk, fried nut, raisins, powdered cardamom, ginger and cumin. Mix well and remove from fire immediately. Serve hot.
Parippu Payasam
Ingredients:
Parippu (Green gram dal) 250gm
Sarkara (Jaggery) 250gm
Coconut milk from 2 coconuts
Ghee 2 tbs
Cashew nuts, Raisins for seasoning
Method:
Fry dal till light brown. Clean and boil the fried dal well.
Heat jaggery with some water and make a thick solution. Take milk from the coconut thrice. Keep the thick milk taken 1st, aside. Add the 2nd and 3rd milk and the jaggery solution to the boiled dal. Simmer on medium flame till thick. Fry the cashew nuts and raisins in ghee. Add these and the 1st milk to the payasam . Mix well and remove from fire.
Injithair
Ingredients:
Nicely chopped ginger 4 spoons
Curd 6 spoons
Salt to taste
Method:
Mix all the ingredients and stir well. The injithair is ready.
Sambar
Ingredients: (Serves 10)
Bitter gourd (pavakkai) 1/2
Brinjal (egg plant) 1no
Drum Stick 1no
Ladies finger 4nos
Red chillies 4nos (split into2)
Sambar dal (Red gram dal) 1cup
Turmeric powder 1/2tsp
Curry leaves 1sprig
Water 3cup
Dried coriander seeds 2tbs
Tamarind size of a golf ball
Water 1cup
Red chilli powder 1tsp
Salt to taste
Curry leaves 1sprig
Asafoetida powder 1/4tsp
Grated molasses 1/4tsp
Coconut oil 2tbs
White gram dal 1/4tsp
Fenugreek 1/4tsp
Dried chilli 4nos
Coconut oil 1/2tsp
Coconut oil 2tsp
Mustard 1tsp
Dried chillies split into 2 2nos
Coriander leaves few
Method:
Clean the vegetables and slice into long pieces.
Wash the dal. Boil 3 cups of water and cook dal in it. Add turmeric powder and curry leaves into the dal. Keep it aside.
Fry the 4th ingredients in 1/2tsp coconut oil. Grind it to a smooth paste and keep aside.
Mash the tamarind in 1 cup water and strain. Boil the tamarind water with red chilli powder, salt, curry leaves, asafoetida and molasses. When it boils, add 2tbs of coconut oil. Add the vegetables except the ladies finger into it. Cook till done and add the prepared dal into it. Bring to a boil and add the ladies finger and the ground masalas. Remove from fire after boiling.
Season with mustard seeds and dried chillies. Sprinkle the Sambar with chopped coriander leaves.
Note: Various vegetables like potato, carrot, radish, tomato etc can also be added to the sambar.
Parippucurry
Ingredients:
Lentils (green gram dal) 1cup
Water 3cups
Turmeric powder 1/2tsp
Salt to taste
Ghee 2tsp
Method:
Lightly fry the lentils in a pan. Boil 3 cups water and add the washed lentils and turmeric powder. When it boils, simmer the flame. When the lentil is cooked well, add salt to taste and ghee.
Mix well and remove from fire.
Tomato Rasam
Ingredients:
Red Gram Dal 3-4 tbs
Tomatoes (finely chopped) 4 large
Garlic paste 1/2 tsp
Ginger (finely chopped) 1-inch piece
Water 21/2 cups
Garlic grated 1tsp
Green chilies finely chopped 1 or 2
Coriander leaves finely chopped
Salt to taste
Chili or pepper powder to taste
Turmeric powder 1/2tsp
Mustard seeds 1tsp
Cumin seeds 1tsp
Whole dried red chili (halved) 1-2
Asafetida a pinch
Curry leaves few
Oil 2tbsp
Method:
Pick, wash and pressure cook the dal and keep side.
Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, dried chili and asafetida. When mustard seeds start to splutter add garlic, ginger, tomatoes and green chilies. Add salt, chili & turmeric powder and a cup of water. Simmer for 5-6 minutes and add the cooked dal and 11/2 cup of water and bring to boil.
Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves.
Dry Fruit Kesari
Ingredients:
Dry fruits (chopped dates, raisins, cranberries and other nuts)
1/2 cup
Rava
1/2 cup
Sugar
3 tbsp
Ghee
2 tsp
Cardamom powder
1 pinch
Almonds
6 no
Water
1 cup
Food color optional (yellow, orange or red)
3-4 drops
Method:
Stir-fry rava with 1 tsp ghee on low flame till the smell of raw grain goes. Set it aside for later use.
Saute dry fruits for 5-10 seconds in a pan with 1 tbsp ghee on low flame. Add water, sugar, cardamom powder and food color to them and increase heat to high flame. Add roasted rava to boiling water slowly and smoothen out any lumps and mix well. Reduce heat and keep stirring continuously till the mixture is cooked. One can know that the mixture is cooked when it starts coming off the pan easily.
Grease a plate and pour 'kesari' into it. Let it cool and get set. Cut it into smaller pieces and garnish it with an almond.
Kesari is now ready to be served.
Dosas
Masala Dosa
Ingredients:
For the masala filling
Long grain rice 21/2 cups
Uncle Ben's Converted rice 21/2 cups
Urad dal whole 1 cup
Methi seeds 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Potatoes 3 nos boiled, peeled and cubed
Onions 1 no
Mustard, Chana dal for seasoning
Chillies 2 nos
Besan 1 tsp
Turmeric 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Method:
Soak the long grain rice for 6-7 hrs and urad dal for an hour.
Grind the soaked rice and urad along with methi seeds to a fine paste.
Mix both of them, add salt and let it ferment atleast for a day.
For those of you who prefer to eat a little less sour, dosa can be made after fermenting for 2 hours.
Masala Preparation:
In a pan with oil, season with seeds, chilli, add onions. Fry for a couple of minutes, add potato, salt and turmeric.
Cook for some time. Mix the besan with water and add the same to the vegetable mixture. Cook for a couple of minutes and garnish with cilantro.
In a griddle or a non stick flat pan pour a laddle and make it round shape. Pour some oil around it and flip it after bubbling spots appear.
Take a spoonful of Masala filling, fill in the center and close the dosa.
Serve hot with chutney or sambhar.
Rava Dosa
Ingredients:
Rice flour 1 cup
Wheat Flour 1 cup
All purpose flour 1 cup
Rasa 1 tbsp
Green chillies 3 nos finely chopped
Mustard seeds 1 tsp
Cumins seeds 1 tsp
Curry leaves few
Salt to taste
Method:
Mix all the flours with salt, green chillies.
Add enough water to get a semi-liquid consistency.
Do the seasoning with mustard, cumin and curry leaves and add it to the batter.
Heat the griddle and proceed as in dosa.
Serve hot with chutney or sambhar
Wheat Flour Dosa
Ingredients:
Wheat flour 2 Cups
Rice flour 1/2 Cup
Curds 1/4 Cup
Salt to taste
Cumin 2 tsp
Green chilies 5 Nos
Water
Oil
Method:
Grind Green Chilies to fine paste.
Mix Everything and let it rest for 3-4 hours.
Add water to make a dosa batter.
Proceed as in dosa and enjoy with chutneys.
Onion Rava Dosa
Ingredients:
Rice flour 1 cup
Wheat flour 1 cup
All purpose flour 1 cup
Rasa 1 tbsp
Green chillies 3 nos finely chopped
Mustard seeds 1 tsp
Cumins seeds 1 tsp
Curry leaves few
Salt to taste
Onion 2 nos
Method:
Chop onion into fine pieces and reserve.
Mix all flours with salt and green chillies.
Add enough water to get a semi-liquid consistency.
Do the seasoning with mustard, cumin and curry leaves and add it to the batter.
Heat the griddle and proceed as in dosa. Sprinkle some onion on top and let it cook.
Add some oil on the other side and flip. Allow it to cook on the other side.
Serve hot with chutney or sambhar
Spring Dosa
Ingredients:
Long grain rice 4 cups
Uncle Ben's Converted rice 2 cups
Urad dal (whole) 1 cup
Salt to taste
Capsicum (big) 1 no chopped finely
Onion 1 no chopped finely
Tomatoes 2 nos chopped finely
Method:
Soak the long grain rice for 6-7 hrs and urad dal for an hour.
Dry grind the Converted rice.
Grind the soaked rice to a coarse paste and urad to a fine paste.
Mix all three. Add salt and let it ferment atleast for a day.
Heat a griddle and make a round shape with a laddle full batter.
5.Sprinkle all three vegetables and apply little oil around the edges.
After a couple of minutes flip them to the other side and let it cook.
Serve hot with chutney or sambhar
Plain Dosa
Ingredients:
Long Grain rice 4 cups
Uncle Ben's Converted rice 2 cups
Urad dal (whole) 1 cup
Salt to taste
Method:
Soak the long grain rice for 6-7 hrs and urad dal for an hour.
Dry grind the Converted rice.
Grind the soaked rice to a coarse paste and urad to a fine paste.
Mix all three, add salt and let it ferment atleast for a day.
Steam them and serve hot with chutney or sambhar.
Coconut Chutney
Ingredients:
Coconut Grated 1 cup
Red Chillies(dry) 2 nos
Mustard seeds 1 tsp
Urad dal 2 tsp
Tamarind (dry) 1 small piece
Salt to taste
Sugar 1 tsp
Hing 1 tsp
Oil 1 tbsp
Method:
Grate the Coconuts.
In a pan heat the oil and add 1 tsp of urad dal and chillies. Fry for a minute. Let it cool completely. Add tamarind, sugar, hing and coconut and grind it to a fine past
Do the seasoning with the other tsp of urad dal , mustard seeds in a tsp of oil.
Enjoy with steaming plain rice.
Banana Halwa
Ingredients:
Nutmeg ground 1/2 tsp
Pure Ghee 1 tablespoon
Bananas (ripe, peeled and mashed) 3 (medium)
Sugar 1 cup
Method:
Heat ghee in a heavy pan. Add bananas and cook over low heat, stirring to prevent the mixture from sticking. Cook for 10 minutes, or until bananas have browned and resemble soft toffee. Add more ghee as necessary.
Add sugar and continue stirring until dissolved.
Add nutmeg and cardamom; remove from heat.
Spread halwa into a deep, large plate. Allow it to cool and cut into squares.
Avial
This is a semi-dry preparation which is a mixture of all sorts of vegetables.
Ingredients: (Serves 10)
Yam sliced thinly into 11/2" length pieces 1cup
Cucumber sliced lengthy into 11/2" thick pieces 1cup
Snake gourd sliced into 11/2" length pieces 1cup
Carrot sliced into into 11/2" length pieces 1/4cup
Long runner-beans sliced into 11/2" length pieces 1/2cup
Drumstick cut into 2" length pieces 2nos
Raw bananas sliced into 11/2" length pieces 1no
Mango pieces for sour
Turmeric powder 1/2tsp
Salt to taste
Grated coconut 1/2quantity
Green chillies 5nos
Cumin seeds 1/2tsp
Curry leaves 2sprigs
Coconut oil 3tbs
Method:
Coarsely grind the coconut, green chillies and cumin seeds. Keep it aside.
Clean the vegetables.
Heat 2tbs coconut oil in a thick bottom vessel. Add the vegetables and cook in a low flame. Do not add water. When it is done, add turmeric powder, salt and mix it well. Remove the vegetables from the middle and put sliced bananas and mango pieces and cover it with the other vegetables. When steam comes out, add the coconut paste and stir well. Remove from fire. Mix the remaining coconut oil and curry leaves in the avial.
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