Rasam

An easy way of preparing tasty rasam

Ingredients:

SambarPowder- 1tsp

Tomato-1

Garlic- 5 cloves

Crushed pepper- 6-7

Celantro- 3-4 stems

Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp

Salt- for taste
Water-1 and half cup

Oil- 2 tsp

Asafetida – 1 pinch (optional)

Method:

1. Heat oil in pan and splutter mustard seeds when oil is hot.

2. Add chopped tomato and finely chopped garlic to it and saute until tomatoes are soft.
3. Add sambar powder , crushed pepper and saute for 1 more minute
4. Add water to this and wait till it boil.Add enough salt.
5. Add cleantro leaves and wait for 30 seconds.
6. You may add asafetida if you wish(Sambar powder already have this.So you ll get the taste anyway)
7. Serve hot with rice.

Vermicelli(Sevai/Semiya) Upma

Ingredients:

Vermicelli/sevai-2 cup
Mixed vegetables- 1 cup
Curry leaves-1 spring
Ghee/clarified butter-1 tbsp
Onion-1/2
Ginger- 1 small piece chopped

1.Fry the vermicelli in ghee until golden brown and keep aside
2.Add oil in a pan, splutter mustard seeds and add some urad daal and fry till the color changes.
3 Sauté finely chopped onions with ginger and few curry leaves.
4.Add mixed vegetables like carrot and green peas and let it cook with some salt.
5.Add 2 cups for water and let it boil.
6. Add the fried vermicelli and cook it covered till it is soft and done.
7.Serve hot.

Aloo Gobi (Potato and Cauliflower Curry)

Potato and cauliflower is a popular combination that you get in restaurents.Here is the dry version of aloo gobi.

Ingredients:

Cauliflower- 1 cut in small florets

Potato- 2 cut in cubes

Coriander powder – 1 tsp

Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Garam Masala – 1 tsp
Cumin powder – ½ tsp
Turmeric Powder – ½ tsp
Cumin seeds- ½ tsp
Bay leaf - 2
Onion -1 medum chopped finely
Corroander leaves- 2-3 stems
Salt to taste

Method:
1. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a skillet and splutter cumin seeds when the oil is hot
2. Add the onion and saute till it is slightly brown
3. Add the masalas and stir till the raw smell goes-for around one minute.
4. Add the cauliflower and potato and 2 tbsp f water.
5. Cook it covered until done, stirring occationally.
6. Add corriander leaves and cook uncovered until it is dry
7. Serve hot

Falooda

A famous dessert of the east.

Ingredients:

Milk- 1 cup
Rose Syrup/ Rooh Afza-3 tbsp
Sugar-2 tbsp
Jell-O cubed-1 cup
Basil seeds /Tukmaria- 2 tbsp
Vanilla Ice cream-few scoops
Falooda sev/ vermicelli cooked- 1/2 cup

Method:

1. Soak the basil seeds in water for at least 4 hours. Put it in a bigger vessel because they get expanded when get soaked. Keep aside in a refrigerator.

2.If you don’t buy readymade Jell-O, Make the jellos with the jello powder or agar agar/china grass according to the package instructions and keep aside in refrigerator for minimum 4 hours to set.

3.Boil the falooda sev/vermicelli in water for about 10-15 minutes until they are soft. Drain the water add some milk to it and keep aside in refrigerator when they are of room temperature.(Add enough milk so that they don’t get sticky. Also if you using normal vermicelli, fry it before boiling.)

4.Add rose syrup(rooh afza is a rose syrup , normally get in Indian grocery stores.) to milk. Add sugar to sweeten it and keep in refrigerator.

5. When you are ready to serve falooda ,take a long glass or a vine glass add 1 tbsp of basil seeds and then couple of tbsps of vermicelli. Add 3-4 cubes of jello to it. Then add the rose water carefully, without disturbing the bottom layers. Add a scoop of ice cream on top of it, Garnish with a cherry.

Note.basil seed water and rose milk are a good summer drink by itself

Happy Onam

Tips and recipes for a simple Onasadya with the necessary items

Dishes
Rice

Puli Inji
Kaalan
Parippu Curry
Cabbage Thoran
Pachadi
Avial
Erisseri
Sambar
Olan
Inji Thairu
Pappadam
Sharkara varatti
Pickle
Cherupazham
Palada pradhaman

Things to buy: (for 4 people)
Rice - 1 lb
Onion-1/2 lb
Yellow yam -1 pound(for kaalan,sambar and avial)
Ash Guard- for Olan
Pumpkin- 1 piece for erisseri
Raw plantain-2 (1 for sambar and avial, 1 for Kaalan)
Drum stick-few (for sambar and avial)
Okra-1/2 pound (for sambar )
Potato-2-3 (for avial and sambar)
Red moong beans(van payar)—I lb- for erisseri
Black eyed peas- for Olan – 1 lb
Cucumber(Vellarika)-1 (for pachadi)
Ginger-200 gram for puli inji + inji thairu
Jaggiri-1 piece for puli inji
Lemon pickle
Cheru pazham
Pappadam
Cabbage
Palada-1 packet
Sambar powder
Tamerind-1 small lemon size
Cumion powder-5 tsp
Turmetic powder-5tsp
Chilly powder-2tsp
Green chillies-200 grams
Curry leaves-8 springs
Grated coconut- 2 coconuts
Yougurt-2 cups
Dry red chili-100 gram
Shallots – 10- 15
Fenugreek seeds-2-3 tbsp
Toor dal-100gram
Moong daal-100 grm (for parippu curry.)
Ghee- 5 tbsp
Banana chips – 1 pkt
Sharkkara varatti – 1 pkt

Utradam Day Eve you may make the following Items:
 
PuliInji
Kaalan
 
Next Day Morning:
Some tips to save your time:

1.Wash couple of handful toor daal and cook it in pressure cook for a whistle.(for sambar) keep aside
2.Wash 1 cup of moong daal, and cook it in pressure cooker adding 2 slit green chillies till 3 whistles.

(While 1 and two on fire you may do the rest of the steps as it takes long time).

3.Grate 2 coconuts .
 Grind 1 and 1/2 of it roughly with 10 green chillies ans 3-4 tsp of cumin
(can be used for erisseri,avail and pachadi arappu).For pachadi it has to be grinded very finely.
Rest 1/2 can be used for thoran.
4.Take the plantains 1/2 of them cut into sambar size pecies(can be one 1 inch long and slice tnto 4).Cut the rest of 1/2 for avial (1 inch length and slit thin).
5.Peel two potatos,cut one for sambar and another for avial.
6.Take yam cut(couple of handful for erisseri(small cubes),one handful for Sambar,one handful for avial.
7.Start cooking rice

Parippu Curry:
When the moong daal is cooked fully, add 2 tsp of ghee and enough salt.Move it to a serving vessel.

Inji thairu:

Crush Ginger(1 inch piece), curry leaves(1 spring), shallots(2-3),green chilly(2-3). Add it to 1 cup of yogurt. Add enough salt.

Erisseri
Pachadi
Olan
Sambar
Avial
Cabbage Thoran
PaladaPradhaman

Pappadam:
Deep Fry the pappadams.

Serve Sadya on Vazhayila :)
Happy Onam

Palada Pradhaman

Ada- 1/2 cup
Milk-2 cup
Condensed milk-1 pkt
Ghee(clarified butter)-2tsp
Sugar -1/2 cup
Cardamon-3-4
Cashews and Raisins-2tbsp each

1. Heat butter in a pan fry raisins and cashews for a minute. Keep it aside.
2 Fry ada to a light pink colour. Keep it aside.
3.Add all ingredients expect raisin and cashews to a pressure cooker and cook till 3 whistles.
4.If it doest not reached the desired cook again after opening the cooker.Can add more sugar if needed
5.Add the raisins and cashews.

Avial

Vegiatbales-2 cups (any mix of vegatables cut thin-like potato,drum stick, plantains, yellow yams etc)
1/2 of a coconut
green chllies-3
cumin-1tsp
yogurt – 2 tbsp
curry leaves- 1 spring

1. Mix the cut vegetables to a pan with 2-3 tbsp of water and cook it covered under medium flame, adding 1 spring of curry leaves.
2. When veggies are half cooked add arappu(1/2 coconut, 1 tsp cumin,1 tsp salt and 2 green chillies roughly grinded).
3.Check the salt and add more if needed.
4.when vegetables are cooked, add 2-3 tbsp of yogurt and cook in low flame for 3-4 minutes more.
5. Add some coconut oil to the curry.

Sambar

Toor Daal – ½ cup
Vegetables- 2 cup
(you may take any vegitables cut big –like totato, drum stick,okra,carrot,yellow yam,plantain etc)
Tamarind-1 lime size
Sambar powder- 2 tsp.
Asafetida- 1 pinch.
Curry leaves- 1 spring
Shallots-2
Dried red chilli- 2
Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp

0.Pressure cook the daal and keep aside.
1.Mix the vegetables (except okra) and cook it adding enough water.
2.When they are 3/4th done add sambar powder, okra and salt.
3.When vegetables are done add some asafetida powder and tamarind water. Also add the cooked daal(lentils).
4.Wait till it boils.
5.Add the seasoning.( Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard. Add the shallots and curry leaves, Sauté till shallots turn brown add the broken dried chilies and saute for 1 more minute.)

Olan

3/4 cup black-eyed beans
1 cup ash guard
3 - 4 green chillies
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 tsp cumin powder
Curry leaves- 1 spring
Shallots-2
Mustard seeds- ½ tsp

1.Soak beans overnight and pressure cook for 3 whistles with water.
2.Add the cubed ash guard, slit green chillies, cumin powder and salt and cook until pumpkin is soft.
3.Add beans and 1/2 cup coconut oil to this and cook in low flame for few more minutes.
4.add rest of coconut milk.
5. Add the seasoning.( . Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard. Add the shallots and curry leaves, Sauté till shallots turn brown)

Pachadi

Cucumber(vellarica)-1 small
1/2 of a coconut
green chllies-3
cumin-1tsp
yogurt – ½ cup
mustard-1 tsp

1.take 1/2 of a cucumber (vellarika) and cut very finely.
2.Add enough water and cook it thoroughly with a spring of curry leaves, until the cucumber is soft.
3.Add arappu to this(roughly grinded 1/2 of a coconut,3 green chllies,1tsp cumin)
4.Crush 1 tsp mustard roughly(i recommend not to grind it as it will add bitterness).If no other go, grind it roughly.and add to the curry.
5.Cook it for 4-5 minutes in low flame.
6.Move to a serving dish.