Fried dumplings made of chilli peppers are a popular street snack in South India. It is known as milaga bajji in Tamil and is sold widely on Marina beach and Elliots beach of Chennai. Milaga bajji is prepared by frying chilli peppers that are dipped in chickpea batter. I have given a twist to this recipe by giving it a ball shape.
Chilli peppers
Ingredients:
Chilli peppers/bajji milaga - 4to5
Chick pea flour - 1 cup
Rice flour - 4tsps
Chilli powder - 2tsps
Baking soda - 1pinch
Salt and oil - as required
Method:
Mix the flours and chilli powder.
Cut the chilli peppers into 1/2 inch rounds. Rub some salt to it and set it aside for few seconds. Then, sprinkle the flour mixture over it. Add little water and mix till the peppers are coated well. Make round balls out of it and deep fry them in hot oil. When they turn crispy remove on an absorbent paper. Serve it with tomato ketchup.
This is a simple and easy to make curry that goes well with steamed rice. It can be eaten along with any stir fried vegetable or pappadam.
Ingredients:
1. Shallots -100gm
2. Tamarind pulp 1- cup
3. Turmeric powder- 1/2tsp
4. Asafoetida powder 1/4 tsp.
5. Sambhar powder- 3tsps
6. Fenugreek powder- 1tsp
7. Mustard seeds- 1tsp
8. Sugar- 2tsps
9. Curry leaves - few
10. Sesame oil - 1tsp.
11. Salt and oil - as required
Method:
Add sugar, salt and two cups of water to the tamarind pulp. Keep it aside.
In a frying pan, heat some oil and add the mustard seeds. When it crackles add the
shallots and fry till it turns brown. Then add the fenugreek powder, asafoetida powder, turmeric powder and the sambhar powder in quick succession. Pour this mixture into the tamarind water. Boil till the shallots are cooked. Check for consistency and salt. Boil again. Garnish with curry leaves and sesame oil.
This is an easy to make pancake that can be had for breakfast. It has vegetables like carrot, capsicum and onion to make it nutritious. Other seasonal vegetables like blanched peas and grated cauliflower can also be added to make this pancake.
Ingredients:
Parboiled rice -1cup
Black gram - 2tsps
Grated carrot - 2tsp
Chopped onion -2tsp
Chopped capsicum -2tsp
Chopped coriander leaves -2tsp
Chopped green chillies -1tsp
Grated coconut - 1tsp (optional)
Salt and oil - As required
other side of the pancake
Method:
Soak the parboiled rice and black gram together for four hours. Grind them to a course paste and ferment it overnight or at least for eight hours.
Mix salt and vegetables to the batter. Check the consistency. It should be in pouring consistency but thicker than dosa batter.
Heat a griddle and grease it well. Pour one ladleful of the batter on it. Spread it out to make a thick pancake. Drizzle little oil on it. Cook on both the sides. Serve with sambhar or tomato sauce.
Banana stem is rich in fiber and is rich in potassium and vitamin B6 just like the fruit. It is believed to have a cooling effect on the body and hence, is recommended in tropical climates.
Ingredients:
1. Banana stem - 400gms
2. Yellow green gram - 1/4cup
3. Turmeric powder -1tsp
4. Grated coconut - 1cup
5. Cumin seeds -2tsps
6. Red chillies - 2
7. Beaten curd -1tsp
8. Sugar - 2tsps
9. Curry leaves - few
10. Mustard seeds - 1tsp
11. Black gram - 1tsp
12. Salt and oil - as required
banana stem
Method:
Grind the grated coconut, cumin seeds and red chillies coarsely. Soak the yellow green gram in water for ten minutes. Cut the banana stem into small cubes. Place them in water to which curd has been added. Swirl the water with a fork for few seconds and remove any strings attached to it. Wash and cook in two cups of water along with yellow green gram and turmeric powder. When it becomes soft, add salt and sugar. Cook for few more seconds. Then, add the ground paste and curry leaves. Simmer till is well blended. Garnish with mustard seeds and black gram tempered in oil.
Nei appam or unni appam is a traditional sweet dish of Kerala. This sweet dumpling fried in clarified butter or oil is an offering to the deity in many temples of Kerala, besides the ISKCON temple. This is also prepared during weddings and festivals like Karthigai deepam.
The basic ingredients for making nei appam are brown sugar, rice and clarified butter. However, other ingredients like yellow plantain, wheat flour, black gram and all-purpose flour are also added to make the appam softer.
A special frying pan made of bell metal is used to make this dish. It is heavy and has deep cups in it, which helps to cook the appam evenly. What is more important is that it cooks slowly and fills the kitchen with its sweet aroma.
Ingredients:
Raw rice -1 cup
Brown sugar -1 cup
Cardamom powder -2tsps
Grated coconut - 2tsps
Clarified butter or oil for frying
Method:
Soak the rice in water for 4 hours. Drain and grind to a smooth paste along with brown sugar. Set it aside for 4 hours. Just before preparing, add the grated coconut and cardamom powder. Check the consistency. It should be in pouring consistency, like dosa batter. Heat the special vessel. When it turns hot pour clarified butter in each of the cup of the vessel. (Fill it lower than the brim of the cup). When the clarified butter reaches near smoking point, reduce the flame to the minimum. Then, pour one ladle of the batter in each cup. Allow it to cook. Turn it and cook on the other side. Pierce it to check if it has cooked in the inside. When it turns golden brown, remove it.
Mysore pak is a sweet made with split chick pea flour (besan), sugar and clarified butter. This sweet is prepared in almost all the houses during Diwali and it is a hit with everyone except the calorie-conscious.
This sweet originated in Mysore or in the kitchens of Mysore palace to be precise. Interestingly, there are over 18 methods of making Mysore pak. No wonder that Maddappa (the cook in the kitchens of Mysore palace) did not know how to name it. He simply said it as Mysore pak meaning sweet of Mysore (Pak means sweet in Sanskrit).
The ratio of the three key ingredients (chickpea flour, sugar and clarified butter) decides the flavour, texture and taste of Mysore pak. The consistency of the sugar syrup is also equally important. Thicker the syrup, harder will be the Mysore pak. Similarly, more sugar will absorb more clarified butter and result in the residue of the latter in the end.
The process of making this sweet is simple. Sugar syrup and the chickpea flour should caramelise along with the clarified butter. In fact, clarified butter would reduce the crystallization of sugar to give the Mysore pak a soft texture.
Chick pea flour can either be dry toasted or fried in generous amount of clarified butter. The latter gives a better taste and flavour to the sweet.
Sometimes milk is also added to the chick pea flour to prevent it from forming lumps.
Sweets shops prefer to add edible soda ( sodium bicarbonate) in the end of the process. This results in a brown tinge in the middle, leaving the top and bottom with golden yellow colour.
Ingredients:
Chick pea flour - 1cup (levelled)
Sugar - 2cups
Clarified butter - 2cups
Water - 3/4cup
Method:
Grease a deep plate with clarified butter. Keep it aside. Heat 1cup of clarified butter. Reduce the flame and add the chick pea flour. Fry till it changes colour. Remove from flame. Keep stirring for few more minutes.
In a heavy bottomed pan add the sugar and water. Place it on high heat and allow it to boil. Stir occasionally. When it reaches one thread consistency, reduce the flame and add the chick pea mixture. Keep stirring continuously, while adding small quantities of clarified butter. The mixture will turn thicker and absorb all the clarified butter. Keep stirring till it leaves the sides of the pan and starts swelling. At this stage remove the pan from flame and pour over the greased pate. Cut into desired shape after it cools for few seconds.
Note: Check the consistency of the sugar syrup by pressing a drop of the sugar syrup between two fingers. It should be stiff and show one thread.
Raw plantains are referred to as vazhakkai in Malayalam and Tamil language, while thoran is a Malayalam word, which is referred to any dry side dish. Vazhakkai thoran is a simple high fiber side dish that goes well with sambhar and rasam. This is also very good for diabetics due to its high fiber content.
Ingredients:
1. Raw plantain -2
2. Turmeric powder -1tsp
3. Grated coconut -1/2cup
4. Green chillies -3
5. Red chilly – 1(broken into two)
6. Curry leaves - few
7. Mustard seeds -1tsp
8. Black gram -1tsp
9. Salt and oil – as required
Method:
Chop the green chillies finely. Mix it with the grated coconut. Keep it aside. Cut the raw plantain into small segments. Add turmeric powder, salt and cook in two cups of water. Drain the water. Set it aside. In a frying pan temper the mustard seeds and black gram in little oil. Then add the curry leaves, red chillies and boiled plantain. Stir fry for few seconds. Then add the grated coconut mixture. Stir over a low flame till it is blended.
