Tuesday 31 December 2013

Onion Powder / Podi




To make the onion powder all we need is

1. A handful of small/sambar/pearl onions.

2. A tumbler of Sambardhal/toor dhal.
 (Always see that the quantity of dhal is more than the  onions, to have a desirable texture of the powder.)

3. Red Chillies  as per your taste.
4. Asafoetida  a pinch.
Salt as per your taste.
A spoon of  oil to fry .

Heat the oil in a pan. Fry the asafoetida, dhal, red chillies till they are  red.
Fry the onions a little.(Take care to see that the onions don't get fried up a lot.  If the onions get fried up a lot , you will end up with onion chutney and not podi.)

First powder the fried dhal. asafoetida, chillies, salt to a  fine powder. Then add the fried onions  to this powder and let the mixie run roughly  for about 45 seconds only .(Again take care to see that you don't grind the onions and the mixture to a paste.)



Stir it with a spoon and store it in glass jars. You can keep it referigerated.
Add this powder to hot rice. Add a little gingelly oil ,mix it and eat.
You are sure to like its taste. Yummy!!
Let me know if you like this recipe.

Tuesday 24 December 2013

lemon pickle (oil free)



To make lemon pickle  we need,

juicy lemons 10 to15.
turmeric powder.
red chillies  as per your taste.
methi seeds 3 tea spoonfulls
salt  as per taste.
First let us cut each  lemon into eight or ten pieces as you wish.
drop all these lemons in a  wide mouth container ,.



As you drop them squeeze some of them so as to get juice.
This will help the salt to dissolve quickly.
Add salt and  turmeric powder .shake well and keep aside.
Let it remain  for a week or so like this.
Don't forget to shake the container every morning.
After a week you can see the lemon pieces , soaked in lemon juice as shown below.


Now fry the chillies and methi seeds in oil and grind them to a fine powder in a mixie.



Add this to the lemon.
Your yummy lemon pickle is ready.Taste it. If need be you can add more salt and chilly powder.
Don't bother if it is a bit salty as that will prevent the pickle from getting spoiled.
Also as days go by the  sour taste of the lemon will overcome the saltiness.

Let us store this lemon pickle  in a glass or porcelien  jar only

Avoid Plastic Containers.
        And
Prevent Cancer..




Wednesday 18 December 2013

Kothamalli thokku







This  is a simple recipe. But this kothamaali thokku has along shelf life.


To make this thokku  all we need is ,

1. Kothamalli  ( coriander leaves) one bunch .

2. Urad dhal  1/4 cup.

3. Asafoetida.

4. Red Chillies as per your taste.

4. Tamarind  to the size of a big lemon.

5. Salt to taste.

6. Little oil ,to fry urad dhal and chillies.





Clean the coriander leaves(Kothamalli) and keep it cut aside.

Pour oil in a pan. and heat it . Add  Urad dhal , red chillies and  fry it golden brown.Fry the asafoetida. Keep it aside.

Put asafoetida, fried Urad dhal, red chillies , salt  in a mixie and grind to a  coarse powder . Then. add tamarind to it and  grind it again for a few seconds. After that,  add  the cut coriander leaves  and  let the mixie run for a minute or two.

It will look like this 


If you find the thokku very sticky ,You can fry some more  urad dhal. powder it  and add to the thokku .Ofcourse mix it  well.

Then remove it and keep in a glass bottle or a stainless steel container.
To keep good health let us avoid plastic containers.
If you prefer, you can even keep it referigerated.

Take it with curd rice. Oh! That is heavenly.

I would be happy if I get feedbacks for the recipe .

Thursday 12 December 2013

Crispy Thenkuzhal




Thenkuzhal is a traditional murukku , made in South Indian homes. An easy  murukku to make.
Let us see the recipe .
All you need is

Raw rice 5 cups
White black gram dhal( urad dal) 1 cup. 
Asafoetida  half a tea spoon.
Jeera/ sesame seeds a little.
Cooking butter 50 grams or a little  less.
Salt to taste.
Oil to fry.

Of course, don't forget to add lots of love.

Now get the rice and urad dhal  ground to a fine powder. Alternatively, you can also use rice flour and urad dhal  flour.
 Mix both the flours well by seiving it  so as to ensure that the two flours mix well. If the flours don't mix well there is every possibility of  thenkuzhal bursting when frying.

Take a bowl  and first put this mixed flour. Then add jeera/ sesame seeds to it. add the butter, asafoetida powder ,
Add salt and mix them well with a ladle .
Now add water, little by little and make a dough ,neither very tight nor very loose .
Then put this  dough in a murukku achu(mould)  and  make thenguzhals in the heated oil .When it turns golden yellow,  remove it from the oil , allow it to cool and place it in an  airtight box. 
Serve these  thenkuzhals  to your dear ones  with pride.
This has got a long shelf life.

image courtesy----google.