TAMARIND CHUTNEY

This is Mrs. Geetha Achal’s Puli chutney.
[http://geethaachalrecipe.blogspot.com/2010/07/venkayam-puli-onion-tamrind-chutney.html]
As the recipe has much onion and tamarind, it attracted me very much. Hence I have recently tried this and the outcome was superb and delicious!

புளிச்சட்னி

Ingredients:

Sliced Onion-2
Red chillies-4
Tamarind-a big gooseberry size
Black gram- 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Oil-3 tbsp
Gingelly oil- 1 tbsp

For tempering:

Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Curry leaves- a few
Asafetida powder- half sp

Procedure:

Heat a pan and pour the oil.
Fry the black gram and the red chillies to golden brown.
Take away them and in the same oil fry the onion to golden brown.
Grind first the black gram, tamarind and the red chillies to a paste.
Then add the onion with enough salt and grind them to a coarse mixture.
Heat a pan and pour the gingelly oil.
Add the mustard seeds and when they splutter, add the asafetida powder with the curry leaves and fry them for a second.
Pour this on the chutney and mix well.
Delicious puli chutney is ready now!
Serve it with hot sponge idlies.

BRINJAL VADHAKKAL:

This is always a favourite dish for me. Though it is very simple to make, it always makes a super side dish for any kitchadi rice variety, sambar sadham and thayir sadham. We must search very tender brinjals for this.

கத்தரிக்காய் வதக்கல்;

Ingredients:

Tender brinjals-8
Ripe tomato-2
Sambar onions- a handful
Chilli powder- 1 tbsp
Tamarind- a small lime size
Salt to taste
Gingelly oil- 3 tbsp
Chopped coriander- 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder- half sp

Procedure:

Grind the tomatoes and the onions coarsely.
Soak the tamarind in a cup of warm water for half an hour and the extract its thick juice.
Heat a pan and pour the gingelly oil.
Add the ground paste with the turmeric powder and the coriander.
Cook them until the oil floats on top.
Add the sliced brinjals with salt.
Fry them for some minutes.
Then add the tamarind juice with the chilli powder.
Cook well until the gravy is thickened and the vegetable is cooked finely.
Now the delicious brinjal vadhakkal is ready!!

KOOLA MASALA CURRY:

I WISH ALL MY FRIENDS HERE A VERY HAPPY PONGAL!!

Now, about my recipe......

This is a very different curry which I have learnt when I was very young. This one is a favourite dish in our family. The main ingredient is gram flour. [ கடலை மாவு]. Just adding some greens and a little spice, it will yield to a very delicious side dish. This dish is very suitable for pulao varieties as well as sambar sadham.

கூலா மசலா கறி

Ingredients:

For koola:

Gram flour- 1 cup
Small garlic flakes-5
Green chillies-2
Shredded ginger- half sp
Coriander leaves [ chopped]- half cup

For masala:

2 onions,
2 big tomatoes,
Turmeric powder- half sp
Curry leaves,
Chopped coriander- half cup
garam masala powder- half sp
Salt to taste
Enough oil to fry and cook
Turmeric powder- half sp

Procedure:

Sieve the gram flour.
Grind all the ingredients for the koola.
Add this to the gram flour with enough salt.
Knead to a soft dough.
Make oblong sized balls and steam them for 10 minutes.
Cut them in to slices.
Fry them to a slightly golden colour in enough oil.
These should not be fried to crisp.
Heat a broad pan and pour 5 tbsp of oil.
Add the onion and fry it to golden brown.
Then add the chopped tomato with the greens and cook them until they are mashed to a paste and the oil floats on the surface.
Add the fried koolas and cook on slow fire for some minutes until the koolas are combined and soaked well in the tomato mixture.
Sprinkle the garam masala powder and mix well.
Cook for a few more minutes until the koolas are coated well with the masala.
The delicious koola curry ready now!

CRAB CUTLET

When my son asked me to innovate something on crab other than making the usual Crab masala or crab kuzhambu, I have accepted the challenge. With the usual ingredients, I have also added a little quantity of white sauce along with the fresh bread crumbs to make it tastier. I got very tasty crab cutlets as a good result.


Tips: I have recently known that blue coloured crabs are tastier than the red and brown ones.

நண்டு கட்லட்

Ingredients:

Cooked crab meat- 1 big cup
cooked potato [medium]-1
Butter- 2 tbsp
Plain flour- 1 tbsp
Milk-100 ml
Finely chopped onion-1
Chopped coriander- 2 tbsp
Curry leaves- 1 arc
Salt to taste
Fresh bread slices-2
Turmeric powder- half tsp
Enough oil to fry

Grind the following to a coarse paste

Ginger- 1 tsp, small garlic flakes-5, fennel seeds- half tsp, a small piece cinnamon, green chillies-3

Procedure:

Mash the hot cooked potato.
Heat a small sauce pan and put the butter in it.
Add the plain flour and fry it to a slightly golden brown colour.
Pour the milk and cook on slow fire to a thickened mass.
Allow it to cool.
Hat a pan and add 3 tbsp of oil.
Add the chopped onion.
Fry it for a few minutes until it turns to golden brown.
Add the coarse paste with the turmeric powder and fry it for a few seconds.
Add the crab meat along with the potato, salt and the greens.
Cook for a few seconds until they are combined well.
Put off the fire.
Place the mixture in a bowl.
Add the white sauce.
Grind the bread pieces for a split of second.
Add these bread crumbs to the mixture.
Mix well, make small balls, flatten them and deep fry the cutlets to golden brown.
The delicious crab cutlets are ready!

BITTER GOURD PULI INJI:

When I submitted this link to a friend’s request in another website, this recipe tempted me
very much to try it immediately. The procedure is also simple but the taste is divine. Every one praised me in the home and finished the whole in to a few minutes. I am thinking to prepare it again. Long bitter gourd is suitable for this dish. Before cutting in to pieces, slit it first and remove all the seeds. This way, it tastes better always. I have changed a little bit in the ingredients as well as the procedure.

My heartiest thanks to the website which is in the following link:

http://www.ifood.tv/recipe/pavakka_puli_inji_bittergourd_tamrind_and_ginger_pickle

பாகற்காய் புளி இஞ்சி

Ingredients:

Large bitter gourd-1
Small slit green chillies-5
Finely chopped ginger - 1 tsp
Lemon sized ball of Tamarind
Jaggery- 4 tbsp
Pinch of Turmeric powder
Salt – As per taste

For tempering :

Coconut oil - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Dry red chillies 2 – 3 broken
A few Curry leaves

Procedure:Cut the bitter gourd into thin slices of around 1 cm length.
soak the tamarind in warm water and extract its thick juice.
Heat a spoon of oil in a pan.
Add the mustard seeds and when they splutter, sauté the dry red chillies and curry leaves.
Add the bitter gourd pieces with the ginger and the green chillies and fry until they are soft and half-cooked.
Add the tamarind extract, salt and the turmeric powder and cook for a few minutes
Add the jaggery and cook until the curry is thickened.
The delicious bitter gourd puli inji is ready now!

PUMPKIN FRY

With yellow pumpkin, we can prepare sambar, poriyal, sweet etc. But making fry with it is a different one.
This is a very simple fry but one can see it is delicious in taste. This is my daughter in law's favourite dish and she herself prepared for this photograph.

பரங்கிக்காய் வறுவல்

Ingredients:

Yellow pumpkin cut into small slices- 2 cups
Onion [thinly sliced] - 1
Finely chopped tomato- 1
Finely chopped coriander- 2 tbsp
Chilli powder- 1 tsp
Coriander powder- half sp
Turmeric powder- half sp
Salt to taste
Oil-3 tbsp

Procedure;

Heat a pan and pour the oil.
Add the onion and fry it to golden brown.
Then add the tomato and fry it until they are mashed to a paste and the oil floats on top.
Add all the powders, pumpkin pieces, salt and little water to cook.
When all the water is evaporated and the pumpkin is roasted, sprinkle the coriander leaves and mix well.
The delicious pumpkin fry is ready now!!

CURRY LEAVES KUZHAMBU

This is a very tasty kuzhambu. Also this can be prepared within a few minutes. Potato fry or any spicy chicken dish is very suitable for this preparation.

கறிவேப்பிலைக் குழம்பு

Ingredients:

Cumin seeds-1/2 sp
Fennel seeds- 1/2 tsp
Peppercorns- half sp
Shredded ginger- 1 tsp
Garlic flakes [small]-5
Sambar onions-8
Ripe tomato-2
Curry leaves- a handful
Oil-4 tbsp
Shredded coconut- 1 tsp
Poppy seeds- 1 tsp
Karuvadakam- 1 tsp
Crushed tomato- half cup
Coriander powder- 1 tsp
Chilli powder- 1 tsp
Turmeric powder- half sp
Salt to taste

Procedure:

Heat a pan and pour 2 tbsp of oil.
Add the fennel and cumin seeds, peppercorns and fry for a second.
Then add the ginger, garlic, curry leaves, sambar onions and the tomato pieces and fry them on slow fire until the tomatoes are mashed well.
When cooled, grind these ingredients with the poppy seeds and the coconut to a fine paste.
Heat the pan again and pour the remaining oil.
Add the karuvadakam and when they start to splutter, add the crushed tomato with the turmeric powder and fry them well to a paste.
Add the ground paste with little water, the powders and salt.
Let the kuzhambu boil for 5 minutes.
The delicious curry leaves kuzhambu is ready now to serve!!