Sunday, April 10, 2016

Idiyappam/String Hoppers




Idiyappam or string hoppers is a rice flour based dish popular both in Tamilnadu and Kerala. The difference is,in Tamilnadu it's served with sweetened coconut milk whereas in Kerala a spicy egg or chicken curry is accompanied.
Idiyappam needs the processed rice flour and is made in large quantities in most of the households.I usually get my Idiyappam flour from India and use it.Once in a while I make it on my own here if I needed.
Back in India in my house large quantity of rice is soaked for an hour or two then drained and dried in a shade for 30-40 minutes.The damp rice is powdered in a commercial mill.Then the rice flour is either dry roasted or steamed,after that the flour is dried in the sunlight for 2-3 days.Then its stored in an airtight container for future use.Though the process of making rice flour is time consuming,the output of idiyappam is very soft and tasty.
Coming to the pictures,it was a real hard time for me to click and clicking a white dish is bit difficult.Also I don't have any dark colored plate,the white colored dish was not appealing with the plate I used.Will update the pictures soon with some dark props.





                                                                      
                                                            
                                                                    Idiyappam/String Hoppers


                                                                  
   Basic Information

   Preparation time 2-3 hours
   Cooking time 10-12 minutes
   Makes around 2 cups of flour


   
  Ingredients
  To make the processed rice flour
    

Ingredient
Quantity
Raw rice/pacharisi
2 cups

  Method 
  • Rinse the rice for 3-4 times in water and soak with adequate water for 2-3 hours.After that drain the water completely and spread it on a towel,dry it under the shade for 30-45 minutes.The dampness should be in the rice.Now take small quantity of rice in a mixie jar and grind it to a fine powder.
  • Continue for the rest of the rice and now heat a heavy bottom pan in a stove.Take half of the flour and dry roast till a fine line can be drawn with the roasted flour.With the wet flour the line breaks.
  • Now take the roasted flour in a fine meshed sifter,sieve it.The lumps and coarser grain will be left on the sifter.Powder it once again and sift it. Leave the sifted flour on the counter for a day or two to get dried completely if you are going to keep it for longer time.

  • Store it in an airtight container.
  To make Idiyappam

  
 Basic Information

   Preparation time 10 minutes
   Cooking time 10-12 minutes
   Serves 2


  Ingredients

Ingredient
Quantity
Idiyappam flour
1 cup
Oil
1 tsp
Salt
1/2 tsp
Boiling water
to knead the flour


  Method

  • Now take the flour,salt and oil in a bowl.Add the rolling boil water to the flour and knead it well with a spatula.Cover the dough with a plate to avoid drying.Now take the murukku press with the fine sev/idiyappam blade.Fill the prepared dough in the murukku maker.
  • Grease the idly plate with few drops of oil and squeeze the dough on the plate.Meanwhile keep the idly pot with water to get hot.Once the water becomes hot keep the plate inside and steam for 3-4 minutes or till its cooked completely.

  • Serve it warm with coconut milk


                                                                                                                                   




  • While roasting the flour,keep the flame in a medium and stir it continuously to avoid burning and color change.
  • If you are making the flour in large quantity,powder the rice and roast the flour in batches.
  • After the dough is made cover the dough with a plate or damp cloth to prevent drying..
  • While squeezing the idiyappam on the idly plate, do not layer it so much.
  • Do not cook the idiyappam for too long time,it cooks very fast.



Enjoy......................................










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Friday, April 8, 2016

Homemade Nannari Syrup/How to make Homemade Nannari Syrup


Again H is one such difficult alphabet to choose a Tamil recipe, so used a clause and sharing a simple post.
Nannari aka India Sarasaparilla is a natural body coolant.The roots of the Sarasaparilla are often used to make the syrup and it has lot of medicinal values,used in Ayurvedic medicine.

Nannari sarbath is a popular drink in most of the road side shops especially in summer.Nannari sarbath is a natural thirst quencher made using nannari syrup and lemon juice along with crushed ice.
Will share the recipe of nannari sarbhat with the syrup soon.

As we don't get the nannari syrup here I missed this sarbhat a lot.After seeing so many homemade nannari syrup in the blogosphere I tried to make it at home.So during my last India trip I got a packet of nannari root from the Ayurvedic shop.

I made this syrup in a small quantity for my first trial and came out so good and flavorful.These days enjoying the nannari sarbhat a lot on sunny days.Since there is no preservatives used it can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-1.5 months.Lets move on to the recipe......................




                                                                      
                                                            
                                                                    Homemade Nannari Syrup


                                                                  
   Basic Information

   Preparation time 7 -8 hours
   Cooking time 20 -25 minutes
   Makes around 1 cup of syrup


   
  Ingredients

    

Ingredient
Quantity
Nannari root/Nannari ver
25 gms
Sugar
3/4 cup
Water
2 cups
Lemon juice
2 tsp

  Method 
  • Wipe the nannari root with a clean cloth to remove any debris.Now using a motar and pestle crush the root couple of times.Now the black portion come out from the white woody portion.Keep the black portion separately which is used to make the syrup.Discard the white woody portion.Take the black portion in a blender jar.
  • Pulse it in a blender for couple of times to get it powdered.Boil the water to a rolling boil.
  • Now add the pulsed nannari root to it and put off the flame.Cover it with a plate and let it stand undisturbed for 6-7 hours or overnight.Now strain it in a doubled folded cloth and collect the water in a bowl and discard the residue.
  • Now to the collected liquid add the sugar and mix it well.Now in a thick bottom sauce pan boil the liquid till it reaches a thick consistency,like honey.Put off the flame.
  • Let it come to the room temperature,now add in the lemon juice and mix it well.Transfer it to a glass bottle.
  • Store it in the refrigerator.



                                                                                                                
                             



    • The amount of sugar given was just perfect,I added some sugar while making the sarbhat.
    • The syrup needs to be like honey consistency,addition lemon prevents crystallization.
    • If you want the syrup to be colorful add a pinch of orange food color.


    Enjoy.............











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    Thursday, April 7, 2016

    Gothumai Appam /Gothumai Paniyaram -Karthigai Deepam special


    Gothumai appam /karthigai appam is a deep fried wheat based prasadham offred during the Karthigai deepam day for Lord Murugan.
    Making this appam on Karthigai deepam day is a tradition followed in Tanjore and Trichy districts of Tamilnadu,not quite sure about other parts.
    In my parents place,this appam is made using rice whereas in in laws place,its with wheat flour.Originally the recipe is a deep fried version,so followed it.But if you wanted to make a healthy and low calorie version,use the paniyaram/ableskevier pan.
    In some places the same batter is spread on a dosa griddle like a pancake and offered.Off to the recipe........



                                                                          
                                                                
                                                   Gothumai Appam/Gothumai Paniyaram


                                                                      
       Basic Information

       Preparation time 10 minutes
       Resting time 10 minutes
       Cooking time 20-25 minutes
       Makes 15-17 appams


       
      Ingredients

      
    Ingredient
    Quantity
    Wheat flour/gothumai maavu
     1 cup
    Rice flour/arisi maavu
    2 tbs
    Jaggery/vellam/brown sugar
    1/2 -3/4 cup
    Ghee/nei
    1 tbs
    Milk
    1/2 cup
    Coconut(grated)
    2 tbs
    Cooking soda
    1/2 tsp
    Cardamom powder/ellakai podi
    1/4 tsp
    Salt
    1/2 tsp
    Oil
    for frying


       
      

      Method 
    • Take all the ingredients except milk and oil in a bowl.Mix it well,slowly add the milk and water to make a thick batter(like idly batter).Let it rest for 5-10 minutes.
    • Heat oil in a pan in a slow to medium flame.Take a small ladle full of batter and once the oil becomes hot,pour it into the oil.With the help of slotted ladle pour the oil on the top of the batter.Let it cook,then flip it to the other side and cook it till it turns nice golden brown.Remove it from the oil and drain it on a paper towel.
    • Serve it hot.



    • Cook it in a slow to medium flame and fry one appam at a  time.
    • While making in paniyaram pan make the batter slightly thinner like a dosa batter.
    • Here I used the brown sugar,if you are using jaggery melt it with little water and strain it..

    Enjoy...........










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    Tuesday, April 5, 2016

    Ennai Parotta and Empty Salna - Virudhunagar Special



    Choosing a Tamilnadu dish for some of the alphabets are bit difficult.One such is E,I was clueless except elumichai(lemon) and elu kai(7 vegetable s) kottu.
    So decided to make the Elu kari kottu but some of the veggies used to make the kottu are not available here.
    After browsing a lot,came to make this ennai(oil) parota.Ennai parrota is a kind of deep fried parotta whereas oil used for frying.This parota is often called poricha parota in some places.
    I make parottas once in a while at home but never fried it.Since its deep fried parotta it is dunked in a slightly watery salna(gravy) prepared with chicken,egg or veggies.
    But here I made a plain salna aka empty salna to accompany the parotta,also the word Empty can fit to the alphabet of the day.As there is no meat or veggies used,its named as Empty Salna.These parotta are quite popular in Virudhunagar area.Off to the recipe........






                                                                          
                                                                
                                                                        Ennai Parotta


                                                                      
       Basic Information

       Preparation time 30 minutes
       Resting time 30-45 minutes
       Cooking time 20 -25 minutes
       Makes 5-6 


       
      Ingredients

      
    Ingredient
    Quantity
    All purpose flour/maida
    2 cups
    Salt
    1 tsp
    Oil
    2 tbs(for kneading)
    Oil
    for frying 


      Method 
    • In a bowl take the all purpose flour and salt.Make a well on the flour and add the oil.Mix it well,now slowly add the water and knead it to a soft dough.Knead it well for 3-4 minutes.
    • Divide the dough into six equal portions and apply a tbs of oil and cover it with a damp cloth.Let it rest for 30-45 minutes.After resting take one portion of dough and using a rolling pin,spread it to a thin sheet.Apply a tsp of oil,now roll from one side like a pleat.
    • After rolling it will be like a rope,swirl it from one  end to make a circle as shown.Now grease the palms and slightly press it and form a 4-5 inch circle.
    • Heat  oil in a pan or dosa griddle,once it becomes hot drop the flattened dough into the oil.Cook it for couple of minutes in a medium flame,flip it to the other side and cook it till both the sides turn golden.Remove it from the oil and drain it a on a paper towel  .

    •  Serve it with Salna

                                                                                                                            
                                        

    • While frying the parottas oil needs to be in a medium flame..
    • The parotta tastes better when it is served warm.




                                                                          
                                                                
                                                                     Empty Salna/Plain Salna


                                                                      
       Basic Information

       Preparation time 15 minutes
       Cooking time 35-40 minutes
       Serves 3


       
      Ingredients

      
      

    Ingredient
    Quantity
    Onion/ vengayam(finely chopped)
    2 (medium size)
    Ginger&garlic paste
    1 tbs
    Tomato(finely chopped)
    2(medium size)
    Red chilly powder/milagai podi
    1.5-2 tsp
    Coriander powder/dhaniya podi
    1 tbs
    Turmeric powder/manjal podi
    1/4 tsp
    Garam masala powder
    1/4 tsp
    Mint leaves/pudina
    12-15 leaves(finely chopped)
    Green chilly/pachamilagi
    3 (slit lengthy)
    Curry leaves/karivepillai
    few leaves
    Coriander leaves
    1 tbs(finely chopped)
    Salt
    1.25 tsp
    Oil
    2 tbs

       For the tempering

      
    Ingredient
    Quantity
    Fennel seeds/sombhu
    1/4 tsp
    Cloves/lavangam
    4-5
    Cinnamon/pattai
    1 inch
    Black stone flower/kalpaasi
    2
    Bay leaf
    1
    Star anise
    2 petals
      Grind to a fine paste

    Ingredient
    Quantity
    Fennel seeds/sombhu
    1/4 tsp
    Coconut(grated)
    3 -4 tbs
    Roasted gram dhal/pootukadalai
    1 tsp
    Cashews/mundiri (optional)
    2

      Method

    • Grind the given ingredients to a fine paste and keep it aside.Heat the oil in a pan and do the tempering with the given ingredients.Add the chopped onion and green chilly,mint leaves,curry leaves along with a pinch of salt.Saute it till transparent,add in the ginger&garlic paste and fry it util the raw smell disappears..Add in the chopped tomato and cook it until mushy.Add in all the spice powders and salt,give it a mix.
    • Add around 2 cups of water and cook it for 5 minutes,let it simmer for another 2 minutes.At this stage add the coconut paste and let it boil for 5 minutes or raw smell goes off.Add in  the chopped coriander leaves and put off the flame.

    • Serve it with parotta.









      Enjoy.........................








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      Monday, April 4, 2016

      Dosai Kulambhu - Chettinadu Special


      For alphabet D,I made a vegetarian version of Dalcha,a lentil based gravy served with biriyani.But my bad luck while trasnfering the pictures to my laptop,something went wrong and lost the pictures.Not in a mood to cook the same dish again and finally settled in Dosai for letter D.

      While making dosai to click the pictures,suddenly I remembered this kulambhu recipe noted down  from a regional T.V cookery show during my India trip.My co-sister who hails from a small town near Karaikudi was telling about her mom's recipe while watching the show.Also she mentioned in some houses the dosa is made with the fine paste of soaked channa dhal.Using gram flour is an instant method of making this kulambhu.
      This kulambhu needs to be bit spicer side, to get a nice taste as its mixed with rice and eaten.Since my red chilly powder was bit spicy I reduced it from original recipe.You can adjust the spice level according to your family preference.

      This is one such authentic kulambhu served in Chettinadu feasts.Usually in chettinadu feasts lots of food varieties will be served.
      But when it comes to kulambhu,3-4 types are served in the menu.One will be on the thinner(thanni kulambhu) side and the other on the thicker(ketti kulambhu) side.
      This kulambhu comes under ketti(thicker) kulambhu category,a thin crepe(dosai) made out of gram flour is cut and added to the gravy.Off to the






                                                                            
                                                                  
                                                                       Dosai Kulmabhu


                                                                        
         Basic Information

         Preparation time 20 minutes
         Cooking time 35-40 minutes
         Serves 3


         
        Ingredients

        To make dosai

        
      Ingredient
      Quantity
      Gram flour
      1/2 cup+1 tbs
      Cumin seeds/jeeragam
      1/2 tsp
      Fennel seeds/sombu
      1/2 tsp
      Red chilly powder
      a generous pinch
      Coriander powder
      1/4 tsp
      Asafoetida/perungayam
      a pinch
      Salta generous pinch



         To make Kulambhu


      Ingredient
      Quantity
      Shallots/chinna vengayam
      12-15(finely chopped)
      Garlic/poondu
      3-4 cloves(finely chopped)
      Tomato(finely chopped)
      1(medium size)
      Red chilly powder/milagai podi
      2 tsp
      Coriander powder/dhaniya podi
      1 tbs
      Turmeric powder/manjal podi
      1/4 tsp
      Tamarind/puli
      medium gooseberry size
      Coconut milk/thengai paal
      2 tbs
      Coconut milk/thengai paal
      2 tbs
      Curry leaves/karivepillai
      few leaves
      Coriander leaves
      1 tbs(finely chopped)
      Salt
      1.25 tsp
      Oil
      2 tbs

         For the tempering

        
      Ingredient
      Quantity
      Fennel seeds/sombhu
      1/4 tsp
      Cloves/lavangam
      4-5
      Cinnamon/pattai
      1 inch
      Black stone flower/kalpaasi
      2
      Bay leaf
      1
      Star anise
      2 petals


        Method

      • Soak the tamarind in 1/2 cup of water.Heat the oil in a pan and do the tempering with the given ingredients.Add the chopped shallots,garlic and curry leaves along with a pinch of salt.Saute it till transparent.Add in the chopped tomato and cook it until mushy.Add in the spice powder and salt,give it a mix.
      • Add around 1/2 cup of water and cook it for 2 minutes.Now add the tamarind water and let it cook in a medium flame till the raw smell goes off.While the kulambhu is oiling take the all the ingredients given for dosai in a bowl.Mix it well with water with no lumps.
      • Heat a dosa pan and once it becomes hot add the prepared batter and spread it to a crepe.Cook it for a minute and then flip it to the other side and put off the flame.It should be half done,no need to cook crispy.Remove it from the flame and transfer it to a plate.
      • Roll it well and apply few drops of besan batter and press it well.So that the ends stick together.Slice it to 1 inch thickness and keep it aside.At this stage to the kulambhu add the coconut milk and let it boil for few minutes.
      • Now gently drop the sliced dosai and simmer it for 5-6 minutes.MIx the kulambhu gently and don't use the spatula or ladle.Just shake the pan with holding the handle.Garnish it with coriander leaves.
      • Serve it with white rice and pappad.






        • This kulambhu needs to be on the thicker side.
        • Do not use more of coconut milk otherwise kulambhu color will change.
        • A tsp of ginger&garlic paste can be added.


        Enjoy.............................










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