Chettinad Chicken Biryani

Chetttinad is a region in Sivagangai district of TamilNadu, India. It is well known for its Chettinad cuisine, bungalows and Temples. The capital of the district is Karaikudi . Click to see some beautiful houses of Chettinad.

There are many variations in biryani preparation. Of which the Chettinad version is a more Indianised one. The masala in the biryani with pepper and corinader seeds makes a difference.

Can there be words to describe the flavor and taste of the authentic chettinad chicken biryani available in those Karaikudi / chettinad restaurants? Hubby and myself are glued to the chettinad cuisine and always look for opportunities to visit their restaurants. There is one near our house and they serve the best chicken biryani I have ever tasted. I tried many combination to arrive at their taste and thus got the below recipe for the famous spicy hot chettinad chicken biryani.

Dedicating this Chettinadu chicken biryani to my friend Sheeba Neal.


(Chettinad chicken biryani served with era(Shrimp) thokku and lemon wedges).

Ingredients:

Basmathi rice - 3 cups (600 gms)
Chicken (with bones and skin) - 1.5 lbs (almost equal to rice in weight)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Red onion - 2 (200 gms)
Tomato - 3 (1/4 kg)
curd -1 cup
Ghee - 5 tbsp
cooking oil - 2 tbsp
curry leaf - 1 sprig (optional)
green chillies (uncut)- 3
Lemon (squeezed) - 2 tbsp
salt - to taste.
bay leaves - 2
star aniseed - 1
cinnamom stick - 3 inch

Masala 1:

Ginger - 3 inch
Garlic - 6 pearls
cumin - 1/2 tsp
Fennel - 1 tsp
black pepper (whole) - 1 tbsp
Dry red chillies - 5
corinader seeds - 2 tbsp
cardamom - 4
cloves - 6

Masala 2:

cilantro- 1 handful.
mint leaf -1 handful.
green chilly - 5

Method:

Wash the rice. Pour enough water to fully cover the rice along with 1 tsp salt , little turmeric powder, lemon juice and cook in boiling water for 2 minutes or till 25% cooked. Drain water completely and keep the rice aside.

For masala 1, dry roast the coriander, cumin, fennel,black pepper, dry red chillies, cardamom, cloves and grind along with other items given.

For masala 2, grind together the items given to a fine paste.Keep aside.

Wash and clean the chicken pieces.(Don't remove the skin unless otherwise you need to, as it will give a nice flavor to the biryani).
Cut it in to big pieces. Apply 1/4 tsp turmeric over it.
Marinate the chicken with 2 tsp salt and 1 cup curd,

Heat 3 tbsp ghee + 2 tbsp cooking oil in a broad bottom vessel.
Add star aniseed , cinnamon stick, bay leaf. (Don't let them char).
Then goes the chopped onion, green chillies and curry leaf.
Add masala 1 and stir well till the raw smell goes (don't fry for long time as it will release pungent smell and it will make us sneeze).
Now add the chopped tomato and cook till the oil oozes out of it.
Also put the masala 2 and cook again till raw smell vanishes.

Now add the marinated chicken pieces and cook till oil starts oozing. (The real taste lies in that frying process).Check and add salt if needed.(We can't add salt hereafter). Chicken should be almost completely cooked now.

Add the rice (25% cooked) and stir well. Add water just enough to cover the rice. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tbsp ghee and Cover tightly with a lid.

Dum process:

Heat a thick iron tawa and place the biryani vessel over it.
Reduce the flame to the minimum and leave for 1 hour to get it completely cooked.

Chettinad chicken biryani is ready!

Serving suggestions:

Serve chicken biryani hot with onion raitha and egg curry or any gravy.
Serves 4 adults.
As it is a spicy-hot biryani version, they generally pair it up with curd rice and kheer.
Click to see my shrimp thokku recipe .

'Veggie delight' Sandwich.

I tried to make a version of the famous Subway sandwich. The taste was much closer to the original version and we enjoyed it very much. Anyway I should admit nothing can beat the original Subway sandwich:)



Ingredient:
Fresh French bread - 2
Onion (chopped) - 1 (medium)
black olives (sliced) - 5
Ripe tomato (chopped) - 1
pickled jalapeno - 8 slices
Sweet relish - 2 tbsp
(Sweet relish is a kind of sweet pickle)
lettuce (shredded) - 1 cup
shredded cheese - 4 tbsp
Sweet onion sauce - 4 tsp
(Instead I used : ranch dressing - 6 tbsp)
tomato sauce - 2 tbsp
butter - 1/2 tsp

Method:
Preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
Slit the bread and open carefully without separating completely.

Divide the above vegetables into two and fill the bread.
Drizzle the tomato sauce (1 tbsp),sweet relish - (1 tbsp), shredded cheese (2 tbsp), ranch dressing (3 tbsp) and close the bread gently.

Coat the top of bread with butter.

Line the baking tray with aluminum foil.
Place the breads inside the oven.
Bake for 3 minutes. Broil for 1 minute.

Take out and serve hot.

Serving suggestions:
Serve as lunch or dinner with a drink and some baked sides or fries.

Fish fry (Tirunelveli style)

Fish market is one of the center of attraction for me always. While hubby gets satisfied with some chicken or the much hyped King fish (rarely), I fill my shopping bag with fresh and different fishes. Analyzing those heaps of fish and choosing gives me a kind of satisfaction. The strange thing is hubby gives priority to the beauty of the fish than anything else. So he loves just the dinner plate size slices of king fish or the cute Red snapper (sankara / romeo), butter fish (karapudi), silver pomfret (vaaval)etc. I just blindly allow him to choose 'cos I know that is the only way to make someone eat fish:)
This is the story behind my pomfret fish recipes and no wonder they taste amazing always.

Even though we all fry the fish in a more similar way, the masala added here makes a difference. While talking with my friend Gita , I found that she also follows the same recipe , which she got from her grandma who lived there years ago and that made us realize that this masal belongs to Tirunelveli. See how the simple masal makes us analyze the generations.I too wanted to post my home town version and so here is it for you to enjoy.



You are seeing the pomfret fish fry served with lemon wedges along with fish kulambu and crab masala, in out of focus:)

Ingredients:
Pomfret fish - 6 slices (1 lb)
salt - 2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
tumeric powder- 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp

lemon - 1

To grind:
Shallot onion (sambar vengayam)- 4
Shredded coconut - 1/4 cup
cumin - 1/2 tsp

Oil (to deep fry) - 200 ml (1 cup)
(I used corn oil here).

Method:
Wash the fish and remove all the fins and scales by a knife.
Then slice it into thin slices (as shown in photo).

Apply little turmeric powder over the fish and keep aside.

Grind the onion, coconut and cumin to a fine paste.

Mix the ground masala with the powders and salt given above.
Squeeze 1/4 lemon to the masala if you need a crispier fish fry.
Otherwise don't add lemon juice now.Lemon makes the fish stiff , removes bad odor and discourages breaking of fish while frying.

Gently rub the masala over the fish slices(dab some masala inside the fish too)and marinate for 30 minutes.

Heat oil in a broad based wok .Put the pieces one or two at a time and fry both sides crispy.

Fish fry is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as side dish with any rice. The suitable combinations are sambar rice , rasam rice or meen kulambu rice.

Vada curry

Vada curry is a very simple side dish available in the street side shops of TamilNadu , served along with 'set dosa' or any breakfast item.Mostly the day after diwali, we can see people preparing this vada curry with the left over paruppu vadai and vegetable kuruma. It is my younger brother's favorite too. Oh, yeah! if I didn't mention him here, I will get enough from him:) After having it in his teacher's house he started pestering us for this curry and we too tried our best after festive days without wasting the vadais:)

But Vada curry entered my life in full swing after marriage only. Hope some of my friends know our adventures while dating :) We treasure those memories a lot. After marriage Xav took me to all the restaurants and places he enjoyed during his bachelor days. I simply love the way he describe his entertainments like the frequent movies, late night dinners,the way he waited for my phone call or letter, funny stuff with friends etc. Slowly it became the habit for us to enjoy his favorite road-side food shops. Most of the Sundays we used to buy the breakfast (carry home pack) from a nearby shop (KK Nagar) along with his favorite News papers , magazines etc after attending the 7 Am mass. Nowadays I started making my own vada-curry, from scratch.

Enjoy with your loved ones:)



The short cut is to make use of the left over vadais and kuruma. But we can prepare it from scratch too. Click the links to get the complete method.

Ingredients:
Masal vadai - 6 (big size)
Vegetable kuruma (with lesser vegetables) - 2.5 cup
Fennel - 1/2 tsp
cinnamon - 1 inch
cilantro - a handful
mint leaf - a handful
curry leaf - 1 sprig
oil - 1 tbsp

Method:
Take the vadais and crush gently with hand to get small pieces.
Heat oil in a wok and add fennel, cinnamon , curry leaf.
Then add the crushed vadai pieces and fry a little.
Now add the kuruma and bring it to a boil.
Switch off and garnish with mint , cilantro etc.

Vada curry is ready!

Variations:
We can make the vada or dumplings by steaming also. Some time I do them over dosa tawa and its also worth the try. If you make the vada curry from scratch, then make small pakodas (fritters) instead of vada.

Serving suggestions:
Serve hot with sponge dosa, poori or chapati.

Vaaval meen kulambu

Meen kuzhambu - fish curry

Buying fish from market can be a very pleasant experience, if you seriously love seafood. In my hometown we prepare the fish kuzhambu in earthenware, which yields a native flavor. Nothing can beat a meen kulambu prepared in clay vessel. Love to remember the way hubby and myself searched for this earthenware vessel to make the fish curry in Madras:)

Before marriage I used to go with my Anna (elder brother) to buy fish. Even though anna is a physician, he loves to do grocery shopping (see, its in the genetics...hi..hi). So he would enjoy chatting with the vendor , but never bargains (I am good at bargaining though). He is crazy for crab and shrimp along with all the sea food. That's what makes me love him more. He likes my cuisines very much and always say lovely words about it to all he know....I am not sure , if I cook that good , but his encouragement makes me to do better:) There were days , when he would come home to taste my fish kulambu even at odd hours and drive back home. Even that slightest thought makes me feel home sick.....so, lets go to vaawal meen kulambu now:)

I prepared this curry using pomfret fish. We can use any fish for this recipe.

English names: silver pomfret fish / pompano fish
Tamil names: vaaval meen, vowval meen, vellai vawal meen.
others: Maanji in Tulu and Avoli in Malayalam.
Click to know about this fish.


Tips to buy good fish:
Always buy fish that looks and smells fresh.
It should be firm to touch.
The gills should be red and never pale.

Fresh pomfret fish washed and cleaned:



Fish kulambu:



Items required:
Fish - 1 lb
sesame oil - 2 tbsp
mustard seeds- 1 tsp
fenugreek seeds- 1/2 tsp
Tamarind - 1 small keylime size
Red chilly powder -1.5 tsp
coriander powder- 3 tsp
turmeric powder-1/4 tsp
tomato - 2
green chillies - 2
curry leaves- 2 sprigs.

To grind:
shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
shallot - 8
cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Method:
wash the fish and remove all the fins and scales by a knife.
Then slice it into big chunks.
Apply little turmeric powder over the fish and keep aside.

Extract juice from tamarind and add chilli powder, coriander powder, pinch of turmeric powder, salt and mix well.Keep aside.

Heat the sesame oil in vessel. (Fish curry prepared in earthen vessel tastes good).Add mustard and fenugreek seeds. After the mustard seeds crackle add the curry leaves .

Then add chopped tomato and saute till oil separates.
Add tamarind juice mixture and let it boil for 5 minutes.
Then add the finely ground coconut-onion paste.
Immediately after this starts boiling add the fish pieces.
cover the vessel and simmer the heat.

Keep the curry gets cooked in simmer heat for 15 minutes.
DO NOT stir the curry after adding the fish, otherwise you may end up with broken pieces.
Then put off fire.Garnish with chopped green chillies and curry leaves.

Serving suggestions:
Serve hot with rice , chapathi or Idly or dosai .
Deep fried fish, omelet ,ripe mango are good side dishes along with meen kuzhambu and rice.44

(Add a tsp of jaggery / brown sugar before switching off, for  a more subtle taste) 

Sweet bajji

Bajji is a deep fried Indian snack. It is generally prepared by dipping a slice of vegetable in besan / All purpose flour and deep fried in a wok. Mostly they are savory snacks except for a few.

Almost a month ago I prepared this sweet bajji for an evening snack. I used plantain fruit (Etham pazham / Nenthram palam in Tamil) , a wild variety of banana. I have tasted this kind of bajji in Trivandrum, but in a long shape (Pazham pori). But I didn't want to use a lot of oil. So I sliced the fruit horizontally and dipped in AP flour , then deep fried it in enough oil.But if we want a bajji like that of the Kerala one, then slice the plantain longitudinally into 1/4 inch pieces.

Got this recipe from Malabar spices. Thanks to the author, the result was exactly like what I used to get from Kerala.

Today I got a much useful thought from Katherine about time and good friends. Thanks dear. Just wanted to share this and hope you all like it.



Ingredients:
Ripe plantain (Nenthram pazham)- 1
All purpose flour / Maida - 1/2 cup
Rice flour - 1 tsp (optional)
Sugar - 1 tsp
Baking soda - a pinch
Salt - a pinch
Water - 3 tbsp (just enough to make a thick batter)
oil to deep fry - 200 ml (1 cup)

Method :
Peel and slice the banana into long slices / round slices of 1/4 inch thickness.

Mix all other items except oil to make a batter like thick idly batter.

Heat oil in a frying pan. Reduce to medium flame, so that there is no smoke.

Dip the banana slices one by one and carefully fry both sides till we get a beautiful golden brown color.

Don't overload the oil . fry 4 to 5 round bajjis in a course.

Gently strain the fried bajjis using a slotted spatula and remove excess oil by placing them on paper towels.

Vazhai pazha bajji is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as snack along with tea.

Lotus root kuruma

If you belong to a village with a lake then you won't be surprised with this kuruma. Recently I got these roots labeled as waterlily root in an Asian store, so made this kuruma along with roti. It tasted just like plantain stem (vazhai thandu) but with some sweetness like yucca root (ezhu ilai kilangu / kappa).

Medicinal uses:
The property of the lily / lotus root is “cool.” It has a lot of fiber. Its consumption is supposed to benefit liver function and is said to strengthen the heart, spleen and stomach. Uncooked lotus root juice clears “heat” and stops all internal bleeding; cooked lotus root can “promote blood,” treat women for anemia from heavy menstruation and at the same time clear and improve energy. (click to read more here)

How to cook it?
Peel the outer skin and wash thoroughly.
Then cut it into rounds and wash again to remove any dirt.
Then slice it according to use.
Even the raw root can be used as salad or juice.
It will take nearly 10 minutes to cook a pound of root in water.
Some people make crispies out of the fine slices too.


Ingredients:
Lotus stem - 1 lb (3 stems)
Fennel - 1/2 tsp
coconut milk - from 1 cup shredded coconut
(I used 2 tbsp form the canned coconut milk)
coriander powder - 1 tbsp
onion - 1
tomato - 1 (optional)
curd (Indian yogurt) - 1/2 cup
oil - 2 tbsp

Masala to grind:
Cashew - 10 (optional)
cumin - 1/4 tsp
ginger - 1 inch
garlic - 3 pods
green chilly - 6
cardamom - 2
cloves - 2
cinnamon - 1/2 inch
mint leaf - 1 stem
cilantro - a handful

Method:
Peel and slice the lotus stem. (we can chop them into small cubes also, as it will give more taste).
Wash thoroughly to remove any dirt and place it in a vessel.

Pour water enough to immerse the sliced lotus stem.
Add 1 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp turmeric powder and cook covered for 15 minutes.

In the mean time heat a wok with 2 tbsp oil.
Add fennel and let it get red.

Now put the finely chopped onion and saute till it becomes golden brown.
Then add the finely chopped tomato and cook till oil separates.

After that pour the ground masala and cook till raw smell vanishes.
Gently add the cooked lotus stem along with the remaining water.

Mix the curd , coriander powder and add salt to taste.
As soon as the curry starts boiling add the coconut milk and switch off when it starts bubbling.

Louts stem curry is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve with roti or paratha or any pulao.

Song from 'Juno'

Ash wednesday, Lent season and Showers of awards!

Today is the first day of the Lent season, The Ash Wednesday. We participated in the Ash Wednesday mass at an early hour in the St.Fatima Church near our house. This season has a lot of meaning and I am trying to change a lot to make myself worthy. The prayers for this season ,The Stations of the Cross is very mind blowing.
Wish me good luck in following that , my friends:)

Awards:

Ash, Monica, Naina, Kanchan, Palak ,Suzie and Akki of "Le-Bouffe" have bestowed me the kreativ blogger award. They have a wide variety of dishes contributed by the members and I am eager to try their Shepherd's pie soon. Its so sweet to see such a group of enthusiastic friends. Keep rocking gals!



Moreover Devi of Devi's blog has also gracefully passed me the above award. Devi is a very friendly blogger , who often gets cart loads of awards . I am sure she deserves them much. Her post on chettinad traditions is quite interesting.
Her paniyarams are awesome. Waiting to see more chettinad cuisines from her:)
Thank you so much Devi for your appreciation. It means a lot to me.

Then Deepa of Hamaree Rasoi has also added my joy by presenting this kreativ blogger award. Thanks dear! You are so sweet to share this with me too. She has a lot of traditional North Indian dishes. Your Gosht Shahjehani is in my to-do list now Deepa:) You have a great blog dear!

I have already scribbled my Me-Me:) So click to read it.

Malar of Malar's cuisine has passed me the beautiful blogger, happiniess 101 and cheer reading awards .






I am speechless Malar. I feel honored:)

I tried her mouthwatering egg biryani and it was a big hit. Great job Malar!

Thank you dearies:) You all made my day!

Event :

I am re-posting the following dishes for Jyoti of Panch Pakwan's Pasta party event. Great theme dear. Eager to learn a lot from your round-up:)

Pasta Soup


Oven baked pasta


Lasagna


Creamy pasta

Happy hosting dear!

TamilNadu style Mutton Biryani

Happy Valentine's Day !

Hope you all had a hearty Valentine's day. Before that I should accept, I didn't cook anything for Valentine's day. Instead hubby took me out and gave me rest for the whole weekend. Felt great to roam around, sit idle and shop like a freak:).

This mutton biryani post is inspired by one of my reader who asked me to give the correct but easy procedure to make a mutton biryani at home. Click to see my youtube video on 'Tips to make tasty biriyani'.

Here is the typical procedure on TamilNadu style mutton biryani. Enjoy!



(Snap taken very long back, when I was a neanderthal. But believe me the biryani tasted great...hi..hi)

Ingredients:
Goat meat (with bones) - 1 lb
Basmati rice - 1 lb (2.5 cup)
Turmeric - 1/2 tsp
lemon - 1/2
curd - 1/2 cup
Tomato - 1
onion - 1 (big)
cilantro - a handful
mint leaf - a handful
cinnamon - 2 inch
ghee - 4 tbsp
bay leaf - 2
nutmeg - a pinch
star aniseed - 1
cashew - 10
raisin - 10
almond - 10
green chilly (slit) - 5
salt - approximately 1.5 tsp

To grind:
Green chillies - 8
ginger - 2 inch
garlic - 6 pearls
cinnamon - 1/2 inch piece
cardamom - 4
cloves - 5
black pepper - 1 tsp
fennel - 1 tsp

Method:
Wash and clean the meat. Chop it into big chunks.
Cook the meat in pressure cooker along with the ground masala , turmeric powder, cinnamon (2 inch) and water enough to cover the meat.

(As we get the whistle reduce the flame and switch off after 15 minutes to get the meat cooked completely. Otherwise we can cook in open flame too. But it will take a lot of time. To reduce the cooking time add green papaya paste or meat tenderizer powder (1 tbsp for 1 kg meat) and marinate the meat for 2 hours before cooking.)

In the mean time wash and soak the rice for 1/2 an hour.

Chop the onion in lengthwise. Slice the tomato finely.

Heat the ghee in a wok and slide in the bay leaf, nutmeg, star aniseed , cashews, raisins, almond and immediately add the onion . After the onion turns red add the chopped tomato and saute till the oil separates.

Put the chopped cilantro, mint and let them wilt.

Now add the cooked meat along with the soup , salt, slit green chillies , curd and let it come to a boil. Taste and add some more salt if required.

Then add the soaked rice leaving behind the soaked water. Let rice absorb all the water.

Add some water (if required) and the water should completely cover the rice and should stand a thin layer (1 cm) above the rice.

Squeeze the lemon and cover with a tight lid. Switch off the flame.

Heat a thick dosa tawa until it becomes very hot and reduce the flame. Place the semi cooked biryani over the tawa and cook for 1 hour.

(*If you want to do the dhum process then cover the vessel with a tight flat lid. Bring 2 liters of water to boil, cover by a lid and place it over the biryani vessel. Heat the tawa in minimum heat for 1 hours. This is the dhum process.

*If you want to do the dhum process in oven , then preheat the oven to 400 deg F and place the biryani vessel alone and reduce the heat to 200. After 1 hour the biryani will be cooked perfectly

* If you want to cook it in pressure cooker, then take a 10 or 12 liter pressure cooker. Pour 2 cups of water to it. Place the biryani vessel inside the cooker and cook with weight. After the whistle comes, reduce flame and switch off after 3 minutes. This is the procedure to make mutton biryani in pressure cooker

*OK! How do they do mutton biryani for weddings or large scale parties? They marinate the mutton with green papaya paste / meat tenderizer and cook the gravy in a very large vessel for long hours. Then add rice, do the dhum using hot charcoal over the biryani vessel and get the rich biryani done. They do it overnight or for very long hours).

Mutton biryani is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve hot with raitha, boiled egg and a spicy gravy.

Note:

*After soaking the rice , we can drain the water completely and roast the rice in ghee (1 tbsp for 1 cup of rice) mildly.Then follow the above procedure to get the rice look separate.

* Don't cook the mutton with salt or tomato. Otherwise the meat won't get cooked properly.

*I have heard, the chefs won't add red chilly powder or coriander powder for mutton biryani. If desired we can add some pepper powder along with green chillies.

*If you see the rice not cooked properly, then sprinkle 1 cup cow's milk or water and close the lid. cook again for 1/2 an hour in very low heat and steam. (I follow this method to cook it uniformly).

*Rice calculation:
Generally they calculate the rice for an adult as 3/4 cup while making biryani.
The quantity of rice should be equal to that of meat.

Try this and tell me how this came out!

Moovarna poriyal (Tri color poriyal)

Here is another traditional poriyal with some interesting name and message. I don't know if many out there calls this poriyal by this name. But this is how my mom introduced it to me. She is great in making the small kids consume vegetables by telling them some stories behind or the facts involved.According to mom, this tri color poriyal is called as Congress poriyal in Madurai because of the the colors like saffron from carrot, white from cabbage and green from green peas. More over it will resemble the famous flower arrangement called 'Madurai kathambam'(a kind of garland like flower tied on banana fiber with multi colors like orange kanagambaram flower, green marikolunthi leaf and white jasmine) and hence the name kathamba koottu too.

What a beautiful way to remember this poriyal !

A traditional South Indian 'kalyana panthi' (marriage feasts) should have some basic side dishes arrayed on the banana leaf . They are aviyal (boiled and lesser spicy curry), poriyal (vegetables finely chopped and stir fried in less oil),varuval (crisply fried vegetables), pirattal (vegetables cooked in hot spicy masala with more oil) ,thogayal (smashed vegetables or greens), sambal (raitha / salad in curd),Vathal (sun dried crispy vegetables) and oorukai apart from the regular curries on rice.

If you know any other category please let me know:)

The color combination of all the dishes served on the leaf will tell the heritage of the people (bride's parents) who organize the wedding. So people take utmost care to have a picturesque presentation. One among those beautiful side dishes can be this multi color cabbage poriyal which is always an eye-catcher.

So here is that lovely poriyal for you all.

Other names: Congress poriyal , muttai kose podimass, kathamba poriyal.



Ingredients:
Cabbage - 200 gm
carrot - 1
fresh green peas - 1/2 cup
shredded coconut - 1/4 cup
green chillies - 2
curry leaf - 1 sprig
onion (chopped) - 2 tbsp (optional)
ginger (finely chopped) - 1 tsp
oil - 1 tsp
salt - to taste
mustard - 1/2 tsp
cumin - 1/4 tsp

Method:
Shred the cabbage into fine pieces. Chop the carrot into small cubes. Peel and wash the green peas (pachai pattani).

Heat oil in a wok. Let the mustard seeds pop. Then slide in the onion, ginger, green chillies, curry leaves and saute for 10 seconds. Don't let it get red.

Then add the finely chopped veggies along with sweet pea and stir fry for a minute.
Immediately sprinkle a handful of water. Add salt and cook covered till the vegetables are done. Tender crispy cooking making the poriyal more tasty. So don't over cook them.

Now sprinkle the shredded coconut and cumin seeds. Mix well and switch off.

Tricolor cabbage poriyal is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as side dish with sambar rice or any rice.
Serves 4.

Anchovy fish yellow curry (Nethili meen manjal aviyal)

Anchovy and sardine are highly recommended by the physicians for their low fat content and also to improve our good cholesterol. People with heart problems are suggested to consume these variety of fish without frying. If you want to cherish the real taste of anchovy or any small fish then go for a gravy / kulambu rather than frying. That's my suggestion:) This is a kind of curry prepared in my father's hometown too. We can notice the lack of tamarind / tomato in this curry with a very little coconut oil. This nethili meen kulambu comes under a pathiya meen kulambu variety . It will be suggested not to use tamarind or tomato while under Tamil-medication. I got this manjal aviyal recipe from my great grand mother. So I hope it is a very authentic one. She used to tell that, they never had an opportunity to use abundant oil or powdered masalas. So they had to grind the turmeric freshly along with the masala which imparts a very attractive yellow color to this curry and hence the name 'nethili meen manjal aviyal' or simply 'manjal oothina meen kuzhambu'. Here is my most favorite anchovy fish curry for you all.

Recipe source: This recipe is given to my amma by our RathinaGandhimathi ammal achi of Arumuganeri. She is amma's father's mom (achi). I got it from amma.  Achi's Manchal oothina meen kulambu. She used to prefer fish curry this way better.
  Ingredients: Anchovy fish - 1 lb (1/2 kg) unripe mango - 1 cup (chopped). (If not available add 2 tomatoes chopped finely) Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp coriander powder - 1 tbsp coconut oil - 1 tsp fennel (sombu) - 1/2 tsp curry leaves - 2 sprig green chillies - 3 (slit) salt - 1 tsp (add to taste) To grind: Coconut (shredded) - 1/2 cup Shallot - 6 cumin - 1/2 tsp black pepper - 1 tsp green chilly - 5 (increase as per taste) Method: Wash and clean the anchovies to remove any sand or impurities. Then remove or retain the head as per taste. (If you are frying them, then the head will taste great, for this curry we can remove them). Cut and remove the tail. Slit gently in the boneless side to remove the (greenish) digestive tract. Wash once again. Grind coconut, shallot, green chillies, black pepper, cumin together to a fine paste. Heat 1 tsp oil in a wok. Fry the fennel seeds to red. Now add the curry leaves along with chopped mango and fry for a few seconds. (If you can't get mango then add 2 chopped tomatoes) Add 2 cups of water , turmeric powder , coriander powder, salt, ground masala and bring them to a boil. Now add the cleaned nethili meen (anchovy fish) and stir only one time before it gets cooked. Spread a few slit green chillies and curry leaves over it. Reduce flame and cook covered. DO NOT stir in between. Just shake the vessel gently to mix the masala with the fish. Take off heat in 15 minutes. Nethili meen aviyal is ready! Serving suggestions: Serve over hot rice or along with any bread. Serves 4.

Its award time....

Hi friends!

Nithu Bala of Nithu's kitchen and Aparna of Ladies special adukkala have showed their love towards Viki's kitchen by sharing a yummy award with me. Thanks dears. This means a lot to me.



Now as per my recent decision , I am narrating what I admire the most in their blogs.

Ladies Special Adukkala runs from singapore and I absolutely love her non veg dishes very much. Tried her ghee rice along with spicy Chemmeen and its a great success here. Yet to try her Singapore crab. What a temptation ..huh!

You have a great collection Aparna. Eager to see more exciting recipe like this:)

Nithu's collection is very authentic and perfectly guides us through easy steps. Tried her Urid dhal bonda and it disappeared from the plate even before it reached the dinning table. Thanks dear. Your bonda fetched me a lot of appreciation:)
I am flattered by her Ashoka halwa . I should try it real soon. The bread gulab jamun comes handy whenever we need a quick sweet to welcome the guests.

Great job done Nithu! Wanna see more easy and quick recipes like this dear.

Happy blogging and wish you all a great week ahead!

Kalkandu saatham

Kalkandu saatham is a dessert prepared with rice (pacharisi / unboiled raw) and rock candy. It is generally served as prasadam in many Hindu Temples along with puliyotharai and vadai. Moreover in TamilNadu, during the baby shower function (Vazhai kappu), the mother-to be's parents or brothers have to prepare 'n' number of Chithrannam / kalantha saatham / kalavai saatham (rice variety in different tastes like lemon rice , tamarind rice etc) and among them the kalkandu saatham will capture the attention of all.
Knowing this recipe will come handy if we need to make any dessert in a wink.



Ingredients:
Basmati Rice - 3/4 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Kalkandu (tamil) / sugar candy - 3/4 cup
Saffron - few strands
Cardamom - 2 pods
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Cashew - 10
raisin - 10
Nutmeg (Jathikkai in Tamil) - a pinch (or)
pachai katpuram (edible camphor) - a pinch
(I added mutmeg powder, because I had that only. But adding edible camphor is the correct version)
Water - 2 cups

Method:
Wash and drain the rice. Cook the rice with 2 cups of water and 1 cup of milk till it gets mushy.

Mash it finely while hot.

Powder the kalkandu coarsely (no need to crush the small diamond kalkandu as it will dissolve in heat)and add it to the rice along with nutmeg , saffron and powdered cardamom.

Heat the ghee in a small wok. Fry the cashew and raisins and pour on the rice.
Mix well.

Kalkandu saatham is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as dessert.
Mostly they serve a tbsp of this sweet along with the other variety rice during festivals.

Note:
The candy should be dissolved completely.

Nandu kulambu

Crab meat can be called the exotic choice for a sea food lover. TamilNadu style crab kulambu is prepared with a hot spicy pepper curry as base. I got these unusual small size crabs (Indian crab) in an Asian market near my house and immediately grabbed some:)

Interesting info on Crab:

*Buy crab around full moon, as it is believed that the crab becomes more succulent with moon and meatless during new moon (amavasai) . Click to see more info.
* If you don't know to clean the crab, then ask your friends or elders.
*Prefer small size crabs over the long legged one for Indian curries.Eg., One kilogram should yield 4-5 small crabs.
*Crab curry helps us to get rid of body aches, cold, sinus, calcium loss etc.
*Just like 'Japanese's sushi' , some villagers in Tamilnadu drink the extract from raw crab (crushed along with shell and strained) along with ginger and brandy to relieve body aches and to get more strong. I don't know the exact procedure, so consult a professional Indian medicine practitioner before trying.
*Eating crab is an art and you may need some care / skill to remove the shells.
*The crab meat has some character to increase body heat. So it is safer to have it during cold / rainy season.

Here is some memory behind this crab curry in my family.

This is my Father-in-law's favorite too and I prepared it to get his appreciation. you can read more here:)

While in Madras , we used to invite Xav's younger brother M to join us for some weekends. Even though M is his brother he resembles much of my dad's family in the preference for non-veg dishes. I have a strong craving for crab at that time and hubby totally hates it(but loves to buy them for me). Anyway I felt very lazy to prepare them for me alone . So could not enjoy my fancy crab meat for a very long time till I knew thambi's (M) taste for crab. From then on most of our weekends would start with a heavy sea food flavor which will make the whole street hungry:)Can you imagine our plates filled with crab or non-veg as main course and rice as side dish and hubby sitting near me admiring my crab eating style...LOL:)
One day when they were talking of his marriage and preferences , we were kidding him about his first question to his future wife. He told us that he would ask her if she can make Nandu (crab) curry and we we all laughed like anything. Some years passed we moved out of India but still he kept his promise by popping this question when he met the right girl. Luckily my co-sister is also an ardent fan of sea food .Anyway he kept his childish promise but we feel very guilty as we couldn't attend his wedding because of hubby's work nature. I ask myself , can I stand this guilt if I attend my own brothers marriage? Time only can answer this.
Even now when I make this curry , myself and hubby start talking of him.

Uncooked Nandu:

Nandu kulambu:

Ingredients:

Crab (Nandu in Tamil)- 1 kg
Sesame oil (any cooking oil ) - 2 tbsp
Salt - as per taste
Turmeric - 1 tsp
coriander powder - 3 tbsp
Chilly powder - 1 tbsp
curry leaf - 1 sprig
fennel seed - 1 tsp

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp

To grind:

Shallot Onion (nattu vengayam) - 10 (50 gms)
Tomato - 3 (150 to 200 gms)
Shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
cumin seed - 1 tsp
Black pepper - 1tbsp

Saute the onion in a tsp of oil . keep aside. Then saute the tomato, till it wilts and grind everything to a fine paste.

Method

Wash and clean the crab. Remove the front shell that covers the digestive system and remove the digestive tract, but keep the meat inside. Wash again and clean it.
Don't remove the legs. If they are very long , then gently break them into half.


Heat oil in a wok or mud pot. Add fennel seeds and let them get red.
Then add ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute.

Now put the crab along with the powders, salt, masala paste , curry leaf and 1 cup of water.

Cook covered for 15 - 20 minutes. Add water or 1/2 cup coconut milk if we need to dilute it. Otherwise serve as a thick curry.

As soon as we start smelling the pleasant crab curry smell, switch off.

Serving suggestions:

Serve hot with white rice.
Keep some curd as side , as we may need it to quench the heat of pepper:)

Kashmiri Pulav

Kashmiri pulav is a very colorful rice dish served as main course along with some spicy gravy. This pulao can be the best choice for the people who cannot take the Indian hot cuisine. We can add the fruits according to our imagination.

For the very first time I tasted this Kashmiri pulao along with gobi manchurian gravy in Hotel Kamatlingapur, Bangalore.

I got the recipe from a library-book ( the author name ??? ) in Madras. It is always a great one in my house along with Butter chicken.

Kashmiri pulao:



Ingredients:


Main ingredients:
Basmati rice - 1 cup
warm milk - 1 tbsp
saffron - a few strands
salt - to taste

To make the flavored water to cook rice:
Mint leaf - 4 stems
cardamom - 2
nutmeg - very tiny piece
cloves - 2
cinnamon - 2 inch
water - 3 cups

To temper:
onion - 1 cup (sliced lengthwise)
Bay leaf - 2
green chilly - 2 (chopped)

Ghee - 1 tbsp

cashew - 5
almond -5 (slivered)
Raisins - 10

To garnish:
Tuti frooti - 10 pieces
Pomegranate - 1/4 cup
pineapple - 1/4 cup (chopped)
Tangarine / orange - 3 slices
black grapes - 5

Method:

Wash the rice and soak it in water for 1/2 an hour.

Boil 3 cups of water in a vessel along with mint leaves , cinnamon , cloves, cardamom. As soon as it starts boiling, switch off and let it remain closed for 30 minutes. Strain and discard the spices. (I used them while grinding the masala for butter chicken).

Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a pan, fry the chopped onion , green chillies and take it out. Keep aside.
Fry the cashews, raisins, almonds and keep aside.

Add another tsp of ghee and fry the (soaked and drained) rice for few minutes.

Now pour the prepared flavored water to the rice. Add salt (1/8 tsp) and cook until the rice is done (not mushy).
Using a colander / strainer remove the excess water.

Soak the saffron in milk for 1 hour, and add this milk to the rice.

Garnish with fried onion, green chilly, nuts, raisins.

Keep it warm.

Mix the chopped fruits before serving .

Kashmiri pulao is ready!

Serving suggestions:

Kashmiri pulao can be served as a main course dish along with some paratha / naan and a very spicy gravy.
The above said quantity can be enough for 2 people.
Chicken tikka masala or butter chicken are best combo for Kashmir pulav.

Pineapple kesari

Very long back I had this pineapple kesari in a wedding breakfast and fallen in love with this immediately. I have heard that this is more famous in Kerala, where we get abundant fruits.
Mostly I prepare Xav's favorites only, but for a change he asked me to make this for me. So I prepared this for Christmas breakfast along with Idly, vada and sambar. Surprisingly he too liked it very much for the first time:) Hereafter I can have this kesari more frequently...hi...hi.

Just like many other recipes, this also remained idle in my draft until now. Here is the most delicious version of Kesari for you.



Ingredients:
Ravai / rava / semolina / sooji - 1 cup
Pineapple - 1 1/2 cup (chopped)
(I used fresh pineapple. But we can use the canned ones too)
water - 2 cups
sugar - 2 cups
(Add more sugar at the end if desired)
cashewnuts - 10
raisins - 15
ghee - 5 tbsp
yellow food color - 1/8 tsp
Cardamom - 4

Method:
1.Take a thick wok / pan , which has a proper tight lid.
Heat a tbsp of ghee and fry the broken cashews , raisins one by one and keep aside. Powder the cardamom and discard the skin, keep aside. (I put the skin in to the tea).

2.In the same pan add another tbsp ghee and roast the rava till we get a nice aroma.
Transfer it to a dry plate.

3.Coarsely grind the pineapple in a blender. Keep aside.

4.In the pan add water , sugar and let it come to a boil.
Then add the yellow food color and mix well.
As the water starts bubbling , reduce the flame.

5.Now add the rava in a wide spread manner .Add it slowly without stirring . Then immediately put the crushed pineapple and stir well. Close it with a lid and reduce the flame to minimum.

6.After the rava gets cooked , add the remaining ghee, fried nuts, cardamom, raisins.

7.Keep on stirring till the kesari leaves the sides of the pan.

Pineapple kesari is ready!

Note:
The pineapple kesari should not be dry , but somewhat sticky.

Serving suggestions:
Serve as dessert along with breakfast or evening tea with spicy snacks.

Awards .....

My sweet blogger friend , Siddhi of Cooked Dil Se has presented me these lovely awards.





I like her flair to learn and present the International cuisines.Her Mushroom Lasagna from scratch is very amazing. Never thought of making my own lasagna sheet before. Hats off dear!
Moreover her Indian cuisines are much authentic and mouthwatering . Recently I came across her Repost for RCI-Mumbai and was stunned by her vast collection. Now I am planning to buy some grocery to try her Mumbai recipes. That's the power of inspiration. Right!

I feel so honored to get these 'Beautiful blogger' and 'Happiness' awards from her. Thanks Siddhi . Keep up the good work dear!

Milagu kulambu

(Milagu kulambu means a gravy made with pepper).

I am sure my regular readers may know my taste for simple recipes. Here is another simple kulambu (curry) without garlic , onion and tomato. So we need not worry much of chopping stuff.
Mostly I prepare this during winter or rainy season. Its good for digestion, cough, cold , sinus problems etc.
Even though I prepare this regularly at home, I referred to this blog for a more clear version.
Here goes a simple recipe for a quick dinner



Ingredients
Tamarind - gooseberry size
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Mustard - 1/2 tsp
Hing - a pinch
Sesame oil
Salt - to taste
Curry leaves - 1 sprig

To dry roast and grind:
Whole black Pepper - 1 1/2 tbsp
Channa dhal (kadalai paruppu) - 1 1/2 tbsp
Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Red chillies - 4
cumin - 1 tsp

Method:

Dry roast the items given till the channa dhal turns mild red.
First powder them without water. Then add hing and 1/4 cup water and grind to a fine paste.

Extract juice from tamarind using 2 cups of hot water. Keep aside.

Heat oil in a wok and splutter the mustard seeds.Put curry leaves.
Pour the tamarind juice along with 1 tsp salt , turmeric and bring to a boil. Reduce flame and let the raw smell vanishes. Let it get reduced to 1 1/2 cups.

Now add the ground masala paste and allow it to boil for 2 minutes.

Garnish with fresh curry leaves.

Serving suggestions:
Serve hot with piping hot rice , ghee and pappad.
I prepare pumpkin poriyal , omelet or usili.

Note:
If we are packing this for lunch box, then add 1 tbsp sesame oil to the curry at the end and mix with rice. This will prevent the rice from dryness.
The consistency should be like denser vathak kulambu.
This curry will show a mild bitter taste , but would be of great taste if served with hot rice and ghee.

Lovely Gifts !

We all love gifts . Yeah! its very to exciting to receive a surprise gift. That too in blogosphere we are blessed with so many lovely friends pampering us with cute awards.
First award and very first comments do excite us a lot and no one can deny that:) You should have seen me when I received my very first award from Gita....Each and every award inspires me more and reminds me to be creative. That's the power of appreciation. Isn't it!

Malar of Kitchen Tantra has shared this lovely Cheer reading award with me. Not only in cooking , she has the potential to succeed anything she undergoes. I adore her space because of the unknown medicinal cum historical info she shares there along with excellent food. Her non-veg menus are endless and makes anyone crave. I wonder how she learnt so much recipes and prepares them with such dedication everyday. I am addicted to her Brinjal serwa and Vazhai poo kuruma. Don't miss her round up on Kitchen mishaps event now.



Thanks Malar. I am so glad to get it from a passionate person like you.
You always make me cheerful:)

Kathy of 'Lessons from the Monk I married' , has presented me a Happiness award. She is a writer cum blogger and her lessons on life are very inspiring. Many a times after reading hers I understand the true meaning of simple pleasure in my life. Her recent post on 'The Best Things In Life Are Free' has made me identify the hidden treasures around me:)



I am so proud to get an award from a great person like her. I am in cloud 9 now:)

Now I have to share 10 things that make me happy as per the award rule. OMG!Its very pleasant to recollect what makes us happy and its the true meaning of award here.

Here are they:)

1. Cooking for my husband, who appreciates me for everything I do.
2. Visiting Churches, all religious places and celebrating festivals.
3. Pink color, Watching Rose flowers or any flower.
4. movie night at home with popcorn and coke.
5. Shopping.
6. Gardening , bird watching and country side living.
7. Walking, Basketball.
8. Blogging, blog-hopping, browsing.
9. Collecting inspiring books, cook books, greeting cards, coins, .
10. Visiting Aquarium, Zoo, museums.

Thanks for this gift and opportunity dear! I feel so honored to get this from you. This means a lot to me and your every day lessons inspires me very much. Best wishes!

The next award is from Kitchen Queen of Khatta Meetha theeka. I admire her recipes because of the simple ingredients and easy to follow instructions. I love her Kuzhi appam and Thaval vadai which are in to-do list now:)



Thanks dear! I am very glad to get such an appreciation from a nice person like you.

I think the Beautiful blogger and Cheer reading awards have gone many rounds . So I would like to share the Happiness award (which kathy presented me), with the following friends.

Malar of kitchen Tantra
Kitchen Queen of khatta meetha theeka.
Gita of Gita's kitchen.
Vinolia of Akal's saapadu.
Jaleela of samayal attakasangal
Shama of easy 2 cook recipes.
Devasena of A connoisseur's eye for life's little melodies.
Usha Nandhini of Usha Nandhini's recipes.
Saraswathy Balakrishnan of Taste of Sara's kitchen.


Congrats friends! I am eager to read your happy moments also:)

A small break:
I can't be using internet till Monday (01/25/2009) due to travel .So please excuse me, if I didn't reply . I will try to get back as soon as possible.

Enjoy blogging and take care!
Love,
Viki.

Ennai kathirikkai / Stuffed brinjal fry

Whole stuffed eggplant / yennai kathirikkai

I relate this whole stuffed brinjal with a story I read very long back in Ambulimama:) It is the story of a wise boy and the king's feast to commons.

The story is as follows:
The king who has heard about the intelligence of a local boy wants to test him. So the king asks him to tell , which food is tastier in that feast without talking with others or tasting. Within a few minutes the boy runs around and tells the king 'The tastiest one is the Ennai kathirikkai, Sir and the least wanted is So and so vegetable'.
When the king asks his secret, the boy says 'I went to the waste leaf area and no one has wasted a single ennnai kathirikkai and vice versa'.
Its a simple story and I assume that the moral is we can judge the taste of the food while disposing the leaf.(Indian feasts are generally served in fresh banana leaf).

So after reading this story , brothers and myself started craving for that unknown fry. Mom learnt the recipe from her friends and we got our most favorite fry.
Even now myself, hubby and brothers prefer it more than meat....funny thing is I never long for meat if have this ennai kathirikkai:)

Hope you too fall in love with this buttery brinjal fry.



I would like to show you the picture of a rare brinjal I got from grocery stores. Never seen a triplet brinjal before:)



Ingredients:
Brinjal / baby eggplant - 6
Oil to deep fry - 1 cup
(I used corn oil)
Salt - 1 tsp (check taste after mixing with chilly powder)
Red chilly powder - 1.5 tsp
garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
(I used Shan brand garam masala)

Method:
Remove the bracts of the brinjal.
Wash and clean them in running water.

Make two slits in the top and bottom, without cutting it into half.

Place the salt and powders in a small bowl.
Mix them into a smooth paste with 2 tsp water.

Carefully stuff this paste inside the brinjal. Keep aside for 10 minutes.

Heat oil in a wok.
Deep fry them, till the skin gets wrinkle and the brinjal turns tender like butter.

Note:
We can coat some oil all over and broil in the oven instead of deep frying. But We can't expect the real taste in that oven method.

Ennai kathirikkai is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as side dish with sambar and rice.

Paruppu payasam

Wish you all a very happy and prosperous Pongal / Sankaranthi festival!

I am eager to post something sweet for this sweet Pongal and here comes my paruppu payasam for you all.

I make many kinds of payasams (kheer) and I am sure most of my readers may very well know about my sweet-tooth:) . On top of the list this simple paruppu payaasam always holds a great place in my festive lunch because of my hubby. I too love this very much because of its simple ingredients.



Ingredients:
Green gram dhal (paasi paruppu) - 3/4 cup
jaggery - 1.5 cup (crushed)
shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
(mildly tender coconut will taste great in this payasam)
cardamom - 3
ghee - 1 tbsp
raisin - 5
cashew nut - 10

Directions:
Wash and clean the dhal. Pressure cook the green gram dhal with 2 cups of water for 2 whistles and mash it coarsely using the back of a spatula.

Heat another pan with 2 cups of water and add jaggery.
After the jaggery gets dissolved, distill the clear jaggery solution and discard the sediments.

Add the jaggery solution to the mashed dhal along with shredded coconut and let it come to a boil.

Crush the cardamom and add the seeds to the kheer.

Heat a frying pan with 1 tbsp ghee.
Roast the cashews to golden brown and raisins till they puff. Pour it into the kheer.
Switch off the stove.

Paruppu payasam is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Serve hot or cold as dessert.

Event:
My friend Shama of Easy2cook recipes is hosting a pretty event called Christmas Party-09 event and I am sending my Christmas cum New year dishes to hers.

Here is our simple New year lunch, which I am sending for Shama's. The New Year came on a Friday this year and we had a vegetarian south Indian meal for the lunch.
The menu was plain rice, ketti paruppu (dhal), Arachi vitta sambar, Aviyal, Ennai kathirikkai (stuffed brinjal), pickle, pappad, curd and paruppu payasam.



My another entry is the Christmas fruit cake.


Hope it suits the event. Happy hosting dear!


Award:

My friend , Faiza Ali of Faiza Ali's Kitchen has presented me this lovely award. She is a very innovative person and I admire her skills on appreciating International food. Especially I like her perfect Black forest cake and the delicious Bakhlava very much. Every woman loves this word beautiful and I feel so honored to get this 'Beautiful blogger' award from her. Thanks Faiza. This means a lot to me and you have inspired me much by this.



I could not pick a few from you , as all of you are awesome and unique in a special way. Anyways I have to share them with a few and so I am passing it to the following friends.

Sarah of Vazhayila.
Sanghi of Sanghi's Food delights.
Aysha of Life Today.
Vrinda of Sankeerthanam.
Padma of Padma's recipes.
Rina of Rina's recipes.
And to all of my blogger friends who leave a comment here:)

Happy Pongal my friends and Enjoy blogging!

You may also like my:
Pongal aviyal
Sarkarai Pongal
Venn Pongal

Chicken sukka varuval and our Christmas cake

Before going to today's post, I would like to share the Christmas cake I prepared for Baby Jesus. I made a fruit cake and frosted it with butter cream icing.


'Happy Birthday Baby Jesus' A Birthday cake for Jesus.

Next comes our Chicken sukka.

Chukka / sukka means a dry curry in a gorgeous dark brown color.Chukka gets its color during the stir fry process. Unlike many other chicken recipes, sukka will not have any mint leaf or cilantro . But the main flavor comes from sesame oil, shallot onion , lots of chilly powder and curry leaf.

This is a fiery HOT curry and one should have the heart of steel to try this . If you are not used to the South Indian spicy food , then reduce the quantity of spices given below as per taste. But the real taste lies in the dominating red chilly-pepper combo.

It is more popular in Chettinad restaurants, a Tamil cuisine known for its spicy and delicious food.

It is always my dad's choice in the Aachi's restaurant in my hometown and hubby's favorite too:)

Here is the famous chukka varuval for you all.



Marination:
Chicken (boneless) - 1 lb (1/2 kg)
turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste - 2 tbsp.
(ginger - 2 inch, garlic - 5 cloves)
Red chilly powder - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste (1 tsp)
Vinegar / lime juice - 2 tbsp
oil - To deep fry (200 ml)

Select red meat (boneless thigh portion) from chicken , as it will give a juicy texture whereas breast / white meat will yield a hard finish.

Wash and clean the chicken in running water. Cut the chicken into medium size cubes (approximately 2 cm).
Finally rub 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and keep aside.

Grind the ginger, garlic to a fine paste.
Marinate the chicken with all items given above (except the oil) for 2 hrs.

Heat the oil in a wok and deep fry the marinated chicken pieces till it is completely cooked. keep aside.

To Temper (finishing touch):
sesame oil - 2 tbsp
fennel seeds - 1 tsp
cinnamon - 3 inch
Shallot or red onion - 200 gms
(I have used red onion here)
Salt - to taste (1 tsp)
Red chilly powder - 2 tsp
Black pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
coriander powder - 3 tsp
garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
Lemon - 1/2
Finely chopped ginger - 2 tbsp
curry leaf - 2 sprig
Green chilly - 2 (finely chopped)

Chop the onion into thin long pieces.
Heat oil in a wok. Add fennel seeds and cinnamon stick.
Let the fennel seeds become red. Put 1 sprig curry leaves and wait til they get crispy.

Slide in the onion and fry till it gets half cooked.
Add the fried chicken pieces along with salt and all the above said powders.

(Some people add 1/2 cup shredded coconut blended with 1/4 tsp cumin at this stage).

Sprinkle 1/2 cup water and cook covered for 5 minutes till all the masala powders gets blended to give a nice flavor.
Now add chopped fresh curry leaves (1 sprig), green chilly, ginger and mix well.
Stir for a minute and put off stove.

Squeeze lime juice and mix well with the sukka.

Chicken sukka is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Goes well with chapathi, roti and rice.
Perfectly pairs with curd rice also.
Serves 4 people.

Murukku

Murukku is an Indian snack served along with coffee or tea. It is generally prepared with rice flour and a gram flour.

Xav loves murukku with coffee like anything. So, I specially made it for him.
Here is the murukku I prepared for hubby as my Christmas gift.

I know, making murukku is not a big deal for anyone who loves to cook. But I have not ventured myself in this art for quite a long time because of my fear on hot oil:( There are so many ways to make murukku, but I planned to follow my mother's recipe , which has never disappointed me at any point of time :)

I started by 10.30 Am and completed successfully by 12 noon. So it took just 1.30 hours totally and voila my secret gift for Xav got ready 2 days before Christmas. But I could not be so hard-hearted to hide it from him till the Eve:)

Roasted Urid dhal:



Kneaded murukku dough:



Murukku before frying:



(At this stage the murukku should not have much cracks. If so add some more water and knead the dough again to check for the uninterrupted flow. This will yield smooth and crispy murukku).


Fried murukku:



Ingredients:
Rice flour - 4 cups
(If you have a flour mill in your vicinty (just like Indian flour mills), then soak 4 cups of unboiled rice (pacharisi) for 2 hours, drain the rice and prepare flour. Otherwise we can use store bought flour also. But the ratio should be always 4 : 1)
Urid dhal (Black gram) - 1 cup (without skin)
Butter - 5 tbsp (1 tbsp / rice + dhal mix)
Cumin - 1 tbsp
sesame seeds - 2 tbsp
Hing (Asafoetida) - 1/8 tsp
Salt per taste
coconut milk - 1/2 cup (optional)
Water for mixing - (nearly 3 cups of water)
Oil - to deep fry (500 ml)

Method:
Heat a wok and dry roast the urid dhal till it we get a nice flavor and starts to turn golden (not red). Keep aside and let it cool. Then dry grind it to a fine powder using an Indian mixer.

In the same wok , dry roast the rice flour for about 10 minutes . When we touch it , we should feel it like river sand. Then let it cool.

Put both the flours in a large mixing bowl . Add cumin, sesame, asafoetida and butter. Mix well.

Take 2 cups of water and add 3/4 tsp salt for every cup of flour. Mix this salt water along with coconut milk with the flour and knead to a soft chapathi dough consistency.

Now check salt and add more mixing with water,if necessary.

Fit a 3 hole plate in the murukku mold and fill it with dough.

In the mean time heat the oil in a wide pan till smoking point. Then reduce flame and press the murukku in circular shape into the hot oil.
Flip once after one side is done.

After the hissing sound and bubbles subdue, drain and remove the murukku. Place them on paper towel and store them in air tight containers after they get cool.


Murukku is ready!

Note:
Makes 15 big size murukku or 30 murukku of our palm diameter.

Creamy pasta.

This pasta dish is a favorite one in our house. With very few steps and lesser time we can get a delicious meal. Hope you all like it.
Just for my reference , I have written the brands I used, hope it will be interesting to look back:).



Cooking the pasta:
Rotini Pasta (or)any big size pasta - 1.5 cups (uncooked)
(I used whole wheat rotini pasta , ShopRite store brand)
Water - 5 cups
First bring the water to boil and add the pasta and cook al dente. (Al dente means cooked completely but firm)
Drain water and run it under cold water.

Preparing the vegetables:
Ranch dressing - 6 tbsp
(I used less calorie fit active brand)
Shredded mozzarella cheese - 1/4 cup
Broccoli / spinach - 1 cup
Red onion - 1/4 cup (chopped)
Green beans, fresh peas, carrot, olives - 1 cup (together)
garlic - 2 cloves
olive oil - 1 tbsp
Italian seasoning - 1 tsp

Chop the vegetables into big pieces.
Heat oil in a wok. Add the crushed garlic followed by the onion and chopped vegetables.
Add salt to taste. Sprinkle some water and cook covered till they turn tender crisp.
Switch off flame .

Method:
Mix the sauteed vegetables with cooked pasta and olives. Stir well.
Add shredded cheese while the pasta is hot.
Mix the ranch dressing before serving.

Serving suggestions:
Serves two.
Garnish with a few drops of tomato sauce.
Some protein rich sides like boiled eggs or baked chicken can make this meal a wholesome one.

You may also like:
1.Have a glance at how my friend Gita prepared the chicken fry in oven.
2.My chicken kickers.

Gulab Jamun.

Wish you all a very happy and prosperous New year my friends!

After a short vacation , I am very glad to present a well known Indian dessert , the Gulab Jamun.

Gulab means Rose flower and Jamun means a dark colored fruit called Naval pazham (Tamil). Mostly they soak the fried khoya dough balls in oil and soak them in rose scented sugar surup or honey or cardamom + saffron mixed sugar syrup.

The traditional method is to prepare / buy sugarless paal kova (khoya in Hindi / extremely condensed milk in form of creamy white semi solid) and mix it with maida flour to make jamuns.

It is my mother's technique to make gova at home by evaporating milk with lot of stirring, then add a tsp of rice flour + sugar to get the finishing touch. (For making GulabJamun we need not add sugar in ghova.) Then she would knead the gova (if we leave them behind ..hi hi) with careful addition of All purpose flour, baking soda ....mix them to get the small balls..fry them in ghee ..soak in sugar syrup....OMG! a lot of work ..huh!

But for me the easiest way is to buy a readymade Jamun mix. Anyways it still needs some technique to get a flawless one and I am giving out my procedure.



Ingredients:
Gulab jamun mix - 1 1/4 cup (250 ml)
(I used Gits brand)
water - 1/4 cup (Check instructions in your package carefully)

ghee / oil for deep frying - 100 ml

Sugar - 2 cups (400 gms)
water - 2 cups (equal measures of sugar)
Cardamom powder - 1/8 tsp
saffron - few strands.

Method:
Pour the mix from sachet in to a mixing bowl.

Using your hand gently break down all the lumps.

Immediately add all the water given in the instruction (adding little by little will create lumps and we may need more time to straighten it).
Mix well. At this stage the dough may seem a little sticky.
Allow it to sit for 5 minutes. Now the dough will become hard like chapathi dough.
Divide it into 20 equal parts and make smooth balls of 1 inch diameter with your hand.
Apply ghee / oil to make crack-less balls.
(If our dough is perfect ,we won't need oil to make it smooth).

Prepare sugar syrup in a wide vessel. Boil it for 10 minutes to get a single thread consistency.
(Single thread - If we pour the syrup by using a spatula , the last drop should fall as a single drop/ thread)
Add cardamom and saffron to it. Keep it in low heat.

Heat oil in a wok. Reduce flame to minimum and slowly fry the balls to a reddish brown color.
Drain oil and put it in hot syrup.

Take off the heat for sugar syrup now.

Likewise continue for all the jamuns and add them to the syrup.

Now leave it open till the gulabjamun gets cooled. Let them soak overnight or atleast 5 hours.

GulabJamun is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve it in small bowls with a generous helping of sugar syrup.
Decorate it with slivered almonds , pistachio (if desired).
Serve chilled as dessert after a grand dinner.

Tips:
The secret to get flawless gulabjamun lies in the dough and ball preparation. If we see any crack in the ball before frying, then redo it with very little ghee.
The diameter of the ball before frying should be 1 - 1.5 inches.

Important points:
One of the biggest challenges we face is to get a correct water + flour mixture.
So fry one ball, immerse in sugar solution and wait for 10 minutes to see if we get the correct taste. It is a must , if we make large batches.
If the jamun seems not cooked at center, then reduce the flame. Because high flame leaves the center raw.
If the jamun has more water content, ADD milk powder. NEVER add maida or any flour to suck the extra water added. It is very important hint in getting successful gulabjamuns. So keep some milk powder handy (Milk powders never go waste...hi..hi).
If the jeera is not absorbed properly, then increase the thickness of syrup by adding more sugar and heat to get a thicker sugar syrup.