Paruppu Boli (dhal stuffed sweet parathas)

Boli is a south Indian sweet similar to a sweet stuffed paratha.
I got introduced to this boli in the train journeys from Chennai to Tirunelveli. The total traveling time may consume around 12 to 14 hours. Usually we board the train in the late evening and will reach Tirunelveli for breakfast:)
But before an hour to reach the destination, we have to halt in a station called 'vanchi Maniyachi' . It is the memorial spot for the Indian freedom fighter Mr. Vanchi Nathan. The train usually stops there for nearly 20 minutes , as it is a jucnction and also to get signal. But it will be a good time for the street vendors to sell their homely Boli, vadai ,Murukku, coffee, tea and Idly. The famous dishes are Murukku and boli.You know what, this stop will be my long waited one to get my favorite 'Boli'. I love to finish off my breakfast there with these yummy bolis alone. One more place famous for boli is Kadamboor in that area. My taste buds always crave to taste and compare them in different places. The differences I found were, the Maniyachi Bolis are thinner and made with sesame oil, while in other places they use ghee on the thicker version of boli.
Still it gives a native taste and I love it very much. I tried it last month and it came out very well.   Here is the recipe and you can try it this weekend:)


Paruppu Boli/ Maniyachi Boli / Sweet paratha.

outer layer:
All purpose flour - 1 1/2 cup
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
baking soda - a pinch
salt - a pinch
Sesame oil - 1/2 cup

Mix the flour, salt , baking soda, Turmeric powder and mix well.
Add water little by little to get a thick chapathi dough like consistency.
Coat it with little sesame oil and cover it with a wet cloth.
Leave it for 4 - 6 hours . Mom used to make this dough in the morning and use it in the evening by 3 pm, so that we could have it with tea.(This setting time makes the dough very flexible and manageable. In the mean time prepare the stuffing or pooranam).
After that divide the whole dough into 15 equal portions.
Shape them in to balls. Keep aside.

stuffing:
Channa dhal (Bengal gram) - 1 cup
Jaggery - 3/4 cup
cardamom - 3
shredded coconut - 1/4 cup

Soak the dhal for 2 hours. cook the channa dhal completely and drain water.
(We can use the water to make rasam / soup).
Mash the dhal to fine paste using a mixie / a spatula.
Heat 1/4 cup water and dissolve the jaggery in it. Then filter any dust / sand present.
Mix the jaggery solution with mashed dhal and heat it in a wok.
Add coconut and powdered cardamom now.
Let it loose all the moisture and become a thick mass.
Switch off stove and let it cool.
Divide it in to 15 equal size balls.

Method:
Take one 'all purpose flour ball'.Apply oil to it. Using a rolling pin flatten it to a circle. Do not use flour to spread the circle. Instead apply oil generously to spread it.
Take one 'stuffing ball'. Place it on the center of the circle.
Now fold it with the covering dough closely , so that no stuffing can be seen from outside.
Now again apply some oil and carefully spread it to a thin circular shape (approximate diameter should be 5 - 6 inch). Don't worry if you see some pooranam from inside in this stage, as it will become fine after frying.
Heat a dosa tawa. Evenly apply sesame oil on the tawa .Reduce flame and fry the bolis on both sides till we see some brown dots all over.
Again increase the heat, apply oil, reduce heat and fry the bolis in lesser heat.
Take out and store in a container.
Like wise proceed with the rest of the dough.
Paruppu Boli is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serve as dessert or evening snack.
Makes 15 Bolis .
The leftover boli (if any) can be wrapped in ziplock covers and kept refrigerated for a week.

Note:
Like wise we can make numerous verieties of sweet stuffed bolis like, coconut boli , date fruit boli, sesame boli, fruits boli, ghee boli, Jeera boli (boli soaked in sugar solution) etc. I have tasted some varieties in the sweet stalls of KK nagar , Chennai,India :) . You can experiment any thing with it and will become a fan of bolis soon:)

Sending this boli to Purva's Holi haii ! event.

Vangi Badth (Eggplant rice)

Vangi badth (Eggplant rice) is a Karnataka special. It needs a special powder called 'Vangi badth powder' and if you have it handy , then it is a very easy job.
I prepare this powder in a small batch and keep it refrigerated for further use.
It can be served as a complete meal , as we do not need any side dish or curry. It tastes great with appalam or potato chips.


Vangi badth powder: (Just enough to serve 2 people once)
Coriander Seeds - 1 tbsp
Channa dhall - 1 tbsp
Red chillies - 2
Cardamom - 1
Cloves - 2
Cashews / almond - 2
Coconut - 2 tbsp
cumin - 1/2 tsp



Vangi Badth / Brinjal rice / egg plant rice / kathirikkai satham

Ingredients:
Rice - 1 cup
Brinjal - 200 gms
onion - 1
tamarind - 1 inch
mustard - 1/2 tsp
curry leaf - 1 brig
turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
ghee - 1 tsp
salt - to taste
olive oil - 1 tsp

Method :
1. Heat a wok with 1 tsp oil. Roast the ingredients given for the vangi badth powder, till the channa dhal turns red.
Grind it to a coarse powder using a mixer.

2. Soak the tamarind in 1/4 cup water. Extract the juice out of it.

3. Cook the rice with little salt and 2 cups of water (twice the quantity of rice).
Spread the rice and cool it a little.

4. Heat another tsp oil in the wok. Add mustard seed and let it splutter.
Then add chopped onion , curry leaf and saute till it becomes tender. Then add the brinjal and turmeric powder , fry a little. Sprinkle the tamarind juice and cook it covered. After it gets cooked , add the vangi badth powder and check for salt.

5. Mix it with the cooked rice. If desired mix 1 tsp of ghee .Reheat and serve hot.

Vangi badth is ready!

Serving suggestions:
Serves as main course meal for 2 people.
Potato chips or Appalam / pappadam can be served as side dish.

Elephant Yam - stir fry

Indian yam stir fry / Senai kilangu pirattal / Suran fry
Hope almost all the regions of India will have a cuisine with this yam.
Fresh yams are a kind of itchy . so carefully chop off its skin by applying tamarind juice in your hands before and after cleaning it. I used the 'frozen surans' which we get in Indian stores.
My mom used to fry wide pieces of senai kilangu (yam) , just like a fish fry and I adore it a lot:) We call it as 'vegetarian fish fry' in my dad's house.(I will post that recipe too , if I see any fresh yam).
But this recipe does not require any deep frying , still maintains a great taste. This 'senai kilangu pirattal' recipe is also from my mom's kitchen notes.
I am sure this is a quick fix recipe to grab the attention of the guests.




Ingredients:
Yam - 200 gms
Onion - 1
Tamarind extract - 1 tsp
Fennel seeds (sombu)- 1/2 tsp
olive oil - 3 tbsp
curry leaf - 1 brig
Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp
salt - to taste

Directions:
Clean the yam by removing the skin and washing it in water.
Chop the yam into medium size cubes.
(Or , if frozen suran is used , then just keep it in a colander and show in running water to defrost it.)
Chop the onion.
Heat oil in a wok, add fennel seeds and let it become red. Add the curry leaves.
Then goes the onion and fry till it becomes tender.
Now add the chopped yam with turmeric powder, salt , and stir fry it.
Reduce the flame to minimum .
Add the tamarind extract and close the wok tightly with a lid.
Stir it occasionally.
After the yam gets cooked add the red chilli powder and garam masala and fry it for few minutes.
Senai kilangu pirattal is ready.

Serving suggestions:
It can be served as side dish with any sambar / more kulambu on plain rice.

Note:
We can add the red chilli powder along with yam also, but doing so will emit spicy vapors that no one can stand. So I prefer to add red chilli powder, minutes before switching off.

Beautiful awards:
I felt honored and touched when my friends Malar of Kitchen Tantra , Madhu of Madhu's food journal, Vinolia of Akal's saapadu and Varsha of Will-o-the-wisp hugged me with this award.
Thanks and hugs to all of u there.
I would like to pass this award to all in this blogosphere. So everybody please feel free to embrace each other with this lovely award. Enjoy!

Shama Nagarajan of Easy2cook recipes has passed me 'blogging with purpose' award. I am telling myself, to focus with some purpose :)


Sriharivatsan of Enthaligai and Divz of yum world have passed me all the above awards. I am speechless.
Thanks Shama, Divz and Sriharivatsan.

Moreover, Divz of yum world has made me feel elated with her Jewel of a friend award. Thanks dear for showing me this much love and friendship.

cabbage dhal curry

This is a very simple curry , good for a mild lunch. I use green gram dhal for this curry, but many choose Toor dhal (Red gram) instead. Basically I prefer this kind of vegetable dominated curries to mix with the rice, so that I can reduce my rice intake:)
There is no need to temper this curry , but the choice depends on the individual. The taste will be bland as there is no tomato or tamarind, but it can be paired perfectly with a spicy fry.



Muttaikose paasi paruppu kulambu / cabbage green gram dhal curry:

Ingredients:
Cabbage - 200 gms
green gram dhal - 1/2 cup
green chilli - 2
salt - as required
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
garlic - 3 pods
ginger - 1 inch
cumin - 1/2 tsp

Directions:
Wash and soak the green gram dhal (siru paruppu / paasi paruppu in Tamil) for 30 minutes.
Start Cooking it in 2 cups of water with turmeric powder.
Finely chop the cabbage , garlic , ginger and green chilli.
After the dhal gets half cooked, add the chopped vegetables.
Cook them without closing the lid. Because green gram dhal has the property to form froth and overflow , if covered and cooked.
After the dhal is cooked to a mushy state, switch off the flame.
Add salt, cumin seeds and mash gently without crushing the cabbage.
Cabbage dhal curry is ready.
No need to temper it.

Serving diections:
The above said quantity is good for 3 people, if served like sambar on plain rice.

Ridge Gourd Peel chutney

Usually we make curries out of Ridge gourd . But many of us will not be aware of making a chutney with its peels. This is one of the signature dishes of my mom.
It pairs well with rice or chapathi.
I am sure ridge gourd is such a yummy vegetable when cooked with dhal. But have you ever noticed the resulting quantity of the curry? If we miscalculate the end product and buy the same quantity as of any other vegetable, then we will face a challenge in distributing the curry. Oh! yes, the curry will shrink a lot after losing its moisture in cooking. So if we generally buy one lb of any vegetable , then we should double the quantity while buying this ridge gourd.
How come we throw away such a succulent peel like this? So if you are planning to make ridge gourd curry next time, then don't throw away the peels. Just save them for a yummy chutney.
Here is the recipe!

Peerkankai thol chutney:


Ingredients:
Ridge gourd - 1
Dry Red chilli - 4
curry leaf - 1 sprig
tamarind - small gooseberry size
salt - to taste
urid dhal - 1 tsp
cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
garlic - 1 clove



Method:
Wash and clean the ridge gourd.
Peel and save the outer skin , discarding the veins in the ridge.
Chop the skin coarsely.
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a kadai.
Add all the above ingredients except salt, garlic and cumin .
saute them till the peels become tender (or) edges turn mild brown.
Then switch off the stove and cool it completely.
Then add salt, garlic ,cumin and grind to a fine paste.
Ridge gourd chutney is ready.

Serving suggestions:
Goes fine with chapathi, dosa or any rice meal.

Sweet Bonda

This is not a common sweet, but a unique dish from south TamilNadu's tea stalls.I had this sweet in my childhood days in Tirunelveli. People in that area have it with tea just like a cake, because of its lesser sweet nature.
Almost all the tea stalls / coffee shops in Tirunelveli and Tuticorin sell this sweet Bonda. They call it as 'cake ' as well as 'Muttai kose'. Muttai kose means cabbage in English. This sweet bonda resembles the shape of a cabbage and hence the name. (You can see some spiky layers around it after frying... My bonda did'nt give any outer layers.)
 One of my blogger friends asked for the recipe. My mom and her friends used to do it as a evening snack at home and I can recall the flavorful recipe now. I am posting it so that everyone may find it interesting.
Here is the recipe for Sweet Bonda.

Ingredients
All purpose flour (maida) - 2 cup
sugar- 3/4 cup
Baking soda - 1 tsp
salt - 1/4 tsp
water - just enough to knead the dough
Oil - for deep frying

Method:
Sieve AP flour with salt and baking soda twice.
(Always use newer baking soda).
Mix sugar to it mix very well in a dry state.
Then add water little by little and mix well.
The dough should not be too thick, it can be of consistency between ulunthu (urid dhal) vadai batter and chapathi dough. Cover it with wet towel and let it rest for 10 minutes.
Make big balls (in the size of a big lemon / small orange) with wet hands. Drop the balls into hot oil and fry them in medium heat till the outside becomes brown.
Sweet bonda is ready!
Serve with hot tea .

Methi leaf - Tamarind curry

Puli kulambu or Tamarind curry is a basic curry served with rice in South India. These kind of tamarind based spicy curries are the comfort food for many people in Madras.
Last week , I got a fresh bunch of methi leaves and long green brinjals. So made this curry immediately and it tasted great with rice. May be it is my innovation with methi leaf and tamarind curry. It tasted like vatha-Kulambu..no bitterness.
Here goes the recipe.



(Methi leaf tamarind curry / Venthaya keerai Puli kulambu / fenugreek leaf stew)

Ingredients:
Methi leaf (only leaves) - 1 cup / 2 handful
tamarind - a key lime size
Eggplant / brinjal - 100 gms (2)
garlic - 5 pods
shredded coconut - 1 tbsp
red onion - 1/2
cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
mustard - 1/2 tsp
fenugreek seeds- 1/2 tsp
curry leaves - 1 brig
gingelly oil - 1 tbsp
asafoetida - 1 pinch
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
coriander powder - 2 tsp
turmeric powder - 1 pinch
water - 2 cups
salt - 2 tsp

Method:
Chop the eggplant into small pieces.
Grind coconut, onion and cumin seeds with little water.
Heat oil in a pan. Extract juice from the tamarind.
Crackle mustard seeds , add fenugreek seeds , curry leaves and asafoetida.
Add the chopped methi leaves and fry till you get a nice smell.
Now add the brinjal pieces, peeled garlic, tamarind paste , 2 cups water , chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, salt and close tightly with a lid.
After the vegetables are cooked add the coconut - onion paste and switch off after it starts boiling.

Serving suggestions:
Makes 2 cups of venthaya keerai Puli kulambu.
It can be served for 5 people.
Serve hot with steamed rice and and any vegetable side dish or with egg omelet.