Sandita kothimira karam kura (sandita cooked with cilantro)

In my experiments to cook different dishes with sandita, I tried my favorite masala, cilantro. As you might have noticed, I use this masala for a variety of vegetables, like dondakaya/ parval/ eggplant etc. It comes in handy, to grind cilantro with green chile and keep the paste in refrigerator and use it during the week.

Ingredients:

•      2 cups sandita
•      1 cup cut cilantro
•      1 or 2 green chiles
•      Salt to taste
•      3 to 4 Tsp. oil

Directions:

1.      Clean cilantro, grind to a paste adding green chiles
2.      Either cut sandita in half or just make a slit half way through.
3.      Microwave for 3 minutes on medium heat.
4.      Add oil to a thick pan, add sandita.
5.      Stir sandita and add cilantro paste.
6.      Add a few spoons of water.
7.      Cover and cook on low heat for 5 to 8 minutes, till sandita are soft.
8.      Serve with rice or chapatti. 

Tomatillo tomato chutney

Continuing with my experiments using tomatillos, I tried making tomato and tomatillo chutney. I used roma tomatoes which gave the very attractive color to the  chutney. As tomatillos were ripening, they gave a very nice sweet taste. The combined effect was, the chutney was almost like tomato ketch up!! Spice level can be adjusted according to taste by controlling the amount of chile powder.

This chutney can be saved in refrigerator for about a month. It comes in handy as a side dish to rice roti etc.

           

Ingredients:

•      8 or 10 tomatoes (medium sized)
•      8 or 19 tomatillos
•      3 or 4 Tbsp. oil
•      2 Tbsp. tamarind juice or about a ping pong ball sized tamarind.
•      2 Tbsp. chile powder
•      1 Tsp. methi-mustard powder
•      1/2 Tsp. turmeric powder
•      Pinch  of hing
•      Salt to taste

Directions:

1.      Remove the husk, clean and wash tomatillos thoroughly.
2.      Cut them in to 4 pieces each and set aside.
3.      Wash and cut tomatoes also into 4 or 6 pieces each.
4.      Heat a little oil in a thick pan,
5.      Add all the pieces of tomatoes and tomatillos and keep stirring.
6.      Cook till all the liquid is evaporated.
7.      Add tamarind ball to the pulp and let it cool.
8.      Add all the other ingredients except hing and grind together.
9.      Heat the rest of oil, add hing and pour it over the chutney.
10.      Chutney can be kept for about a month in refrigerator.
11.      Can be served with rice, roti, idli or dosa.
     

Undrallu using daliya (Wheat ravva cooked with coconut etc., special for Ganesh puja)

Ganesh Puja is just a few days away! It is time to be prepared to make the special prasadams (offerings) for Ganesha.

In my earlier post, I mentioned about kudumulu using rice ravva. In some places, rice ravva may not be available. You may not have the time to prepare the rice ravva at home. More important than all the above reasons, I wanted to try wheat ravva/daliya as an alternative. Diabetics prefer daliya as an alternative to rice. In many Indian stores, daliya is available. Also, I tried dry grated coconut instead of fresh one!

I tried steaming the kudumulu in steamer basket which is locally available in USA, instead of idli maker. Of course, you can steam them in either of them!

Daliya and chana dal:                                                                    Prepared balls ready for steaming:













Steamer basket cooker:                                                                                     Steamed undrallu:















Ingredients:

•      1 cup daliya
•      1/3 cup fresh or dry grated coconut
•      3 Tbsp. chana dal
•      1/2 tsp. jeera seeds
•      2 Tsp. ghee

Directions:

1.      Soak chanadal in water for 3 to 4 hours.  
2.      Drain the water and leave it in a colander.
3.      Heat ghee in a deep pan, add jeera seeds.
4.      When jeera seeds start spluttering, add chana dal.
5.      Sauté for about 4 minutes.
6.      Add 2 cups of boiling water.
7.      Add daliya, keep stirring for a few minutes.
8.      Reduce heat, partially cover the pan and let it cook.
9.      After a few minutes, all the fluid will be evaporated.
10.      Turn off the heat, keep the pan covered and let it settle.
11.      Transfer the cooked daliya mixture to a plate.
12.      Add salt and grated coconut.
13.      Mix it well and make small balls.
14.      Place the balls in an idli maker or a steamer or pasta cooker.
15.      Steam cook the undrallu for about 6 to 7 minutes.
16.      Serve after 10 minutes.
17.      Can be served with chutney or raita.

 

Undrallu/Kudumulu/Modakalu (rice ravva cooked with coconut etc, special for Ganesh puja)

Ganesh Puja is just a few days away! It is time to be prepared to make the special prasadams (offerings) for Ganesha. I feel Ganesha is a very health conscious God!! The prasadams made for this puja are all steam cooked, no deep frying at all!!

Every family has a way of making these undallu/kudumulu/modakalu etc. I am giving the way, my  mother used to make them. Most of the people use chana dal and in our family, we use red chana which after it is sautéed in ghee, gives a nice color and flavor to the final product.

In Telugu "ravva" means cracked, like Bombay ravva for sooji and godhuma ravva for daliya (cracked wheat). Main ingredient for this recipe is rice ravva. It is different from idli ravva. In Andhra, it is available in stores, sold as rice ravva. It can be made at home in the grinder. Wash rice in water and dry it for a few hours. Then coarse grind the rice. Sieve it so that fine powder is removed.

Cooking the ravva is more like cooking cous cous in USA.  More than enough water is boiled in a large container, a few minutes after adding ravva, most of the water is drained off. Then the container is covered and heated on low heat for 4 to 5 minutes. The resulting mixture is like small grains of sand. It should not be sticky.

 

 

Ingredients:

•      1 cup rice ravva
•      1/3 cup fresh grated coconut
•      3 Tbsp. sanagalu (red whole chana)
•      1/2 tsp. jeera seeds
•      Salt to taste
•      2 Tsp. ghee
•      Pinch of turmeric

Directions:

1.      Soak chana overnight in enough water, after adding a pinch of turmeric.
2.      Drain water and leave in a colander.
3.      Heat ghee in a pan and add jeera.
4.      After a minute, when jeera seeds start spluttering, add chana.
5.      Sauté for 3 to 4 minutes, till chana is cooked.
6.      Boil about 3 cups of water in a thick bottom vessel.
7.      Add rice ravva to the boiling water.
8.      After the mixture starts boiling (first bubbles that come up), drain the water as much as you can.
9.      Keep the covered container back and cook on low heat for 4 to 5 minutes.
10.      Let it cool and fluff the mixture.
11.      Transfer to a plate, add grated coconut, sautéed chana and salt.
12.      Mix thoroughly and make small balls.
13.      Place the balls in an idli maker or a steamer.
14.      Steam cook the undrallu for about 6 to 7 minutes.
15.      Serve after 10 minutes.
16.      Can be served with chutney or raita.