Varutharacha Sambhar ~ Sambhar with roasted Coconut & Spices

Wishing all of you a very belated Vishu and Chithirai Thirunal.I really don't know how time flies and try as I may,I'm struggling to devote some time to the blog.Vishu was great,with my parents around and together,we made a simple sadya.They left soon after that.Day after,I had a dinner party at home for hubby's Boss & Co and both of us wanted to make sure that we leave no stone unturned.Back breaking work,I should say;)!!

We made the famous Varutharacha Sambhar for Vishu and all of us loved it.I usually make Sambhar using Eastern Sambhar Masala[the best I've used so far].I saw this recipe for Varutharacha Sambhar,where the spices are roasted along with coconut and then ground to a paste and added to the cooked dal-vegetables.No prizes for guessing,I got this recipe from my recently acquired prized possession-my collection of recipes from Vanitha magazine.

Verdict-I might sound clichéd,but I don’t know how else to describe it.One of the best Sambhar I’ve ever prepared.The delicate taste of the roasted coconut + spices gives it the extra punch.Hubby gave his thumbs up and asked me why don’t I follow this recipe everytime I make Sambhar;-).

Varutharacha Sambhar ~ Sambhar with roasted coconut and spices!

Ingredients

Parippu/Toor Dal – ¾ cup

Mixed vegetables – 2 cups[I used drumsticks,carrot,potato,beans&tomato]

Tamarind – 1 small lemon size

To roast and grind

Channa dal – 2 tsp

Coriander – 4 tsp

Methi – ½ tsp

Red chillies – 10

Small onions/Shallots* – 2

Hing – 1 tsp

Grated coconut – ½ to ¾ cup

For Seasoning

Coconut oil – 2 tsp

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – 1 sprig

Salt to taste

For garnish
Coriander leaves – 2-3 tbsp,chopped

Method

Cook the dal till soft.

Dry roast the ingredients given for the masala till golden brown and grind to a smooth paste.

Soak the tamarind in hot water and extract as much as 2 cups of ‘puli vellam’-tamarind water from it.

Cook the vegetables in this tamarind water till done.

Add the ground masala and dal to the cooked vegetables and let it boil-till everything gets mixed.

Prepare seasoning in a pan with coconut oil and splutter mustard seeds and add curry leaves.

Add the seasoning to the sambhar and garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves.

*Small onions can be skipped.Though I got this recipe from a sadya special,I don’t think onions-garlic are added to dishes while making a sadya.It tastes great without the addition of onions too!!

Here's my Vishukkani and the Vishu Sadya!!

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Simple Potato Upkari

Very often,while we dine out I come across single diners who just sit on a table facing the wall carrying a book or laptop in their hands and eating alone.I really get amused seeing them coz eating alone(let alone,dining out alone) is something which I absolutely detest.Many a times,I wait with a hungry stomach for hubby just so that I have company while I finish my meal.But its not always possible and I end up eating alone(without any choice) once in while.

If its dinner time,I usually make do with Maggi or cut fruits with milk but lunchtime is difficult.I have to make something for one(me) and that is something which I don’t much enjoy doing.I usually make quick fix items like Pulao/Fried rice in my one-whistle pressure cooker method,but last time I was not in a mood to make all that.I scanned the kitchen for the usual culprits and saw my favorite vegetable-Potato.I decided to make a simple potato upkari and while I was making it,it opened a box full of memories for me..

As kids,all three of us loved this upkari(which is a very VERY rare thing),so if in doubt,amma made this and satisfied all three of us.It was one of the first dishes I learnt to make.We loved it with chapathi too.I once made it with chapathi and packed it for our long bus journey,for me and my granny and she still says that she is not able to recreate that taste.I take it as a great compliment and have not bothered to ask her whether she really means it or she simply liked it because I made it!!
Simple Potato Upkari

Ingredients

Potatoes – 2-3,medium chopped into cubes
Oil – 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
Red chilly powder – 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Curry leaves – 1 sprig

Method

In a kadai,add oil and splutter mustard seeds.
Add the chopped potatoes and mix well.
Now add the chilly powder and salt to taste.
Mix well,cover with a lid and let it cook on simmer.
[No need to add water,however if you feel that they are getting burnt,sprinkle a few tbsps of water].
Add curry leaves and mix well.
Serve hot.
I like having this upkari with plain rice,curds and my favorite pickle-puddi ghallele.While I was uploading the pic,I was just wondering-does this pic/dish qualify for FIC-Yellow..lol;-)

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Ambe Upkari for Mother's Day

A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people,promptly announces she never did care for pie - Tenneva Jordan.

Today is Mother's day.I don't remember when these DAYS started popping up and all we could see was people celebrating such occasions with much pomp and glory.No,please don't get me wrong,I am not against celebrating such 'days' but I am of the school of thought which feels that we do not need one day in a year to celebrate such occasions.We love our parents and we don't need a Mother's day or Father's day to tell them that we love them and one day in a year is not enough to thank them.Same with Valentine's day.But times have changed and we need to change too!!I speak to my amma daily on the phone,today I am going to wish her and tell her that I love her!!She's definitely gonna be surprised..and I would love that!!I am also going to call up my ma-in-law whom I also regard as my amma and wish her too!!Since we are celebrating it anyway,I will cook up something which both my ammas are going to love!!

When I thought of preparing something which my amma loves,I was in for a dilemma.I just could not decide what to cook because amma does not have any particular dish which she loves to have.As far as I know,she has always given priority to what we like.I don't remember something which she made and said,here-have it,its my favourite dish,Never!!It has always been what appa likes,what we kids like..So why not make something today which she likes..??Same thing with my ma-in-law.I have never seen her making something according to her taste and likes.She is a pure vegetarian and she churns out almost all varieties of non-veg food for her hubby and kids.So this is for both my ammas..I love you!!!

Coming back to a dish which is their favorite...Ah...didn't I decide it yet??I'll prepare something which is necessarily not their favorite,but something which they would love to have.Yes,a simple meal with a sweet.I am sure they will relish it,mainly because I have prepared it for them with so much love.Love you amma..

A simple meal of rice,dalithoi,batate upkari,cabbage upkari,pickle,papad,curds and the special item - Ambe upkari.

Ambe Upkari - Ripe mango curry

Ingredients

Ripe mangoes - 6(I used Alphonso mangoes)
Jaggery - 4-5 moulds OR half of one big ball of jaggery,grated
Green chillies - 2-3
Salt to taste
Maida or Cornflour - 1 tbsp

For seasoning

Oil/Ghee or a mix of both - 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Methi seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Red chillies - 2,cut into pieces

Method

Wash and wipe the mangoes well.
Peel the skin of the mangoes a little thickly with your hands.
In a big pan put all the mango skins and add about 2 cups of boiling water and keep aside.
After 5 minutes,mash the skins with hands till it oozes out mango pulp,collect as much as you can and throw away the skins.
Take one mango and make pulp with it,add it to the above mix.
In a thick bottom pan,add the mangoes,skin pulp and mango pulp together.
Add jaggery,green chillies,salt and let it cook for 10-15 minutes.
Make a paste with maida and 1 cup water without forming lumps and add to the boiling curry,let it thicken a bit.
Prepare seasoning in a frying pan with oil,mustard seeds,red chilly,methi and curry leaves.
Pour it over the curry,serve hot.
It tastes even better next day,cool from the fridge.

Here's to my ammas with looooottttsss of love..I love you amma,
Happy Mother's Day!!!

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Green peas Ambat

When I started cooking after marriage,it always used to be a simple one with rice,dalithoi,rasam and curds.Not that we were diet conscious or anything then,that was all I could manage to cook!!To top it all,hubby had told me before marriage that he loved dalithoi and wouldn't mind having it daily.Little did he know that I would hold him for that one sentence!!!

Anyway,this phase did not last long.We spent about a month in Bangalore(fortunately) for his official purposes and I utilized this opportunity to learn his favorite dishes from ma-in-law.He didn't know of course.After coming back to Chennai,this ambat was one of the dishes I prepared for him and he was stunned.He just couldn't believe that my cooking prowess had gone from dalithoi to ambat!!I really understood the true meaning of the adage-The way to a man's heart is indeed through his stomach.One more advantage I had is,since I was a novice in cooking,whatever I prepare gets a nod from him coz he compares it to my initial days..;-)You have come a long way from that,he says.I take it as a compliment!!;-)

Greenpeas Ambat

Ingredients

Fresh/frozen peas - 150 gms
Carrot - 1 medium,chopped lengthwise
Drumstick - 2,cut into 2' pieces
Onion - 1 big,chopped finely

For the masala

Grated coconut - 1 cup
Roasted red chillies - 5to 6
Tamarind - 1 channa size

Method

Cook green peas,drumsticks and carrots together till soft.
Add salt to taste.
Grind the masala to a smooth paste and add to cooked greenpeas-drumstick-carrot.
Let it boil.
Simmer for about 5 minutes.
In a pan,take 1 tbsp oil and fry the onions in it till brown.
Add it to the ambat and mix well.
Serve with rice.

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Dalithoy

I wanted Dalithoy to be my first post when I thought of starting a blog.The reason was-this was the first dish I learnt to make after marriage.My hubby,before our marriage,while staying with his friends used to make this often simply because this was the easy to make and hassle free dish that one could think of.Nothing can go wrong with this,I assure you guys on that.

This one too,is a comfort dish.I always prepare this when we are back from a long journey and there are no veggies in stock.Rice,Dalithoy and Batata(Potato) upkari and you are done.There are so many dalithoy recipes of my fellow bloggers,there's even a blog named after dalithoy!!We are that obsessed with this humble dal.In fact,when I was in college,friends used to tease me when they opened my lunch box saying-what have you bought today..DDT?which was Daat(thick) dalithoy.

It is one of the oft repeated items for lunch.There are many combinations with dalithoy-Batata upkari,Batata song,Surna koot...Today,for lunch I prepared Dalithoy and Surna koot.

Dalithoy

Ingredients

Toor dal - 1 cup
Red chilly,Green chilly - 1 each
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Oil/Ghee(Or both mixed) - 1 tbsp
Hing/Asafoetida - 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Method

Pressure cook toor dal with 1 tsp of oil and 1/2 tsp haldi till done.
It should be cooked well,almost mushy.
Mash it well with the back of a spoon.
Add the green chilly and salt to taste and let it boil.
Prepare seasoning in a frying pan with oil/ghee or both.
Add mustard seeds,when they splutter add the red chilly and curry leaves.
Add hing and switch off the flame.
Add the seasoning to the dal,let it boil.
Serve hot with rice.

Surna Koot

Ingredients

Surnu/Yam - 1/2 of 1 small yam(about 150 gms),chopped finely
Grated coconut - 2 tbsp
Coriander - 2 tbsp
Methi seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
Tamarind - 1 small(chana size)
Roasted red chillies - 5-6
Hing/asafoetida - 1 tsp
Oil for frying and seasoning
Salt to taste

Method

Cut surnu/yam into small pieces.
Apply salt and keep aside for 15 minutes.
Squeeze and deep fry in oil till brown.
In another pan,dry roast- coconut,coriander,methi,curry leaves,tamarind,red chillies and hing till brown.
Grind into a smooth paste and keep aside.
Prepare seasoning in a frying pan with oil.
Splutter mustard seeds and add curry leaves.
Add the ground masala and enough water(about 1 cup)
Add the surnu/yam bits and mix well.
Let it boil.
This curry becomes thick as you keep,so add enough water.
It should not be too watery too as it is served as a side dish.
Serve with dalithoy and rice.

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Vishu Sadya

Vishu reminds me of old times..We never used to celebrate Vishu at home.Amma used to make payasam,thats all.Even Onam was not celebrated in its pomp and glory.Its funny actually,staying in Kerala we had to face an array of questions."Why don't you celebrate Vishu/Onam?"Our reply would be-"We don't have Vishu/Onam,we celebrate Ugadi,Diwali,Duseehra etc".But you are in Kerala and you ought to celebrate these festivals,no matter where you are from.Amma felt that it was easier to celebrate it rather than answering the 'shootouts';-).So Onam was Pookkalam and Sadya,Vishu was VishuKainneettam and Sadya.Here,in Chennai its the same.Our best friends Satheesh,Deepthi&their kiddo Vikram are mallu's and we celebrate all the respective festivals together.So last week they celebrated Ugadi with us and yesterday we celebrated Vishu with them.Since it was a weekday,we had the sadya for dinner.I couldn't take snaps yesterday as I was really busy putting everything together.We had two more friends coming over and the food was cooked accordingly,a little more perhaps.I had the same spread for today's lunch and have taken snaps of "leftover sadya";-)Hope you guys don't mind!!So here's the Sadya...

Snaps of Sadya in parts-
Koottu-kari,Avial.Chakka Pradhaman,Paalada,Banana. Avial,Cabbage thoran,Pappadam. Rice,Pazham pulisherry,Curds,Sambhar. Sharkkara varatty,Puleenji,Mangakkari,Chips. Enjoy and have a great Sadya!!!
Click here for an authentic and traditional Kerala Sadya with the recipes.

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Rajma bendhi- Rajma Curry

Pulses remind me of Navrathri/Dussehra.At my place pulses were cooked mainly during Navrathri.Of course black and white channa did appear in the menu once in a while but otherwise no one in the family much preferred having pulses with lunch.When I got married,I got introduced to SaarUpkari which is a very healthy way to eat pulses during lunch.My ma-in-law makes SaarUpkari of almost all pulses,even sambhar from white beans and channa.Rajma was a favourite of mine as a North Indian preparation.This curry was new to me but was a hit nevertheless.Bendhi is rajma curry with garlic seasoning.Goes well with rice,especially Matta ari/rice.

Rajma Bendhi

Ingredients

Rajma - 250 gms(soaked overnight and pressure cooked till done)
Grated coconut - 1/2 of a small coconut
Roasted red chillies - 6(mix of 3 byadgi and 3 normal chillies)
Tamarind - 1 small piece(channa size)
Garlic - 10
Salt to taste
Oil - 1 tbsp

Method

Pressure cook rajma till done.
Grind to a paste grated coconut,red chillies and tamarind.
Mix with the cooked rajma,add salt and let it boil.
Prepare seasoning in a pan with oil.
Crush the garlic a little(do not peel)
Add it to the pan and fry till brown and well cooked.
Add it to the curry,serve.

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Dudhi Alchikeri -Pumpkin curry

Dudhiya Alchikeri is pumpkin in a coconut,dal based curry.Dont get confused by the name,this is a very simple dish to make.In Ernakulam,during aarat(temple festival which is celebrated once in a year) alchikeri is a common item on the platter or rather plaintain leaf on which the jevan/prasadam/annadanam is served.In fact,whenever I tell my hubby that I want to go to Ekm for aarat he teases me saying that I go there for the feast rather than to pray.I don't correct him coz it is partially true!!!

During the sambradan jevan/annadanam I wait eagerly to see whether alchikeri is served(festival and feast is there for 8 days,alchikeri will be there at least on 2 days).I gorge on it as though I've never seen food before;-)I do not even hesitate to ask for more..yeah!!hehe.

Dudhiya Alchikeri

Ingredients

Ripe pumpkin - 1 piece(I buy sliced pieces of pumpkin from the market,comes to about 150-200 gms)-cut into cubes with the skin on
Toor dal - 1/2 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 of 1 coconut
Red chillies-3
Haldi/turmeric - 1tsp
Mustard seeds - 1tsp
Jeera - 1tsp
Curry leaves - 1sprig
Oil - 2 tsp

Method

Cook toor dal in a pressure cooker for about 3-4 whistles(it shouldn't be fully cooked)
When it cools down open the lid and add pumpkin pieces and cook for another 3-4 whistles.
By this time toor dal and pumpkin would be fully cooked.
Make a masala of grated coconut(keep 1 tbsp aside for seasoning),haldi and red chillies.
It should be ground coarsely by adding very little water.
Add this to the cooked dal-pumpkin mix and let it boil,add salt to taste.
Prepare seasoning in a pan by adding oil,mustard seeds,jeera,curry leaves and coconut.
When the coconut starts getting brown,switch off the flame and add to the curry.

P.S-The curry tastes slightly sweet if ripe pumpkins are used.I used not so ripe pumpkins,so I added a small piece of jaggery for the sweet taste.

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