Uzhunnu vada

Preparation time: 30 min | Cooking time: 30 min

My family's favourite snack. We happened to meet a friend from north india. During our acquaintance they talked about south indian food and their version of the same. But they never had the opportunity to have the original home cooked one. We invited them over one day and decided to serve them south indian recipes. I really do not have words to express the way they relished all of them. Vada was one of the dishes and they enjoyed it to the last one. It was a great feeling to have a happy guest at home.

Ingredients
Black gram(urad dal)-2 cups
Rice flour-1tbsp
Cooked rice-3tbsp
Onion(chopped)-1 big
Salt to taste
Green chillies(chopped)-2
Crushed black pepper-1tsp
Curry leaves(chopped)-a few
Ginger(chopped)- 1" piece

Method
Soak the urad dal in water for 2-3 hours. Wash it well and drain the water. Grind it along with the cooked rice in 1/4 cup of water (the lesser the water the better). Now add the rest of the ingredients to this ground dal and mix well. Pat your hands with water and make balls of the paste and flatten them. Make a hole in the centre and deep fry them in oil till golden brown in colour.



Serve with chutney or sambar.

Masala dosa

This does not need any introduction as it is a world renowned recipe that's a sure item in any south indian restaurant. Dosa takes precedence over idli for most of the people and our home is no exception. I have a lot of my friends from northern India who craves to have this dish cooked in the authentic southern style. Personally to me this is THE combo.

For Dosa
Ingredients
Rice-1 1/2cups
Cooked rice-1/4cup
Urad dal-1/2cup
Methi (fenugreek) seeds-1/4tsp
Oil
Salt to taste

Method
Wash the rice & urad dal. Soak the urad dal together with methi seeds for about 3 hours. Soak the rice in water for 4-5 hours. Drain the water from the urad dal and grind it in a mixie adding water until it becomes a fine & frothy mixture. Now drain the water from the rice and grind it along with the cooked rice adding water until it is smooth. Mix the ground items and allow it to ferment for 10-12 hours. The consistency of the batter should be of such that it thickly coats a spoon dipped in it. Add salt.

Heat a pan or griddle and smear it with a little oil. Spread the mix on the pan in a circular motion to make thin dosa. Cook on both the sides, if desired.

Preparation time: 30 min | Cooking time: 15 min

For masala filling
Ingredients
Potatoes-2 large
Onion (chopped)-1 medium
Mustard seed-1/2tso
Turmeric powder-1/2tsp
Urad dal-1/4tsp
Channa dal-1/4tsp
Green chili-1 to 2
Tomato (optional)-1 small
Chopped coriander leaves-2tsp
Curry leaves-few
Oil
Salt to taste

Method
Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, urad dal, channa dal and curry leaves. When the mustard seeds splutter add the green chillies and the onions. Saute for about 5 minutes. Add turmeric powder and the tomatoes. Cook until the tomatoes are blend well. Now add the mashed potatoes, mix well and cook for about 5 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Preparation time: 10 min | Cooking time: 5 min

For coconut chutney
Ingredients
Grated coconut-1cup
Ginger-small piece
Green chillies-1 or 2
Roasted channa dal-1tbsp
Shallots-2
Red chillies-2
Mustard seeds-1/2tsp
Curry leaves-few
Oil for seasoning
Salt to taste

Method
Grind all the ingredients in a mixer.
Heat oil in a kadai, add the mustard seeds, curry leaves and red chillies. When the mustard seeds pops, add it to the chutney. Consistency can be varied depending on individuals taste.

Idli with mutton curry

The combination for some would come as a surprise but it takes me back to my childhood memories. We had a lot of tamilian neighbours and most of them used to prepare this during diwali. It was from them that we had our first taste and there after it appeared quite frequently in our menu.

Idli
Ingredients
Raw rice or idli rice-3cups
Urad dal-1cup
Cooked rice-1/2cup
Methi (fenugreek seeds)-1/2tsp
Salt to taste

Method
Wash the rice & urad dal. Soak the urad dal together with methi seeds for about 3 hours. Soak the rice in water for 4-5 hours. Drain the water from the urad dal and grind it in a mixie adding water until it becomes a fine & frothy mixture. Now drain the water from the rice and grind it along with the cooked rice adding water until it is smooth. Mix the ground items and allow it to ferment for 10-12 hours. The batter should be of dripping consistency, just right to pour into the idli steamer. Add salt before steaming.

Then make idlis in the idli steamer. Steam the idlis for about 10 minutes.

Preperation time: 20min | Cooking time: 40 min

Mutton curry
Ingredients
Mutton-500gms
Potatoes-2
Onions(sliced)-2
Grated coconut-1/2cup
Coriander powder-3tsp
Chilli powder-1tsp
Turmeric powder-1/2tsp
Black pepper-10
Cinnamon stick(1 inch)-1
Cloves-3
Ginger(chopped)-1tsp
Garlic(chopped)-1tsp
Curry leaves-a few
Oil
Salt to taste

Method
Wash the mutton well and add the turmeric powder and a few curry leaves. Mix well and keep it aside.

Heat some oil in a pan and add cinnamon, cloves & black pepper. When the pepper starts to pop add ginger, garlic and onions and saute until onion changes the colour slightly. Now add the grated coconut and fry until coconut turns light brown. Add the coriander powder and chilli powder and roast until it loses its raw smell. Cool this mixture and grind it to a fine paste. Add this to the mutton and mix well.



Heat some oil in a pressure cooker and add the mutton. Saute for about 5 minutes. Add potatoes(pieces should be bigger) and salt. Add a glass of water and pressure cook until the mutton is done.

Egg roast

Preparation time: 40min | Cooking time: 30 min

Boiled egg is not in my in list of favourites. The same with my kids too. They don't like the yoke in that form. But if prepared in this manner they really enjoy until the last bit. The same goes with myself :-)

Ingredients
Boiled eggs-6
Onions-1
Coriander powder-2tsps
Chilli powder-1tsp
Turmeric powder- a pinch
Oil-3tbsp
Few curry leaves
Salt to taste

Method
Cut the eggs into halves. Make a paste of all the masalas & salt with a little water. Spread this well over the eggs.



Heat some oil in a large frying pan, add the curry leaves and the chopped onions. Spread it evenly all over the pan. Now place the eggs carefully in the pan and cook on a slow flame until the egg turn slightly brown. Do the same for the other side. The onions will also turn brown and crispy. This goes well with plain rice & dal or curd rice.

Chicken chops

Preparation time: 15 min | Cooking time: 35 min

I don't know the origin of this recipe but learnt it from my mother-in-law. It is a dry dish that goes well with chapatis and rice. This is easy and quick to prepare.

Ingredients
Chicken-1.5kg
Onions-3
Pepper (capsicum)-1
Ginger/Garlic paste-2tsp
Coriander powder-3tsp
Chilli powder-2tsp
Garam masala-1/2tsp
Turmeric powder-1/4tsp
Oil
Salt to taste

Method
Dry roast all (except turmeric powder) the masala powders. Clean and cut the chicken into medium pieces. Add the ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder and half of the roasted masalas and keep it aside for a while.



Take a pan add the marinated chicken and salt, cook until the chicken is done. In another pan add oil and the onion wedges (cut into 4 and split each layer). Now add the remaining roasted masalas and saute for 2 minutes. Add the chicken to this and mix well. The onions should not be over cooked. Then add the pepper wedges and cook for 5 - 10 min.