Nellikai (amla/gooseberry) Oorgai

Ingredients

• Nellikai (Amla/ Gooseberry)- 20 nos
• Tamarind- Lemon sized ball
• Garlic- 3 (full sized) OR Asafoetida (hing)- 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric- 1 tsp
• Red Chilli Powder- 50 g
• Water- 1.5 cups
• Dry Roasted Fenugreek Seeds Powdered- 1 tsp
• Salt- 2 tsp (for the soaking) and to taste (for the mixing with red chilli)
• Oil- 1/2L (could be sunflower/refined or groundnut)
• Lemon- 1

Seasoning

• Mustard- 1 tsp
• Dry Red Chillies- 4
• Oil- 2 tsp

Procedure

Wash the nellikai (amla/gooseberry) and wipe dry. IMP: There should be no trace of moisture left.
Cut into small pieces as shown.

• 20 nellikai(amla/gooseberry)

Add turmeric and salt to the cut nellikai(amla/gooseberry). Keep the mixture overnight. Next morning grind the mixture coarsely.

• 1 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp salt

Put the above mixture in a wide bowl. Add some salt and red chilli powder. Keep aside.

• 50g red chilli (add more or less depending on the spice level you want)
• salt to taste (add more for more red chilli)

In a separate bowl heat 1.5 cups of water. Boil until 1 cup of water is left. Take the bowl off the stove and add the tamarind to it. Wait for five minutes. Now squeeze the tamarind and filter it out to make a thick extract. Keep aside.

• lemon sized tamarind
• 1.5 cups of water

Crush the garlic in a mortar and pestle. Do NOT peel. (If using asafoetida skip to next step)
keep 2 tsp aside for the seasoning

• 3 full garlic

Add the crushed garlic, tamarind extract and fenugreek powder to the nellikai (amla/gooseberry) mixture. Keep aside.

• crushed garlic
• tamarind extract
• 1 tsp dry roasted fenugreek seeds powdered
• nellikai (amla/gooseberry) mixture

Heat 1/2L of oil in a pan for 10-15 min on a medium flame. Add the hot oil to the nellikai(amla/gooseberry) mixture while stirring the mixture continuously.
The oil should float an inch above the nellikai (amla/gooseberry) .

• 1/2L oil (refined/groundnut/sunflower)

To season heat 2 tsp of oil in a bowl and add mustard. Once the mustard starts spluttering, add the red chillies and the 2 tsp of garlic kept aside. Once the garlic turns brown, put off the flame and pour the seasoning into the pickle. Keep aside for half an hour to cool. The pickle is almost done.
The pickle should have the consistency of a chutney. If it does not, add 1-2 tsp of hot water into it.

• 2 tsp oil
• 1 tsp mustard
• 4 red chillies
• 2 tsp crushed garlic

Add juice from one full lemon into the pickle. Voila! Its ready to be eaten with chapatti, dosai or rice :)

• 1 lemon

Mangai Injee Oorgai (Instant)

Ingredients

• Mangai Injee- 300 grams
• Green Chilli- 3
• Lemon- 1 medium sized
• Turmeric- 1/4 tsp
• Salt to Taste

Procedure

Peel off the skin of the mangai injee and cut into thin round slices.

• 300 grams of mangai injee

Finely chop the green chillies. Add the mangai injee, turmeric, salt and mix well. Add the lemon juice from the medium lemon and mix again.

• mangai injee from the previous step
• 3 green chillies
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1 medium sized lemon
• salt as per taste

Leave the mixture out in the sunlight for a day.

The mangai ingee oorgai is ready to be eaten. Serve with curd rice :)
Note: This oorgai is good for just two days

Patani Sundal

Ingredients

• Patani- 1 cup (boiled)
• Salt to Taste

For Masala Paste

• Onion- 1
• Garlic- 5 buds
• Green Chilli- 4-5
• Fennel Seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Salt - 1 pinch

For Seasoning

• Mustard - 1/2 tsp
• Cumin(Jeera) Seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Asafoetida (Hing)- 1/2 tsp
• Garlic- 5 buds (crushed)
• Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp
• Oil - 2 tsp

Preparation

*Masala Paste- Grind the ingredients listed to a paste.

• Onion- 1
• Garlic- 5 buds
• Green Chilli- 4-5
• Fennel Seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Salt - 1 pinch

Procedure

Heat oil in a kadhai and put in the ingredients listed under seasoning. When the seasoning starts to splutter, add the *masala paste. Fry until the raw smell of the masala evaporates.

• Mustard - 1/2 tsp
• Cumin(Jeera) Seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Asafoetida (Hing)- 1/2 tsp
• Garlic- 5 buds (crushed)
• Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp
• Oil - 2 tsp
• *masala paste

Add the boiled patani and mix. Switch the flame off after two minutes. Note: To boil the patani- Soak overnight and then cook it in a pressure cooker for 2 whistles.

• 1 cup boiled patani

Our patani sundal is ready!! Have it on a rainy day with hot tea :)

Kaju Barfi

Ingredients

• Cashews - 1 cup
• Sugar - 1/2 cup
• Water just enough to dissolve the sugar
• Ghee- 2 tsp
• Cardammom - 3 buds(optional) OR Saffron- 2 strings(optional)

Procedure

Microwave the cashews for 1 minute on high to dry the moisture in them. Then powder them to a fine consistency. Note: If microwaving is not possible grind the cashews using short quick pulses. If you do not do either of these, the grinding will make a paste instead of powder.

• 1 cup cashews

Dissolve the sugar and water in a thick bottomed pan and heat until the sugar reaches a one string consistency as shown. For this, keep the heat on high for about two minutes. As soon as the consistency is reached move to the next step. (Its important to be quick)

• 1/2 cup of sugar
• water to dissolve the sugar

Reduce the heat to medium and mix in the cashew powder. Fold the mixture. Add 1 tsp of ghee and keep folding. The last picture shows what the final texture should look like.

• cashew powder from the first step
• sugar syrup with one string consistency
• 1-1.5 tsp of ghee
• 3 buds of cardamom powdered (optional)

Grease a foil with the leftover ghee. Place the dough on a greased foil sheet and press as can be seen in the pictures. Wait to cool.

• 1/2 tsp of ghee

Make a diamond shaped pattern with a knife and serve the delicious kaju barfis as dessert!

Nellikai Thair Pachiri (Amla Raita)

Ingredients

• Nellikai (Amla) - 3
• Green Chillies- 2
• Grated Coconut- 1 tbsp
• Cumin (jeera) Seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Asafoetida (Hing)- 1/2 tsp
• Coriander Leaves- few
• Curd- 1/4 cup
• Salt- to taste

For Seasoning

• Mustard Seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Curry Leaves- 5
• Oil- 1/4 tsp

Procedure

Steam the nellikai (amla) and green chillies. Now grind all the ingredients (EXCEPT the curd) into a coarse paste. Note: To steam- I keep the(nellikai (amla) and green chillies) in a vessel in a pressure cooker while I cook rice/ dal.

• 3 nellikai (amla)
• 2 green chillies
• 2 tbsp grated coconut
• 1/2 tsp cumin (jeera) seeds
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)
• few coriander leaves
• salt as per taste

Mix the prepared paste with the curd.

• paste prepared in the previous step
• 1/4 cup curd

Season with mustard and curry leaves.

• 1 tsp oil
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 5 curry leaves

Voila! We have our nellikai (amla) thair pachiri which is yummy with rice or quinoa:)

Kara (Spicy) Chutney

Ingredients

• Shallots - 1 cup
• Red Chillies- 25
• Tamarind- gooseberry sized
• Salt- to taste

For Seasoning

• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Asafoetida- 1/2 tsp
• Oil- 5-6 tsp

Procedure

Grind the shallots, chillies, tamarind, and salt to a paste.

• 1 cup shallots
• 25 red chillies
• gooseberry sized tamarind piece
• salt as per taste

In a kadhai heat the oil and add the ingredients listed under seasoning. When they crackle, add the ground paste from the previous step. Keep the flame low and stir continuously for about 20 minutes or until the oil oozes out.

• 5-6 tsp oil
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)

The kara (spicy) chutney is ready to be had with idli or dosa:) What's more is that it won't get spoiled for a week!

Coconut Chutney

Ingredients

• Grated Coconut - 1 cup
• Dalia (roasted gram dal)- 2 tsp
• Green Chillies- 3
• Asafoetida- 1/2 tsp
• Salt- to taste

For Seasoning

• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Cumin (jeera) Seeds- 1/4 tsp
• Urad Dal- 1/2 tsp
• Curry Leaves- 10
• Oil- 1 tsp

Procedure

Grind coconut, chillies, dalia, salt and hing.

• 1 cup grated coconut
• 3 green chillies
• 2 tsp dalia (roasted gram dal)
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)
• salt as per taste

In a separate vessel heat the oil and add the ingredients listed under seasoning. When they crackle, switch off the stove and add the seasoning mix to the prepared chutney of the previous step.

• 1 tsp oil
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp cumin (jeera) seeds
• 1/2 tsp urad dal
• 10 curry leaves

Voila! We have our versatile coconut chutney that can be had with idli, any kind of dosa, pongal or adai:)

Drumstick Sambhar

Ingredients

• Drumstick- 10 pieces of 2 inches each
• Tomato - 1 small sized finely chopped
• Sambhar powder - 1.5 tsp
• Tamarind Water - 4-5 tbsp
• Cooked toor dal- 3 tbsp
• Methi podwer - 1/2 tsp (dry roast and grind methi seeds if you don't have this)
• Salt to Taste

For Seasoning

• Mustard - 1/2 tsp
• Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Curry Leaves - 10
• Asafoetida (Hing) - 1/2 tsp
• Shallots - 10 finely chopped
• Oil - 2 tsp

Procedure

Heat 1/2 cup of water in a kadhai and add the drumstick, sambhar powder and salt. Let this boil until the drumstick gets cooked.

• 10 pieces of 2 inch drumstick
• 1.5 tsp sambhar powder
• salt as per taste

Add the tamarind water, cooked dal and finely chopped tomato. Let this boil until the raw smell evaporates.

• 4-5 tbsp tamarind water
• 3 tbsp cooked toor dal
• 1 small tomato finely chopped

Heat oil in a different vessel and add the ingredients under seasoning. When the ingredients crackle, turn off the stove and add the seasoning to the methi powder. Mix and add to the prepared sambhar in the previous step.

• 2 tsp oil
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)
• 10 curry leaves
• 10 finely chopped shallots
• 1/2 tsp methi powder(dry roast and grind methi seeds if you don't have this)

The drumstick sambhar is ready to be served hot with rice, poriyal & papad!

Karamani (Long Beans) Poriyal

Ingredients

• Pachai Karamani (Long Beans) - 1/4 kg
• Idli Podi - 3 tsp
• Grated Coconut - 4 tsp
• Salt to Taste

For Seasoning

• Oil - 2 tsp
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Cumin Seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Urad Dal (Split) - 1/2 tsp
• Whole Red Chillies - 3 (split into 2 each)
• Curry Leaves - 5

Procedure

Heat oil in a kadhai and add the ingredients listed under seasoning one after another. Once they start to crackle, add the pachai karamani (long beans) and saute.

• 2 tsp oil
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp urad dal
• 3 whole red chillies
• 5 curry leaves
• 1/4 kg pachai karamani (long beans)

Add salt and saute for 2 minutes. Sprinkle some water and cover the kadhai for 2 minutes until the vegetable gets cooked.

• salt to taste

Now add the idli podi. Stir. Add the grated coconut, mix well and take the kadhai off the stove.

• 3 tsp idli podi
• 4 tsp grated coconut

The pachai karamani (long beans) poriyal is ready to be served! Eat this delicious side dish with hot rice, sambhar & rassam or roti :)

Beetroot Kurma/Sabzi

Ingredients

• Beetroot - 4
• Onions - 2
• Chow Chow - 1/2 (optional)
• Tomato - 1
• Garlic- 4 buds
• Oil - 3 tsp
• Salt to Taste

For Masala Paste

• Grated Coconut - 2 tsp
• Green Chillies- 4
• Ginger- 1/2 inch piece
• Fried Gram Dal - 1 tsp
• Fennel Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Cinncamon Stick- 1/2 inch piece
• Cloves - 2

For Seasoning

• Cumin(Jeera) Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Fennel Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Cinnamon Stick- 1/2 inch piece
• Kapok Buds - 1
• Anistar- 1

For Garnishing

• Chopped Coriander- a handfull

Preparation

*Masala Paste- Grind the ingredients to a paste.

• 2 tsp of grated coconut
• 4 green chillies
• 1/2 inch piece of ginger
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp fried gram dal
• 1/2 inch cinnamon stick
• 2 cloves

Procedure

Heat oil in a non-stick cooker and add the ingredients listed under seasoning. Saute for a few seconds. Add the onion and garlic. Saute until the onions turn translucent.

• 3 tsp oil
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 1/2 inch cinnamon stick
• 1 kapok bud
• 1 anistar
• 2 chopped onions
• 4 garlic cloves

Add the tomato and the chopped vegetables.Saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the *masala paste. Mix well. Put in the salt and add some water. Cook in the pressure cooker for two whistles. Note: You can add chopped potatoes in this step with the veggies if you'd like.

• 1 chopped tomato
• 4 chopped beetroots
• 1/2 chopped chow chow(optional)
• *masala paste
• salt as per taste

The beetroot kurma is ready :)Garnish with coriander and serve hot with chapatti, dosas or idlis !

• a handful of chopped coriander