Mango Sasive - yet another South Canara Recipe ! This dish is sweet & sour. This goes well with rice and rotis. Small whole mangoes can be used or diced mangoes can be used. If using small mangoes, peel first. Add a little water to the peel & squeeze. Mango pieces - 1 cups Salt Jaggery - optional. Grind together: Raw coconut - ½ cup Red chilli - 1-2 Slightly roasted mustard seeds - 1 tsp Mix mango pieces, ground paste, enough water, salt & haldi. Bring to a boil & remove. Some prefer to add a little tamarind paste to this. The consistency should not be watery, but a little thick. No tempering is done. I just added curry leaves for flavour.
Senai & Kadalai Kuzambu - I learnt this from my friend, Mrs Cheeniya ! Mrs Cheeniya is a treasure house of recipes from her 95 year old MIL ! I earnestly hope, I will learn a few more from her & post here ! The very small variety of brown channa ( called kothukadalai or sundakadalai) is ideally used for this. Senai is the elephant-yam variety. Chop senai, the same size as the small brown channa. Small brown channa - ½ cup (soak with a pinch of soda in water for 8 hrs) Senai cubes - 1 cup Sambar powder - 2-3 tsp Salt, hing To be boiled & pureed: Tomatoes - 4 Tamarind paste - 2 tsp To temper: Oil - 1 tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Curry leaves - few Pressurise brown channa with very little salt & boil senai cubes separately. In a pressure pan, heat oil, temper as given & add sambar powder. Add the tamarind-tomato puree, salt, boiled channa & senai. Cover with lid and weight & cook for one whistle. The consistency should be correct because there will be no loss in volume by evaporation. Serve with a green vegetable curry (with coconut) and appalam.
Brinjal – Mochai Kuzambu - yet another recipe from Ms Cheeniya ! This is a famous kuzambu from Madurai – that is the native place of me & Ms Cheeniya ! Select fresh uniform sized small round brinjals & slit into 4 keeping the bottom intact. Fresh mochai ( avarekalu) can be used . Or soak dried white mochai overnight in plenty of water, wash & pressurize till soft. Brinjals - 8-10 Mochai - ½ cup dry or 1 cup fresh Oil - 1 tbsp Salt, haldi Tamarind pulp - 1 tbsp (little more, by choice) To roast in 1 tsp oil & grind to a paste: Red chillies - 5, 6 Gram dhal - 2 tsp Dhaniya - 3 tsp Grated coconut - 2 tbsp To temper: Oil - ½ tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Curry leaves - few Boil mochai, add tamarind paste with water, salt & haldi. In another kadai, heat 1 tbsp oil & fry the brinjals fr 5 mts on medium flame. Add to the boiling mixture & cook. When brinjal becomes soft, add ground paste & simmer. Remove when the right consistency is reached & temper. Besides rice, this kuzambu goes very well with dosai, pongal etc. <xml id=yoombaxml></xml>
Gram Dhal Kadhi - a less common combination from Gujarath ! Gram dhal - ½ cup Curds - 1 cup To temper: Oil - 1 tsp Jeera - 1 tsp Hing - ¼ tsp Minced green chillies + ginger - 2 tsp Red chilli powder - ½ - 1 tsp Salt, sugar Coriander leaves Soak dhal for an hour & cook with 1 cup of water till soft. In another kadai, add oil & temper as given. When done, add cooked dhal & simmer. Remove when everything is well blended. Add salt, sugar & whisked curds. Mix thoroughly to get a uniform consistency. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve with roti or rice.
Clusterbeans Poricha Kuzambu - a less common dish This can be made little thick & used as a side dish with vathakuzambu, kalanda sadams etc. If made into the kuzambu consistency, can be served with rice, a raita or a puli pachadi & appalam. Select fresh, tender clusterbeans & chop fine. Chopped clusterbeans = 1 cup Cooked tur dhal - ½ cup Roast in ½ tsp oil Red chillies - 2 Peppercorn - ½ tsp Urad dhal - 2 tsp Hing - ½ tsp & Grind to a paste with Grated coconut - 2 tbsp Rice - 1 tsp Salt To temper: Oil - 1 tsp Mustard seeds - ½ tsp Urad dhal - 1 tsp Curry leaves - few. Cook the clusterbeans in just enough water with haldi till soft. Add cooked dhal, ground paste & salt. Boil & add little water if necessary to get the required consistency. Remove & temper.
Simple Kuzambu - we also call it "Easy kuzambu" ! Onions - 3 – chop fine Tomatoes - 3 – chop fine Potatoes - 3 ( peel, cut into ½” cubes, steam) Drumstick - 2 – cut 2 “ long ( steam) Tamarind paste - 2 tsp Red chilli powder - 2 tsp Dhaniya powder - 1 tsp Haldi, salt To temper: Oil - 1 tbsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Jeera - ½ tsp Methi seeds - ½ tsp Saunf - ½ tsp Curry leaves - few Heat oil & temper all given ingredients one by one. Then add chopped onions & fry till colour changes. Add chopped tomatoes & fry till it becomes pulpy. Now add water, tamarind paste, all masala powders & steamed vegetables. When everything boils together, remove & add coriander leaves. Goes with rice as well as tiffins.
Omum (ajwain) Morkuzambu - an Andhra special ! I learnt this from my very young Andhra friend. Set the dining table & get this ready. Serve, freshly made for best flavour. Whip curds with a fork to get it thick buttermilk. Do not blend in the mixie. It is tasty if the buttermilk is just mildly sour. Thick sour buttermilk - 2 cups To temper: Oil - 1 tbsp Mustard seeds - ½ tsp Methi seeds - 1 tsp Omum - 3 tsp Green chillies - 5,6, slit long Curry leaves - few Hing - ½ tsp Haldi - a pinch Salt Chopped coriander leaves - for garnishing. Cooking the butter milk on stove op is not necessary at all. Keep it ready in a veesel. Heat oil add in order, mustard seeds, methi seeds, omum ( crushed well by rubbing in the palm of your hand), green chillies, curry leaves, hing & haldi. When well fried, add to the buttermilk. Add salt & mix well, crushing the green chillies with hand. Garnish with coriander leaves & serve fresh. Goes with hot rice, vegetable curry & appalam.
Tomato Pappu - I learnt this from my young Andhra friend This can be made with tur dhal or moong dhal. This goes well with hot rice & ghee and also with chappathis. Dhal - ½ cup Tomatoes - 3 chopped Red chilli powder - 1tsp Salt, haldi Grind together: Fresh coconut - ¼ cup Green chillies - 5, 6 (or to taste) To temper: Oil - 2 tsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Red chillies - 1, 2 Methi seeds - ½ tsp Curry leaves - few Hing - ½ tsp Optional: Onions finely chopped - 2 tbsp Crushed garlic - 2 tsp To garnish: Ghee - 2 tsp Chopped coriander leaves - 1 tbsp Pressurise dhal with 1 ½ cups of water & haldi, till soft. In a kadai, temper as given. Then add chopped tomatoes & red chilli powder. Fry till tomatoes are cooked. Add dhal and ground paste. Simmer to boil. Adjust to desired consistency by adding a little hot water. Remove & garnish.
Brinjal-Channa Rasavangi - a tasty S I dish with channa This is usually served in wedding lunches in Tamil Nadu Boiled channa - ½ cup (can be more by preference) Cubed brinjal - 2 cups Tamarind paste - 1 ½ tbsp Salt, haldi Boiled tur dhal - ½ cup To roast in a few drops of oil & powder: Red chillies - 6,7 Dhaniya - 4 tsp Gram dhal - 3 tsp Coconut - 2 tbsp To temper: Oil - 1 tsp Mustard - 1 tsp Curry leaves - few Chopped coriander leaves - 2 tbsp to garnish Boil brinjal with tamarind paste and haldi in 1 cup of water till soft. Add cooked channa & cooked tur dhal & cook for a few mts. Now mix the masala powder with minimum water & add. Simmer to just boil. Add a little more water, if necessary, to get the required consistency. Remove, garnish & temper. Pumpkin-mochai combo:
Mushroom-Curry leaves Kara kuzambu - special South Indian dish for mushroom lovers Mushrooms - 200 gms Fresh curry leaves - 1 cup Small onion - ½ cup – peel Roast in 2 tsp oil: Red chillies - 4,5 Dhaniya - 3 tsp Jeera – 1 tsp Khuskhus - 2 tsp Green chillies - 4,5 Garlic - 8, Tomatoes - 4 – chop Curry leaves - 1 cup Lastly add 2 tbsp coconut Grind the roasted ingredients with: Tamarind paste - 1 tbsp Salt To temper: Oil - 2 tbsp Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Heat oil & temper. Add small onions . Fry very well, add paste, & salt. Add water, boil & add chopped mushrooms. On a small flame allow to boil & then simmer for 3-4 mts. Keep coverd for sometime.