Shakambari-Vegetables unlimited

Tender jackfruit, peeled & cut into 2 cm cubes - 2 cups

Onion - 1 big – chop into big pieces

Tomato - 1 big – chop fine

Salt

Grind to a paste:

Green chillies - 7,8 ( or to taste)

Grated coconut - ½ cup

Fried gram ( pottukadalai) - 2 tbsp

Jeera - ½ tsp

To temper:

Oil - 2 tbsp

Cinnamon - 1”

Pepper - ¼ tsp

Saunf - ¼ tsp

Cook jackfruit pieces in water till soft, drain & reserve the water for gravy.

Heat oil, temper as given, add onions & fry till they become glossy.

Add tomatoes & fry till soft.

Add the paste & go on frying till the raw smell goes.

Add jackfruit pieces, salt & blend thoroughly.

Add the reserved water & more water if necessary, to simmer & get a gravy of desired consistency.

French beans used for this must be very fresh & very tender.

Moong dhal ( lightly roasted) - ¼ cup

Tender beans, chopped - 1 cup

Green chillies - 2,3 – slit into 2

Onion - 1 – chop

Salt, haldi

To temper:

Ghee - 1 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Jeera - ½ tsp

Curry leaves - few.

Wash & soak dhal for 1 hr.

Cook in 1 cup of water with haldi.

When half cooked, add vegetable, onion & green chillies.

When the vegetable becomes soft, add salt, mix well & remove.

Temper as given.

Those who do not prefer onions can omit it.

When you boil everything togeter, make sure there is not excess of water, but just sufficient for the desired consistency.

Vegetables like cabbage, banana stem, chow chow, snake gourd can be prepared this way.
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Idichakai is also known as tender jackfruit in English & Kathal in hindi.

This method of preparation is very popular in Kerala.

Select a tender jackfruit, peel the hard skin & cut into 1 “ cubes.

Jackfruit cubes - 3 cups

Grated coconut - 1 cup

Red chillies - 2,3

Jeera - 1 tsp

To temper:

Coconut oil - 2 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Urad dhal - 2 tsp

Curry leaves - few

Cook the jackfruit pieces in water till ¾ cooked.

Strain & discard the boiled water.

Cool & crush them coarsely.

Formerly this used to be done in the grinding stone carefully, to prevent it from being mashed completely.

Now one can do it using the whipper blade of the mixi jar & churning small quantities at a time.

Keep the crushed mixture ready.

Coarsely grind coconut with dry chillies & jeera without adding water.

In a kadai heat coconut oil ( if you wish so, you can use refined oil), add mustard seeds, urad dhal & curry leaves.

When done add the mixture, salt, coconut paste & mix well.

Saute on a low flame for a few mts.

Makes a good side dish with rice & sambar, rasam etc.

Paneer - 400 gms

Grated coconut - 2 cups

Onions - 250 gms

Potatoes - 250 gms

Tomatoes - 250 gms

Ghee - 4 tbsp

Salt, haldi

Chilli powder - 2 tsp

Grind to a paste (1)

Ginger - 1”

Pepper - 1 tsp

Khus khus - 2 tsp

Onion - 1

Coriander leaves - 1 cup

Grind to a paste (2):

Green chillies - 7,8

Garlic - 6 pieces

Grind to a paste (3):

Cashews - 10,12

Fry in 2,3 drops of ghee & powder:

Cloves - 6

Cardamom - 6

Cinnamon - 1 “

To temper:

Saunf - 1 tsp

Jeera - 1 tsp

Peel, cube & lightly steam the potatoes.

Add 1 cup of warm water to coconut & take the first milk.

To the residue add 2 more cups of warm water & take the second milk.

Heat ghee & temper as given.

Add first paste & fry well.

Add steamed potatoes & onions & fry well to coat them with the masala.

Add second coconut milk with the second paste & cook for a few mts.

Add salt, haldi & chilli powder.

Add chopped tomatoes, cover with a lid & cook till tomatoes are soft.

Now add the first extract along with cashew paste & spice powder.

Add salt & simmer for atleast 10 mts for all flavours to blend.

In the meanwhile soak chopped paneer cubes in warm water to soften them.

Add the paneer cubes, simmer for a few more mts & remove.

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Anardhana is dried pomegranate seeds, available as such in departmental stores. It gives a tangy, sour taste to the dish. You can omit it, if it is not available.

Kabul channa - 1 cup

Tomatoes - 3 – chop fine

Tamarind paste – 1 tsp ( optional)

Coriander leaves, copped - ¼ cup

Oil - 2 tbsp

Jeera - 1 tsp

Salt

To grind raw:

Dhaniya ( soaked well) - 1 tbsp

Red chillies - 6 ( or to taste)

Cinnamon - 1 cm

Cardamom - 3

Cloves - 3

Coconut - ½ cup

Anardhana ( roasted) - 1 tsp

Onions - 2 – chop

Soak channa overnight with a pinch of soda in plenty of water.

Wash & pressurecook it with little salt, till very soft.

Drain & reserve the liquid.

This liquid can be used for grinding the ingredients.

In a pressure pan, heat oil & temper jeera.

Add the ground paste & fry on a low fire till the raw smell goes.

Next fry the chopped tomatoes till they turn pulpy.

Now add the cooked channa, salt, tamarind paste & as much of the remaining reserved liquid to get the gravy of desired consistency, as you like.

Close the pan & cook for one whistle for thorough blending.

Cool, open, add coriander leaves & top with 1 tbsp ghee for a delicious flavour.

Note:

Those who do not eat onions can grind 7,8 cashewnuts with the paste & 1 tbsp cooked channa if you prefer a thick consistency.

Karunaikizangu is a variety of yam about 3-4" long & oblong in shape.
It is also known as " pidi karunai".
Do not use karunaikizangu when it is fresh – it is best to allow it to stand for 4,5 days & then cook it.
With tamarind:

Karunaikizangu - 3 medium size

Cooked tur dhal - ½ cup

Salt, haldi

Dry roast & powder:

Red chillies - 3-4

Rice - 1 tsp

Gram dhal (or tur dhal) - 2 tsp

Udad dhal - 2 tsp

Hing - ½ tsp

To temper in 1 tsp oil:

Mustard seeds - ½ tsp

Curry leaves - few

Boil the vegetable in jacket, directly in the pressure pan, in water for 2 whistles.

Cool, open, peel & crumble.

In the pressure pan, add mashed vegetable, freshly made powder, tamarind paste , 1 cup water, salt, haldi & cooked dhal.

Make it up to desired consistency & pressurecook for 1 whistle.

Cool, open & temper.

Variation:

Instead of cooked tur dhal, cooked moong dhal can be used.

If preferred, dhal can be omitted completely.

With lime juice & little tamarind:

Karunaikizangu - 3 medium size

Cooked tur dhal - ½ cup (optional)

Tamarind paste - 1 tsp or less

Green chillies - 2, chopped

Ginger - 2 “, chopped

Lime juice - 2 tsp

Salt, haldi

Coriander leaves - few, chopped

To temper in 2 tsp oil:

Mustard seeds - ½ tsp

Udad dhal - 1 tsp

Red chilli - 1

Hing - ½ tsp

Curry leaves - few

Boil the vegetable in jacket, directly in the pressure pan, in water for 2 whistles

Cool, open, peel & crumble.

Mix this with thin tamarind water, salt & haldi.

In a kadai add oil, temper, add chopped green chillies & ginger, then add the crumbled mixture with salt & haldi.

If you are using dhal, add now.

Boil & simmer for a few mts.

Remove, cool &add lime juice.

It is customary to add little jaggery to this.

Add coriander leaves.

Dear Mrs Chithra,

Shakambari is a good thread. Looking hard, I find I use it's recipes more often than other recipes since this is daily cooking. When it is convenient can you post traditional Southi recipes with vazhakkai, chenai and seppankizhangu. I make the vazhakkaikootu you gave in IT, it is wonderful.

best regards
Vidya

Chenai is elephant yam.

With tamarind:

Chenai cut into thin 1” squares - 2 cups

Tamarind paste - 2 tsp

Sambar powder - 2 tsp

Cooked tur dhal - ½ cup

Salt, haldi

To temper in 1 tsp oil:

Red chilli - 1

Mustard seeds - ½ tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - few

Hing powder - ½ tsp

Boil chenai in just enough water with haldi in a pressure pan for one whistle.

Cool, open & drain .( If the vegetable is itchy, it is safer to drain the water )

Wash the pan & in that, put cooked chenai, tamarind paste mixed with 1 cup water, sambar powder, salt & cooked dhal.

Adjust to the desired consistency by adding necessary water.

Again pressurecook for one whistle.

Open, lightly mash the contents & temper as given.

Chopped coriander leaves can be added.

With lime juice:

This is called chenai kadi & is best with very good variety of the vegetable.

Chenai, chopped into very small cubes - 2 cups

Gram dhal (soaked in boiling water for 1 hr) - ½ cup

Green chillies chopped - 2,3

Ginger finely chopped - 1 “

Grated coconut - 2 tbsp (more is optional)

Salt, haldi , curry leaves

Lime juice - 2 tsp ( or a little more)

To temper in1 tsp oil:;

Red chilli - 1

Mustard seeds - ½ tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Hing powder - ½ tsp

To decorate:

Chopped coriander leaves.

Boil the soaked gram dhal, vegetable, chopped ginger & green chillies, haldi & salt in just enough water in a pressure pan.

After the first whistle comes, in 2 mts (before the second whistle comes), switch off the flame.

The dhal & vegetable should be soft, not mushy.

Cool, open add grated coconut & temper as given.

When it cools a little, add lime juice & coriander leaves.

Potatoes - ½ kg

Oil - 2 tbsp + 1 tbsp

Salt, haldi

Grind together:

Onions - 3 big

Cinnamon - 1 “

Cardamom - 5

Gram dhal - 1 tbsp

Dhaniya - 2 tsp

Red chillies - 7,8 ( or to taste)

Peel & cut potatoes into big cubes.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pressure pan & fry the potato cubes for 3,4 mts & remove.

Add the remaining oil & fry the paste well.

Then add fried potato cubes, salt, haldi & 2 cups of water.

Pressure cook for 3 whistles.

Cauliflowerettes small - 3 cups

Boiled peas - 1 cup

Tomatoes - 2 - chop

Red chilli powder - 2 tsp

Dhaniya powder - 1 tsp

Pepper powder - ½ tsp

Salt, haldi

Grind to a paste:

Onions - 2

Garlic - 6 flakes

Melon seeds - 1 tbsp ( soak for 2 hrs)

Ginger - 1 ‘

To temper:

Oil - 1 tbsp

Jeera - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - few

Clean the cauliflowerettes by immersing them in warm water to which little salt or vinegar is added.

Rise well & drain.

In a pressure pan, heat oil & temper as given.

Next fry the tomatoes till they turn pulpy.

Add spice powders, peas, ground paste, salt & cauliflower.

Add ½ cup of water & pressure cook for one whistle.

Cool, open & serve hot.