Puli Kootu with one veg.

Ingredients:

• A.P.P-3 to 4 spoon
• Shredder Coconut-3 spoons
• Any one of the told vegetable for puli kootu-250Gms.
• Oil for seasoning
• Kari Patha
• Thur Dal-1/2 cup(100Gms. approx.)
• Tamarind-A small lemon size
• Socked Chenna(or ground nut)-A hand full
• Mustard seeds-1/2 spoon
• Powdered Fenugreek-1/2 spoon
• Turmeric powder-1/2 spoon

Method:

• Cook dal, chenna or ground nut, and the vegetable which you have chosen, in a pressure cooker.
• Pour oil in the kadai and add mustard seeds first.
• After they burst, add turmeric powder and pour the cooked dal vegetable mixture in it.
• Now extract a tumbler of water from the tamarind and pour that in kadai.
• Add A.P.P, salt, fenugreek powder, kari patha and shredder coconut to that.
• If you want to smash the coconut, put the coconut in the mixer for a minute and then put it in the pulli kootu.
• Let us allow the kootu to boil for 4 to 5 minutes.
• But keep a eye on it and it may stick in the bottom of the kadai.
• So stir it accationaly.
• Now the pulli kootu is ready to serve.
• You can have this with plain rice and ghee.
• For side dish fry papped in the oil or vathal.
• Even you can use potato chips as side dish to this kootu.

Green plantain curry

Ingredients:

• Green Plantain 2
• Mustard seeds 1/2 sp
• Udad dal 1/2 sp
• A.P.P. 2 sp
• Salt
• oil
• Curry leaves

Method:

• Pour oil in kadai.
• Add some Mustard seeds and Udath dal and fry them.
• After that add green plantain pieces in to kadai and fry Add salt and stir them. After a minute or two add the A.P.P. and mix them well .
• If the curry is sticking with kadai make the stove simmer and add more oil.
• Let the vashai kai fry nicely.
• Stir occasionally.
• Finally sprinkle some Channa flour or rice flour on the curry to get a good finish.
• And the flour will absorb the excess oil and make the curry more crisp.
• You can serve this as side dish for any sambar or rasam.
• Small children can mix this curry with rice and ghee.

Notes:

• We South Indians use VAZHAI KAI more in our cooking.
• For green plantain curry you remove the skin first.
• Cut them in to pieces as per your wish and put them in water.
• Other wise they will turn black like brinjal.
• Then you make curry as potatoes.
• For all the curry you can put curry pathas.
• They will give a very good aroma to the curry.
• If you like put a pinch of Asafoetida powder in the curry and this will also give you a good aroma and good for digetation.

Puli Kootu - Introduction

Ingredients:

• Actually kootu means: "mixture of something".
• Puli kooru means, use puli or puli paste with dal and veg.

Method:

• Here we are going to mix vegetables with dal.
• For this kootu we must use Thur dal only .
• Generally in olden days they prepare kootu by cooking dal and the veg. separately but I used keep them both in the cooker and by doing this we can save time, gas energy and we can avoide over cooking also.
• I think while cooking you will also feel, what I am saying is correct.
• Now let us prepare the pulli kootu now and I am going to give 2 varities of the pulli kootu.
• First you must know the name of the vegetables from which we usually prepare pulli kootu.
• They are Brinjal, chow chow, Small Ash Gourd.
• You can make pulli kootu by using these veg. separately.
• And the second varitey is called as SANKARANTHI KOOTU and while preparing this we will add many veg.
• in that and usually we will prepare this Sankaranthi Kootu during Pongal time.
• In Sankaranthi Kootu we can add, Brinjal, Chow Chow, Pumpkin, Sweet potato, Potato, Yam, Beans,
• Carrots, Ash Gourd and we can add soaked Whole chenna, Fresh ground nut or Double beans seeds in
• the pulli kootu.

Tomato Rice - 2

Ingredients:

• Tomatoes
• 2 -3 green chilly
• 1/2 inch ginger
• 2 -3 sp All Purpose Powder
• For seasoning:
• Mustard seeds
• Channa dal
• Udad dal
• Asafoetida powder
• Turmeric powder
• Black pepper ( optional)

Method:

• First cook the rice and keep it aside in a tray. Let it cool.
• Now take 2 to 3 ripe tomatoes and cut them in to pieces.
• Cut 2 - 4 green chillies in two pieces.
• Grate 1/2 inch ginger.
• Now put a pan on the stove and pour some oil in that.
• Add mustard seeds, udad dal, Channa dal, asafoetida, turmeric powder in that.
• After the mustard seeds busts add green chillies and grated ginger in that and stir well.
• Next add the tomato pieces and fry them well.
• Add salt first and next add the all purpose powder in the mixture.
• Stir them continuously other wise the mixture will stick in the pan floor.
• When all the ingredients become like a paste, remove the pan from the fire.
• After it comes to room temperature, store it in a dry container.
• Now take two or three spoons of the tomato concentrate and add it to the cooked rice.
• Mix them well.
• Now the tomato bath is ready to serve.

Notes:

• For side dish, you can have potato chips or fried papped or vathal.
• You can keep the tomato concentrate for a month too. If you kept this in the freezer it will be there for more than 6 months. Whenever you need tomato rice you can prepare it without any strain.
• Even you can pack it for lunch.

Images:

Tomato Concentrate

Ingredients:

• Tomato 250 gms
• Green chilly 2- 4
• Ginger 1/2 inch.
• Mustard seeds 1/2 sp
• Udad dal 1/2 sp
• Channa dal 1/2
• Asafedita 1/4 sp
• Turmeric powder 1/4 sp
• Fried and powdered Fenugreek seed
• All Purpose Powder 2 to 3 sp (APP)
• Oil 2 tab sp

Method:

• Take 2 to 3 ripe tomatoes and cut them in to pieces.
• Cut 2 - 4 green chillies in two pieces.
• Grate 1/2 inch ginger.
• Now put a pan on the stove and pour some oil in that.
• Add mustard seeds, udad dal, Channa dal, asafoetida, turmeric powederand fried and powdered fenugreek seeds in that.
• After the mustard seeds busts add green chilliesand grated ginger in that and stir well.
• Next add the tomato pieces and fry them well.
• Add salt first and next add the all purpose powder in the mixture.
• Stir them continuously other wise the mixture will stick in the pan floor.
• When all the ingredients become like a paste, remove the pan from the fire.
• After it comes to room temperature, store it in a dry container.

Notes:

• Note: To make varity in this add crushed black peppers or onions or garlic while seasoning.

Images:

Mixed rice with APP (Dhania Sadham)

Ingredients:

• Cooked rice 1 cup
• APP 2 - 3 sp
• Ghee as per your taste
• Salt

Method:

• Mix rice and ghee.Now mix with App.
• That is all your Yummy Dhaniya rice is ready to serve.
• Serve with fired pappad.

Bitter Gourd Pittali.

Ingredients:

• Bitter gourd 1/2 kg
• Channa dal 1 hand ful
• ground nut 1 hand ful
• A.P.P.2 SP
• Thur dal 1 cup
• Tamarind paste 2 sp
• Fried coconut 2 tbs.

Method:

• This is also almost like pulli kootu.
• But we have to prepare it in a separate way.
• So generally Bitter gourd pittali is a special dish for us.
• After cutting the bitter gourd put some salt in that and mix it with the veg.well and keep it aside for 15 to 30 minutes.
• During this time you make other preparations for the kootu.
• Put a hand full of chenna and ground nut in water.
• Put the kadai and fry the Shredder Coconut in that and fry it till reddish in color.
• Keep aside.
• Now remove the water from the bitter gourd and squeeze them well.
• Keep the bittergourd, dal, soked ground nut and chenna dal together in the cooker.
• Add tamarind paste.
• After this you can make the pittali as same as pulli kootu.
• After finishing the pittali add the fried coconut in it and mix well.
• That is all.
• Now the delicious Bitter Gourd Pittali is ready.
• You can make Raithas as side dish for this.
• Added to this you can make Tomato Rasam also with this.
• Generally we prepare kootu Rasam or kootu thuvail for a meal.