Oats Murungaikeerai Adai | Oats Lentil Crepe with Drumstick Leaves

Oats Murungaikeerai Adai | Oats Lentil Crepe with Drumstick Leaves is a nutritious tiffin with the goodness of main ingredients-oats, lentils & drumstick leaves. It is packed with carbohydrate, protein, vitamins & minerals and ideal for a day to start with. The batter for adai needs no fermentation and very easy to prepare. Instead of preparing regular recipes with oats, this oats adai is a good variation to try for a change. It goes well with coconut chutney, avial or jaggery. 

 Check out for my other Adai varieties Here.

Recipe for Oats Murungaikeerai Adai | Oats Lentil Crepe with Drumstick Leaves

Cuisine : Indian| South Indian

Recipe Category : Breakfast/Dinner

Soaking Time : 1 Hour (Min)

Preparation Time: 5 Minutes

Cooking time : 3-4 Minutes per adai

Serves – 4

Ingredients:

• Oats – 1 cup
• Toor dhal – ½ cup
• Channa dhal – ½ cup
• Drumstick leaves – 1 cup
• Red chillies – 4- 5 Nos
• Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
• Ginger – ½” piece
• Asafoetida – ½ tsp
• Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
• Salt – to taste
• Gingelly oil – as required
• Coconut gratings (optional)– ¼ cup
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash and soak toor dhal and channa dhal together in water for an hour.
2. In the mean time, clean murungaikeerai and pluck only the leaves. Wash them well in water, drain and keep aside.
3. First grind red chillies, ginger piece, fennel seeds together.  To this add the soaked dhals and grind coarsely. Transfer the dhal batter to the container.
4. Add oats to the mixer and grind coarsely by adding water. Transfer this to the same container.
5. To the oats-dhal batter, add the washed, cleaned drumstick leaves, coconut gratings, turmeric powder, asafoetida & salt. Mix everything well and bring the batter to a thick idli batter consistency by adding water, if needed.
6. Heat a tawa. Pour a ladle full of batter and spread it circularly like a thin dosa.
7. Drizzle few drops of oil and close with the lid and cook in simmer.
8. After  2 minutes, open the lid and carefully flip the adai to the other side and cook in simmer without lid for about 2 minutes. 

Hot & soft Oats Murungaikeerai Adai is ready. You can serve this adai with cocnut chutney or avail. But my personal preference is always for jaggery…so simple but yum.

Note:

This recipe will give soft adais as we add only the oats. If you want crispy, you can add ½ cup of raw rice in addition to the above ingredients.

Tags: Adai dosa recipes, Lentil crepe recipes, Oats recipes, Breakfast recipes, Dinner recipes, Diabetic recipes, Greens recipes, Murungai keerai recipes, Drumstick leaves recipes, Oats adai recipe, Murungaikeerai adai recipe, How to make soft adai with oats?, Healthy breakfast/dinner ideas, South Indian breakfast recipes, lentil pancakes recipes

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Ulundhu Kali | Urad Dhal Halwa | Sweetened Black Gram Halwa

Ulundhu Kali | Urad Dhal Halwa | Sweetened Black Gram Halwa is an authentic, traditional South Indian dish. First and foremost word, I want to tell about this dish is …it is not a gorgeous | appetizing one to bring waters in your mouth but words are scarce to say about its health benefits. A healthy thickened porridge, called “Kali” in Tamil, is usually  prepared during the occasion when girls attain their puberty since it is believed to strengthen the pelvic and back bones. It is very good for girls in their teens, lactating moms, ladies in menopause, etc. Every household in Tamil Nadu have their own proportion for preparing the base flour for this kali and here is my version.

Ingredients:

• Black urad dhal  - 1 cup
• Raw rice – ¼ cup
• Jaggery - ½ cup to ¾ cup
• Gingelly oil | Ghee – 1 to 2 tbsp
• Water  - 2 cups + 1 cup + ½  cup

Method:

For preparing Ulundu Kali Flour:

1. In a thick bottomed kadai, dry fry urad dhal in slow fire until you get nice aroma & remove. In the same kadai, fry rice till its colour changes. 
2. Cool  and powder both in a mixie or flour mill.

For preparing Ulundu Kali:

1. Melt jiggery in ½  cup of water and strain the impurities. Keep it aside.
2. Take a cup of kali flour in a mixing  bowl,  add a cup of water and prepare a thick batter without any lumps. Keep it aside.
3. Boil  2 cups of water in a thick bottomed kadai and bring it to rolling boil.
4. Now, keeping the fire in simmer, slowly add the urad dhal batter, mixing it quickly with a wooden spatula so that lumps will not be formed.
5. After the mixture gets thickened and becomes glossy, add the jiggery syrup and mix well.
6. Cook in medium flame till the mixture reaches halwa consistency.

Your Ulundu Kali is ready. Now you pour the kali in  a serving plate, dig a hole in the middle, drizzle some gingelly oil | ghee over this and start eating from the outer layer when  hot.

Note:

• It is believed that Ulundu when combined with gingelly oil will give you the whole benefit of eating this kali. If you don’t like you can add ghee also.
• It is always tastier to eat hot kali, so make it in small quantity.
• The kali flour can be stored for 3 to 6 months like our regular rice flour.
• White urad dhal can also be used with the same measurements to prepare Ulundu kali flour.
• You can also use palm jaggery instead of jaggery.

Tags; Ulundu kali Recipe, Black Urad Dhal Kali Recipe, Urad dhal with skin recipes, How to prepare ulundhan kali with roasted urad dhal powder? Skinned urad dhal kali recipe, How to prepare uluththankali for girls?, How to prepare ulunthuk kali with black gram?, Ulundhu Recipes, Dhal Recipes, ulundu sweet kali, Urad dhal halwa recipe, How to prepare ulundu kali flour?, How to prepare Ulundu kali with dry flour? 

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Chow Chow Kootu | Chayote Moong Dhal Kootu | Seemai Kathirikai Kootu

Chow Chow  Siru Paruppu Kootu | Chayote  Kootu | Seemai Kathirikai Kootu is a famous South Indian side dish which is usually made for steamed rice. The vegetable has many names and popularly known as ‘Chow chow” or “Seemai kathirikai ” in Tamil Nadu. It is called Chayote squash in English and find a place in many recipes world over.

Today’s recipe, chow chow kootu is a simple kootu made with siru paruppu | Moong dhal | Payatham paruppu. It can even be fed to babies after completing a year and those who are convalescent.

Ingredients:

• Chow chow     - 1 No.
• Moong dhal     - 75 ml
• Turmeric powder – a pinch
• Shallots (chopped) - 5 Nos.
• Tomato (chopped) – 1 No.
• Salt to taste

To grind:

• Scraped coconut – 2 tbsp
• Green chilli – 1 No.
• Cumin seeds (Jeera) -1/2  tsp

For seasoning:

• Mustard – 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds (Jeera) -1 tsp
• Curry leaves - few
• Oil – 1 tsp

Method:

1. Peel the skin from the vegetable and dice it into small cubes.
2. Cook the moong dhal with turmeric powder  and water until very soft.
3. In the mean time, grind the ingredients given for grinding coarsely by adding little water and keep it aside.
4. Add the diced chow chow to the cooked moong dhal, add ¼ cup water and close with a lid till the vegetable gets cooked well. When it is done, add required salt and the ground paste and stir well.
5. Pour oil in a kadai and season with the items given “For seasoning”.
6. Then add onions  and tomato, sauté for a minute and transfer the seasoning over the kootu.  Allow it to stand for 5 minutes and switch off.

Your healthy chow chow moong dhal kootu is ready!!

This can  be had as an accompaniment for steamed rice with  kara kuzhambu, Meen kuzhambu or for rasam or can be mixed with rice with a drop of ghee!

Note:

• Carefully add water at step(4) while cooking  chayote with dhal to get kootu consistency .

Tags: South Indian style chow chow kootu recipe, chow chow with moong dhal kootu, chow chow siruparuppu kootu recipe, chow chow payatham paruppu kootu, seema vangaya kootu recipe, seema kathirikai kootu, healthy vegetable kootu recipes

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Paruppu Vadai | Masal Vada | Aama Vadai | Parippu Vada

Paruppu Vadai | Masal Vada | Aama Vadai | Parippu Vada is an interesting South Indian snack. It is not only an usual snack but it is made as a special dish on all festive occasions.   No vegetarian feast is complete without ‘Vada’ & ‘Payasam’ irrespective of the number of dishes made. I usually prefer to make Paruppu Vada for lunch | evening snack and Medhu Vada for morning breakfast. It can also be made  for Neivedyam for some poojas! If this vada is made for Pooja, it can be prepared with No onion & No garlic.

Paruppu vada is best enjoyed with a sip of tea! 

Here is the recipe!

Ingredients:

• Bengal Gram Dhal (KadalaiParuppu) – 1 cup
• Red chillies – 6 nos
• Fennel seeds – 1 Tbsp
• Garlic – 2 to 3 pods
• Green chillies (finely chopped) – 2 nos
• Asafoetida  -  1 tsp
• Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
• Shallots (finely chopped) – 15 nos
• Ginger (chopped) – 1 tsp
• Coriander and curry leaves ( finely chopped)- 1 Tbsp each
• Salt as required
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

1. Soak the kadalaiparuppu and red chillies for minimum one hour. Now add the soaked dhal along with red chillies and garlic and grind it coarsely without adding water and transfer the dhal to a large bowl.
2. With the ground dhal, add fennel seeds, finely chopped green chillies, onion, coriander& curry leaves, asafoetida, turmeric powder and salt and thoroughly mix everything without adding water.
3. In the mean time, heat oil in  a flat bottomed kadai.
4. Make small balls out of the vada mixture. Flatten these balls and fry in slow fire, flip the vadai on both sides till vadais turn into golden brown colour.

Mouth watering, crispy Masal Vadai is ready to eat. This can be taken as evening snack along with tea, I usually reserve some for the evening when it is made for lunch. It can also be had with any variety rice, sambar rice, curd rice or for rasam.

Note :

• Care should be taken while grinding kadalai paruppu, it should be coarsely ground without adding water.

Tags: Paruppu vadai recipe, Masal vadai recipe, How to make crispy vadas with Bengal gram dhal?, Aama vadai recipe, Masala vadai, Hot & crispy vadas for evening snacks, Tea time snacks recipe, ஆம வடை| ஆமை வடை

I am linking this recipe to http://www.aathidhyam.in/2013/12/cook-n-share-what-you-like-event.html

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Easy Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu | Lentil Balls Gravy

Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu | Chettinad Style Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu | Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu is an interesting gravy with tangy, spicy taste suits the best for hot steamed rice. Everybody will go away on seeing “Paruppu urundai kuzhambu” recipe b’cos it involves so many steps. But I will come out with my secret recipe so that you can prepare this dish as simple as Kara Kuzhambu. The method I follow here does not require the paruppu urundai to be steamed or fried.  Since we don’t fry these balls, we can say this is a low calorie version of making paruppu urundai kuzhambu. With little patience and by following the steps meticulously , this kuzhambu will definitely  have a place in your regular menu. But don’t get panic on seeing the list of ingredients.

Ingredients:

For making Urundai:

• Channa dhal (Kadalai Paruppu) – 1 Cup
• Toor dhal – ½ cup
• Red chillies – 2 Nos
• Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
• Shallots (finely chopped)-6 to 8 Nos
• Green chilly (finely chopped)– 1 No
• Garlic – 2 pods (optional)
• Asafoetida – 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder – a pinch
• Coriander leaves (chopped) – 2 tbsp
• Curry leaves(chopped) – 1 tbsp
• Coconut gratings – 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

For making Kuzhambu/Gravy:       

• Tamarind – 1 big lemon size ball
• Red chilly powder – 3 tsp
• Coriander powder – 3 tsp
• Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
• Tomato – 1 No ( medium size)
• Shallots – 5 nos
• Green chilly (slitted) – 2 Nos
• Salt for gravy

For seasoning:

• Oil – 1 tbsp
• Bay leaf – 1
• Cinnamon stick – 1 piece
• Kadal paasi – 1 piece
• Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - few

Method:

1. Soak both dhals together for about 2 hours.
2. Soak tamarind in a cup of water,  squeeze out the pulp and keep it ready.
3. After 2 hours, drain the dhals and grind it coarsely along with fennel seeds, red chillies  and garlic and transfer the contents to the mixing bowl.
4. With the ground mixture, add finely chopped onion, green chillies, asafoetida, turmeric powder, coconut gratings, curry leaves, coriander leaves, salt required for urundai and mix everything well.
5. Make lemon sized balls out of this mixture and keep it aside.
6. In the mean time,  pour oil in a broad vessel or a flat-bottomed kadai and season with the ingredients given “For seasoning”.
7. Add shallots and green chillies, sauté for a while. Add tomato and cook until it gets mashed well.
8. Then add tamarind pulp, all masala powders and required salt (only for gravy). Finally, add one more cup of water and close with a lid and  bring it to a boil.
9. When the raw smell of masala goes off, open the lid and add ½ cup of water again so that the gravy is watery.
10. Now add  paruppu urundai | lentil balls gently into the gravy by spreading them over. Don’t overcrowd them in a single place. Close it with a lid. After 5 minutes , open the lid and gently, turn the balls to the other side without breaking them. At this time, the balls will be half-cooked. Again close the lid and cook for 5 more minutes. When the balls are completely cooked, they will float in the gravy. At this point,  cook for about 5 to 10 minutes  in simmer and then switch off. Now the gravy will also become thicker in consistency.

Your tangy, spicy Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu is ready to serve with hot steamed rice.  It can be served with any vegetable stir fry or kootu or even with appalam! It is also tasty with idlies and dosas!!

Note:

• Before adding the balls, the gravy  should be made thin by adding enough water, otherwise the balls will not get cooked. The gravy will become thick when the balls are done.
• Don’t stir immediately after adding the balls into the gravy.
• Care must be taken while adding salt because salt is added in two stages.

Tags: Paruppu urundai kuzhambu recipe, lentil balls gravy, easy method of making paruppu urundai kuzhambu, dhal kofta gravy, chettinad paruppu urundai kuzhambu, mixed dhals kofta gravy recipe, how to make paruppu urundai kuzhambu without frying/ steaming?

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Chola Adai | Millet Adai Dosa | Adai Dosa Crepes with Sorghum

From the very first post of my Paruppu Adai  itself, you  might have judged me  that  I am a great fan of Adai! So I try varieties of adai once in a while even though my son doesn’t  like it. I have a long list to share with you in Adai dosa category itself and hence I created a separate category for this variety.   Today  I prepared the dish with the grain called “Sorghum | Jowar | Cholam”.  

The cholam  has its ancient roots in India and in villages where  cholam was a regular staple food. They prepared  many dishes  using this grain, like  adai dosa, chola dosai, chola saadham  (Sorghum Rice), Chola Roti  (Sorghum Bread), Chola Dosa, etc. Now, the usage of millets  has faded away even in villages and many health experts try to bring awareness about the goodness of millets. Lots of forums and groups are promoting the usage of millets. The outcome of researches show that polished white rice which has higher glycemic index as compared to millets,  is the main cause for diabetic in many people in India. We can slowly inculcate the habit of including these millets in our regular diet so that the younger generation will also get accustomed to this forgotten diet.

Sorghum or Cholam is rich in magnesium, zinc and other phytonutrients. It is  good for people with celiac disease since it is gluten free. It has natural glucose leveling elements and good for diabetic people too. It aids metabolism and very good diet for people with the problems of constipation. So it is good to use this grain once in a while, in any form which your family likes.

Sometimes we may feel heavy when taking adai for dinner and my friends say that they usually avoid making this dish only for this reason even though they like the taste. My suggestion is whenever you plan to prepare adai for dinner, make it an early dinner (minimum 2 hours before going to bed)  and limit the quantity so that you can enjoy the food completely. 

Let’s move on to the recipe now. 

Ingredients:

Sorghum | Cholam – 1 cup

Urad dhal – ¼ cup

Toor dahl – ½ cup

Channa dhal  (kadalai paruppu)– ½ cup

Red chillies – 10 Nos.

Fennel seeds – 1 tbsp

Ginger – 1” piece

Onion (finely chopped) – ½ cup

Asafoetida – 1 tsp

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Curry leaves ( finely chopped) – 3 to 4 tbsp

Coconut gratings – 2 tbsp

Salt to taste

Oil to cook

Method:

Wash and soak sorghum  with urad dahl in water for about 3- 4 hours. Wash toor dhal and channa dhal together and soak them in water for an hour.

Grind soaked sorghum and urad along with red chillies, ginger piece, fennel seeds and coconut gratings to the stage before fine paste. Transfer this to a container.

Grind the soaked dhals coarsely and transfer this mixture to the same container.

Add all the balance ingredients except oil and mix it well to a thick idli batter consistency.

Heat a tawa. Pour a ladle full of batter and spread it circularly like a thin dosa.

Drizzle few drops of oil and close with the lid and cook in simmer.

After  3 minutes, open the lid and flip the adai to the other side and cook in simmer without lid for about 2 minutes.

The crispy, spicy, healthy chola adai is ready to be served. Today, I have served this adai with tangy “Katta Mitta Mango Thokku” and tastes yummy!  I’ll post the recipe for Katta Mitta Mango Thokku very soon.

Note:

• The adai will be crispy when it is hot with the above measurements. If you want adai dosa to remain soft after hours of cooking, you can increase the measurement of Urad dhal to ½ cup.
• I have shown the cholam in the pic since many people confuse cholam with makka cholam i.e. sorghum with corn!

Tags: Chola adai dosa recipe. Sorghum adai dosa recipe, How to use Millets in our regular diet?, Jowar adai recipe, Jowar adai dosa, how to use cholam for making adai?, Maize adai dosa recipe,  Gramathu chola adai recipe, Cholam adai recipe, Chola adai, Jowar adai, healthy chola adai dosa recipe, healthy millets recipe, healthy jowar recipes, healthy  cholam recipe, Gramathu virundhu- chola maavu adai dosa recipe, crispy chola adai recipe

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Adai Dosa/ Paruppu Adai (Lentil Dosa)

Paruppu Adai or Adai Dosa is a mixture of dhals and rice and when combined with other ingredients, makes a perfect breakfast/dinner recipe. The recipe is versatile enough that we can add our own dhal and rice measurements. Whatever may be the proportions, we can eat these adais. To get a crispy and spicy adai, we need to follow some specific proportions.

I wont forget this adai in my life, because during my hostel days (working women), I used to long(?!) for this adai during  weekends. I think it was the only dish I ate during those days at the hostel. I don’t mean that  the master’s preparation was perfect & delicious, no…. he would make it like a pizza base with so many black spots but even then,  I could manage to eat! In my opinion, adai can be eaten in any form even if it is not perfectly made.

Traditionally, adai is made with thick base and with lots of oil. The method I follow will give you a thin and crispy adai with just 2 to 3 drops of oil. So I can say, it is a low calorie version of Adai and diabetic friendly too.

Ingredients:

• Raw rice – 1 cup
• Urad dhal – 2 tbsp
• Toor dahl – ½ cup
• Channa dhal  (kadalai paruppu)– ½ cup
• Red chillies – 10 Nos.
• Fennel seeds – 1 tbsp
• Onion (finely chopped) – ½ cup
• Asafoetida – 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
• Curry leaves ( finely chopped) – 3 to 4 tbsp
• Salt to taste
• Oil to cook

Method:

1. Wash and soak rice with urad dhal in water for about 1 hour. Also do the same for toor and channa dhal.
2. Grind soaked rice and urad along with red chillies and fennel seeds to the stage before they become fine granules. Transfer this to a container.
3. Grind the soaked dhals coarsely and take this mixture in the same container.
4. Add all the above ingredients except oil and mix it well to a thick idli batter consistency.
5. Heat a tawa. Pour a ladle full of batter and spread it circularly like a thin dosa.
6. Drizzle few drops of oil and close with the lid and cook in simmer.
7. After 2 to 3 minutes, open the lid and flip the adai to the other side and cook in simmer without lid for about 2 minutes.

The crispy, spicy, hot adai is ready to be served. Usually, Avial is a very famous side dish served along with Adai.  But in my opinion,  it does not even require an accompaniment and can be taken as such or with little jaggery.

Tags: Adai dosai recipe, Lentils dosa, crispy adai recipe, how to prepare crispy Adai with less oil, Mixed Lentil  Adai recipe, Crispy Adai Dosa recipe, How to prepare crispy Adais?, Low calorie Adai, Diabetic friendly Adai Dosa, Rice and lentil dosa, Rice and lentil Adai, Paruppu adai dosai recipe, Paruppu adai

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Home Made Idli Podi/ Idli Milagai Podi/Idli Dosa podi (இட்லி மிளகாய்ப் பொடி)

Our South Indian Idli podi has many names like  Idli Milagai podi, Idli Dosa podi, Chutney powder or  Gunpowder.  This podi when combined  with gingelly oil is one of the best accompaniments for hot, steaming idlies. Though it can be taken with all South Indian breakfast recipes like  dosa, oothappam, rava dosa  or chapati, it is best-suited with hot  idlies and thus, gets the name “Idli Podi”.  This is a mixture of fried dhals with red chillies and is basically a spiced dhal/ lentil powder. Many famous Masala Brands have their idli podi available in the stores but home made idli podi is always better since we can adjust spice level and taste as per our family’s choice.

I am always grateful to this podi because it comes in handy, many times, when I run short of time. Moreover, it is my family's favourite   and my hub and son like to have it along with chutney & sambar for idlies like it is served at restaurants. This podi tastes really great the very first day when it is made. So, I used to prepare this in small batches which last for a week so that the freshness of the podi can be retained. Whenever, I have no stock of this podi, immediately I refill my idli podi container during the weekends. I feel that there is nothing harm in spending time preparing this podi  since it helps to meet out emergencies.

This idli podi can be prepared tastefully by taking care while frying the ingredients.

Ingredients:

• Urad dhal – ½  cup
• Channa dhal – ¼ cup
• Red chillies – 15 Nos.
• Til seeds/ Sesame seeds (optional) – 2 tbsp
• Asafoetida – 1 tbsp
• Curry leaves – 5 sprigs
• Garlic – 2 pods
• Gingelly oil – 1 tsp
• Salt to taste.

Method:

1. Take a heavy bottomed pan, dry fry urad dhal in simmer till it reaches golden brown colour  and transfer this to a dry plate.
2. Similarly, do for channa dhal and take out along with the urad dhal.
3. Dry fry til/sesame seeds till all seeds splutter and transfer to the same plate.
4. Now, in the same kadai, add gingelly  oil, add red chillies and fry until the chillies become crispy and take it out.
5. In the same oil, add garlic and asafoetida, sauté for a while and take it out.
6. Finally add curry leaves and fry till it becomes crispy.
7. Allow the fried ingredients to cool.
8. Transfer all the above fried ingredients to a mixie jar, add required salt and grind it to a coarse powder.
9. Store it in an air tight container.

Your spicy, aromatic idli podi is ready to be served with hot steaming idlies! When this idli podi, combined with gingelly oil, makes a heavenly side dish for idlies.

Note:

• Care should be taken while frying the ingredients. Dhals  & chillies should be fired in simmer.
• I used white til seeds and hence the colour does not change too much. You can also use black til seeds and the colour of the podi will be in dark brown colour. 

Tags: Idli podi for idlies, idli podi recipe, Idli milagai podi, Home made idli podi recipe, How to make home made idli milagai podi, How to make idli podi, spiced lentil powder recipe, home made chutney powder, South Indian gunpowder recipe, Idli/Dosa podi, Idli Dosa Molagai podi, South Indian Gunpowder chutney recipe, இட்லி மிளகாய்ப் பொடி

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Murungaikkai Kathirikkai Sambar (Drumstick & Brinjal Sambar)

Preparation time :15 minutes     

Cooking time : 15 minutes

Serves 3 

Difficulty :  Medium

Sambar … one of the signature dishes of South India, loved all over the world. There are many different ways of preparing sambar but we need not learn all those styles because the vegetables which we use for making sambar itself  bring out different taste. Out of all vegetables, drumstick and brinjal outnumber every other vegetable and  can be termed as “sambar speciality veggies”. Here we go with the recipe.

Ingredients:

• Toor dhal – ½ cup
• Drumstick (cut into 2” long pieces) – 1 No.
• Brinjal (cut into 4 equals)– 2 Nos.
• Shallots (chopped)– 5 Nos
• Tomato (chopped) – 1 No.
• Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
• Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
• Coriander powder  - 1 tsp
• Tamarind – goose berry size soaked in ½ cup water

For seasoning:

• Oil – 2 tsp
• Mustard – 1 tsp
• Jeera – 1 tsp
• Fenugreek seeds – 1 tsp
• Asafoetida – 1 tsp
• Curry leaves – few
• Coriander leaves

Method:

1. Pressure cook toor dhal with a pinch of turmeric & asafoetida and a ½ tsp of gingelly oil until soft.
2. In a kadai, pour oil, season with mustard, jeera and fenugreek seeds. Add curry leaves, let it splutter.Add the balance asafoetida and onions, sauté till it becomes glossy.Add tomatoes, give a stir. 
3. Add cooked toor dhal. Add the vegetables and masala powders, close the lid  and cook for 10 minutes.
4. Add salt and tamarind juice, give a boil.
5. Finally add coriander leaves, switch off. Close the lid , let it stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Mouthwatering, aromatic, flavourful Murungaikkai Kathirikkai sambar (முருங்கைக்காய் கத்திரிக்காய் சாம்பார்) is ready. It can be served with steamed rice along with some crispy side dish like Seppankizhangu roast or some spicy masala like  Muttai thokku and appalam. It will be a great meal of the day! This sambar also tastes great with idli or crispy dosa with a dash of coconut chutney!

Note:

Standing time is very much essential for getting the complete aroma of sambar.

Tags: South Indian sambar recipe, Drumstick brinjal sambar, Murungaikkai Kathirkkai Sambar Recipe, Recipe for sambar, sambar for steamed rice, முருங்கைக்காய் கத்திரிக்காய்  சாம்பார்

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Peerkangai Kootu (Ridge Gourd Kootu)

Preparation time :10 minutes     

Cooking time : 15 minutes

Serves 4 

Difficulty :  Easy

Ridge gourd is known as Peerkangai in Tamil and it has high dietary fibre. It is a diabetic friendly vegetable and also  helps in aiding weight loss. It has high beta carotene, zinc, iron and  magnesium. So it is better to include in your weekly diet. When peerkangai combined with dhal gives many health benefits and I can term it as a “Bachelor recipe” because this one dish gives all vitamins, proteins, etc essential for day to day life. It serves multi purpose, i.e. it can be served either for mixing with rice or as a side dish for rice & rasam/ kuzhambu/curd or for chappathi too.

Peerkangai kootu is very easy to prepare and delicious too. This can be prepared with any dhal. Using moong dhal will not require too many preparations.

Ingredients:

• Ridge gourd     - 1 No. (Medium size)
• Moong dhal     - 75 ml
• Turmeric powder – a pinch
• Red chilli powder – ¼ tsp
• Shallots            (chopped) - 5 Nos.
• Green chillies(slitted) – 2 Nos.
• Tomato            (chopped) – 1 No.
• Scraped coconut – 1 tbsp
• Salt to taste

For seasoning:

• Mustard – 1 tsp
• Cumin seeds (Jeera) -1 tsp
• Curry leaves - few
• Oil – 1 tsp

Method:

Wash , remove the skin of the ridge gourd and cut into small cubes.  Cook the moong dhal with turmeric powder  and water until very soft.  Pour oil in a kadai and season with the items given for seasoning. Then add onion, green chillies  and tomato, sauté for a minute. Now add ridge gourd pieces and sauté for a minute, then add cooked moong dhal and red chilli powder and mix well. Cook the vegetable with a lid covered for 5 minutes. Now add coconut and required salt, mix everything and cook for a minute. Your

peerkangai kootu is ready to be served!!

As I already told, this tastes great when it is mixed with hot rice with a few drops of ghee. Bachelors, you can have this hot rice with pickle or chips and I assure you of a heavenly meal, Try it!

This can be taken as a side dish for kara kuzhambu, Meenkuzhambu or for rasam.

Note:

Depending on the usage of this dish i.e. main/side dish, you can adjust the spice level with the addition of chilli powder. The measurements I have given will be mild enough to take it as side dish.

Tags: Rodge gourd kootu, Restaurant style ridge gourd kootu recipe, Peerkangai kootu, Peerkangai Kootu South Indian recipe, Kootu with ridge gourd, Ridge gourd paasi paruppu kootu, Peerkangai Paasi paruppu kootu, Ridge gourd Green moong dhal kootu

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