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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Chapati...How to make soft chapatis

Chapati or Chappati or Chappathi is a common Indian flat bread and  is a regular staple dish in North India and Pakistan. There are many forms of chapatti with slight variations, namely Roti, Paratha/Parantha, etc. I am basically a rice person and   love to eat idlies and dosas. But my son likes everything other than idli and dosa.  As mothers,  we  strive  to  give our children the best. So I tried a lot to make soft chapattis as my son likes them.  Always I wonder on seeing North Indian ladies making soft chapatis with no effort. I asked whoever I met with for the tips to make soft chapatis. Based on their advice, I followed many gimmicks,  adding hot milk, banana, curd, hot water, etc, etc … but everything resulted in big “zero”. Finally I got the secret from one of my aunts and  I  succeeded.  It’s not such a mind blowing secret …. What I missed out is only kneading!?  I mean, we need to knead the dough atleast  for about 5 minutes.

Making soft chapattis follows simple steps but making perfectly  round and  soft chapattis is not an easy job for beginners. As they say practice makes  perfect! 

Ingredients:

• Whole wheat flour – 1 cup
• Water and salt as needed
• Oil – 1 tbsp
• Maida/ All purpose flour– 3 tbsp for dusting.

Method:

1. Take wheat flour in a large bowl, add salt and mix well with the flour.
2. Add water little by little, mixing the flour with water. Make a soft dough. Knead  well the dough for 5 minutes adding oil in between.
3. Keep it covered and let it stand for ½ an hour.
4. After ½ an hour, make small balls out of the dough.
5. Roll the dough into thin, round discs using roller pin, dusting the ball with maida/ all purpose flour.
6. Place the tawa/skillet on a stove. Let it get heated.
7. Place the rolled chapati on the heated tawa, wait for bubbles to come on the surface. Flip the chapati immediately and leave it for a minute.
8. Cook on both sides on high flame, flipping it now and then, till brown spots appear and chapati gets cooked completely.

Your soo..fft chapati/roti is ready to eat!

Note:

• The amount  of  water added should be enough to make a soft dough so that if we insert our finger, our finger should pass through without any effort. This is the main factor deciding the softness of your chapatti.
• For kids, you can apply some butter/ghee on  the top of the cooked chapatti. For elders, we can use gingelly oil and those on diet can avoid this step.

Tags: How to make soft Chapatis, How to make rotis, chappathi recipe, chapathi recipe, Flat Indian Bread recipe, Indian unleavened flatbread recipe, Indian flat bread recipe, soft rotis, soft chapathi recipe, North Indian recipe

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In the Media.... Nalla Saappaadu (நல்ல சாப்பாடு)

This post is to share a happy moment with you!

The leading women’s magazine, Malligai Magal, has  released a book “Nalla Saappadu” (நல்ல சாப்பாடு) in which my recipes are featured under the category “Mutton Virundhu” (மட்டன் விருந்து). At this juncture, I want to say a few words about this book. The book contains not only the recipes but A-Z details on healthy eating habits, foods that will  aid  weight loss in natural way, nutritional aspects of food items, secrets for making tasty dishes and many more... It is really a rare collection of information from the experts like Chef Damu,  Mrs.Revathy Shanmugam, Mrs. Kalaichelvi & famous nutritionist Shiny Chandran and is a must for everyone to own this book. I feel proud to have contributed a bit to this ocean of information!

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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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Quick Onion Tomato Chutney (அவசர சட்னி)

Preparation time :5 minutes     

Cooking time : 10 minutes

Serves 3 

Difficulty :  Easy

There are many versions of making onion tomato chutney. This recipe does not need the  grinding part and we can make it in a jiffy with minimum ingredients. Hence, in our family, we name it as “Avasara Chutney” (அவசர சட்னி).  But don’t under estimate its taste, I can assure that it tops every other chutneys.  

I am categorizing this chutney under Bachelor’s recipe since it does not need grinding and more over, it needs only one vessel! You can make it in large quantities and keep it in a refrigerator for a week’s use. With store bought ready made idli flour, you can enjoy this chutney with hot steaming idlies or dosas!

Ingredients:

• Big Onion (finely chopped) – 2 Nos. (or)                                                                                 Shallots (finely chopped) - ½ cup
• Tomato (finely chopped) – 2 Nos.
• Red chilli powder – 3 tsp
• Salt to taste

For seasoning:

• Mustard – 1 tsp
• Urad dhal – 1 tsp
• Curry leaves – few
• Gingelly oil – 2 tbsp

Method:

1. Pour oil in a kadai, season with the items given “for seasoning”.
2. Add onions and sauté till it  becomes tender and turns light golden colour.
3. Add tomatoes and required salt, sauté until the tomatoes get mashed well. Close it with a lid and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add red chilli powder, sauté well till the raw smell of chilli powder fades away.
5. Add ½ cup of water, stir everything well, bring it to boil for 2 minutes.

Your quick onion tomato chutney is ready to be enjoyed with hot steaming idlies or crispy dosas! It can even be had with chapatti, curd rice, etc.

Tags: Easy onion tomato chutney recipe, onion chutney without grinding, tomato chutney without grinding, easy chutney recipe, best side dish for idli/ dosa, quick chutney for idli/dosa, tomato onion chutney

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