Pacha Payir Karamani Sundal

Pacha Payir and Karamani Sundal for Navarathri. Its is healthy and tasty.

Ingredients
Pacha Payir/Green Gram - 1 cup
Karamani/Black Eyed Bean(White or Brown) - 1 cup
Yennai/Oil - 1 tspn
Kadag/Mustard - 1/2 tspn
Peringayam/Asafotida/Hing - a pinch
Karuvepillai/Curry leaves - few
Kanja Milagai/Dry Red Chilli - 2 nos
Thengai/Fresh Grated Coconut - 2 -3 tspns
Uzhatham Paruppu/Urad Dal - 1/2 tspn
Salt


Preparation Method
Soak pacha payir and karamani in water for 4-5 hours or overnite.
Pressure cook for 3-4 whistles with water and little salt.
Heat a kadai, add oil, mustard wait and add asafotida, curry leaves, dry red chilli, urad dal and saute till the dal is brown.
Then add the cooked dals mix. Cook for few mins.
Off the stove and add fresh grated coconut and mix.


Pacha Payir Karamani Sundal is ready for prasadam.

Notes - If you want to do the sundal fast and if you forget to soak at nite. Soak the dals in hot water.

To know more about this festival click here.

Ellu Urundai/Sesame Sweet Balls/ hei zhi ma

Hope you all had great festival and long weekend. We had wonderful celebration of Vinayagar Chathurthi, am here posting recipes prepared for Lord Ganesha. Had invited few friends for lunch and went to Marina Bay Sands Skypark.

Ellu Urundai/Sesame Sweet Balls is prepared with Black Sesame Seeds and Jaggery. Black Sesame Seeds are used in traditional Chinese Medicine. Its also good source of calcium. Black sesame seeds also have high amounts of protein, phosphorous, iron and magnesium.

This is a must offering for Lord Ganesha.

Ingredients
Karuppu Ellu/Black Sesame Seeds/Till - 1/2 cup
Vellam/Jaggery - 1/2 cup or more as required(Jaggery should be Round and not square/achhu vellam)

Preparation Method
Wash and rinse Karuppu Ellu/Black Sesame Seeds to remove the sand and dirt from it.
Leave it in a strainer to remove all water for 5-10 mins.
Dry roast in a Kadai/wok till you get good aroma and it starts spluttering.
Off the stove and transfer it to a plate for cooling.
Then in a mixie add Ellu/Sesame Seeds and wip once and then add jaggery and grind to fine powder.

Make small balls. If you are not able to make balls add little more jaggery and grind.

I made 11 nos. out of it.

Enjoy the Ellu Urundai/Black Sesame Sweet Balls.

PS - Your feedback is appreciated. Do try recipe from (http://www.sarascorner.net/) take a picture and send it to me through Facebook message or mail me at simplysara07@gmail.com. Will be glad to add in my page Tried & Tasted album on FB or post on my page. Do follow me on Instagram id - saraswathiyer for more food stories and recipe ideas.Thank you.

Kozhakattai/Modhakam (Steamed Dumplings) for Vinayagar Chathurthi Step by Step Recipe

Vinayagar Chathurthi neivedyam Ullandu/Kara Kozhakattai and Poornam Kozhakattai recipe.

Dough in common

Ingredients
Rice flour - 2 cups and little more

Water - 2 cups or more if required.

Nalla Yennai/Gingelli oil/Sesame Oil - 2-3 tspns

Salt a pinch

Preparation Method

In a wide vessel boil water, add oil and salt. Reduce the flame slowly add rice flour and stir continously to form a chapathi dough consistency. Allow it to cool. Grease hands with oil and make small balls out of it. Close a clean wet towel on it to avoid drying.

Poornam/ Sweet Stuffing

Ingredients

Fresh Grated Cocont - 1 cup

Jaggery - 1 cup(powdered)

Cardamom /Elachi- a pinch 

Preparation Method
In a wide kadai, add jaggery with a tspn of water. Allow it to dissolve with stirring on intervals. Add grated coconut and cardamom powder. Mix till its thick and dry. Transfer it to a plate.

To make Kozhakattai

Now take the Rice flour balls.

Spread in hand to form a round shaped cup.

Fill a tspn of coconut filling.

Seal the edges by pressing slowly to form triangle shape.

Steam it in the idli cooker for 15mins.

Poornam Kozhakattai is ready for Lord Ganesha.




Ullandu Stuffing

Ingredients
Ullandu/Urad dal - 1 cup

Dry Red Chilli - 1 no
Green chilli - 2 nos
Asafotida/Hing - a pinch
Oil - 1 tspn
Mustard - 1/2 tspn
Curry leaves - few
Salt
Fresh grated coconut - Optional - 1/2 cup


Preparation Method

Soak Urad dal with green chilli for about 1 hour.

Grind it coarsely not to fine in a mixie with red chilli and salt.
Steam this in Idli cooker for 10 mins or till its well cooked.
Now season it with oil, mustard,hing and curry leaves and grated coconut.
Mix the steamed stuffing and keep aside.


Stuffing is ready.

To make Kozhakattai

Now take the Rice flour balls.

Spread in hand to form a round shaped cup.

Fill a tspn of Urad dal filling.

Seal the edges by pressing slowly to form crescent shape.

Steam it in the idli cooker for 15mins.

Ullandu Kozhakattai is ready for Lord Ganesha.

Thank you friends, am happy that this is my 250th post. I know am late:-)

PS - Your feedback is appreciated. Do try recipe from (http://www.sarascorner.net/) take a picture and send it to me through Facebook message or mail me at simplysara07@gmail.com. Will be glad to add in my page Tried & Tasted album on FB or post on my page. Do follow me on Instagram id - saraswathiyer for more food stories and recipe ideas.Thank you.

Vinayagar/Ganesh Chathurthi Festival

Our house Vinayagar.

Wishing you all Happy Vinayagar/Ganesha Chathurthi.

My day started with this Kolam/Rangoli.

Vinayagar Chathurthi falls on 11th Sept 2010. It is celebrated in many parts of India but in specific celebrated very grand in Maharashtra. Big idols are kept by the sides of the streets and celebrated for 11 days or even upto a month. Music and dance performances takes place every day during this period at the end of which these idols are taken to the sea and immersed in water. At home it is done on the same day or on the third day. People with small and medium idols. People with small and medium idols immerse it at home in a bucket of water or in the tank. Some people take to nearest lake and immerse.

Back home we decorate the table for ganesha with lots of colour paper, banana leaves, fruits, lighting, Mango leaves, etc.. Ganesha is placed in a silver plate filled with rice and money. Garlands specially handmade in cotton(Gejje Vastra). You also get garlands made of lotus and chickpeas.

People visit temples and friends. Children take Akshata(Rice mixed with turmeric and water or ghee) and visit as many houses to see different kinds of idols and puja. Also enjoy the prasadams.In Karnataka, they also celebrate Gowri Festival one day before Ganesha Festival. They worship the idol of Goddess Gowri mother of Lord Ganesha. Its called Gowri Ganesha Habba.

Plain Clay idols or colour idols are available.

Hope this festival gives good health, peace, wealth and prosperity to everyone.Kozhakattai/Modak is favourite of Lord Ganesha and is an important dish on the menu for the Festival.

Delicious Dishes prepared on this festival without onion and garlic by Brahmins/Iyer.

Click on the names for recipes.

Idli
Uppu Kozhakattai/Modakam(Urad dal and spices covered with Rice flour)
Poornam Kozhakattai(Jaggery and coconut stuffing covered with Rice flour)
Sundal(Dish prepared with white or black skinned chickpea)
Vella Appam
Vadai
Ellu Urundai
Ammni Kozhakattai Payasam
Poriyal/Curry
Sambar
Paruppu Rasam
Curd Rice
Pickle

For step by step recipe of Poornam and Ullandhu Kozhakattai click here.

PS - Your feedback is appreciated. Do try recipe from (http://www.sarascorner.net/) take a picture and send it to me through Facebook message or mail me at simplysara07@gmail.com. Will be glad to add in my page Tried & Tasted album on FB or post on my page. Do follow me on Instagram id - saraswathiyer for more food stories and recipe ideas.Thank you.

Aadi 18/Aadi Perukku Recipes!

This is a month of Aadi maasam is 4th month in Tamill Calendar. Its also called Ashada Maasa in Karnataka. Mostly for Kannadigas it will finish earlier then Tamilians. This month is inauspicious for most of us. In this month, many will not perform auspicious events. But nowadays you can see Aadi offer in many shops for clothes and gold.

Today is Aadi 18, we prepare mixed rice like Tamarind rice, Lemon Rice, Pongal and Coconut Rice. Pooja is performed and offered to god as prasadam. 

It also has some important days like

Aadi Amavasai,(9th Aug) - No moon day.
Aadi Pooram (12th Aug) - This day is for Andal Goddess.
Aadi Perukku( 3rd Aug) - This day is 18th day of Aadi dedicated to Kaveri River and falls.
Aadi Karthigai(4th Aug) - This day is dedicated to Lord Murugan. Kavadi is taken on this day in temples.
Aadi Velli (Fridays) - All Fridays in this month is considered auspicious and ladies exchange kumkum and sweets. Sweets are prepared and offered to God with prayers.

This month also has Varalakshmi Vratham.

Now over to the Recipes.

I prepared Kalanda Sadam - Puli Sadam/Puliyogare, Thenga Sadam/Coconut Rice, Elamichai Sadam/ Lemon Rice and Sweet Pongal/Jaggery Rice.

My Recipe for Coconut Rice. This is one of my hubby's favourite rice.

Ingredients
Steamed Rice - 2 cups(as required)
Fresh Grated Coconut - 1 cup
Green chilli - 2nos (chopped)
Oil - 2 tspns(Coconut oil or any cooking oil)
Mustard - 1/4 tspn
Hing/Asafotida - a pinch
Urad dal/Channa Dal - 1 tspn
Cashews - chopped
Curry leaves - few chopped
Salt

Preparation Method
In a Kadai, heat oil add mustard and wait till it splutters. Then add hing, dals and saute till its brown. Add green chilles and curry leaves.
Now add cashews and roast it brown.
Add grated coconut and fry till brown.
Then add salt and rice mix well.

Serve hot with fried papadams and vadams.

Recipe for Puli Sadam/Puliyogare.

Ingredients
Puliyogare dry mix - 3 tspns(My mom made the powder)
Steamed Rice - 2 cups
Gingely Oil - 2 tspns
Mustard - 1/2 tspn
Curry leaves - few
Ural Dal/Channa Dal - 1 tspn
Salt

Preparation Method
In a Kadai, heat oil add mustard and wait till it splutters. Then add hing, dals and saute till its brown. Add curry leaves and saute til it splutters. Now add the Puliyogare powder and off the stove. Serve hot with fried papadams and vadams.
Add salt and rice mix well.
Once cooled add rice and mix well.

You can see another version of this Coconut rice here. Lemon Rice and Pongal here.

These recipes are perfect for lunch box.

Vellam/Sweet Appam for Father's Day!!!

Appam is sweet dish. Its very soft inside and crunchy outside. My Dad likes sweet this is also one of his favourite sweets. Sweet Appams are prepared along with vadai on KaarthigaiDeepam day also to know more about this click here. It can be prepared on any other day too.

My Dad is in India so could not be with him but he has tasted many of my recipes while here. So I am sure these are his favourites, so sending to the event. I thank him for always being by my side. He has given maximum support and taught me many sweet recipes as he is an expert in Sweet Making. Thank you Dad:-)

Ingredients
Raw Rice or Normal Rice - 1 cup
Vellam/Jaggery - 1 cup(powdered)(If you it to be more sweet you can add little extra)
Elachi powder - a pinch
Oil for deep frying.

Method

Wash and soak rice for about 6 hours or more in water.

Then grind rice with jaggery to fine paste(Like dosa batter)

Leave it for 2 to 3 hours. Then while making appams add elachi powder and mix well.

Heat an Appa Karal or Kuzhi paniyaram chetthi with oil.

Slowly pour them and deep fry both sides till brown. If you dont have proper stick you can remove them by fork or tikka sticks too. Remove them on a tissue.

Tasty sweet appams are ready to eat.

Variations : You can also add Jackfruit paste to this and it will taste yummy.

This is going straight to  I love my Dad Event for Father's Day by Jay.  Am also sending Kesari Bath to the event.

Ramanavami Panagam, Neer Mor and Kosambari!

Ramanavami falls today thats 31st March 2012. Ramanavami is celebrated on the occasion of birthday of Lord Rama. It falls on the 9th day of Shukla Paksha.

On this day prayers are done and visit to Lord Rama temple. Observe fast/upavasam. Special pooja is performed at home and temples offering Panagam/Panaka, Neer Mor/Buttermilk and Kosambari as prasadams to Lord. Ladies will exchange kumkum with the prasadams with neighbours.

In Tamilnadu only Panagam is prepared. In Karnataka Panaka, Neer Mor and Kosambari is prepared.

Heres the simple and easy recipes for this.

Panagam/Panaka is a sweet drink prepared with Vellam/Jaggery.

Take 1 cup mashed or powdered vellam/jaggery in 4 glasses of water.
Add 1/2 tspn elachi powder/cardamom powder and 1/2 tspns sukku powder/dry ginger powder.

Mix well and keep it aside till all the vellam/jaggery is dissolved. Serve chilled or as it is.

Note - If case you feel Jaggery is less you can add later and mix after offering to Lord.

Variation - You can add ripen mash melon/Kirnipazham. It will be very refreshing.

For Neer Mor/Buttermilk

Take 1 cup thick curds/plain yogurt add 3 cups water, chopped coriander leaves, salt, chopped ginger mix well and Serve.


For Kosambari Recipe click here.

Happy Ramanavami.

Sweet Aval/Poha with Milk my 200th Post

I am posting Sweet Aval/Poha with Milk as it my 200th Post. Am very Happy Friends Thanks a lot. This is very simple and easy to prepare. It needs no cooking too... This is quick and tasty I usually prepare when I am alone and lazy to cook for me.

Ingredients
Aval/Poha/Rice Flakes - 2 cups (Thick or thin)
Milk - 1 cup (Warm milk Optional)
Sugar - 2 tspn(As per your taste)
Fresh Grated Coconut - 2 tspns
Elachi powder/Cardamom powder - a pinch

Preparation Method

Wash and Rinse Aval in water. Soak it in Milk for 15mins.
Then add all other ingredients and mix well. Leave it for 5mins.

Garnish with chopped dates and Serve. Kids will love it.
This recipe is going straight to PJ's No Cook event along with Pachai Kozhambu(Raw Sambar).

Love to Share this award with all of you. Please accept it and post in your blog.

Happy Vinayaga(Ganesh) Chathurthi!!!

Wishing you all a very Happy Vinayagar (Ganesh) Chathurthi. This festival is very popular in India. Lord Ganesh is elephant faced Hindu God. In Karnataka its celebrated with Goddess Gowri mother of Lord Ganesh. Idol of Gowri on the previous day and puja is performed. They also do mangala Gowri vratham on every tuesday before this festival and invite ladies for kumkum. Its called Gowri-Ganesha Habba (Festival) in Karnataka.

Clay idol or coloured idol is kept at home and puja is performed offering prasadams like Kara Kozhakattai/Modakam(Urad dal and spices covered with Rice flour),Vella Kozhakattai(Jaggery and coconut stuffing covered with Rice flour), Sundal(Dish prepared with white or black skinned chickpea), fruits and flowers with decorations. The idol is immersed in water at the end of the day after performing the puja with curd rice and sundal.

Its celebrated very grand in Maharashtra, India. Idol is kept for a 1day or 5days or 11 days daily puja is performed by the Hindu Pandits and prasadams is distributed. Sometimes they will celebrate any day in the whole month too...

In Bangalore I have seen Big idols of Lord Ganesh is kept on streets competitions are conducted music orchestra is also performed. Children take Akshata(Rice mixed with turmeric and water or ghee) and visit as many houses to see different kinds of idols and puja. Also enjoy the prasadams.

Hope this festival gives good health, peace, wealth and prosperity to everyone.

I am sharing simple and quick recipe for Kondakadalai(Chickpea/Garbanzo) Sundal

 

Ingredients

Kondakadalai - 2 cups

Fresh grated coconut - 1 cup

Dry Red chilli - 2 nos (As per your taste)

Asafotida/Hing/Peringayam - a pinch

Oil - 2 tspns

Mustard - 1/2 tspn

Curry leaves - few

Salt

Method

If you are using dry Kondakadalai, soak it overnite in water and boil with salt in pressure cooker next morning for about 4-5 whistles. If you soak it for longer hours (advisable) make sure its not over--cooked. Remove excess water and can drink as it is.

You can also use Kondakadalai available in Can which is preboiled and ready to use.

Heat a kadai, add oil mustard wait till it splutters. Then add curry leaves and Asafotida. Saute once.

Add dry red chilli and saute till its dark brown black in colour.

Now add cooked kondakadalai. Saute for few mins.

Turn Off the stove and add fresh grated coconut. Mix well.

Kondakadalai Sundal is ready. Its also done as prasadam for Navarathri too...

Tamil New Year | Vishu | Varsha Pirappu!

Dear Readers,

Wish you all a very Happy and Prosperous Tamil New Year. April 14th 2009 Puthandu is celebrated by Tamilians across the world. People visit to temples with new clothes and see predictions in pachangam. In Kerala it is known as Vishu Kani. People keep mirror decorating it with gold jewellery and offering fruits, rice, dal, sugar, money, mango, cucumber, dry fruits at nite. You should see this first in the Morning, after seeing this Nyvediyam is prepared using these ingredients like Vadai and Kadala parappu payasam and offered to God. Boli is also prepared.

People visit family and friends.

Dishes prepared are

Arachuvitta Sambar Recipe here
Senai Kizhangu(Yam) and Vellarikka(Cucumber) Kootu. Click here for Kootu recipes.
Rasam - click here for rasam Recipes.
Paruppu Vadai -  see below for Vadai recipe.
Kadala Paruppu Payasam - click here and see below for Payasam recipes
Boli/Poli - click here and here for recipes.

Click here for Festival Menu.

Notes - There will be no onion and garlic in the Festival Menu.

This is very simple and easy snack prepared on festivals and auspicious ocassions.

Recipe for Vadai

Ingredients
Kadala Parappu(Channa dal/Bengal Gram) - 2 cups
Dry Red Chilli - 2nos (as per your taste)
Asafotida(Hing) - 1 pinch
Curry leaves - few
Salt
Oil for deep frying

Preparation Method
Soak Kadala parappu for 2 to 3 hours in water. Then in mixie add kadala parappu, dry red chilli, asafotida and salt to 2 or 3 whips (coarse) Transfer to a bowl and add curry leaves. In a kadai, heat oil in medium flame. Take vadai mixture, make small balls and press and drop in oil. Deep fry on both sides till brown.

Take it on a tissue paper.

Serve with lunch.

Recipe for Kadala Parappu Payasam

Ingredients
Kadala Parappu (Channa dal /Bengal gram) - 1/2 cup
Rice - 1 cup
Jaggery - 1 1/2 cup(as per your taste)
Elakka powder(Cardamom poweder) - 1/2 tspn
Grated coconut - 1 cup

Preparation Method

Cook rice and kadala parappu in pressure cooker. Keep more water so Kadala parappu should cook well. In a vessel keep jaggery with 1/2 cup water and let it dissolve. Filter it for mud particles. Add rice and kadala parappu with jaggery. Allow it to boil in low flame. Keep stirring. Grind grated coconut with elakka in mixie into fine paste. Mix this with the above mixture and boil well. Garnish with ghee, cashews and grapes.

Serve with Lunch.

Wishing you all இனிய தமிழ் புத்தாண்டு வாழ்த்துகள! May god shower happiness, love, success and everything in this year.

Regards,
Saraswathi

Dishes prepared on pongal for lunch

Cooking on auspicious/festival days are prepared without onion and garlic. So for the recipes with onion you can omit that and prepare.

To read more about Pongal click here.

Sakkarai Pongal

Steamed Rice
Paruppu
Kootu

Poriyal

Any veggie Sambar



Rasam

Dal Vada