Tender Coconut Chutney/Dip

Being a South Indian brought up in the East & in a cosmo city I have enjoyed all the multi-cultural cuisines there. I developed a taste different from that of a typical South-Indian.

All dishes ranging from Bihari, Bengali, Maharashtrian, Gujarati, Punjabi, Sindhi and of course South Indian is what I have grown up with.

But, each time my mother prepared Dosas I would ask her to necessarily grind some fresh coconut chutney for me. I loved it more with the chutney than a Sambar or any curry.

I also have a new found love for Tender coconut water. It is very  nourishing & rejuvenates your skin.
Many people just drink the water & throw away the coconut. Instead try the sweet & slurrpy coconut meat which is gel like. You can ask the seller to scrape out the meat. When the coconut matures the meat is thicker & will require a strong bite.
When tender it is more like gelatine. 

I sometimes like to stock tender coconuts at home & offer the chilled drink it to my family whenever they come home tired. It is just so refreshing. 

At home my husband wanted Dosa for dinner & the nearest vegetable vendor did not have coconuts. So, instead of using a mature coconut I thought of experimenting with the tender coconut.

I emptied the water in a glass & stored it in the refrigerator before serving. Meanwhile, I asked my husband to give me a hand to get the malai/coconut meat out of the coconut. And, VOILA! I happened to make one of the best chutneys ever!

Here is what you need:

• Tender coconut meat/malai - of 1 coconut
• Garlic - 6 cloves
• Green Coriander leaves - a small bunch
• Green Chillies - 2
• Mustard seeds - 1 tsp, for tempering
• Oil - 1.5 tsp, for tempering
• Salt - as per taste

Method:
Get a blender & throw in the malai, garlic cloves, coriander leaves, green chillies & salt. Blend them all!
Temper it with mustard seeds.

The fresh, healthy & refreshing chutney dip is ready to go with your dosas, idlis & appams!

Note:
You may skip garlic if you don't like it.

Spiced Tomato Coconut Rice

Are we talking about quick cooking!? Yes, We are!

Being a south Indian all my friends ask me to cook lemon rice, curd rice, tamarind rice, coconut rice & tomato rice for them quite often. 

This time I had some time to click the pic so here comes my recipe for some 

Spiced Tomato Coconut Rice.

This serves as one of the tangy tasty filling dishes for dinner.

There are variations to this which I will keep posting. 

However, for this one all you need is:

• 1 cup dessicated Coconut
• 4 ripe medium tomatoes
• 1.5 cups rice
• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• 2 tsps  Roasted Peanuts
• 1 tsp Urad dal/White lentil
• 3 Green chillies
• 1 tsp Turmeric Powder 
• 4 ground pepper
• 1 Bay leaf
• Salt as per taste
• Oil/Ghee - for cooking

Method:
Boil the rice & keep aside.
Now heat a pan & add some ghee. Throw in the mustard seeds & when they start to splutter add the urad dal. As soon as it gets golden add the green chilies & the tomatoes to it. Ensure that the tomatoes are cut very thin. It will quicken the cooking process & make it pasty very easily. Cover to cook.
The oil can be seen in the sides so it is now ready for the coconut in it. Saute & add turmeric powder, ground pepper & salt to this. Within a minute add the peanuts & the boiled rice to this & your Tomato Coconut rice is all set to be served with Garlic Rasam & Papad.

Note:
Turmeric Powder/Coconut & Peanuts are optional
You may add a dash of Ginger garlic paste if you wish
You may add curry leaves too - I didn't have fresh ones
You can carry this in your lunch box too
You cant keep this for long as coconut gets spoilt easily - not good for long journeys

Nostalgic Aviyal

Well, it is true that we all love our mothers & they are the most special ones in all our lives. One of the reasons from the ever-long list is their strong intuition. 

A few days back I was missing my mom, so I decided to call her up & hey she already knew that I was missing her. We chatted for long that day! 

I had also mentioned how much I missed the food she prepares so lovingly!

So, before we ended the call she asked me to prepare some good lunch for myself  -  Aviyal , ghee rice with some papad. :)

After the call, I checked my refrigerator & found raw papaya, some carrots, coconut & green chillies. 

When we talk about Aviyal we are reminded of many veggies which are put together to prepare this dish however, doesn't matter if you have just one or few veggies to cook. I call this a south - Indian mixed vegetable!

Onions & Garlic are avoided in this dish at my home. However, I've heard many use some onion paste in this.

So let's see what I did.

You will need:

• Raw Papaya - cut like fingers, about 2 inch long
• Carrots - also cut lengthwise like fingers
• Coconut - 1/2 cup dessicated
• Green chillies - as per tolerance, I took 2
• Ginger - half an inch bit
• Cumin seeds - 2 tsp
• Raw rice - 10 grains
• Curd - 1 cup beaten
• Curry leave - few (4 to 5)
• Salt - as per taste

Method:

Take a deep pan & put the papaya & carrots to boil. Add only sufficient water to cook if you want the Aviyal dry or with less gravy. You are free to add more water if you want you Aviyal runny.

Now, grind together the coconut, cumin seeds, green chillies, ginger & raw rice (to thicken Aviyal's consistency). When the vegetables are cooked add the beaten curd, the ground paste & curry leave. Add salt. Cover & cook for another minute or two. Aviyal is ready!

Note:

• You may add beans, drumsticks, broad beans, snake gourd, raw bananas, potatoes, yam & anything you wish. The more the veggies the tastier & nutritious it becomes
• Serve with steamed rice, hot phulkas (Indian flat bread) or even dosa. I like it with Dosas 
• This is always a  part of the feasts served in South India especially Kerala

Paruppu Podi/ Yellow Lentil Chutney Powder

Paruppu Podi / Yellow Lentil Chutney Powder

This recipe comes from the Southern part of India. Yellow Lentil is also known as split pigeon peas.

It can be made within 5 minutes & is very easy. It is quite a saviour when you are starving.

We will need:

• Arhar/Toor dal (Yellow Lentil) - 1small cup
• Whole Dried Red chillies - As per tolerance, I took 3
• Asafoetida - a pinch
• Dessicated Coconut - 1 cup
• Salt - As per taste
• Oil - 1/2 teaspoon

Method:

Take a pan & pour 1/2 teaspoon oil just to grease the pan. Roast the dal & red chillies. When it is golden put off the flame & take it off the stove to stop cooking as we dont want it to get brown. Now, put this in a mixer jar & add the asafoetida & coconut to it & grind it. Grind it coarsely. Your Podi/Chutney Powder is ready. It will taste best for 1 full week if kept in the refrigerator.

Note:

• The same process is to be followed to make Paruppu Thogayal/Yellow Lentil Chutney. You just need to add some water. However the shelf life decreases to 2-3 days.
• You can try adding a few cloves of garlic for a different flavor. I dont use it in this preparation though.
• It is best eaten with hot steaming rice with a dollop of ghee mixed with this thogayal or podi. 
• You will be appreciated by all if you serve it with rasam rice & papad. So, try this & share your experience with me.

Coconut Barfi - Happy New Year!!!

Wish you all a very happy & a prosperous new year! 
It's time to celebrate yet another beginning!! 
Kuch meetha ho jaye :)




Quick & Easy! Made very often at our place.

Ingredients:

• Milk - 1 ltr
• Grated Coconut - 2 cups
• Sugar - 1 cup
• Ghee - 1 tbsp
• Powdered Cardamom - 1/2 tsp
• Dry fruits - Optional

Method:
Take a pan & heat milk on medium flame. When it starts boiling add the grated coconut & lower the flame. Let it cook for sometime. You will see that boiling makes the milk thicker with layers of cream forming on top. Stir it once in a while to avoid settling of coconut at the bottom of the pan & getting burnt. Add sugar after 10 minutes.Keep stirring till the milk & coconut become thick & stick together. Now, add the powdered cardamom & the ghee.You can choose to add some chopped dry fruits to make it nutritious & rich.
When done pour it in a greased plate & you can cut them in the shape you desire. The most common shape is  of a diamond.

Note:

• The sugar can be put according to taste. 
• Many recipes will make you fry the grated coconut & add it to a sugar syrup & may be just  2-3 tbsps of milk only. But I stick to my mother's recipe given above.