Ksheerannam - Andhra Style

Ksheerannam is a rice pudding or rice dessert. It is usually made as neivedhiyam during navarathri in Andhra regions. It takes a long time to cook but still its a very tasty dessert.

 
Preparation Time: 10 min
Cooking Time: 50 - 60 min
Serves: 3

Ingredients:

1. Raw rice - ½ cup
2. Milk - 5 cup
3. Sugar - ¼ cup
4. Ghee - 2 tbsp
5. Cashew nuts - 10 pieces
6. Almonds - 5 pieces - cut into pieces
7. Dry grapes - 10 pieces

Preparation:

   -  Soak rice for 10 min

Procedure:

1.   Clean the soaked rice and set aside. Heat a medium sized pan preferably non-stick pan, add 2 cups of milk and bring it to boil.

2.   Reduce the flame and add rice. Keep stirring slowly and continuously as rice gets cooked. If you do not stir it gets stick to the bottom of pan.  As rice gets cooked, add milk when it gets thickened.

3.   Rice should be cooked well and mushy. Do not stop stirring. When the rice gets mushy, add sugar and give a good stir.

4.   In meanwhile heat a small pan, add ghee and roast cashew nuts, almonds, dry grapes. As nice aroma comes out, add it to the kheer. 

5.   Mix it well and serve hot or cold.

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Creamy Tomato Pasta

Preparation time: 5 min

Cooking time: 25 min

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1. Pasta - 1 cup
2. Onion - ½ cup - 1 medium sized - finely chopped
3. Tomato - ½ cup - 2 medium sized - finely chopped
4. Green Chili - 1 - finely chopped
5. Cream - ½ cup
6. Cheese - ¼ cup
7. Butter - 1 tbsp

Procedure:

1.  Heat a pan with 3 cups of water. Bring it to boil and add the pasta. Keep in medium flame for 15-20 min or until pasta is cooked completely.

2.  Pasta gets doubled in size. Drain excess water and set aside.

3.  Again heat the pan, add butter. As butter melts, add onion and saute for 3 min. Onion becomes translucent. To this add cheese. Stir as it melts.

4.  Add cream. then add tomato and green chili. Mix well and bring it to boil. Reduce to low flame.

5. Finally add the cooked pasta and stir slowly. Keep in low flame for 3 min.

Creamy Tomato Pasta with Italian taste is ready to serve with salt and pepper....!!

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Thatta Payir / Karamani Sundal

Preparation Time: 5 min

Cooking Time: 20 min

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• Thatta payir / Karamani
• Coriander powder - 1 pinch

To temper:

• Oil - 2 tsp
• Mustard - 1 pinch
• Urad dhal - 1 pinch
• Jeera - 1 pinch
• Curry leaf - 1 sprig
• Hing - 1 pinch
• Red chili - 2 piece

Preparation:

 - Soak thatta payir for 8 hrs or overnight

Procedure:

1.   Clean the soaked thatta payir and presurre cook with little salt for 3 whistles. After one whistle, keep it in simmer flame for next 2 whistle or 3 min. Then allow it to cool naturally. Filter excess water and set aside.

2.   Heat a medium sized pan with oil. Add all the ingredients to temper and roast for 1 min.

3.   To this add cooked thatta payir. Adjust salt and coriander powder. Adding coriander powder is optional. I added this to give little spicy flavor. Finally coconut flakes and give a good stir.

Serve hot...!!! It looks so great...!!

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Kadalai Paruppu Sundal

Preparation Time: 5 min

Cooking Time: 15 min

Serves : 2

Ingredients:

·         Kadalai Paruppu / Split chana dhal - ½ cup

·         Oil - 2 tsp

·         Mustard - 1 tsp

·         Urad dhal - 1 tsp

·         Jeera - 1 tsp

·         Curry leaf - 1 sprig

·         Hing - 1 pinch

·         Red chili - 2 pieces

·         Coconut flakes - 2 tbsp

Preparation:

·         Soak kadalai paruppu for 2 hrs

Procedure:

1.  Pressure cook for 2 whistles. Remove excess water.

2.  Heat a pan with oil. Then add mustard, urad dhal, jeera, curry leaf, hing, red chili one by one and roast it well.

3.  Add cooked kadalai paruppu and salt. Finally add coconut flakes and give a good stir.

Serve hot...!! Sundal is ready to serve :-)

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Aval / Poha / Flattened Rice Payasam

A very simple and tasty dish. Aval Payasam is ready in minutes. Aval Payasam is generally prepared during festivals and is served as neivedhiyam. Its also a very yummy desert and can be served warm or cold.

Preparation time: 5 min
Cooking time: 15 min
Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• Aval / Poha / Flattened rice - ½ cup
• Milk - 2 cup
• Sugar - 10 tbsp
• Cardamom - 1 piece
• Ghee - 1 tsp
• Cashew nuts - 10 pieces
• Almonds - 5 pieces
• Dry grapes - 5 pieces

Procedure:

1. Heat a pan and dry roast aval until it starts turning brown and transfer it to bowl or directly to mixie.                                                                       
2. In the same pan dry roast few cashew nuts (rest of the cashew nuts is used for final garnishing) till it starts turning brown.                                    
3. Grind aval and cashew nuts in mixie for few sec. It should be in rava consistency.
4. Heat a pan with milk and bring it to boil. Then add sugar and mixie mixture. Keep in low flame for 3min.                                                         
5. Roast cashew nuts, almonds and dry grapes in ghee and add to aval payasam.

Aval Payasam tastes great when its warm or cold.

Wish You all a very happy navratri...!!! :-)

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Pacha Payaru / Paasi Payaru Sundal

A healthy and festival special dish. Paasi payaru sundal is served as neivedhiyam for Varalakshmi vratham, Navarathri, Vinayagar chathurthi and many other occasions.

Preparation Time: 5 min
Cooking Time: 15 min
Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1. Pacha payaru - ½ cup
2. Oil - 1 tbsp
3. Mustard - 1 tsp
4. Urad dhal - 1 tsp
5. Jeera - 1 tsp
6. Curry leaf - 1 sprig
7. Hing - a pinch
8. Red chili - 2
9. Coconut flakes - 3 tbsp
10. Salt - to taste

Preparation:

-   Soak pacha payaru for atleast 5 hrs .

Procedure:

1.  Pressure cook pacha payaru for 2 whistles with little salt. Filter excess water and set aside.

2.  Heat a medium sized pan with oil, then add mustard, urad dhal, jeera and allow it to sputter, Followed by curry leaf, hing, red chili.

3.  To this add cooked pacha payaru, coconut flakes and give a good stir. Adjust salt and serve hot.

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Kondakadalai Sundal

Black channa or kala channa or black chickpea or karuppu kondakadalai.....!! in whichever way we call this... is always a favorite prasadham to all. Loved by kids too. This black channa sundal is prepared during festivals like navarathri, ganesh chathurthi and is also given as prasadham in many temples during the month of margali. Definitely a healthy snack too...!! :-)

Preparation Time: 5 min

Soaking time: 8 hrs or overnight

Serves: 2

Ingredients: 

1. Black channa / கருப்புகொண்டகடலை - ½ cup
2. Coriander powder - 2 tsp

To temper:

1. Oil - 2 tsp
2. Mustard - 1 pinch
3. Urad dhal - 1 pinch
4. Jeera - 1 pinch
5. Curry leaf - 1 sprig
6. Hing - 1 pinch
7. Red chili - 2 piece

Preparation:

 -   Soak kondakadalai for 8 hrs or overnight

Procedure: 
1.   Pressure cook soaked kondakadalai for 3 whistles. After one whistle reduce flame and cook for next 2 whistles or 2 min. It should be soft but not mushy. Remove excess water and set aside.

2.   Heat a medium sized pan with oil. Add all the ingredients “to temper” and roast for 1 min. To this add cooked kondakadalai.

3.   Add  coriander powder and give a good stir. Adding coriander powder is optional. It gives a masala flavor to sundal. Finally add coconut flakes and adjust salt.

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Murukku

Murukku - Post by Gayathri

Ingredients:

•    Rice flour - 3 cups (standard rice      cup)
•    Roasted gram flour - 1 cup(pottukadalai mavu)
•    Chilli powder - 1 to 2 tsp
•    Butter - 1 tbsp
•    Sesame seeds - 2 tsp
•    Salt - As required
•    Water -As required
•    Hing - a pinch
•    Oil - as required

---

Procedure:

1. Mix all the ingredients together except water.
2. Add water little by little until the consistency is like idiyappam dough.
3. Heat the oil.
4. Dip your hand in water and add a small ball of dough in the Muruku press.
5. Drop a small amount of dough in the oil and see  if it raises immediately then the oil is hot enough.
6. Drop the dough from the press directly in to the oil.
7. When it turns golden brown take it out.when it cools down store it in a Container.
8. Enjoy it with Tea.

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Aloo Paratha

Aloo paratha is an Indian recipe. It is a famous breakfast and dinner dish all over India. This stuffed paratha tastes so good. It can be served with any type of vegetarian or non-vegetarian gravy and raita.

Preparation time: 5 min
Cooking time: 20 min
Serves: 7 paratha

Ingredients:

• Wheat flour - 1 ½ cup
• Salt - to taste
• Water - as required
• Oil - as required

Stuffing:

• Potato - 2 medium sized
• Turmeric powder - 1 pinch
• Chili powder - 1 pinch
• Garam masala - 1 tsp
• Coriander powder - 1 tsp
• Coriander - finely chopped
• Salt - to taste

Procedure:

1. Take wheat flour in a large mixing bowl, add salt and mix well. Add water little by little and make it into a soft dough. Take few drops of oil and apply to the surface of dough. Allow it to rest for 15-20 min.
2. In meanwhile prepare stuffing for paratha. Pressure cook potato for 2 whistle or until it is completely cooked. Allow it to cool naturally. Peel the skin of potato and mash them.
3. Take all the spices and add to the mashed potato. Mix them thoroughly and make it to a dough like form. Make small balls from it equal to the number of wheat dough balls made.
4. Roll one wheat ball into a small round. Place potato stuffing on the center of paratha. Join the edges and make it into a ball again.
5. Then roll it again slowly so that stuffing does not ooze out. Sprinkle wheat flour if gets sticky and in places where stuffing slightly oozes out.
6. Heat chappathi tawa. When it’s hot, place the paratha on the tawa. When one side is cooked, flip to the other side. grease paratha with little oil on both sides and cook for a min on both sides. This makes it crispy.

Tasty and delicious paratha is ready...!!

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Chilli Parotta

A very simple recipe and chilli parotta is loved by all. Parotta has always been a favorite dish for many people and this variation of parotta with the mixed spices add extra taste to the parotta. Restaurant style taste can be got in home. Once my mom started preparing chilli parotta in home, i always eat this home-made chilli parotta.

 Preparation Time: 15 min
Cooking time: 15 min
Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• Multilayered parotta - 6
• Onion - 1 cup finely chopped
• Tomato - 1 cup finely chopped
• Ginger garlic paste - 2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
• Chili powder - 1 tsp
• Vegetable or plain salna - 1/3 cup (optional)
• Salt to taste
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Cinnamon , cardamom, cloves powder - 1 pinch
• or
• Cinnamon stick - ¼ inch piece
• Cardamom  - 1 piece
• Cloves - 2 or 3

Procedure:

1.   Cut the multilayered parotta into small pieces.
2.   Heat oil in a medium sized pan, add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom powder. When nice aroma comes out, add onion and saute until it becomes soft Then add ginger garlic paste and saute for 1 min or until it raw smell leaves

3.  To this add turmeric powder, chili powder,  salt and mix well. Now add the tomatoes and saute until it turns mushy. Keep in low flame and add cut parottas and mix them well. Add Salna if it looks too dry. Garnish with cilantro. 

Wow..! Chilli parotta looks so great..!! It can be served with raita.

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