MUDAKATHAAN KEERAI DOSAI (WITH SMALL ONIONS)

One of the greens which is used to treat joint pains, constipation, and has many more health benefits.  Usually on weekends, we go to market  and buy vegetables from there and stock in fridge for the upcoming week.  In the market, we get varieties for greens  - Mudakathaan, vallarai, thoodhuvalai.  These greens should not be boiled while cooking as it would lose the medicinal benefits.  So, I ground and add to the regular dosa batter and makes dosa out of it.  Mudakathan leaves are slightly bitter in taste, so to overcome the bitter taste I added small onions.  The sweetness rendered from the small onions defeated the mild bitterness from this medicinal greens.  I also sprayed some idly milagai podi to enhance the taste :-).

INGREDIENTS:

Idly/dosa batter - 3 cups

Mudakathaan greens - 1 cup

Small onion (sliced thin) - 1 cup

Idly podi (optional)

PREPARATION:

1. Remove the leaves from the stem and discard the stems.  Wash the leaves thoroughly in running cold water.  

2.  Remove the excess water by straining and grind it in mixer.  Add it to the dosa batter and mix well.

3.  Heat the dosa pan, add a ladle full of batter and gently spread with the back of the ladle.  Sprinkle the sliced small onions and spray idly milagai podi evenly on top.  Drizzle oil around the sides and top.  When one side is done, flip gently and cook on the other side.  When done, remove it and transfer to a plate. 

4. Serve hot with chutney/sambar.

5. It can also be prepared without onions as a roast like this.

SOFT SPONGY MINI UTHAPPAMS

My first post in this year..With new hopes, with new challenges, new goals, new dreams, we have started this year.   

Last year was with ups and downs, more of challenging for both me and DH.   One thing we learnt together as a couple goal is to remain calm and pass the storm.   Other than that, I have started to have at least 1 hour physical activity in everyday routine and that has made significant changes in my health/physical fitness.   

Let's see what's in store for the upcoming days...

Nothing much to write for today's post, I thought I could post the pictures that I clicked for the mini uthappams for a morning breakfast some days back.  It was a drizzling Sunday morning and I felt bored early in the morning as everyone in the home were sleeping, so opted to prepare a heavy breakfast to delight family.  I prepared varieties of uthappam; carrot, tomato, mint-coriander leaves, podi, capsicum, peas and onion.  Here's the picture for you.  For the side dish, I prepared Tomato onion chutney, coconut chutney, sambar, poondu kara kuzhambu, and served along with idly podi.  I didn't capture step by step pictures in making as I was in hurry burry to prepare the elaborate breakfast and couldn't stop myself in clicking the final pictures as I felt it drooling. 

CRISPY RAVA DOSA

Of late, I am seeing Jr.H is more with DH's trait, wanting to taste varieties at home even on weekdays.  He keeps giving me a list of recipes to be made at home.  Usually, I make Idly or dosa at home on weekdays as it would be easy to manage after tiresome working hours.  As today, Jr. H was at home for Bakrid holiday, I managed to rush home early to spend my evening hours with him.  As soon as I entered home, he asked me to prepare rava dosa at home as he is bored of Idly and dosa stuff.  Not to disappoint him, I prepared this recipe for dinner and managed to click some pictures for blogging purposes. (Kindly excuse me if the step by step pictures are not very clear as I managed to click in my mobile phone in urgency).  I would say I was able to satisfy his hunger craving as the dish came out perfect, super crispy.  This is a super easy recipe which can be prepared without any prior perfect planning.

Ingredients:

Rice flour - 1 cup

Rava/sooji - 1/2 cup

Maida - 1/4 cup

Peppercorns - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds/Jeeragam - 1 tsp

Thick Curd - 1 cup (mildly sour)

Salt - To taste

Coriander leaves (Chopped finely)

Green chillies  (Chopped finely)

Water - 2 cups

Preparation:

1. Mix all ingredients and add water and make this to a thin batter.  Set aside for 10 minutes.  The batter would slightly become thick and add little water to it before making dosas.

2. Heat dosa pan/tawa, when the tawa is hot, sprinkle some water and it sizzles.  This is the right consistency for pouring the batter.  Pour the batter from outside to inside as shown in the picture.  There would be lot of small holes seen and do not try to fill in with batter, just leave it as it is.  Add a teaspoon of oil around the dosa. Cover it with a lid and allow it to cook in low to medium flame.

3.  After 2-3 minutes, remove the lid to see if the bottom part becomes nicely golden brown. Remove it slowly using spatula/ladle.  There is no need to flip the dosa as the batter is thin and covered with lid.  The rava dosa would not be in perfect round shape but do not worry because the taste overcomes improper shape.

4. The crispy rava dosa is ready to be served with coconut chutney, sambar, and idly podi.

Note:  Mix the batter every time before you make your dosas and add little water to the batter if it has thicken.

PANNER CAPSICUM STUFFED MASALA DOSA - INDIAN PANCAKE STUFFED WITH INDIAN COTTAGE CHEESE

I have never tasted Paneer until two years back; for some reasons DH and myself never got an idea to taste it at least once. But Jr. H was very curious to try at home as he has tasted his friend's lunchbox at school and he started nagging me to prepare at home.  We liked it in the first attempt itself because of the taste it imparts in the dish.  Now I can make many variations of paneer dishes and this is one such convenient dish which I prepare at home during my lazy weekend dinner.

Ingredients:

Idly/Dosa batter - 2 cups

For Stuffing:

Paneer (Grated) - 1 cup

Capsicum (finely chopped) - 1

Onion (Finely chopped) - 1

Tomato (Finely chopped) - 1

Chilly powder - 1/2 tsp

Jeera - 1 /2 tsp

Preparation for Stuffing:

1. Finely chop the required vegetables (onion, tomato, capsicum) and grate the paneer.

               

 

2. In a pan, add little oil and throw in jeera, when it sizzles, add the chopped onion followed by tomato and capsicum later.

                

 

3.  Add the required salt and turmeric powder followed by chilly powder.  Add the grated paneer lastly and mix well.

                   

 

Preparation of Dosa:

1. In the dosa pan, spread the idly batter in a circular manner, add little oil over the edges.

2. Spread the stuffing as required and fold the dosa as desired.

              

 

ULUNDU KOZHUKKATTAI - INDIAN MOMMOS WITH URAD DHAL STUFFING (SAVORY VERSION)

This is a post from my draft which is pending for sometime.  Couldn't work on it fully to post as I was too much occupied with work and personal things.  I am currently on a business trip to Singapore and one of the famous food (Momos) here urged me to keep this name :-)... 

Kozhukattai is a popular South Indian dumpling made with rice flour and can be made with varied stuffing in both sweet and savory versions.  This can be taken as breakfast or as a evening tea snack.  In Tamilnadu,  this dish is traditionally associated with Lord Ganesha and rendered as an offering on his birthday, Ganesh Chathurthi.  Recently, we had Ganesh Chathurthi celebrations for which I prepared this savory kozhukattai with urad dhal filling.  I will be posting the sweeter version also at some point in future as all my kozhukattais got over in a minute as soon as I have prepared and couldn't take the final pictures :-).

Ingredients:

Kozhukkatai flour - 2 cups (store brought)

Water - 2 cups

Salt - a pinch

Oil - 2 tsp

For ulundu filling:

Urad dhal - 1 cup

Red chillies - 6

Grated coconut - 1 cup

Asafoetida - a pinch

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp (for tempering)

Salt - To taste

Oil - 1 tsp

Preparation:

How to make ulundu filling:

1. Soak urad dhal for 1 hour and grind it coarsely adding red chillies, asafoetida, and salt.

2. Steam cook the mixture in idly plates for 7-10 minutes.

3. Once the mixture is cooled down, just pulse it in the mixture so that it breaks down evenly.  In a pan, add little oil and temper with mustard seeds.  once the mustard seeds crackles, add the pulsed urad dhal mixture.  Saute for 2 minutes, add coconut finally, mix well and keep in flame for a minute and then switch off the flame.  Addition of coconut gives a nice flavor to the filling.

How to make the outer layer:

Boil 2 cups of water with little oil and a pinch of salt. When it starts to boil, add the idiyappam flour and stir well continuously.  When the color changes, switch off the flame. When it is warm, roll it with your hands to form a nice dough.

How to make Kozhukkatais with fillings

Make medium lemon sized balls out of the dough as above. With your fingers make a small cup out of it and place the filling inside  and carefully seal the edges.

Repeat the same process for rest of the dough and steam cook for 7 minutes.  The end outcome would be a shiny kozhukkatais

VEGETABLE ADAI - SAVORY INDIAN LENTIL PANCAKE

We can't live without vegetables; when I say this statement it includes both DH and Jr.H along with me.  I go mad when veggies are out of stock in refrigerator.  Every weekend, we go to market place and buy the fresh veggies for the whole week.  This is a dedicated family time for us and we love to spend time with one other.  We also take Jr.H ever since his childhood and I ask him to choose veggies of his choice.  Eventually, this has made Jr.H to try eating different veggies.  He gets very excited when I say him that I am going to prepare the vegetable that he has chosen for the family.  He never omits any vegetable that is kept on his plate and I strongly have a feel that this is because of the responsibility given to him for choosing the vegetables. 

Most of my dishes would include sneaking in maximum vegetables as I always have a feel that vegetarians get less energy than meat eaters.  This recipe is my mom's signature dish.  When someone comes to our home and the first thing they ask my mom to prepare is this dish; "Vegetable Adai".  My mom is the best cook I have ever seen and whatever she touches becomes delectable.  When she comes to my home and when I cook for her, I sometimes madly call her to kitchen and ask her to touch the vessel and she will smile in proud and pat me :-). 

This recipe is called "Adai"  and it is made of lentils and rice.  It is a savory Indian lentil pancake, an "extended family of dosai". A very nutritious dish can be made in many variations.  I added vegetables to make it more colorful and healthier.  I never make Adai without adding vegetables.  Addition of grated beets gives subtle sweetness which can be felt at the last portion of every bite.

Ingredients: 

Idly rice - 1.5 cups

Raw rice - 0.5 cup

Bengal gram - 1/4 cup

Toor dhal - 6 tsp

Urad dhal - 4 tsp

Chickpea - 10

Asafoetida powder - 1 tsp

Red chillies - 8-10

Salt - To taste

Vegetables - 2 cups (grated carrot, beet, thinly sliced onion, cabbage, and finely chopped cliantaro and curry leaves)  

Oil - as needed

Preparation:

1. Wash and soak rice and lentils separately for 3 hours.

 

2. Grind red chillies, salt, asafoetida powder, and lentils to a smooth mixture.  Transfer the contents to a vessel.

 

3. Grind rice to a coarse mixture and add to the already ground lentil mixture.

4.  Meanwhile, grate beet and carrot and finely chop cabbage, onion, coriander/cliantaro and curry leaves.

5.  Add to the ground mixture and mix well.  Add little water if the mixture is too thick.

 

6.  In dosa pan, pour a ladle full of batter and make small hole in the middle and pour little oil around and in the middle hole.  Let it get cooked for sometime.  Flip over and cook the other side too until golden brown. 

 

 

 

 7.  I make variations by making five holes around the side and this makes it more crisper. 

8. Serve this Adai with butter or aviyal.  I usually won't prepare anything for side dish as I already have added vegetables and this can be eaten as such.