Anitha Jayaraman

One should appreciate their traditions & customs for giving us a wide range of festivals with one thousand reasons! V.V is celebrated on the first friday before Pournami in the Avani month. This is for the goddess Lakshmi in the name of Varalakshmi Amman. I followed a book and also my MIL’s words -:) to prepare dishes for this pooja. The below are the required ones for Pooja.

1) Kuzhi-Appam

Required items – Raw Rice, Jaggery, Half banana, Cardamom powder for preparation of the batter.  AppaKaral (special pan with molds), Oil, Appa Kuchi(optional) for cooking.

• Soak the raw rice in water for 1 – 2 hours.
• Powder equal amount of Jaggery stones.
• Using a mixie, grind the rice, Jaggery and a half banana. Also add little cardamom powder to it.
• Add water until you get a watery consistency like thin dosa batter.
• Pour oil in each of the molds of the Appakaral. Heat the pan.
• Once heated well, you can start pouring the batter in each mold.
• Once the batter turns to an appam, use a fork or Appa kuchi to turn the appam upside down
• Once cooked again, you can remove the appams
• Continue the process for the remaining batter

2) Kozhukattai (sweet, salt)

Rice flour is required. It is better to prepare the pooranams first.

Required items for sweet pooranam – Equal amounts of Jaggery & Grated coconut, Cardamom powder.

• Melt the Jaggery in a pan on the stove. To this add the grated coconut and cardamom powder.
• Fry them until they reach a sticky consistency for stuffing.

Required items for salt pooranam – I cup Urad, green chillies, seasoning items.

• Soak a cup of Urad dhal for an hour or so. Grind them with few green chillies.
• Steam the Urad dhal mixture using an idly vessel.
• Break the steamed mixture to pieces. Fry them with seasoned mustard seeds.

Kozhukattai

• Fry(warm up) the rice flour using a pan.
• Heat water in a vessel. The quantity of water should be the same as that of the rice flour you will be using.
• When it is boiling hot, add the rice flour slowly and stir strongly.
• Add a pinch of salt to this mixture.
• Once its ready as a dough, remove from stove and cool it for a while.
• Make shapes out of it to stuff the pooranam.
• Steam the stuffed items using an idly vessel. Your kozhukatai is ready.

3) Sweet Pongal (Chakarai Pongal)

This is an easy dish that I would prepare for any occasion but anyway to this festival it is a must.

Required items - 2 cups rice, 1 cup moong dhal, 3 cups jaggery, cashew, raisins, cardamom, ghee

• Wash the rice and dhal. Fry the dhal using little ghee.
• Using a pressure cooker, cook the rice and dhal. Add double the amounts of water.
• In this case 6 cups of water is required. I minus a cup of water and substitute with a cup of milk.
• Cook for 3-4 whistles depending on the power of the cooker. It has to be cooked really well and cannot look dry.
• On the other burner, take a non-stick vessel and melt the jaggery to liquid by adding little quantity of water.
• To this add the cooked rice and dhal. Keep stirring until they mix up well.
• Add little ghee while stirring in order to bind.
• Finally add the ghee-fried cashew, raisins, cardamom.

4) Parupu Payasam

This is kinda same as Chakkarai pongal. Oops I forgot the instructions, will check at home and will be back to write it out.

Required items - 2 cups of moong dhal, 1/2 cup of chenna dhal, 2.5 cups of jaggery, thinly cut coconut pieces, milk, cashews, cardamom.

• Fry the dhals again in low flame using little ghee.
• Pressure cook them adding double the quantities of water. Substitute 1-2 cups of water with milk.
• Melt the jaggery using little water.
• Mix the cooked dhal with this. It has to be little watery being Payasam(supposed to drink!!)
• Fry cashews, cardamom and cocconut pieces in ghee. Add it to the payasam.

5) Medhu Vada

I am hoping Aliya can refer back to this section as she pointed me out to write it down instead of recommending the readymade pack which I did for a quick dinner special -:)

Required items -2 cups of Urad dhal, 2 Green chillies, Pepper, Asafoetedia, Salt, Oil, Corinader leaves, Curry leaves, Ginger.

• Soak Urad dhal in water for  4-5 hours atleast.
• Grind it using a grinder or mixie without adding water. Its difficult to grind it hence suggesting a grinder. Sprinkle little water whenever it annoys you while grinding.
• Using a mixie, grind the chillies, pepper, curry  leaves, corinader leaves.
• Mix this with the batter. Add salt, asafoetedia.
• Take a small banana leaf or a thick plastic cover. Apply oil to your hand and the leaf.
• Make shapes of the vada on the leaf and start frying them in oil.
• Wet your hand everytime in water so that the batter doesnt stick onto your hand.
• Fry themuntil the oil stops bubbling and the vada changing to brown color.

6) Raw rice Idly

Idly is not a big deal but this is the first time I am making Idly with Raw rice and without boiled rice. Ladies(wives) are not supposed to eat boiled rice on this day and hence this gets useful for lunch and dinner.

Required items - 2 cups of raw rice, 1 cup of Urad dhal and salt.

• Soak rice and urad dhal separately for 3-4 hours.
• Grind them separately adding required quantity of water. I used a mixie being less quantity.
• Mix them and ferment it overnight.
• The next day, Idly is sure to come within shape and not sticky.

To complete the cooking on this special day, I made aracha vita Pudalangai(Snake Gourd) Sambar, Potato-Methi fry, Parupu rasam and applam.

I had invited people for dinner on this special day.

The Olympic fever is on! TV shows, website and even casual talks with colleagues @ work will deal with this. Even I had this fever over the weekend. China is hosting a wonderful Olympics with the technology advancements & hard-working people. I am also amazed seeing USA trying to capture its positions as always.

It was so interesting to watch the events being performed by various nations. Whether you win or lose, representing your nation looked beautiful to me. I was feeling little worried that India is not seen in most of the events. On Monday, the good news of Rifle shooting came in where Mr.Bindra became the first individual Indian to win the gold medal in Olympics. I was happy but really waiting to see the indians participating in all Olympic events. Even if 20-20 cricket becomes available in future Olympics, I will still wait for the Indians to participate in all events.

I know its a wierd combination. Dont worry, I reused the Bhaji to stuff inside the sandwich.

What do you need – Sandwich buns, butter, cut onions, cut tomatoes, ginger-garlic paste, Pav Bhaji masala powder, Chilli powder, fresh vegetables and/or soaked beans.

• To make the Pav, I used the regular sandwich buns that you get at the stores. Toasted them traditionally on a flat pan using butter.
• For bhaji, you can use any vegetable of your choice. I used soaked black eye peas(Karamani), potatoes, carrots and also some eggplants.
• Pressure cook these to 3-4 whistles so that they get mashed completely.
• Start cooking the mashed mixture. Add salt, Pav Bhaji masala powder and a little bit of Chilli powder.
• You can vary the proportion of these powders accordingly to your spice taste.
• On the other stove, take a small plan and fry the cut onions in butter. Add it to the cooking mixture.
• Now fry the cut tomatoes in the same pan and add it to the cooking mixture.
• Again, fry ginger-garlic paste and add it to the mixture.
• Your Pav Bhaji is now ready to eat. You can add cut onions and lemon syrup to flavor the food.

Sandwich

• Take 2 slices of bread and apply butter to its outer sides.
• I stuffed the Bhaji inside and pressed them on a sandwich maker.

While Aadi Velli, Peruku, Pooram are the busy festivals during this special month. Most of the familes do not forget to make the Raagi (Kaezhvaragu) Koozh on atleast one of the sundays during this month. My elder sister follows this custom and I got so attached to the Koozh because of her. Non-vegetarians have their suitable side dishes but I made my yummy counterpart last sunday. My sister did her ritual in India on the same day and I wanted to be a copy-cat.

Koozh-

• Its a 2 day process. Soak the raagi flour the previous day morning in suitable quantity of water. Maintain the consistency in equal to the Idly batter.
• In the night, cook 3-4 cups of rice using the traditional method. While it gets to over-cook, add this raagi batter and start stirring.
• Stir to boil and then leave it aside.
• The next day morning, add a cup of curd and salt and mix it again. To this add finely cut onion pieces.

Bean curry

• I used the motchaikottai dried bean. Soak it in water the previous day night.
• The next day pressure cook it to 1-2 whistles.
• You can choose any vegetable to go along with it. I chose eggplant(brinjal). Cut the vegatble into small pieces.
• In a pan, after seasoning add finely cut onions and tomatoes and deep fry them.
• To this add little water and add chilli powder and salt. Let it boil to a precipitate.
• To this add the cut vegetables and boiled beans. Let it cook for a while to bind to the precipitate.

Aadi peruku was last saturday being Aadi 18th. My MIL wanted me to prepare variety rice(Kalandha saadham) for the goddess Amman. I recollect that lunch purposefully prepared with variety rice is something that we do for Poomudichal ceremonies. It looks like we got to do the same for Amman as she is pregnant -:) On Aadi pooram (Aadi 20th), Amman wears the glass bangles as its her Seemandham/Valakaapu that day.

Enough of intro, I made Mint rice(Pudhina), Lemon rice, Seasoned curd rice(a big deal huh!) and Capsicum usili.

Pudhina chutney:

I made the chutney to dual serve my purpose. Either mix with rice or eat with idly/dosa.

• Pluck the mint leaves from the bunches(2) and keep them washed ready.
• In a pan, pour some oil and fry lentils – Urad and Chenna dhal. This is going to give the little crunchy taste.
• Add 4 green chillies and 2 red chillies while frying.
• Add the leaves and heat them with the fried items. The leaves will contract soon.
• Cool down the mixture before adding to the Mixie.
• To that add defrosted coconut pieces(4-5) , a tamrind piece(previously soakad) and salt.
• Grind it to soft by adding water little by little. Consistency is left to you.
• You can season the chtuney with oil on low flame.
• You can either mix with rice or use this a side-dish for Idly dosa.

Lemon rice:

I know this does not need instructions.

• Season mustard seeds, Urad, Chenna dhal, groundnuts, curry leaves & cut green chillies. Fry them.
• To this add turmeric powder, salt and lemon syrup. Switch off the flame in a bit.

Seasoned curd rice:

Everyone eats curd rice except me! So I still make it. I seasoned mustard seeds, Urad, Chenna dhal, green chillies and  added to the curd mixed rice.

Capsicum Usili:

You can make usili with any vegeatble(mostly). I used bell peppers as I dont like to eat it in any other form

• Soak chenna dhaal – 1 cup for few hours.
• Now grind that in a mixe with red chillies, salt and asafoetedia powder.
• Take care while grinding – do not add water. It should be dry and crunchy and not soft.
• Take a Idly vessel and steam the mixture keeping small quantities in each area of the Idly plate.
• On a pan, pour some oil and slightly fry the steamed pieces to go more hard.
• Let it cool down. Now break the big pieces to small quantities.
• Cut the capsicum into small pieces.
• Season oil with mustard seeds and add the cut vegetables and fry them for a while.
• Add the Chenna dhal pieces to it. Fry it to dry.

Its friday and Kuselan is realeasing all over the world. When movies are remade, there is always an arguement that the original is special when compared to the new ones.  Very true, it happened even with Chandramukhi. But you know what, if you prefer to enjoy the style and the masala aspects its better to watch the new one and then compare it with the original. Or else you will not be satisfied. This movie has created too much of hype inspite of being a remake. Superstar with his new getups(continues from Sivaji) is making the movie so special. I have 2 other stars who are my favourites acting in this movie – Pasupathy & Nayantara(lady superstar)! No big idea about G.V’s music in this movie. Hoping my friday night turns out enjoyable!