Sankranthi Subhakankshalu / Happy Pongal

Happy Sankranti to my fellow bloggers. No celebration is complete in south india without a sweet and rice preparation and a muggu/kolam/rangoli :) . My cousin sister who studies near chennai dropped by to celebrate pongal and made a beautifull rangoli for us !!

Today I took the opportunity to prepare a biyyam parvanam / rice kheer with a little twist to bring some magic to the flavors. With the kheer I prepared pulihora/tamarind rice.I had posted another version of pulihora earlier which was my MIL version while this one is my mothers style. 

So let me share both my festival recipes today : ) 

Rice Kheer

Ingredients

• 4 cups full fat milk
• 1/3 cup basmati rice
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 3 pods crushed cardamon
• 8 finely chopped pista
• 1 tbsp chopped cashewnuts
• 1 tbsp condensed milk - milkmaid
• 2 tbsp kismis / raisins 
• 1 tsp ghee / clarified butter
• pinch of saffron

Procedure

Pressure cook the rice with one cup milk for 3 whistles for 10 minutes in sim. Switch it off then one the pressure releases remove the lid and mash the cooked rice to make it more soft.

Boil the milk and add the above mashed rice and let it boil, the milk will  begins to thick. Add the sugar , condensed milk and saffron and stir and let it boil for 5 minutes. switch off the flame and let it cool.

Fry the chopped cashewnuts with 1tsp ghee till light golden brown, then add the kismis and a little chopped pista, once the kismis become fluffy add the cardamom powder and then add this to the kheer.

Garnish with remaining pista serve warm or chilled as you prefer

Note: Using basmati rice brings more flavor to the kheer 

Pulihora / Tamarind Rice

Ingredients

• 1 cup rice
• a big lemon size tamarind soak in 1 cup water
• 4 red chillies
• 2 tbsp channa dal
• 1 tbsp urad dal
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds
• 3 springs curry leaves
• 2 tbsp peanuts
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1 green chilli
• 1/8 tsp hing
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp jaggery
• 1/8 cup oil
• salt to taste

Cooking procedure

Soak the tamarind in warm water for 30 min ,then nicely squeeze and extract the pulp and keep aside.
Soak channa dal with enough water for 30 minutes
Cook the rice with 2 cups of water and with a 1 tsp oil in pressure cooker for 3 whistles .

Dry roast sesame seeds with 1 red chilli and a pinch of cummin seeds, once sesame seeds start to splutter transfer it immediately to a plate to cool after that make a fine powder and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan add urad dal ,peanuts, mustard seeds ,fenugeerk seeds and when mustard seeds starts to splutter add the channa dal soaked earlier and fry till it appears golden color. Then add the red chilli,curry leaves,turmeric and hing and stir for 30 sec ,then add tamarind pulp and jaggery and stir n cook till the mixture become a thick and when oil begins to saturate switch off the flame and let it cool.

Mix the above mixture to the rice till it blends nicely with rice ,then mix the sesame seed powder nicely ,then cover n keep aside for 30 min before you serve

Note :

• You can prepare the tamarind paste before ,store in the jar and refregirate it ,use when ever u want .
• If u add more jaggery then will get the sweeter version of pulihora
• Adding sesame seed powder will balance the tangy flavors

Saggubeeyam Majjiga Jantikalu / Sago Crispies

With dewali just around the corner I prepared one of my favorite snacks today, a traditional savory andhra snack whose main ingredients are curd and sago.

Its crunchy and tangy flavor and the little pearls that burst out at the end give it a very unique appearance.

Ingredients

•     4 cups homemade rice flour
•     1 cup Saggubeeyam (Sago/Sabudana/Tapioca)
•     2 cups curd
•     10-15 medium size green chilles paste
•     2 tbsp roasted channa dal powder
•     salt to taste

Procedure

Soak the rice for 4 hours, drain the water completely and pat it dry and make it a fine powder. Keep aside

Soak the sago in 1 cup curd for 2 hours.

Now mix the rice flour, soaked sago , green chillies paste, salt, roasted channa dal powder nicely. Then add little by little curd and check the consistency.Blend nicely until the prepared dough should not stick to the side of the vessel.

Heat oil to fry in a deep bottom pan,set the three hole plate in the jantikalu gottam/murukku press and now fill the dough in jantikalu gottam and slowly press one inch over the hot oil.

Fry on medium flame and flip it occasionally till it becomes golden brown and looks crispy. Remove it and place on a paper towel to absorb the excess oil.



 
Store it a air tight container once its completely cooled.

Note:

1. Oil should be properly heated initially medium to high flame and it should not be too hot as it will get charred and if too cold will not fry properly.

2. Adding roasted channa dal powder makes it more crispy.

3. The green chilli paste should be very fine otherwise it will stick to the plate inside the murukku press and dough will not come out smoothly

4. Sago should be properly soaked.To check if it is soaked properly press it between your fingertips and it should be completely soft.

Andhra Special Boorelu / Sweet Lentil Balls

Wishing all my blog friends a very happy dasara. On this festive occasion I would like to share a authentic south indian andhra sweet prepared with lentils.This delicacy has a crispy exterior and  a soft sweet stuffing and tastes best when eaten warm with a dash of ghee/clarified butter as a dip. It is traditionally served with tamarind rice .

Ingredients

• 1 cup urad dal / black gram lentil without skin
• 2 cups raw rice
• 1 cup chana dal / split bengal gram
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cardamom powder
• a pinch of cooking soda
• oil to deep fry

Procedure:

Step 1: Preparing the batter
Soak urad dal and rice with enough water in bowl overnight or 4-5 hrs,then discard the water and wash properly and make a smooth semi thick paste with adding required amount of water    

Step 2: Preparing the stuffing
Soak the chana dal for 30 min before cooking .Pressure cook the dal along with 3 cups water for 3 whistles and switch of the flame .After it cools open the pressure cooker and stain the water from dal completely .
 

In a blender make a smooth paste of sugar and dal. Heat a broad open pan and put this paste and stir continuously till this paste start to caramelize.Transfer the whole mixture to a plate ,keep aside and let it cool.After the dal mixture cools ,divide the total paste to large lemon size balls

Step 3: Deep Fry
Heat oil in a deep fry pan.Dip the balls in the batter and fry it till golden brown.

The Unbeatable Chittoor Sambar

Sambar is an authentic dish in south india.Sambar is prepared with different vegetable combinations for different purposes. Also the sambar which we serve with idli or dosa is different from the sambar which we serve with rice.This chittoor sambar is best to serve with steamed idlis. It has a unique blend of ingredients and a unbeatable flavor that is a perfect accompaniment for idlis but can also be had with rice.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup toor dal
• 1 cup pearl onions
• 1/2 cup diced radish
• 4 diced baby corn
• 1 cup 2 inch long sliced drumsticks
• 1 cup diced tomato
• 2 green chillies cut length wise
• 1 medium lemon size tamarind soaked in hot water for 15 minutes.
• Remove the pulp and keep the tamarind paste aside.
• 2 tbsp grated coconut
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp sambar powder
• 1 tbsp rasam powder
• 1 tsp poppy seeds(khus khus)
• a pinch of sugar
• salt to taste
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 6 fenugreek seeds
• a pinch of hing (asafoetida)
• 2 tbsp coriander leaves
• 10-15 curry leaves
• 1 tbsp oil

Cooking Procedure:
Pressure cook the toor dal with 2 cups of water and once it is done then beat is nicely to make a smooth paste and keep aside.
Make a smooth paste of sambar powder,rasam powder,grated coconut and poppy seed with some water and keep aside
Take 2 cups of water in a sauce pan then add radish ,corn ,drumsticks and onion and cook till they become tender.
In the mean time add turmeric powder,salt,sugar and the grounded paste to the above .
Once the veggies are cooked add tomato,tamarind pulp and bring it to boil.
Now add cooked dal and add extra water according to your consistency and bring it to boil and let it cook for 5 more minutes.
Heat oil in a pan add mustard seeds,methi seeds, hing and when musterd seeds starts to splutter add the curry leaves and add this to the above sambar.Your sambar is ready and you are ready to serve it with steamed hot idly

Pesara Pindi Bellallu / Green Gram Bubbles

A traditional dish always brings back sweet memories of childhood.And my mom was a expert to dole out so many savory dishes throughout the year.She ensured every season and moment had a special dish.She recently came over and I requested her to prepare this savory green gram bubbles tradionally known as pesara pindi bellallu. The texture and flavor of this savory evening snack can make your family rejoice the moment.The best part is it should be eaten warm with unlimited servings of ghee.!!So enjoy this savory snack my mom has prepared for me and my hubby.

Ingredients

• 1 cup rice flour
• 1 cup green gram flour/moong (see the note)
• pinch of hing
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1/4 cup sesame
• oil to fry
• salt to taste
• ghee for accompaniment

Procedure

Mix all the above ingredients except sesame. Add enough water to it into make a nice soft dough.Divide the dough into equal part of medium size balls.Sprinkle sesame on each ball.On a plastic sheet take each ball and press it firmly to shape it in a round shape. Heat oil in a pan and deep fry it on a medium flame till each side is golden brown. Serve warm with a dash of ghee.
Note: 
1. To make green gram flour grind it into a fine powder and sieve it. 
2.While pressing each ball do not press to much, it should be little thick for it to bubble.