Chena Varutharacha Curry| Chena Masala Curry| Chena Theeyal

Chena Varutharacha Curry| Chena Masala Curry| Chena Theeyal is a easy to prepare delicious Nadan curry which tickles your taste buds for sure. I love theeyal once my taste buds wants something really interesting to refresh my taste buds. This dish is from Kerala Cuisine prepared in a very traditional way.

Its quick to prepare flavourful curry good for digestion. You could prepare this for sadhya for festivals like Onam or even for day today lunch. Check out other Kerala Special Recipes here.

INGREDIENTS:
Yam| Chena- 1/2 kg
Turmeric powder- pinch
Salt- to taste
Tamarind- small gooseberry size

To roast and grind:

Oil- 2 teaspoons
Coconut, grated- 1 cup
Jeera| cumin seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Fennel seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Pearl onion| small onion, roughly chopped- 8
Ginger- 1/2 inch
Garlic- 3 big cloves
Dry red chilli- 8-10 nos
Coriander seeds- 1 teaspoon
Peppercorns- 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves- 1 strand

To temper:
Oil- 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds- 1/4 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds|methi seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
Dry red chillies- 2
Curry leaves- 2 strand

PROCEDURE:

• Peel and chop the yam into medium sized cubes. In a pan add yam, turmeric powder and enough water to immerse the yam and close with a lid and switch on the flame. Once it is half done add the salt and cook till soft but not mushy.
• Drain the excess water and keep aside.
• Soak the tamarind in one cup of water.
• Heat two teaspoon of oil in a pan and add the grated coconut, jeera, fennel seeds, pearl onion, ginger, garlic, dry red chillies, coriander seeds, peppercorns and curry leaves.
• Roast the ingredients in medium flame to low flame till light golden brown colour. The deeper the colour the colour of the curry deepens.
• Allow the masala to cool; now transfer these ingredients on a blender jar and dry grind as a fine powder. Now add little water and grind as a fine paste.
• Heat oil in a deep pan and splutter the mustard seeds; now add the fenugreek seeds and fry till light golden brown colour.
• Now break the chillies in to two pieces and add with some curry leaves and fry in the oil for a second. 
• Now add the tamarind water, masala paste, cooked yam, some salt and water to dilute the curry according to the consistency you wish (a cup or more).
• Close with a lid and allow to cook till the gravy thickens and the raw flavour of the tamarind leaves.
• Note: Same way you could use bhendi, brinjal, ginger..etc to prepare this theeyal. Check out other Kerala Special Recipes here.

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Padavalanga Kootu| Pudalangai Kootu| Snake Gourd Subzi

All the Cucurbitaceous vegetables are good for health, as this veggies contains more than 90 precent water and negligible amount of fat content. We consume many vegetables like cucumber, pumpkin, bitter gourd, snake gourd, bottle gourd, ash gourd..etc for lunch as kootu| subzi with rice or with chapatis. Popular South Indian preparations with these veggies are kootu, pachadi, theeyal, poriyal or thoran.

Adding dal to this dish makes more nutritious and delicious. It is quite a simple dish but with full of flavours. You could use any dal of your choice like toor dal or moong dal but it is traditionally prepared with chana dal. My mom prepares with toor dal but the same way as i make she prepares this dish. This dish is perfect for summer day lunch with any pouring curry of your choice.

INGREDIENTS:
Snake Gourd, finely chopped- 1/2 big(2 cups)
Chana dal| kadala parippu- 1/4 cup
Turmeric powder- 1/4 teaspoon
Coriander powder- 1 teaspoon
Coconut, grated- 1/2 cup
Green chillies-2
Jeera- 1/2 teaspoon
Oil- 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds- 1/4 teaspoon
Fennel seeds- 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves- 2 strands
Salt - to taste

PROCEDURE:

• Deseed and peel the snake gourd and wash it thoroughly and finely chop it into small cubes.
• Pressure cook the chana dal with tumeric powder by using a cup of water; cook till 4 whistles.
• Once the pressure releases add the coriander powder and some salt and allow to cook in that water. It should not go mushy but it has to cook soft.
• In a blender jar add the grated coconut, green chillies, jeera and grind it as a coarse paste.
• In a separate pan cook the snake gourd with salt and very little amount of water around 1/4 cup. Close the lid and cook till soft but not mushy.
• Now add the cooked snake gourd in to the pressure cooker with the cooked dal. 
• Now add the coconut paste too and allow to cook till the raw flavour of green chillies gone.
• In a tadka pan heat some oil and add mustard seeds, fennel seeds and then curry leaves.
• Now transfer the tempering on top of the kootu and mix well and switch off the gas.

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Neer Mor| Morum Vellam

Neer Moru| Morum Vellam is nothing but watery yogurt based drink (or) the liquid left after churning the butter out of cream with added spice and herbs for flavour and taste which is very famous in South India. It is served during summer to stay cool during old days, nowadays people started to consume preserved tetra pack juices to carbonated drinks to reduce the heat. People forget the traditional beverages which could be prepared at home easily with less cost without any preservatives.

This drink is similar to kerala Sambaram which is bit creamy buttermilk drink but this one is more thin watery in consistency. Prepare a big lot in the morning and refrigerate and drink whenever feel thirsty during these summer days. I took these pictures last year and it was in my drafts section. I do not fancy these old pictures much even then i am posting for the sake of the summer.

INGREDIENTS:
Yogurt/ curd- 1 cup
Water- 4 cups
Ginger- 1/2 inch
Green chilli-2
Curry leaves, chopped- 1 strand
Coriander leaves, chopped- 1 tablespoon
Small onion/ pearl onion-2 (optional)
Salt- to taste

PROCEDURE:

• Take the yogurt in a bowl and beat well with spoon or a whisk to make it creamy without any lumps.
• Now add the water to dilute the yogurt and mix well. The consistency should be watery than sambaram. It should be watery if you keep the moor the water should separate on top of that. Add water according to your thickness of the yogurt. I am adding four cups as i am using store bought thick yogurt.
• Chop the ginger, green chilli, curry leaves, pearl onion and coriander leaves. Crush the ginger, green chilli and curry leaves slightly to release the flavour using a pestle and mortor or slightly crush them on top of the chopping board using a backside of a rolling pin or pestle. You could mince using a blender too.
• Add the crushed ingredients, onion, coriander leaves add salt to taste. Mix well and serve chilled.
• You could serve the mooru as such or strain and serve but the flavours will be there in the butter milk.

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Inji Puli| Puli Inji| Ginger Pickle| Inji Achar

Onam Sadya is a meal with combination of various taste and flavours.  This ginger pickle is served as a digestive in this sadya menu. Ginger helps to digest the heavy meal. So it is prepared in the form of Inji Curry, Inji Theeyal or Puli inji for the onam sadya. I have already shared Inji curry recipe in my blog. You could check that too.

The main ingredients are ginger and the tamarind in this yummy pickle. Apart from that chillies are used for heat and jaggery is used to reduce or balance the heat from ginger and chillies. Tangy hot and sweet pickle.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Cuisine: Kerala
Makes: 1 cup

INGREDIENTS:
To temper:
Oil(Sesame oil/ coconut oil)- 2 tablespoons
Mustard seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Dry red chillies-3-4
Curry leaves- 2 strands.

Ginger, finely chopped- 1 cup
Green chillies, chopped- 3-4
Asafetida- 1/4 teaspoon
Tamarind- big gooseberry size ball
Turmeric powder- pinch(optional)
Jaggery-1/2 cup(100 grams)
Salt- to taste

PROCEDURE:

• Finely chop the ginger and cut the green chillies as thin roundels. You could crush the ginger slightly in blender jar if you wish to avoid biting ginger in the pickle.
• Soak the tamarind in 1 and 1/2 cups of water. 
• Crush/ grate the jaggery; setaside. If the jaggery is not pure dissolve in hot water or make syrup and strain it and use.
• Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds once the mustard seeds starts to pop and the fenugreek seeds starts to get golden colour add the dry red chillies.
• Now add the finely chopped ginger and green chillies, Asafetida and salt together and fry in that oil.

• Fry the ginger on low to medium flame till golden brown colour starts to appear. Now the ginger volume reduces to half and feel light and starts to give nice aroma.
• At this stage add the soaked tamarind water and allow to cook for 5 minutes. 

• Now add the turmeric powder and little red chilli powder if you need extra spicy.(I have not added both)
• Now add the jaggery and allow the mixture to cook and reduce to form semi soild gravy consistency. It should not be watery or too thick.

• Note: To get darker colour use aged tamarind and dark colour jaggery.
• You could start from sauteing ginger in oil and follow the same procedure and finally do tempering separately and add. I have not done separately to avoid excess use of oil.

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Beetroot Thoran| Beetroot Poriyal

Beetroot thoran is an easy to make colourful thoran for daily lunch or even for Onam sadya menu. This is quick to make and healthy stirfry. Thoran could be made in almost all the veggies, I have shared some recipes in my blog Vazakkka Thoran, Vazha koombu Thoran, Mushroom Thoran, Carrot Beans thoran, Ethakka Tholi Thoran, Kadachakka Thoran, Cabbage Masala Thoran, Vazha pindi Thoran, Broccoli Thoran..etc.

Thoran and Tamil nadu Poriyal are almost similar they add jeera while tempering and chopped garlic with onion while cooking and they do not grind the coconut then add the grated coconut at the final stage.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Cuisine: Kerala
Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS:
Beetroot, grated- 1 big (2 cups)
Oil- 2 teaspoons
Chana dal- 1 teaspoon(optional)
Mustard seeds-1/2 teaspoon
Dry red chillies-2
Curry leaves- 2 strands
Onion, chopped- 1 small
Green chillies, chopped- 2-3
Salt- to taste

To grind:
Coconut, grated- 1/2 cup
Jeera- 1/2 teaspoon
Garlic- 1 clove

PROCEDURE:

• Peel and grate the beetroot. Chop the onion and green chillies; set aside.
• Grind the coconut, jeera and garlic together as a coarse paste without adding any water.

• Heat oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds and then add the chana dal, dry red chillies(optional) and curry leaves.
• Now add the chopped onion and green chillies together and cook till it becomes soft.
• Add the grated beetroot and some salt and stir well.

• Cover it with a lid and cook till the beetroot becomes soft for about 5 minutes.
• Now open the lid and add the coconut paste and mix well and cook till the raw smell of the garlic leaves.

• Serve with any curry of your choice like sambar, dal, rasam or curd. 

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Vazhakka Thoran| Raw Banana Thoran

Vazhakka Thoran| Poriyal, Ethakka thoran is a traditional Kerala style stir fry with coconut served with rice. It is also a part of Onam Sadya menu too. I love this thoran whenever my mom keeps it for my lunch box. It is my favourite kootan from my childhood.
Mom prepares whenever the banana tree falls before the bunch matures due to rain or something. She used to make this thoran out of that. I love the flavour of this banana stirfry. I like it with rasam combo but it goes well with sambar, dal and curd too. Simple to make and delicious dry curry.

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Cuisine: Kerala

Serves:4

INGREDIENTS:
Raw banana-3-4 (Nendran/ any variety)
Oil- 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Dry red chillies- 2-3
Curry leaves- 2 strand
Onion- 1 small (or)Pearl onion- 5-6
Green chillies-2
Salt- to taste
Turmeric powder- 1/4 teaspoon

To grind:
Coconut, grated- 1/2 cup
Jeera- 1/2 teaspoon
Garlic-1 clove
Chilli powder- 1 teaspoon

PROCEDURE:

• Peel the banana by removing the outer skin. No need peel them deeply and chop them into small cubes/pieces and keep that in water to avoid browning.

• Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds and then add the dry red chillies and curry leaves.
• Now add the chopped onion, green chillies and cook till the onion become translucent.
• Now drain the water from banana and add into the pan and sprinkle some salt over it and mix well. Cover it and cook till the banana pieces are slightly soft if you press it but it should not become mushy it has to hold its shape too.(Nendran banana takes time to cook so add little water while cooking)

• While it is cooking grind together coconut, jeera, garlic and chilli powder together as a coarse paste by pulsing once or twice in a blender jar without adding water.

• Once the banana is done add the coconut paste and mix well and cook for a minute till the raw garlic smell leaves.

• Switch off the flame and serve with rice paired with rasam, sambar, dhal or curd. I like this thoran with rasam.

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Papaya Pachadi| Onam Recipes

Green Papaya Pachadi| Omakka Pachadi is an easy to make Kerala style Thayir Pachadi. My mom used to make this tasty pachadi using the green papaya from back yard. She used to remove papaya just before making and make it fresh. I thought of sharing this recipe from the first year of my blogging. But due to one or the other reason it delayed and i am really donot like to miss to share this recipe at this Onam.

The taste of this pachadi is similar as that of Cucumber Pachadi. You could make this pachadi for Onam Sadya menu too. Apt at the time of guest arrival too. Quick fix healthy recipe to serve with rice.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Cuisine: Kerala
Serves: 4-5
INGREDIENTS:
Papaya, chopped- 1 small(approximately 2 cups)
Salt- to taste
Coconut, grated- 1/2 cup
Green chillies-2-3
Mustard seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Yogurt, beaten- 1/2 cup
* Those who does not like mustard flavour replace it with jeera.

To temper:
Oil- 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Dry red chillies- 3
Curry leaves- 2 strand

PROCEDURE:

• Peel the papaya and chop them in to small cubes. Keep inside water and wash the papaya once.
• In a pan add the papaya and add enough water to submerge and allow to cook till soft with some salt. Papaya takes more time to cook when compare to cucumber. You could pressure cook for a whistle too to save the time.

• While it is cooking, grind the coconut, green chillies and mustard seeds together as a fine paste.
• Discard the papaya cooked water stagnating if any.

• Add the coconut paste and mix well and cook for thirty seconds and switch off the flame. Do not cook for long time as the mustard seeds tend to taste bitter.
• Once you switch off the flame add the thick beaten yogurt and mix well. Check for salt and add if required.

• Heat oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds and then add the dry red chillies and curry leaves.

• Transfer the tempering on top of the pachadi and mix well.
• Serve with Parippu curry, Avial combination.

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Vazhaipoo Poriyal | Vazha Koombu Thoran

Vazhaipoo Thoran| Poriyal| Banana blossom stir fry my mom makes it when ever we harvest banana bunch. It is easy to make and packed full of nutrients. I have already posted Vazhaipoo Vadai and Vazhai poo Kuzhambu recipes in my blog. This is an quick fix recipe to suit the South Indian palate. It goes well with steamed rice paired with sambar, rasam and also curd.
Apart from the cleaning part the cooking is so easy and will not take much time. Vazhaipoo has many health benefits, treats infections and prevents the growth of pathogenic bacteria. The antioxidants present in banana flower prevents premature aging and cancer. Reduces the menstural and and excessive bleeding during mensturation in women. Manages diabetes and anemia. It is a rich source of vitamins and minerals. As it is a rich source of magnesium it acts as an antidepressant; boosts the mood and reduces anxiety. Boosts the milk supply in nursing mothers.

Preparation Time:15 minutes
Cookin g Time: 15 minutes
Cuisine: Kerala
Serves:3-4
INGREDIENTS:
Vazhaipoo/ Vazha koombu-1
Oil- 3 teaspoons
Mustard seeds- 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves- 1 strand
Small/Pearl onion, chopped-5 nos (or)Large Onion-1/2
Green chilli, chopped-1
Turmeric powder- 1/4 teaspoon
Salt- to taste

To grind:
Coconut, grated- 1/2 cup
Jeera- 1/2 teaspoon
Garlic- 1 clove
Red chilli powder- 1 teaspoon

PROCEDURE:

• Clean the vazhaipoo by removing the center stiff stick (pistil)and the scale. Chop the flower and soak them in water to avoid browning. Discard the water and again fill with some more fresh water before cooking.
• In a blender jar add the coconut, jeera, garlic and red chilli powder. Blend once or twice to make a coarse paste; set aside.
• Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds and then add the curry leaves and dry red chillies.
• Now add the chopped onion and green chillies. Once the onion becomes translucent drain the water from the chopped banana blossom and add with some salt and turmeric powder.Cover it with a lid and cook till soft. 

• Now add the coconut paste and mix well with the banana blossom and cook for a minute and switch off the flame.

• Note: You could add jeera while tempering and chopped garlic with onion and chilli powder while adding turmeric and finally add the grated coconut to avoid using blender in this recipe.

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