Ragi Dosa

As you all know, Millets are super healthy. So what if we go for a dosa which is tasty as well as healthy? It's time for Ragi dosa.

To be honest, I make this dosa because I love the taste. I can even have just the dosa without any chutney or sambar, It is also a really simple recipe and can be made without the usual soak-grind-ferment routine of our traditional dosa’s. You’ll already have these ingredients in your kitchen. Do give it a try if you haven’t till now.

Note: It's best to use a dosa pan with edges to make this dosa, as the batter is very runny (almost water-like consistency) and the might run over the edge.

What you need:

• Ragi Flour - 1 cup
• Rava/ Sooji/ Semolina - 1 cup
• Rice Flour - 1/2 cup
• Sour Curd - 1/2 cup
• Onion - 1 small, finely chopped
• Green Chillies - 2, finely chopped
• Ginger - 1inch piece, minced
• Curry Leaves - a few
• Whole black pepper - 8-10
• Salt, Oil, Water

How I made it:

1. In a large enough bowl/vessel, mix all the ingredients with 1 cup of water
2. Mix Well. Add one more cup of water and mix again
3. Rest the batter for 15-20 minutes
4. Add another 1.5 cups of water to get a loose watery batter. Check and adjust the salt as per your taste
5. Heat the dosa pan.
6. Use a small glass or bowl to pour the batter on the hot tawa. We don’t spread the batter like we do for regular dosa as the batter is very loose. 
7. Drizzle oil on the dosa and let it cook on medium flame. Then turn the dosa and cook both sides.
8. Serve hot with chutney or sambar. Or just as is like me :).

Additional Notes:

• The batter should be of watery consistency. That’s what makes the dosa thin and crispy
• This dosa takes a little bit longer than usual dosa to cook, on each side. You’ll get an idea once you seat making it.
• You can reduce the water to2 cups overall to get a thicker batter too. The cooking time will be slightly more, that’s all
• I like adding whole black pepper as is. You can crush it and add or omit altogether.

Crispy Roti Bites

What do you guys usually do with leftover rotis?

I used to keep them in the refrigerator and microwave it the next day for lunch or dinner... Till I got this recipe from my sis. Thank you Deepa chechi! 

It's super easy, no prepping needed and ready in a jiffy. These crispy roti bites can be had as a tea time snack or like pappadam (rice/dal fritters) along with your meal. 
I shallow fried mine and it was as crispy as it would be deep fried.

What you need:

1. Leftover Roti (No need to microwave, cold is fine)
2. Salt + Chilly powder / Chaat masala
3. Oil for frying

How I made it:

1. Shred the rotis randomly into bite sized pieces
2. Heat the oil
3. Fry the shredded roti in hot oil
4. Drain on a paper towel and sprinkle the salt + chilly powder or chat masala on them.

That's it. Your crispy roti bites are ready! You can try it out with other flavours too like Aamchoor (dry mango powder), ground ginger etc. if you like.

Beef Kurumulaku Roast

Being a Mallu (Malayali/ Keralite), beef dishes are always a favourite. Kerala Porotta - Beef is the most popular combo but we can have beef with pretty much anything - rice, chapati, dosa, idli... you get the idea :).

Beef kurumulaku roast or beef pepper roast is a semi gravy side dish with loads of crushed black pepper. The preference is to use freshly ground black pepper but in case you only have store bought ground pepper, that works too, though there will be a marked difference in taste :).

So here's the recipe. I have listed the ingredients for marination and cooking separately.

What you need:

• Beef - 1/2 kg, cleaned and cut into small pieces
• Pearl Onions - 12, finely chopped
• Ginger - 1 inch piece, minced
• Garlic - 3 cloves, minced
• Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
• Curry leaves - a strand
• Freshly ground black pepper - 1 1/2 tsp + 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
• Meat masala/ garam masala - 1 tsp + 1/2 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Coconut oil - 1 tbsp

For marination:

• Freshly ground black pepper - 1 tsp
• Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
• Meat masala/ garam masala - 1 tsp
• Salt - 1/4 tsp

How I made it:

1. Marinate the cleaned and cut beef with the listed ingredients and keep it aside for at least 30 minutes. (I placed it in the refrigerator.) 
2. Pressure cook the beef till done. Do not add any water to the cooker as the meat will ooze out water while cooking. Also, make sure the stove is on low flame. The beef I get here is usually done in 3 whistles. You can check after 3 whistles and if not cooked, keep for more whistles as needed.
3. Dry roast the coconut in a frying pan till it turns brown. This will give a dark brown gravy to your dish.
4. Turn off the stove and add 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp meat/garam masala and mix well. Ensure the stove is turned off, else the masala will get burnt.
5. Once this cools, grind to a thick paste by adding a little water. The paste should be a bit coarse.
6. Heat a kadai (if you have a cast iron one, that's perfect), add coconut oil.
7. Once the oil heats up, add the chopped pearl onions and fry for a minute. Keep the stove on medium-low flame.
8. Add half the curry leaves, minced ginger, garlic and saute till the onions turn golden. 
9. Add 1 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp meat/garam masala and 1/4 tsp turmeric. Fry for a minute till the raw smells goes.
10. Add the ground coconut paste, salt to taste and a little water. Mix well.
11. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes.
12. Add the pressure cooked beef along with the water from the pressure cooker. 
13. Mix well. Check the salt and adjust as per your taste.
14. Cover and cook till the beef has the full flavour of the masala (about 10 minutes).
15. Garnish with a few curry leaves.

Notes:

• Cooking time of the beef might vary based on the meat you get at your place.
• I used store bought meat masala for this dish. Please feel free to use your choice of masala, either store bought or home made.
• I prefer using curry leaves in roast dishes. If you like to add coriander leaves, you can do that as well.

Idli/ Dosa Podi

Idli/dosa podi is a spiced powder which goes as a side dish for idli and dosa. There are so many variations of this podi and we make it according to our taste.

My podi is based on the recipe of my cooking guru - my mom :). She makes it regularly, so we always have fresh stock at home. Podi or ulli chammanthi (recipe coming soon) is our favourite side for idli, especially when bored with the usual chutney or sambar. Amma makes her podi a little coarse. I too like it that way, the light crunch goes really well with soft idlis. 

What you need:

• Urad dal/ uzhunnu parippu - 1 cup (I used 250 ml cup)
• White rice - 1/4 cup
• Dry Red chillies - 8 (if the chilly you have is spicy, use 5)
• Kashmiri chilly - 3
• Whole Black pepper - 5 (or 1/2 tsp of crushed black pepper)
• A strand of Curry leaves
• A pinch of Hing/ asafoetida/ kaayam 
• Salt to taste

How I made it:

• First you need to dry roast the ingredients separately and cool them.
• In a hot pan, dry roast the rice until golden brown and keep aside once done.
• Next roast the chillies, whole pepper and curry leaves and keep aside once done. Do not remove the stem of the chillies, we can do that before grinding. Else the seeds will fall into the pan and may get burnt. If using crushed pepper, add it in next step only.
• Then roast the urad dal until golden brown. Once done, turn off the stove and add hing (and crushed pepper if using). Stir well and keep aside.

• Once cooled completely, grind each of the above roasted ingredients separately, to a coarse powder. 

• Add all the ground mixture to the mixie bowl along with a little bit of salt and pulse couple of times to mix it all together. Check salt and add more if needed. You can do it in multiple batches if the mixie bowl is small.

That’s it. Your spicy idli/ dosa podi is ready. Store the podi in an air-tight jar for longer shelf life.

Notes:

• Make sure you have the stove on medium flame and are stirring constantly, when you roast the ingredients. Else it will get burnt.
• I used idli rice, but you can use any white rice that you usually use for cooking at home.
• Adjust the quantity of chillies based on your taste. I like my podi spicy.
• Feel free to add a tablespoon of Channa dal/ kadala parippu, if you like the flavour. If using, you can roast it along with the urad dal.
• You can grind the rice and dal to a fine powder too. As mentioned earlier, it’s based on your taste and how you like it.
• This podi can be added on top of your dosa to make spicy podi dosa. It can also be added on top of idli upma for that added kick of spice. 
• Podi tastes best when mixed with coconut oil or gingely oil. You can also mix it with ghee (clarified butter) if feeling a bit indulgent :).

Vazhakka Bajji (Plantain Fritters)

Vazhakka Bajji is one of the easiest and very popular South Indian snacks. Just five ingredients and easy to make, the chances of getting this wrong is minimal. Unless you burn it while frying :).

Vazhakka used for bajji is different from the raw banana/ kaya we use for making stir fries or curries. We need the raw version of the yellow banana (Plantain or Kerala banana as it is popularly called). Here’s a pic - the one on the left is for bajji and the one on the right is for stir fries.

So here's the recipe.

Serves: 2

What you need:

1. Vazhakka (Raw Banana)- 1 large
2. Besan / Kadala maavu - 1 cup (I used a 250ml cup)
3. Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp
4. Salt
5. Oil - I used vegetable oil. Feel free to use the oil of your choice.

How I made it:

• Mix besan, chilli powder and salt with enough water to make a batter. The batter should be thick enough to coat the vazhakka pieces but at the same time not too much.
• Wash and clean the vazhakka. Cut it into two or three portions and make thin slices out of each portion. I like smaller pieces, so I usually make it into 3 portions. you will easily get 10-12 pieces that way.
• Add the slices into the batter and make sure each piece is well coated.
• Heat oil in a frying pan.
• Once the oil is hot, gently add the vazhakka pieces and fry on each side till it is a medium brown. 
• Take out of the pan and dab with a paper towel to remove excess oil.
• Serve hot bajji with ketch-up or just as it is.

Tips:

1. Sometimes the bajji may not turn medium brown, which is how we usually identify that it is ready. In that case, once the sizzling sound reduces, you can take the bajji off the pan.
2. You can add 1/4 tsp of Kashmiri chilli powder for added color.

Masala Kappa (Tapioca Masala)

Between a relocation and a kitchen renovation, I have been completely off my food blog. Though I was cooking very regularly, writing down the recipes or clicking photos of the food I made never happened. Now that I have a brand new kitchen, I decided enough is enough. So starting off again with a simple but yummy Kerala recipe.

Kappa(tapioca) has always been one of my all time favorite dishes. The famous combination is Kappa and Fish curry. But I will happily have even a simple boiled kappa with a bit of Mulaku chammanthi (Chilly Chutney). This recipe is a bit more elaborate. So here goes.

What you need:

• Kappa(tapioca), bite sized pieces: 1 cup
• Ginger: a 1.5 inch piece
• Garlic: 5-6 medium sized cloves
• Red chilly: 3 nos
• Pearl Onions/Shallots: 10 nos
• Curry leaves: a handful, chopped
• Turmeric: 1/4 tsp
• Grated coconut: 2 tbsp (optional)
• Salt and oil: As per taste

 
 How to make:

• In a deep pan, add the kappa, enough water and turmeric. The water level should be just a couple of inches above the tapioca layer.
• Bring it a boil and reduce the flame to medium. Add half tsp of salt, mix and continue cooking till the tapioca is soft. Drain and mash it coarsely.
• While the tapioca is cooking, crush the pearl onions, ginger, garlic, and red chillies. You can use a mortar & pestle for crushing. Or a chapati roller over a cutting board will also do (that's what I did ).
• Once the tapioca is almost cooked, heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds.
• Add finely chopped curry leaves, give it a stir and then add the crushed ingredients.
• Fry till the raw smell goes and the pearl onions turn a light brown. Pearl onions brown a lot faster than regular onions, so keep a close eye on the pan. I usually add a pinch of salt at this point so that the masala also has enough salt.
• If you like coconut, you can add it now and mix well.
• By now, your tapioca will be ready and mashed. Add this mashed tapioca to the pan and mix well so that the masala is evenly coated.
• Cook for another 5-6 minutes and take off the stove.

You can simply have it as it is or serve it with fish/chicken/beef curry.

Methi-Tomato Pulao

In the past few months, I've learnt to cook a lot of new dishes. Especially these one pot varieties which is a meal in itself and does not need any side dish to go with it. This is one such dish. After trying out multiple recipes from the internet, I finally struck a balance somewhere in the middle with a few touches of my own. This recipe is with the usual white rice. It will be tastier if you use Basmati/Biriyani rice as it has more flavor. Also I found it to be better if the rice and masala are cooked separately and mixed in the end. 

Serves: 2

What you need:

• Rice: 1.5 cups
• Methi/Fenugreek leaves: 1 bunch
• Onion: 1 medium chopped 
• Tomatoes: 2 medium chopped
• Green chillies: 4 medium finely chopped
• Garlic cloves: 2 medium finely chopped
• Ginger: 1 inch piece finely chopped
• Coriander powder: 1 tsp
• Chilly powder: 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric: 1/4 tsp
• Oil - 1 Tbsp
• Ghee: 1 tbsp + 1/2 tsp

Whole masala:

• Bay leaves: 2
• Cinnamon: 1 inch piece
• Star Anise: 2 flowers
• Fennel/Cumin: 1/2 tsp

For Garnish:

• Almonds (or cashews): 7-8 chopped 
• Raisins: 14 -15

How to Make:

• Wash the rice and cook it using any method which you usually use. Make sure its a little under cooked so that it does not get mushy when mixed with the masala. 
• Wash the methi thoroughly in running water and remove the leaves from the stem. 
• In a kadai or frying pan, heat the oil. Add the fennel/cumin seeds and when it splutters, add rest of the whole masala.
• Turn the heat to medium. Add the chopped chillies, garlic and ginger and fry for a few seconds. 
• Add the chopped onions and saute till glossy.
• Next add the methi leaves and mix well. Cover the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the leaves wilt.
• Add the chilly powder, coriander powder, turmeric and give it a good mix.
• Finally add the chopped tomatoes and mix. Add salt to taste and cook until the tomatoes are soft. If the masala looks too dry, add 1/4 cup water.
• Once the masala is cooked (about 5-8 minutes), tip in the cooked rice and mix very gently using a fork. Though its a little tedious, using a fork avoids mashing up the rice. Add the 1/2 tbsp ghee to the rice mixture. 
• Check the salt and sprinkle some more if required.
• In a small frying pan, heat the ghee and roast the almonds and raisins.
• Tip it into the pulao along with the hot ghee. Give a light mix with the fork and the pulao is ready.

Notes:

• The masala powders were enough for my taste, but if you feel the masala is a bit bland, increase the quantity accordingly.
• Adding a bit of salt along with the onions make it fry quicker. I do this when I'm pressed for time or impatient :).
• You can cook this this entirely using ghee. I am not much of a ghee enthusiast so I use it only for the garnish.