rice roti with left over khichadi/pongal or rice

I have always had mixed success with akki rotis/rice rotis. Once the dough became so dry that the rotis were as crisp as papads. The recipes that have worked involved adding rice flour to boiling water, vigorous kneading and patting the dough on a greased aluminum foil. So here goes a recipe for rice rotis with left over pongal.

left over pongal - measured
rice flour - around 1.5 times the amount of pongal
salt as needed
aluminum foil - 2 sheets (slightly bigger than the size of rotis)
oil, for greasing

Add water to pongal enough to immerse it and 1 cup more and set to boil.
Keep stirring to remove lumps from the pongal.
Once water starts boiling, add rice flour little by little until all the water is absorbed. (which will only take a minute)
Turn off the gas and let it cool until you can handle this mix with your hands. The salt in the pongal may not suffice. Add a little more. (maybe a 1/2 tsp for 1 cup of rice flour)

While still hot, take 1 ladle of the mix in a mixing bowl and work it with your hands. It will most likely be a sticky unworkable mass. Keep adding rice flour while kneading. Also keep adding more of the boiled mix.

Knead and add rice flour so that the mix becomes one mass of dough and not much of it sticks to your hands. (Similar to wheat rotis though wheat roti dough does not stick AT ALL).

Take a sheet of foil, grease withe sesame/coconut oil for flavor. Take a US lemon size ball of dough and pat it with your hands into a round as thin as possible. Invert the foil on a heated tava. Once the roti has heated up a little bit, you can peel the foil off the roti. Cook both sides till brown spots appear.

In the meanwhile, you can grease the second foil and have the second round ready for cooking.

This tastes pretty good (sort of similar to having kozhkattai's (modak's) outer covering). Try with coconut chutney or similar.

Notes:
1. Too much rice flour will cause the roti to dry out and be brittle. Just add enough to make a soft workable dough.
2. If you are wondering if it will be okay with brown rice, I made it with brown rice. It was perfectly fine except that cosmetically there was some bran visible in the rounds.
3. You don't have to re-grease the foil every time.
4. For even more thinner rotis, after patting, cover the round with the second foil and roll it once. peel away the second foil and place on tava.
5. If you let the mix cool down too much before adding rice flour you may not get a soft dough.

Veg Cutlet

Ingredients:
Carrots,Beetroot,Cabbage,peas-grated
Potato-Boiled and smashed
Turmeric powder,Danya powder,garam masala,chilli powder,chat masala,saunf powder,cumin powder
Ginger garlic paste
cilantro,mint leaves-chopped fine
onion- little bit grated
Rice flour,corn flour or besan flour
bread crumbs

Procedure:
Grate all the veggies and green chillies in a chopper
Add potatoes and all the powders and mix well
Add grated onions,cilantro,mint leaves,salt,rice flour and besan flour or corn flour to get a solid consistency
Roll in bread crumbs and shallow fry till dark

Sorry no exact proportion. Depends on how much veggies you have in hand.

Veg Pulao

Ingredients:
Cloves,Cinnamon stick,bay leaf- for flavor
Onions-1/2 medium sliced
green chillies-2 to 3 sliced
ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp to as much desired
Carrot peas(frozen)-1/4 cup
capsicum optional
Mint leaves,Coriander leaves- chopped to garnish
Cashews,raisins(optional)
Rice-1.5 cups

Procedure:
In a pan with little oil,add cloves,cinnamon sticks,bay leaf
Once they pop,add sliced onions,green chillies and ginger garlic paste
Add frozen carrot,peas(or just peas) and saute well
Add some cumin powder and garam masala powder.
Add the washed rice and fry till dry.
Add 1: 2 ratio water with 1/2 a cup extra for the veggies
Once cooked add cashews,raisins sauteed in ghee and add chopped cilantro and mint leaves

Tip:
You can add little milk for flavor. If you add too much it will come out of the cooker and you will end up cleaning.

Fennel Motley Dal

I had some left over fennel from yesterday ... So today's post is another recipe of a surprisingly delectable dish with fennel. It includes all portions of the fennel - the white bulb, green shoots and the dill-like leaves. (They taste similar to dill as well without Dill's strong flavor). I would go as far as saying I prefer fennel leaves to Dill.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup chana dal
1/4 cup split green mung dal
1/2 cup toor dal
1/4 cup masoor dal
1 tsp fenugreek/methi seeds

1 fennel bulb (more or less)

tadka:
1 tsp jeera
1/2 tsp nigella/onion seeds
1 green chilly

seasoning:
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp oil/ghee

Boil the dals and fenugreek seeds together in a pressure cooker until completed cooked and mashed up. keep aside.
Chop the fennel bulb, and shoots. The shoots may have some fibrous portions that may need to be stringed/removed. How I did that was if my knife did not go through a portion of the shoot, I just peeled it away and discarded it. While cutting the shoots, the leaves separate as well eliminating the need for any other prepping.


Heat oil/ghee and sputter the cumin seeds and nigella seeds along with a slit green chilly. Add the chopped fennel and saute lightly.
Once the fennel pieces soften, add the boiled dal with the spices (chilly powder, turmeric). I even added left over rasam. Boil and then simmer for 10 minutes.
Serve with roti.


Footnote:
Nigella seeds/onions seeds have a wonderful flavor but it can be quite strong. Need only 1/2 tsp at the most to season a dish.
The greener and the more tender leaves and shoots of the fennel can be added at the end for fresher flavor.
I would NOT add onions or cilantro to the dish to maintain fennel's unique flavor.

Fennel Bell Pepper chutney (thogaiyal)

What I wanted to make was this - Bellpepper chutney. But I had gotten a fennel bulb and wanted to use it. Surprisingly it has a nice crunchy taste even eaten raw. Once I sauteed it, it morphed into a slightly sweet tender interesting vegetable. The original plan was to make chutney just with the fennel. I tried that but it tasted a tad sweet and mostly bland and lacked the chutney's 'together' texture. So sauteed a bell pepper and blended with very little coconut and some cilantro. The end result was quite tasty with chawal ki rotis which were more like papads than rotis (was okay taste-wise though). So no point posting that recipe.



Serves 2
Ingredients:
1 green bell pepper, chopped (roughly)
equal amount of fennel (fennel bulb) chopped (roughly)
1 tblp ural dal
2 tbsp chana dal
3-4 dried red chillies
2 tbsp coconut
1/4 cup cilantro
1 tsp dry tamarind/ 1/3 tsp tamarind paste
2 tsp oil

Dry roast urad dal, chana dal, red chillies and transfer to blender/mixie.
Add a tsp of oil and saute the bell pepper and fennel till slightly tender (until they start browning a little bit and release the flavors)
Blend the sauteed vegetables with the dry roasted ingredients, coconut, cilantro, tamarind and salt and water as required.
Transfer back to pan with a tsp of oil and cook till any raw flavor is gone. (just for a few minutes)

Enjoy with rice, dosa or rice roti.


My guess is the fennel tempered the bell pepper's 'peppery' flavor and sweetness while imparting a very subtle 'celery' like favor to the dish.

Tomato sevai(semiya)

Ingredients:

Onions- 1 medium
Tomato- 2 medium
Cloves,bayleaf,cinnamon stick
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder,danya powder,chilli powder,cumin powder,garam masala
Tomato paste or tamarind paste(if the tomatoes arent tart enough)
Mustard seeds,split urad dhal and chana dal for seasoning.
Cilantro for garnish.Mint leaves/curry leaves optional
Sevai- 1.5 cups


Procedure:

Fry the semiya/sevai separately till a little brown and set aside.
In a pan with oil, add mustard seeds,urad dal,chana dal,curry leaves.
Add onions sliced and some green chillies and saute.Add ginger garlic paste.
Add all the spice powders and add tomato either by grinding in mixie or in a chopper.
Let boil till it thickens.
Add the semolina and fry well. Add 2-2.5 cups of boiling water to the pan and mix well.
Garnish with cashewnuts,cilantro.Adding ghee ofcourse brings good taste.

Tip 1: Always use only boiling water when cooking sevai or the sevai will be one big mass.
Tip 2: Always use less than 1 : 1.5-1.75 ratio cos sevai needs less water to cook than rava(sooji).
Tip 3: you can add tomate paste or tamarind paste if the tomatoes arent tart enough.Best when served right from the stove.
Tip 4: You can use the same recipe for semiya and iddiyappam. Sorry guys I dont know the english name for both. If someone knows ,please add in the comments section.

Kurma version 2

Ingredients:

Cloves,cinnamon sticks
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tbsp
Green chillies- 4 sliced
Onions -1 medium sliced
Green peas
Cauliflower
Turmeric powder
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Chilli powder
Danya powder
Garma masala
Coconut flakes dessicated- 3 tbsp
Milk
Sour cream - 1 tbsp

Procedure:

In a pan add oil. Add cloves and cinnamon sticks.

After it splatter add cumin seeds. The add sliced onions and saute. Add ginger garlic paste and saute till golden brown.

Now add green peas,cauliflower and fry.Add all spices and salt.

Now add milk and sour cream. Add coconut flakes. Keep stirring till it boils.

After it boils well,add cilantro for garnishing.

Tip: Very good with paratha.

kurma version 1

This is a very hotel style tamil recipe.

Ingredients:

Coconut
Gaza gaza
cumin seeds
Green chillies
Onions-1 medium sliced
Tamarind paste or tomato- ur choice
Potatoes
cauilflower
peas
Cloves,cinnamon
Turmeric powder,little bit chilli powder,danya powder
Ginger garlic paste
Cilantro for seasoning
Saunf optional

Procedure:

Lightly fry coconut,gaza gaza and cumin and saunf and grind with 2 green chillies to a fine paste

In a pan add oil,cloves and cinnamon. After it pops add onions and 2 slit green chillies and all the veggies and ginger garlic paste and saute.

Then add all the spice powders and then the coconut paste.Let boil till it bubbles.

Keep it for 3-4 whistles and its done.

Garnish with cilantro

Tip 1: You can add cashews and pottu kadalai for nice texture.
Tip 2: You can also add butter beans. I love it.

Onion tomato chutney version 2

Ingredients:

Onions- 1 big
Tomatoes- 2 small
Tamarind paste
Red chillies
Asafoetida

Procedure:

Grind all ingredients without frying to a smooth paste.

Then fry the gravy/paste in a pan till the raw taste disappears and it thickens.

Fry in sesame oil for added flavor.

Tips:

Try with small red onions.Amazing with soft fluffy idlies.

Onion tomato chutney version 1

Ingredients:

Onions- 1 big
Tomato- 2 medium or 1 big
Garlic- 2 cloves
Red chillies- 5 pieces
Asafoetida

Regular thadka

Fry everything in oil,cool,grind and season.

Tip: Onions and tomatoes must be equal proportion.

Coconut chutney-Tamil nadu style

Ingredients for chutney:

Coconut flakes- 1.5 cups
Roasted chana dal( Pottu kadalai)- 0.75 cups
Green chillies-3-5
Coriander stems/leaves- to disguise the yukky brown color of dry coconut
Asafoetida- 3 puffs
tamarind paste

Ingredients for seasoning(thadka)

Mustard seeds
chana dal
split urad dal-more urad dal the crunchier
curry leaves

Tip: You can soak some almonds for sometime and grind along with the chutney for some extra texture and health.

You can also add a little bit of sesame oil after grinding for extra taste.

Mushroom Biriyani

Ingredients required:

Rice- 1 1/2 cups
Mushrooms(slit) - 1 box
Ginger garlic paste- 1 tbsp
Onion-1 medium
Coconut - 2 tbsp
Gaza gaza (Poppy seeds)-1 tbsp
Green chillies-4-6 depending on individual's spice level
Turmeric powder
Chilli powder
Coriander powder
Garam masala
Cloves,cardamom,bay leaf,cinnamon sticks(optional for garam masala)
Yougurt- 2 tbsp
Mint leaves
Coriander leaves
Cashew nuts
Oil/ghee

Method:

In a pan,add desired oil and fry the spices.Add sliced onions and saute till golden brown. Add ginger garlic paste,3 green chillies slit and mushrooms cut into small pieces and fry till mushrooms leaves water and browns well.

Then add turmeric powder and all the powders according to your taste and fry.

Meanwhile, grind coconut,gaza gaza,2 green chillies,yougurt and mint leaves and add to the mushrooms after its fried well.

Let it boil till its thick and oil floats on top.

Now add the rice to the gravy and mix well.

Add water and cook and garnish with cilantro and fried cashews.

Tip: Fry the rice in a little bit of ghee/oil and set aside before adding to the gravy.
Tip 2: Add half a cup extra water for cooking well.
Tip 3: Add extra salt cos mushrooms pull all the salt.. weird but true

This is an approximate measurement. Please dont blame me if it doesnt come out well.

Breakfast beginnings - Cooking Steel-cut oats

While all oatmeal available is a "whole grain", rolled oats, oatmeal are all pre-cooked/steamed/rolled and dried with the husk of course. What makes steel cut oats different is that it is the whole grain machine-cut into 3 pieces with no other pre-processing.


While there are many great tips out there to cook steel cut oats, I needed one using a pressure cooker. So after some trial and error, here is how I cook it ...

Soak 1/4 cup of steel-cut oats in 1 cup of water(1:4 = oats:water) for any length of time from 2 hours to 24 hours. If you choose to skip this step, oats tend to cook like par-boiled rice - (semi cooked separate grains) with a crunchy texture that doesn't blend well with milk/yogurt. Some like it this way though. I prefer mine mushier. So I never skip this step.

Fill the cooker with some water and pressure cook the soaked oats in a stainless-steel vessel placed in the cooker upto 2-3 whistles. This set up avoid burning the food that is pressure cooked. Make sure the vessel is only half-filled with the oats-water mixture as oats tends to bubble out of the vessel.

Also if you want to pressure-cook oats and say rice which may require more whistles (in separate vessels placed in the cooker at the same time) the extra time will not hurt the oats as long the vessel is big enough for the oats to bubble up.

I tried oats with milk and stevia (natural leaf - sugar substitute) and not having the sweet tooth for a sugary breakfast I switched to having oats with yogurt like a runny 'thayir saadham' with a tiny dollop of my favourite pickle (anything from mango pickle to carrot thogaiyal). Love my breakfast now.
Have a hearty healthy Beginning everyday :-)

Carrot salad to freshen up your meal ...

The first recipe is a simple one but maybe the simplicity appeals ?
Serves 6-8.
Ingredients:
5-6 carrots
1 -2 serrano peppers (or similar)
juice of 1 lemon
cilantro (coriander leaves) chopped.
1 tsp oil to sputter mustard seeds (1 tsp)
salt to taste

Method:
Grate carrots (I like the coarser grater so that the grated pieces are dry and separate. A fine grater separates the juice a lot more and brings out the sweetness. If you do grate it finely you can add a little more lemon juice and green chillies to compensate for the sweetness)

Add finely chopped green chillies, cilantro, salt and mix with the lemon juice.

Heat 1 tsp oil in a tadka ladle (or the smallest cooking vessel you can find) and sputter mustard seeds and mix with the carrot. A flavorful oil would be great( like sesame oil) but most of these oils do not handle the heat well. I now use canola/peanut oil. If you are not super calorie conscious you can add a little more of a flavorful oil (sesame, olive or even mustard oil if you like its pungent taste) directly to the carrot salad.

The salad is a good complement to sambhar, rasam and a "kizhangu" curry. (example potato fry).