Mysore Rasam

                                                                           

Though preparing this rasam is a lengthy process, it taste too good and very aromatic as well.

Ingredients:

Toor dal – 1/4 cup (pressure cooked)
Tomatoes -3
coriander leave
Tamarind ( small goosebury size soked in hot water and extracted)
Turmeric Powder - a pinch

For grinding:

Ghee – 1 spoon
Dhaniya – 1 spoon
Toor dal 2 spoons
BlackPepper1/4 tsp
Jeera - 1/4tsp
Red chillies- 1
Asafoetida -a pinch
Few curry leaves
Coconut -2 tbsp

Method:

Fry the ingredients above in a little ghee one by one then finally add coconut.
Grind everything together to a fine paste.
Pressure cook dal mash it well add some water and keep aside.
Take tamarind extract and add 3 chopped tomatoes coriander leave, turmeric powder and salt.
Boil till for 10 minutes. Add the ground paste, cooked toor dal and water.
Switch off gas when it becomes frothy. Do not boil it.


For the seasoning

Mustard -1/4 tsp
Asafoetida -a pinch
Coconut - 1 spoon
Curry leaves

Season with mustard, curry leaves and asafoetida.
Finally add 1 spoon coconut fry well (brown colour) add this to rasam.
Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves.
Serve hot with cooked rice.

                                                                 Pineapple Rasam

Same ingredients as above + pineapple pieces 1 cup.
Method: same method as above add 1 cup of pineapple finally.

                                                                                       

Pepper jeera rasam

It does not take much time to make this rasam. This rasam will stay for 2 days.

                                                                 
Ingredients:

1 tbsp Jeera
1/2 tbsp Black Pepper
Salt to taste
Tamarind ( small goosebury size soked in hot water and extracted)
1 Tomato (optional)
Ghee/ oil
Garlic (optional)

For seasoning

1/4 tsp mustard
¼ tsp jeera
Ghee1 tsp / oil
Few Curry leaves
Few garlic (optional)

Method:

Dry roast pepper and jeera, grind it coarsely and keep aside.
In a pan add 1 spoon of ghee / oil season with mustard, jeera, garlic and curry leaves.
Now add tamarind water with pepper, jeera powder allow to boil for 10 minutes.
Then add some more water if necessary.

Health benefits

Black pepper  is good for fever, common cold, congestion, loss of appetite and even indigestion.

Dry curry leaves powder

Remove the leaves from the stem and wash well for 3 to 4 time .
Remove it from water and let it drain, after that just put it over tissue paper to dry.
(until it has lost all the moisture) Don't dry in sun light.
After a week curry leaves are ready to use.

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Step 6                          

 Step 7

 Step 8

Method :

Heat a pan fry dry curry leaves 2 minutes with out oil .
After it is cooled grind to a coarse powder.
Store in airtight container. This powder can be used in various recipe.
This can be stored for 6 months.

During off season you can add a pinch in rasam, sambar and bisibela bath and so on…………….
                                                                       

Health benefits

Hair Care: It plays an important role in hair care also as it retains the black colour of the hair.

Curry leaves to reduce the discomfort of morning sickness.

Curry leaves contain iron, calcium, and vitamin C

Varitation:

                                                                       
Few curry leaves, 2 spoons of pepper & jeera dry roast and grind to coarse powder.
Store in airtight container.
We can add finally a pinch to all types of rasam  for good aroma and finishing touch.
                                       
                                     

Onion vatha kuzhambu

                       

Ingredients:

1 cup onioon ( preferably shallot / small onion / sambar onion)
mustard ¼ spoon
fenugreek ½  spoon
A pinch of asafetida and turmeric powder
Red chillies 2
Gingili oil 4 spoons
Few curry leaves
Lemon sized tamarind (soaked in hot water for 10 minutes and extracted)
Red chilli powder 1 spoon
Corn or rice flour – 1 spoon (for thickening)
Salt to taste

Method:

Heat 3 spoons of oil and splutter mustard seeds, fenugreek, red chillies , asafoetida and curry leaves.
Next add onions and saute until onions are half cooked.
Now add the tamarind water, chilli powder, tumeric and salt, boil till the raw smell goes.
Now add the corn flour mixed with 2 spoon of water.
Cook for 5 minutes and finally add some curry leaves and 1 spoon of gingili oil.
Goes well with hot rice / idly / dose.
Combination:  Potato fry / appalam/ Karuvadam. 

We can do this with garlic & shallot combination also.

Variation I                    
                                                Chundaka Vatha kuzhambu   (turkey  berry)

                 

Same ingredients as above instead of onion add some chundaka vathal.
Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds, fenugreek, red chillies , asafoetida and curry leaves.
Rest of the method same as above.
Same producer as above add fried chundaka finally.
( Use less salt while preparing because chundaka will also have salt)

Varitation II 

                 Manathakkali  vatha kuzhambu (sun berry/black night shade)

Same ingredients as above instead of chundaka vathal add some mathakali vathal.
Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds, fenugreek, red chillies , asafoetida and curry leaves. 
Rest of the method same as above.
Same producer as above add fried manathakali finally.
(Use less salt while preparing because manathakkali will also have salt)

Kollu rasam ( Hors gram rasam)

Ingredients:

Hors gram 50 gms  (soaked in water overnight, Pressure cook and use only water)
1 tomato, finely chopped
1 green chillie - slited
½ cup chopped coriander leaves
1 cup tamarind water ( small goosebury size soked in hot water and extracted)
Few garlic - crushed
1 dried red chillie
few curry leaves
Salt to tast
Ghee / oil - 1 spoon

Method:

Pressure cook horse gram with water.  (Use only water)
Add finely chopped tomatoes, tamarind water, slit green chillie and salt to this cooked water.
Add finely chopped tomatoes, tamarind water, slit green chillie and salt to this cooked water.
Let this cook on low flame for about 10 minutes.

For seasoning:

Add 1 tsp ghee and add crushed garlic stir until it turns light brown. Add curry leaves and broken red chillies add this seasoning to the boil rasam and garnish with coriander leaves.

Lemon Rasam

It is very easy to prepare and also delicious, you can have it as soup too.

Toor dal -1/4 cup
Tomatoes-3
Fresh Lemon -1
Ginger -small bit (crushed)
Green chillies -1 (slited )
Pepper Powder  - 1/4 spoon
Jeera powder- 1/4 spoon
Asafoetida -a pinch
Turmeric Powder -1/4 tsp
Coriander leaves  - few finely chopped for garnishing.
Salt to taste.

For seasoning

Ghee -1 tsp
Mustard -1/4 tsp
Jeera  -1/4 tsp
Few cury leaves.

Method:

Pressure cook toor dal Mash it well add some water and keep aside.
Now take only the water of toor dal add chopped tomatoes, turmeric powder, green chillie, ginger,asafoetida, pepper and jeera powder salt and coriander leaves.
Cook for 10 minutes then mix cooked toor dal with little more water. Do not boil rasam.
Switch off when it is frothy. Squeeze lemon juice to the rasam after switching it off.
Finally add coriander leaves.
In a pan add 1 spoon of ghee season with mustard, jeera and few curry leaves.
It goes well with hot rice.

                               
                                 

Arachu Vitta Onion Sambar

Ingredients

Toor dal – 50  gms ( Pressure cooked and mashed well )
Tamarind – small gooseberry size ( soaked in hot water)
Vegetable  - 1 cup  Small Onions

For grinding of masala

Coriander seeds – 1 1/2  tbsp
Gram dal –  ½ tsp
Red chillies - 4
Coconut -5 tbsp
Fenugreek – ¼ tsp
Asafoetida – a pinch
Curry leaves – little
Tamato – 1(optional)

Heat a tsp of oil and fry the above ingredients one by one adding coconut and curry leaves in the end.
Grind it to a smooth paste and keep aside.

Method

Add 2 spoons of oil in a pan add small onions fry for few minutes.
Then add 1 1/2-2 cups of tamarind extract, turmeric powder, salt and boil till the raw flavour of the tamarind goes and onions cooked well.
Then add the ground paste, cooked dal along with a cup of water and boil for a few minutes. Adjust the consistency of the sambar according to your wish.
For seasoning add 2 spoons of oil heat well then add mustard and curry leaves.
Serve with rice, idli or dosa .

Combination : Goes well with potato podimas or potato fry.

( Other optional vegetables  -  Drum stick ,ladies finger, Radish or Brinjal. ( any one of the vegetable)
or mixed veg like yellow pumkin, raw tamato, brinjal, bell peppers and carrot for kadambha smbar )

Ladies finger sambar
Same ingredients and method as above.
Replace onion with ladies finger.

Health benefit of Ladies finger

Lady finger - vitamin A

They are very low in calorie
Rich sources of dietary fiber, minerals, and vitamins.
It is one of the green vegetables with highest levels of anti-oxidants.

Idli molaga podi (powder)

Ingredients

Urad dal   - 1 cup

Gram dal – 1/4 cup ( optional)

Sesame seeds ( black Yellu ) – 4 spoons

Red chilly 10 ( or according to your taste )

Asafoetida – 1 pinch.

1 tsp gingelly oil

Salt – as required

Method :

Dry roast sesame seeds and keep aside.

In a pan, add a spoon of gingelly oil add urad dal and gram dal

Roast till brown in color.

Add red chilli, asafoetida and salt. (allow to cool)

In a mixie, add the above ingredients and grind coarsely.

Tips   you can add roasted gram dhal, roasted peanuts roasted horse gram without oil, each 4 spoons to the above for extra health benefits & nutrient value.

Peanut Podi (powder)

Ingredients

Peanuts   ½ kg

Dhaniya   5 spoons

Redchilli   10 to 15

Garlic  50gms ( ½ cup)

Salt to taste.

Method

Dry roast peanuts and dhaniya separately

Add 1 spoon of oil fry garlic and red chilli (Don’t use more oil)

Add salt to the above mix and grind coarsely.

Serve with hot rice. This will be stored for 2 months.

Pottukadalai podi (powder)

Ingredients

Pottukadalai - 1 cup – (rosted gram dal)

Red chillies - 4 (dry roast)

Garlic - 5 cloves (roast with little oil)

Salt – to taste

 Method :

 Add the above mix and grind coarsely.

Serve with hot rice. This can be stored for 6 months.

Radish Sambar

                                 

Ingredients

2 big Radishes

toor dal - 1/2 cup

oil - 1 tsp

mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

turmeric - a pinch

Asafetida

Fenugreek

Salt - to taste

Sambar powder - 2 tsp

Tamarind - small lemon size ( soaked in hot water for 10 minutes and extracted about 1 cup juice)

Method :

Cook toor dal  and radish separately.

Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds, fenugreek  and  asafetida. Add half boiled radish with tamarind water, turmeric powder and sambar powder. Boil for a few minutes until it is cooked well. Then add cooked dhal and cook for 5 minutes. Garnish with curry leaves.

Goes well with rice, idli ,dosa and aappam.

If you are doing any other sambar, same  cooking method  as above

Only change the vegetable according to your wish.

Health benefits.

Radish leaves are used in treatment of jaundice.
Radishes are a low calorie vegetable that have no fat or cholesterol.
Radish is very good for the liver and the stomach.

Dhal Recipe

Ingredients

1/2 cup Toor dal ( or moong dal )

1/2 cup chopped onions

1/2 cup chopped tomatoes

2 green chillies slit lengthwise

Turmeric powder and red chili powder – a pinch

4 tsp Oil

1/2 tsp mustard seeds and jeera

2 red chillies

Few curry leaves
salt to tast

Method

Lightly roast the moong dal until it changes color.

Wash the dhal add turmeric and red chillie powder pressure cooker.

In a pan add 2 spoon of oil add onions cook till transparent then add tomatoes.

Then add green chili and salt, fry till tomatoes are cooked well.

Season with spluttering mustard seeds, jeera , red chlli and curry leaves.

Easy side dishes for Roti / Chapathi / poori.

Easy tamato onion sabji

Ingredients

Big onions 4

Tamatoes 4 or 5

Green chili  1

Jeera – ¼ spoon

Chili powder   ¼ spoon

Turmeric powder – a pinch

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Any cooking oil – 2 spoons

Salt to taste

(1/2 spoon ghee or butter optional)

Method :

Cut tomatoes and green chili into small pieces and keep aside

In a pan, add about 2 tbsps of oil then add jeera , green chili  and curry leaves.

Add onions to the above, cook till transparent then add red chili powder and turmeric and mix well.

Add tomatoes and let it cook for a while. When the tomatoes are cooked and dried, add salt.

(1/2 spoon ghee or butter ) Optional for those who are not calorie-conscious

Garnish with chopped corriander leaves.

Serve with Rotis/ phulkas / poori or as an accompaniment with Rice. 

Variation I:  same cooking method as above

Finally add 2 spoons of any of the following corn flour / wheat flour / rice flour/ gram flour.

Mix with little water, allow to boil till the flour is cooked well and gives you a glossy look.

Serve with Rotis/ phulkas / poori or dosa. (It won’t be nice with rice, so avoid)

Variation II

Same cooking method  as above .

Add to ingredients 1 cup of any of the below boiled vegetables
Carrot, potato, Cauliflower, green piece. 

Finally add 2 spoons of any of the following corn flour / wheat flour / rice flour/ gram flour

Mix with little water, allow to boil till the flour is cooked well and gives you a glossy look.

Serve with Rotis/ phulkas / poori or dosa. ( It won’t- be nice with rice so avoid )

Garnish with curry or coriander leaves.  

Finally add 1/2  spoon of butter or ghee, for those who are not calorie-conscious

Parupu Rasam/How to make Rasam /Tomato Rasam /Paruppu Rasam Recipe/Tomato Rasam Recipe

Rasam is a very interesting item to cook as well as to eat. 

It is very light and easy to digest. Almost all south Indians will do this daily.

You can drink this as appetizer. It helps with indigestion.

For me, my mom’s paruppu Rasam is the best I have ever tasted so far.

This can be prepared in two types

Type I

Ingredients

Toor dal - ¼ cup

Tamarind - small gooseberry size (soaked in hot water 10 minutes)

Tomatoes - 2

Turmeric Powder - a pinch

Rasam powder -1 tsp

Asafetida - 1 pinch

Coriander leaves & curry leaves – as required

Salt to taste

For the seasoning

Ghee -1 tsp

Mustard and Jeera - ¼ tsp

Curry leaves - little

Method

Pressure cook toor dal, mash it well and keep it aside.

Take tamarind extract, add tomatoes (you can mash tomatoes with hands or use mixie)

Rasam powder, turmeric powder, asafetida, coriander leaves and salt.

Boil for 5-6 minutes till the raw flavor of the tamarind and tomatoes goes.

Add mashed toor dal along with needed water

Remove from flame when Rasam is frothy. It shouldn’t boil too much.

Heat a tsp of ghee and add mustard and jeera with curry leaves.

Garnish with coriander leaves.

Ready to serve hot Rasam.

We can serve this Rasam along with hot rice/ potato fry / pappad

Type II           

Same ingredients slight variation in preparing

while you keep your regular cooker (rice and dhal), you can keep tamarind and tomatoes in a small cup with 2 spoons of water.

Once out of the cooker, you can make tamarind and tomato puree

Rest of the steps are same as above.

How to prepare soft phulkas

Ingredients

Wheat flour   2 cups

Warm water  ¾ cup (adjust according to flour)

Boiled milk  ¼  cup

Salt as per taste

Oil – 2 tsp

Little wheat flour for dusting

Ghee or butter (optional)

Method I

Step 1

Take 2 cups of flour, add salt and mix well
Dig in the middle pour some warm water, milk and oil on the top

Then cover it completely  in the center you inset wooden spoon close it for 5 minutes. 

Knead it into soft dough it should not be sticky. It should be smooth like a soft ball.

 Method II

Simple Method

Add warm water, little milk and 2 spoons of oil to the dough and knead it.

Roll out into round shapes using little wheat flour for dusting.

Heat the Tawa and place the rolled out dough on it. Let it cook for a few minutes both sides.

Then in a frame keep the phulka directly on fire both sides without burning.

Add little ghee or butter  (optional)