Ela Ada/ Rice Cake with Coconut Filling

Ahem..My first guest post!

I am super happy that it’s for such a dynamic person like Kavi and her lovely space..

Student life and cooking is like an oxymoron to me..At least that was the case with me…

Even now my mom says she can’t believe that I am having a cooking blog.

Being the youngest and the laziest in the family I have always kept a safe distance from the kitchen.

The only time I enter was when my mom cooks some super yummy dish and the smell draws me there!

My laziness aside, I am soo impressed at Kavi..such a young age and already on a cooking Spree..You rock gal!

 So today I am going to share a Kerala delicacy called Ela Ada .

We usually make it for Onam festival and have it as our breakfastJ

Ela means Leaf and banana leaf in particular here and Ada is something like a steamed rice cake.

Coconut sweetened with jaggery, Flavored with cardamom is used as filling .

You can play around and add in nuts, banana etc to the filling as per your creativity

As I have a big bottle of Jackfruit preserve, I have added that for added flavoring. But that is totally optional.

Ela Ada/ Rice Cake with Coconut Filling

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Rice flour
• 5-6 Cubes Jaggery
• 2  Cups water
• 1/2 Cup coconut
• 3 tbpsn Jackfruit Preserve/Chakka Varatty [Optional]
• 2 Cardamoms

Directions

• Heat the water in a pot, once it comes to boil add the jiggery and simmer until the Jaggery is melted
• I added some Chakka varatty /Jackfruit preserve to hot water at this stage as my mom had got me a bottle of Chakka varatty  from home.
• Stir well until it is well blended
• Add about 1- 1 1/2 Cup of this hot water to the rice flour.
• Using a spoon or ladle mix it well until it mixed well. Let it cook down a bit, now knead lightly to form a soft dough
• [You can add more water/rice flour to adjust the consistency]
• To the remaining water in the pot, add the coconut and crushed cardamom.
• Sauté on high flame until all water is absorbed.
• Do place the cleaned banana leave over low flame for a second so that the leaves are softened and does not crack when you fold .
• Take a small piece of Banana leaf, add about a small golf size portion of the dough and flatten it lightly to form a small poori
• Add a spoonful of coconut mix in the center and fold the leaf and seal the sides.
• Repeat the same for remaining dough
• Gently place the Ada on a steamer and steam for 10 minutes.
• Let it cool down a bit and have it warm.

Nellikka Moru Curry / Gooseberries in Yogurt Gravy

Back in my hometown Kerala, moru curry is a staple at most homes!

This is such a simple curry with just two main ingredients Yogurt or buttermilk and Coconut and makes a perfect n soothing accompaniment with rice .

You can add veggies as well like melons ,yams or more flavoring like shallots, garlic and ginger and make it even richer and yummier!

I chose to add some ground gooseberries and made my father’s favorite Nellikka Moru curryJ

Nellikka Moru Curry

 Ingredients

• 3 Gooseberries
• ¼ Cup grated Coconut
• ½ Cup Yogurt
• 1 Green Chilly
• ½ tspn Cumin’s
• Salt to taste
• For tempering
• 1 tspn Oil
• ½ tspn Mustard seeds
• Curry leaves

Directions

• Roughly chop the gooseberries and discard the seeds
• Grind the coconut, cumin seeds, green chilly and gooseberries to a fine paste
• Add two tablespoon water ,salt and beat the yogurt well.
• Heat a pan and add the beaten yogurt and stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes
• Add the ground paste and cook for another 2-3 minutes until it is foamy.
• Remove from the flame and prepare the tempering by heating the oil in a wok.
• Add in the mustard seeds to the hot oil, once it starts to crackle add the curry leave sauté for few seconds.
• Add the tempering to the Yogurt gravy and stir well.

Off this goes to Kerala Kitchen hosted by  Prathibha
 

Mango-Ginger Pickle/Manga Inji Achar

Does that ring a bell? Mango ginger-a spice crop which has the goodness of both Mango and ginger.

Looks of ginger and taste of raw mango with a tinch of ginger kick!

Botanically speaking this spice is neither related to mango nor ginger, but to turmeric instead

Interested to know more about the Mango Ginger. Here you go

The rhizome has excellent medicinal properties and finds extensive use in the indigenous system of medicine. It is, appetizer, antipyretic, aphrodisiac and laxative. It is useful in biliousness, itching, skin diseases, bronchitis, asthma, hiccough and inflammation due to injuries. The rhizomes and roots are carminative and stomachic and in crushed pulp form they are applied over contusions, sprains and bruises for rapid healing.

Info Courtesy: Kissan Kerala

Mango-Ginger Pickle/Manga Inji Achar 

Ingredients

1/3 Cup Mango Ginger

2 tspn Red Chili powder

2 tspn Sesame Oil

½ tspn Roasted Fenugreek powder

Curry leaves 10 nos

2 Dried Red chillies

½ tspn Mustard seeds

Salt to taste

Directions

Peel of the skin and finely chop the Mango ginger

Add the salt and chili powder to it and mix well.

Now prepare the tempering by heating the oil in a pan.

Once the oil is hot enough, add in the mustard seeds.

Once it crackles add the roasted fenugreek powder, curry leaves and dried red chilies

Sauté for few seconds and add this to the marinated mango ginger and mix well.
Let it sit for a day and have it the following day, that way it tastes better !

Chakka Appam/ Chakka Kinnathappam /Steamed Jackfruit Rice cakes

My mom makes the most excellent Chakka Varatti aka Jackfruit preserve .I never dared to ask the recipe as I am pretty sure that it is a very tedious process.

So I stick to the my lazy path and get a big bottle of Chakka varatti from homeJ  

It always comes handy, you can make a lot of delicious dishes with Chakka varatti ..of course it tastes great by itselfJ

Kinnathappam is one among that, it is a popular snack in Kerala.This one is my Amma’s version of Kinnathappam aka Steamed Rice cake.

Amma usually add her signature Chakka varatti to the batter which makes it even more delectable

Chakka Appam/ Chakka Kinnathappam /Steamed Jackfruit Rice cakes

Ingredients

1 Cup Rice powder

½ Cup Coconut Milk

4 tbspn Jackfruit preserve/Chakka varatti

1-2 Cardamom

1 Cube Jaggery

 

Directions

Heat ½ Cup water in a pan and add the Jaggery.

Once it is melted ,add the jackfruit preserve and powdered cardamom .

Lower the flame and stir , mix well , it is ok to have small lumps of jackfruit preserves.

Switch off the flame and let it cool down

Add the coconut milk and the cooled down Jaggery liquid to the rice flour and mix well.

The batter should be the consistency of cake batter/Idly batter.

You can add more flour or water to adjust the consistency of the batter

Pour into greased plate and steam for about 10-15 minutes.

You can cut easily into squares once it is cooled down.

Off this goes to Kerala Kitchen hosted by  Prathibha

Pavakka Puli /Bitter gourd in Tamarind gravy

Tangy and spicy with a  tint of sweetness..yes, that would be a perfect description for this dish!

This one is my mom’s signature dish and one among my favJ

I must say it is a perfect accompaniment with rice!!

Pavakka Puli /Bitter gourd in Tamarind gravy

Ingredients

2 small Bitter gourds

15-20 Shallots

Tamarind -1tbspn

3 Green Chilies

1-1 1/2 tspn Chili powder

½ tspn turmeric powder

Pinch of Asafetida

A Small piece of Jaggery

1 Cup water

Salt to taste

For tempering

1 tspn oil

¼ tspn Mustard seeds

Curry leaves

1-2 Dried Red chilies

Directions

Chop the bitter gourds, shallots and green chilly finely

Soak the tamarind in ¼ cup water for 15 minutes. Mash the tamarind well and extract the juice

Add tamarind extract, chili powder, turmeric powder, Asafetida, jaggery , salt to water and bring to boil.

Add the bitter gourds, shallots and green chilies to the boiling water

Simmer until the bitter gourds are cooked well and the gravy is thickened.

For tempering , bring the oil to a boil in a small pan- Add the mustard seeds, once it has crackled - add the red chilies and curry leaves and sauté for few seconds

Add to the bitter gourd gravy and mix well.

Pappada Vada/ Pappad Fritters

Pappada vada is a popular tea time snack in my hometown ,Palakkad.

The fresh Pappadams are dipped in a batter and deep fried to make these crispy and spicy snacks

There is a famous place selling pappada vada in Ottapalam, which is on the way to my father’s Tharavadu/ancestral home

So during holidays when we are driving there, we stop by and get loads of these yummy vadas and gorge on it on the way

We usually get few packs so that we can give some to cousins and Aunts back home..But by the time we reach there..Me and my sister would have already finished most of it ..

Leaving just bits and pieces in the packJ

This time around when my parents came for visit, I had asked mom to make these during one of the weekends so that I can take a few clicksJ

My mom being a bit hyperactive like most moms, made it on the very first day itselfJ

So here goes my mom’s version of Pappada vada

Pappada Vada/ Pappad Fritters

Ingredients

6 Pappadams/pappad

½ Cup Rice flour

2 tspn Gram flour

1 tspn Chilli powder

1 tspn Cumin seeds

1 tspn Black sesame seeds

Salt to taste

A pinch of Kayam/Hing/Asafoetida

Oil for deep frying

Directions

Mix all ingredients except pappadam, add enough water and make a smooth batter.

The batter should not be too runny, it should be a bit thick .

Heat the oil in a wok.

When the oil is hot enough, dip each pappadam in the batter and deep fry both sides until it is browned well.

Drain it on a kitchen towel and njoy the crispy Pappada vadas

Chembu Curry /Taro Curry

Yippie my parents are here and  I am enjoying moms specialties and spending some quality time with them..

We have so much stories, gossips and happenings to catch up so I hardly turn on my laptop these days.

Other than that I am on a hibernation mode ! Doing mostly eating, napping, and followed by more eating

Of course I am ardently taking clicks of all dishes Amma has been making..

So stay tuned for more Kerala recipes!

Here is one of my fav comfort dish..Chembu Curry aka Taro Curry

Chembu Curry/ Taro Curry

Ingredients

1 or 2 Chembu/Taro

¼ Cup grated Coconut

1/4 Cup Yogurt

1 Green Chilli

½ tspn red chili powder

½ tspn turmeric powder

½ tspn salt

½ tspn Cumin seeds

For tempering

1 tspn oil

¼ tspn Mustard seeds

¼ tspn Fenugreek seeds

Curry leaves

1-2 Dried Red chilies

Directions

Remove the skin of taro and wash well.

Cut the taro to ½ inch cubes

In a pot add about 1 cup water, add the taro, salt , chili powder and turmeric powder and simmer until the taro has cooked through and is soft.

Blend together Coconut, Green Chilly, Cumin seeds with little water until it is smooth.

Add the coconut mix and yogurt to the taro and cook for 2-3 minutes until it is foamy.

For tempering , bring the oil to a boil in a small pan- Add the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds .Once the fenugreek seeds turn darker add the chilies and curry leaves and sauté for few seconds

Add to the curry and mix well.

Enjoy the comforting curry with rice

Bitter Gourd Pickle / Pavakka Achar

Scratching your head thinking what to do with that king of bitterness starring at you from your refrigerator?

Try this amazing pickle and  trust me you will love it!!

Let me warn you it is really really spicy !! You better stick to just a small spoon of the pickleJ

When I made it the other day and served for dinner, my husband thought this was the usual bittergourd fry and he had an ample portion and happily gobbled it..

…..ooph ooph..Ayyoo…some weird noises followed by he running and gulping down a bottle of hundred plus J

..Anyways after the initial trauma..we did njoy it..as pickle!

Bitter Gourd Pickle /Pavakka Achar

Recipe Courtesy: Taste of Kerala show. You can watch the video here

Ingredients

2 Bitter gourd chopped finely

1 tspn salt

½ tspn Turmeric powder

3 tbspn Chili powder

1 tspn Fenugreek powder

Curry leaves 10 nos

2 Dried Red Chilies

½ tspn Mustard seeds

1 tbspn Sesame Oil

 Directions

Add the salt and turmeric powder to the bitter gourd and mix well. Set aside for 10 minutes

After 10 min, spread the mix over a kitchen towel and rest it for another 5 minutes

Heat the oil in a wok and ad the mustards seed, curry leaves and red chilies. Sauté until it sizzle up

Now add the bitter gourds and stir well. Lower the flame, cover and cook for 5 minutes

Now add the chili powder and the Fenugreek powder and mix well

[You can dry roast the Fenugreek seeds and powder in a blender]

Increase the flame and sauté it until all moisture is gone.

Mind you.. it is really spicy and goes soo well with Curd riceJ

Mambazha Pulissery/Ripe mangoes in Yogurt Gravy

This is one of my favorite Kerala delicacy..Mambazha Pulissery
Needless to say it makes me soo nostalgic..!
Brings back the sweet memories of the numerous summer vacations I spend with my cousins at my dad’s ancestral home, which by the way is surrounded by loads n loads on mango trees..
We kids used to gorge on ripe mangoes all day round till we get a tummy ache!!
This time around my mom managed to bring along some mangoes from my hometown and we made this yummiliicous dish!
It’s a sweet n sour n slightly spicy dish and excellent accompaniment to rice!!



Without further adieu here goes the recipe..

Here is what you need
3 small ripe mangoes
1/ 4 Cup yogurt
1/3 Cup water
1/2 tspn Turmeric powder
1/2 -1 tspn Chilly powder
Salt to taste

To grind
1/4 Cup grated Coconut
1 tspn Cumin seeds
2 Green chilies

For seasoning
1 tspn Oil
1/2 tspn Mustard seeds
1/2 tspn Fenugreek seeds
2 Dried red chilies cut lengthwise
2 stems curry leaves

Peel the mangoes and make few slits in the mangoes.
Place the mangoes in a shallow dish, add the water, salt, turmeric powder and chili powder
Cover and cook till the mangoes are almost cooked.
Now add in the ground paste and yogurt and bring to boil and stir gently.

Meanwhile make the seasoning by heating oil in a wok, add the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds.
Once the mustard seed start to sputter, add the dried red chilies and curry leaves
Add the seasoning to the curry and give it a gentle stir..

There you have the tastiest Kerala delicacy ever!!

This is my entry to Healing food event hosted by Revathi and Siri

Off this goes to Kerala Kitchen

Muringakka Thoran / Drumstick Stir Fry

Yey..My parents are here and like any other lazy daughter, I have happily withdrawn from my kitchen and my mom have taken over as head chef !
Not that I am lazy brat..You see it’s just a timing problem..
By the time I wake up my mom would have already made breakfast and by the time I come back from office dinner is ready:-)
See.. I hardly have anytime to reveal my cooking skills to my parents.
To my surprise this time around I see that my mom have suddenly got some interest in baking !!
And yours truly has taken over the role of an earnest baking instructor and our baking lessons are going in full swing

For the past two weeks my mom have been telling about a small surprise she have picked for me from my hometown
And that turned out to be a small cast iron skillet!!! I hope this turns out to be my magic skillet:-)
I picked one of my fav dish as the inaugural dish for my cute little skillet..



Here is what you need..

For Grinding
1/3 Cup Grated Coconut
½ - 1 tspn Chili powder
½ tspn Cumin seeds

For tempering
1 tspn Oil
¼ tspn Mustard seeds
2 tspn Urud Dal
2 red chilies
Curry leaves 2 stems

Drumsticks 2-3 nos , cut in about 1.5 inch long
½ tspn turmeric powder
Salt to taste
¼ Cup water.

Transfer all 3 ingredients for grinding to a blender and give it a quick mix for few seconds. You don’t have to grind it to a paste form.
Add the oil to the skillet. Once oil is hot enough add in mustard seeds, urud dal , red chilies and curry leaves
Once the mustard seeds starts sputter, add the coconut mixture and stir for a minute.
Now you need to scoop out the mix from the skillet and keep aside in a bowl.
In the same skillet add in the drumsticks and a quarter cup water. Add in turmeric powder and salt.
Cover and cook till the drumsticks turn tender.
Add in the coconut mixture .Give it a gentle stir and cover and cook for a minute..

There you have a signature Kerala dish..Muringakka thoran..

Off this goes to Kerala Kitchen

Muringa Ela Curry/Drumstick leaves in Lentils

Drumstick tree is one of the most versatile tree, the good news being all parts of the drum stick plant are edible:-) Starting from the leaves/flowers and of course the drumsticks
Back home in Kerala we had two trees in backyard. The tree was quite big but poor guy was not at all strong …very weak I must say
Every monsoon a big branch falls off and we would end up in drum stick diet for next 3 days

My mom who is the queen of creativity manage to include some part of the fallen drumstick branch in all 3 meals for next few days.Starting from Drumstick leave dosa to drumstick leave thoran n curry and even drumstick leaves ada.This one is from her Drumstick recipe collection:-)

Here is what you need
1/3 Cup Toor Dal
1 Cup Drumstick leaves
½ tspn turmeric powder
Grated Coconut ¼ Cup
Green Chilies 2
Salt to taste
1/2 Cup water

For tempering
2 tspn Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
1 Dried Red Chilly
2 shallots chopped finely.

Clean the lentils and soak for about15-30 minutes.
Pressure cook the lentils with water and turmeric powder till the lentils are soft and cooked well.
Add the Drumstick leaves to the cooked lentils and cover and cook over low flame for 10-15 minutes.

Grind together the Coconut, green chilies and add the mix to the drumstick leaves gravy
Once the gravy starts to boil, switch off the flame.

Meanwhile make the tempering by heating the oil in a wok, followed by adding mustard seeds and red chilies.
Once mustard seeds start to sputter add the shallots and sauté for a minute or two
Add the tempering to the curry and give it a stir.

There you have a nutritious muringa ela curry..

This is my entry to this month's Kerala Kitchen event hosted by Ria

Vazhapoo Thoran/Banana flower stir fry

Did I tell u that my mom is one of those ppl who makes super yummy dishes from super simple ingredients!!
This is one such dish…:-)

She makes most of the specialty dishes like this is her fav cast iron skillet and till date I believe that it’s her magic skillet..
Anything and everything that comes out of it drooooool worthy

I always nag my mom telling…see I followed the recipe you said and it didn’t come out that well…
…. probably you should pass me the Magic Iron skillet …:-)
Ya, I have my eye set on it...it will be in travelling from Kerala to Singapore soon:-)

Anyways back to the recipe…

You will need
1 Small banana flower
8 shallots
2 tbspn Whole Urud dal
2 stems Curry leaves
3 table spoons grated Coconut
½ Turmeric powder
Salt to taste
½ tspn chili powder
½ tspn Jeera
1 tspn coconut oil

Peel off the first 2-3 layers of the banana flower till the color of the flower starts to lighten.
Finely chop the banana flower . Now let it soak in water for a few minutes and drain.

Heat oil in a skillet.
Add the urud dal. Once it starts to brown, add the chopped shallots and curry leaves and stir fry for a minute
Add the banana flower, salt, turmeric and ¼ cup water.
Cover and cook on low flame for 10-15 minutes
Meanwhile mix the coconut, chilli powder and jeera in a mortar or you can use a blender and blend it for few seconds.
Once the water is almost absorbed, add the coconut mix to the cooked banana flower and stir fry for 2-3 minutes..

Off this goes to KeralaKitchen