Avalose Podi ||Cooking with family and friends - #6||

My sister was a picky eater. I have no choice but say 'was' because this time around when she came to Dubai I saw the 'pickiness' ( not too sure there is even a word as such) changing. It was not just her being picky but she hardly ate. Her favorite was chapati with chicken gravy ( she never touched the chicken in it though) So my Dad thought there is one easy girl to manage not much expenses on her food. This was until she grew up and then all she wanted to eat was non-veg food:) The hungriest time of the day was the gap between rushing from school at 4.30 pm ( read after throwing the shoes one under the cot and another under table, socks on the dining table and school bag on the sofa) and the play time which started at 5. We always rejected the option of left over morning puttu ( steamed rice cakes) for evening snack time. But our mother had her way. She would sprinkle a generous amount of sugar, mash in the bananas and feed us. That did taste out of the world - a dish we did not want to dig our hands into tasted so great when she fed us with love. That is how I love puttu even today as for my sister this is how she eats puttu - sprinkle sugar on puttu, eat a handful of that and then take a bite of the banana. When asked about her new style of eating, she says that she mixes and eats it only when mom is around to mash the banana in for her and she doesn't want to dirty her hands doing it herself.

Today's recipe is a dish that is eaten in the exact same way as puttu - sprinkle some sugar and mash in the ripe banana. It is usually eaten as a snack but hey, you could make it a breakfast dish too when you really do not want to cook anything else in the morning. I have done that:)

This is my 6th post in the series of Cooking with Family and Friends - this time around with my mom. We made this during my vacation in October to India. Also makes me think it is high time I post something that Shibin and I cook together on this series:)

Ingredients

1. White Rice - 3 cups
2. Coconut Grated - 2.5 cups
3. Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp

Method

• Wash and soak the rice in warm water for 3 to 4 hours
• Drain off the water and spread the rice on a kitchen towel until it is completely dry. This takes about an hour
• Dry grind the rice to powder
• Add coconut and cumin seeds  to the rice powder and mix it thoroughly using your hands. 
• Press this down tightly and keep this covered for an hour
• Roast this in a wide pan until the color begins to turn to light brown. Roast in batches in case you do not have a wide pan.
• Always keep on low flame and using a spatula keep moving the mix around so that it cooks evenly and does not stick onto the bottom of the pan. This process may take about 30 to 40 minutes. ( bit of work for your hands but totally worth it)
• Let it cool and grind it to powder consistency. Sieve it and grind again until all the particles gain the same consistency
• Store in an air tight container. It lasts outside for a month to two and if refrigerated longer.
• Avalose podi is usually served with a sprinkle of sugar with banana mashed into it.

Meen Peera| Kerala style fish in grated coconut

Dubai can sometimes be a lonely place. Things took a huge turn a few weeks ago when the Malayalees of the firm which Shibin works for announced an Onam - Eid get together. That was something to look forward for. I got all the more excited when I was asked to join for Thiruvathira. Old traits seldom die:) I love dancing and this opportunity was just so perfect for me. What started off as a mundane Thiruvathira for the ladies and oppana for the kids geared up all the ladies who had let go off all the inhibitions and decided that they wanted to do more. As luck would have it Jimki Kammal Dance Challenge was going places and we decided to do our part as well. It was a simple suggestion by one of the ladies and others were more than eager to join in. The practice that started off in a single song, finally ended in a fusion of three. Despite stage fear, chances of forgetting steps and also the melodrama of having to dance in a saree - we did it! It may not have been the most perfect dance but there is no denying that we perfectly enjoyed every moment of it. We carry no regrets and we are proud our practice paid off!  The Onam celebrations started off with a pookalam, maveli varavelppu and continued to the cultural programs, sadya, tug of war, singari melam to name a few. Every event had its charm but it was the enthusiasm of the people that undeniably made an otherwise normal weekend - a one to remember for months to come. Age was not a bar as everyone present joined the singari melam ensemble and danced away into the evening. As for the employees of the company, 'hi-bye-smile' relationships turned more meaningful and for me I made some wonderful friends!

It is a week now, we still longingly look at the photos and videos that are being circulated. Having said that, it is time to post our next recipe - Meen Peera which is traditional to Kerala. It is a dry fish preparation usually using small fish varieties and grated coconut that serves as a side dish to the meal.

Ingredients

1. Fish - 1 kg ( preferably the smaller fish like Natholi/Anchovy, Mathi/Sardines, Cheriya Aila/Small Mackerel)
2. Coconut grated - 1.5 cup loosely packed
3. Ginger - 1 tbsp grated heaped
4. Shallots/ cheriya ulli - 8 to 10  can be replaced with onions
5. Kudampulli - 2 -3 pieces
6. Tumeric powder - 1 tsp
7. Green chilli - 5-6
8. Curry Leaves - 2 sprigs
9. Salt to taste
10. Water

Method

• Clean the fish and drain off any excess water.
• Coarsely grind together coconut, ginger, shallots, green chilly and turmeric. This can be done on a grinding stone, mortar and pestle or in a mixer pulsing it just once or twice.
• Add this coarsely ground coconut masala to an earthen pot, add the fish along with curry leaves and kudampulli. Sprinkle salt and add half a cup of water.
• Cook this on low flame for 15-20 minutes until the fish is almost done and leave it open for 5 minutes for any excess water to drain off.
• Best when served along with rice.

You may also note- 

• Avoid stirring, this tends to break the fish. Using a kitchen towel, hold on to both the sides of the pot and gently toss if need be.
• Earthen pot has a very high smoking point, hence cooking on low flame ensures that the bottom does not burn.

Padavalanga Parippu Charu/Curry

Onam is here again and it is inevitable that my blog gets adorned with atleast one recipe for the season. I am , as my ex-boss called me NRK - Non Resident Malayalee!! I have spent most of my life in Karnataka and wee bit in Dubai now. I used to look forward to Onam falling on weekends. Only then would I be able to catch all the new movies on Asianet and Surya TV. Vegetarian food was not something I was fond of so sadya was not something that I looked forward to. Occasionally, my sister and I, plucked flowers from my mom's garden and made a small pookalam in our porch. Things changed when I moved to college. With more malayalees, Kerala Kasavu Saree on Onam became a mandate, pookalam a necessity and sadya the inevitable.

I slowly began appreciating the vegetarian delicacies on the leaf and eventually falling in love with them. It took a couple of more years to familiarize with the sadya dishes and the last three onam sadyas have been eventful! Looking forward to another one this year as I post this recipe.

This recipe was shared by my cousin Vinitha - we made it twice so far and the plate was wiped clean!

Here is the recipe for Padavalenga Parippu Charu - 

Ingredients

1. Padavalenga/Snake gourd - 700 gms cubed
2. Toor Dal - 1/2 cup
3. Onions - 1 thinly sliced
4. Green Chilly - 2 slit
5. Ginger - 1/2 tsp grated
6. Garlic - 1/2 tsp grated
7. Coconut - 1/2 cup grated tightly packed
8. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
9. Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
10. Curry Leaves - 2 sprigs
11. Coconut Oil - 1 tbsp
12. Salt to taste
13. Water

For Tempering:

1. Curry Leaves - 2 sprigs
2. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
3. Red chilly- 2
4. Coconut - 2 tsp grated
5. Coconut oil - 1 tbsp

Method

• Wash toor dal in water, drain and set aside.
• Add oil into a pressure cooker. Saute chopped onions, ginger, garlic, green chilly and curry leaves for 2 to 3 minutes.
• To this, add salt and turmeric powder. Saute for another minute before adding the toor dal and snake gourd. Add enough water to just cover the ingredients.
• Cover and pressure cook on high flame for 2 whistles. Let the pressure release before opening the cooker.
• Coarsely grind together coconut, turmeric powder and cumin seeds. Add this to the pressure cooker. Let it boil for another 5 minutes and turn off the flame.
• For tempering, heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds. Once it splutters add grated coconut , red chilly and curry leaves. Fry this till the coconut begins to brown.
• Add the tempering to the curry.

Kozhi Nirachathu / Stuffed Chicken with gravy

We first ordered Kozhi Nirachathu at a popular restaurant in the UAE. We ended up with a butterflied chicken in a spicy masala along with a side of egg roast which absolutely did not complement each other that too at an exorbitant price! After almost a year we got to taste this dish again at another restaurant. This time the egg roast stuffed inside the chicken and the chicken was deep fried - it tasted heavenly.  I was skeptical of getting a whole chicken deep fried until I read up a few recipes and saw a couple of videos. Yes, you can actually cook a whole chicken on stove top without deep frying it! It is not all that time consuming either.

Kozhi Nirachathu or stuffed chicken with gravy is a dish from Kerala that involves cooking a whole chicken with gravy and egg roast stuffed in the cavity.  Egg roast is made separately and stuffed into the marinated whole chicken before cooking the chicken in the gravy. When you want a whole chicken on table and you do not have an oven to rely on this could be your go to recipe! 

Ingredients

1. Whole chicken - 900 gm
2. Egg - 2 no.s
3. Onion  - 4 big ones finely chopped
4. Tomato - 2 finely chopped
5. Green Chilly - 2 finely chopped
6. Ginger garlic paste  - 2 tsp
7. Chilly powder - 1 tbsp + ½ tsp +¼ tsp
8. Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
9. Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
10. Fennel powder - 1 tsp
11. Garam Masala - 1 tsp
12. Curry Leaves - 3 sprigs
13. Water - ¼ cup
14. Coconut Oil

To Marinate

1. Chilly powder - 1 tbsp
2. Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
3. Lime juice - 2 tbsp
4. Salt

Method

• Hard boil the eggs, shell and keep aside. Create cuts on the egg and roll it in ¼ tsp of chilly powder until well coated. Fry this for 2 minutes in a teaspoon of oil rotating until done on all sides
• Remove the skin, clean and pat dry whole chicken. Create deep gashes on the chicken. Make a marinade by mixing together the chilly powder, turmeric powder, salt and lime juice.  Rub this well onto the chicken and the cavity too. Let it rest on counter top for about an hour.
• Heat oil in a deep pan ( use extra oil than you would use for normal chicken curry). Add onions into the pan and saute till transparent.
• Add ginger garlic paste, curry leaves and green chilly. Let it cook down.
• At this point,separate 4 tbsp masala into another pan. Add ½ tsp of chilly powder to this and cook well.  Add 2 tbsp of chopped tomato and let it melt.  Add the fried eggs and coat the masala. Let it cook for another minute. Turn off the flame and set aside.
• Meanwhile, add the remaining chilly powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, fennel powder and garam masala into the main pan. Let the masala cook before adding tomato. Mix well and keep it covered until the tomato melts.
• Add salt and water to this bring it to boil and turn off.
• Stuff the egg masala into the cavity and using a twine tie together the legs of the chicken to close the cavity so that the masala stuffed in does not seep out. Tie together the wings as well. 
• Place this in the deep bottomed pan. Spoon masala over the chicken and let it cook on high for 5 minutes. Reduce the flame and let the chicken cook. Flip over the chicken once a while ensuring that the chicken is always well coated in the masala. It takes about 30 minutes to an hour for the chicken to cook completely. Uncover and cook the chicken for the last ten minutes. The masala reduces and begins to change color to brownish red.
• Transfer to a serving dish and serve it with choice of bread or rice.

You may also note - 

• Turning over a whole chicken may be difficult, use two spatulas to support while turning it over.
• Keep pouring spoonful of the gravy onto the chicken top and let the flavor seep in.
• There are chances that the chicken may stick to the vessel and burn. So make sure to turn it over frequently!

Kerala style beef ellu curry / Kerala style beef (with bones) curry

India is in the middle of a beef debate and this post is in no way a protest against the ban. I just happened to make beef curry exactly on the day beef ban was declared in India. Yet, if the government of my country decides to ban beef I am liable to obey it, if it were only for the right reasons! Doesn't my country have so many other pressing issues that need attention? Hinduism reveres cows, but doesn't Hinduism and every other religion hold human beings in high value? Aren't Goddess' also worshiped? Then why on earth aren't women in our society held in high regard? Sexual harassment cases are on an unprecedented high and the culprits walk free or are meted with special treatment in jail. But it is ok to take law in hands when someone decides to transport cow? Even if it was not for slaughter? Don't we women deserve a bit more respect in the society and severe actions taken against those who wrong us? Despite all this, fear of punishment will hold us back from eating beef in India. I dream of a day when fear of punishment will stop people from committing atrocities against women. I envision a day when women in the society can walk as free as the cows do now! This is the least the government can do for our country! If the men who go out of their way to find out who is slaughtering cow and punish them could take a little of their time to ensure that country is a safe place for women, India would have been a much better place. Do we not deserve even so much? These are purely my thoughts and am not on for a debate on the ban:)

Having placed my thoughts on the beef ban, let me move to the recipe. This is from my family kitchen - when I say family, I have seen my mom and aunt make it and mostly served with puttu/steam cake. So that is what I did too - so here is the recipe for beef ellu curry.

Ingredients

1. Beef with bones - 1 kg
2. Potato - 1/2 kg diced
3. Tomato - 2 medium sliced
4. Onion - 3 medium sliced a little thick
5. Green Chilli - 5- 6 slit
6. Ginger - 1 tbsp grated
7. Garlic - 1 tbsp grated
8. Garam masala - 1 tbsp
9. Coriander powder - 2 tbsp
10. Chilli powder - 1 tbsp
11. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
12. Coconut milk - 1/2 cup thick
13. Coconut milk - 1 and 1/2 cup thin
14. Cinnamon - 1 inch
15. Green cardamom - 2
16. Cloves - 3
17. Curry leaves
18. Shallots - 2 tbsp
19. Peppercorns - 1 tbsp
20. Salt to taste
21. Oil

Method

• Heat oil in pressure cooker and add the whole spices - cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. Saute till fragrant.
• Add the onions and saute till transparent. Tip in the ginger, garlic and green chilli. Cook until done.
• Add the masala powders - turmeric, corriander, chilly and garam masala one at a time, Stirring it well to combine and cook.
• Add the beef, potato and the tomato. Stir well to combine the masala. Pour in the thin milk of coconut and pressure cook until the beef is done. The cooking time may vary according to the beef used.
• Release the pressure of the cooker. Add salt and the thick milk of coconut. Let it simmer for 2 minutes and then turn off  the flame.
• In a mortar and pestle, crush the chopped shallots ( alternatively onions) and pepper corn coarsely.
• Heat oil in a separate pan , add the crushed pepper and shallots. Fry till the color of the shallots begin to darken and add curry leaves.
• Garnish the beef ellu curry with this and serve hot with puttu.

You may also note

• Do not boil the gravy once you add the thick milk of coconut.
• You may make this with boneless beef as well but with the bones it gets more flavorful.