Paal Paniyaram

Paal Paniyaram is a purely Chettinad Dish... a Sweet served with Dinner or Break Fast.

Ingredients:

• Raw Rice - 200gm
• Urud Dhal - 200gm
• Salt - very little
• Coconut - 1
• Elachi - 2
• Sugar - 200gm
• Oil - to fry

Method:

Soak the rice and dhal together for about 2 to 3 hours and not more. Grind it in the grinder very fine. Take care that there are no small particles of rice or dhal left ungrounded. Add salt and mix well.

  Batter

Heat oil in a kadai and drop the batter in small drops. Do not let it fry too much. when it turns to slight yellow drain them and keep them aside.

Fried Paniyarams 

Extract coconut milk. add and dissolve the sugar in it. also add the elachi for flavor.
Keep the coconut milk in slightly thicker consistency for better taste.

Coconut milk 

Now pour the coconut milk over the paniyarams and let it soak for half an hour or so.

When soaked well serve in a bowl.
Remember soak it in a wide shallow bowl so that handling will be easier and the paniyaram would not be disturbed.

Paal Paniyaram

Note:  If there are any rice or dhal particles in the batter it may burst when you drop it in the kadai. so grind it fine. As soon as you make the batter do the paniyaram. Leaving the batter for a long time may cause the paniyaram to absorb oil.
And if you feel the paniyaram has drunk much oil then, heat water in a vessel drop the paniyaram in that and then put it in coconut milk just for 10 to 15 min. This will take out the oil and also absorb the milk faster and more. so take care that the paniyaram doesn't break.
 Instead of coconut milk you can also use plain milk but the taste differs. or also you can mix both.

Chilli Cheese Toast

Hi young ones there, who are at home enjoying vacation... here is a easy simple recipe for you to enjoy. You can do this all by yourselves, also treat people at home.

Ingredients:

• Bread Slices - 6 nos
• Cheese - 6 table spoon (Shredded)
• Capsicum - 3 table spoon (deseeded and chopped)
• Green Chilli - 2 (Chopped)
• Coriander leaves - 1 table spoon (Chopped).

Method:

Remove the crust of the bread and lay them on a plate.

In a bowl mix shredded cheese, chopped chilli and coriander.

Spread it over the bread and toast it.

Note: Microvawe in micro wave grill combination for 2 min or toast it in the OTG oven for 3 to 5 min till the cheese melts. You can also keep it on a dosa thava and toast. keep it in low heat and keep it closed. 

Chilli Gobi

This recipe of mine always serves a good snack at ma home. It could be had as a snack or a starter.

Ingredients:

• Cauliflower - 1
• Big onion - 1(Chopped)
• Capsicum - 1(Chopped)
• Garlic - 2 pods(Chopped)
• Green Chilly - 2 (Chopped)
• Spring Onion - 2 tb sp (Chopped)
• Soya Sauce - 1 tsp
• Aginomotto - a pinch
• Corn flour - 
• Red Chilli powder - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste.
• Oil to fry.
• Red food colour - 1 pinch (optional)

Method:

Drop the cauliflower florets in boiling water for two min with little salt. drain and keep aside.

In a plate spread the half cooked florets and sprinkle the corn flour, salt and chilli powder. (also food color).

Mix it well. sprinkle little water to bind well and add more corn flour. do not pour water.

Heat oil in a kadai and fry them well and keep aside on a Kitchen towel. (Tissue Paper).

Heat a spoon of butter or oil in a kadai, add the chopped garlic followed by Chilly and onion. sauté for two min. Add the sauce, salt, aginomotto, capsicum.

Dissolve a table spoon of corn flour in half glass of water and add to the kadai and mix well. It will give a thick paste.

Toss in the fried Cauliflower and garnish with Spring onion. 

Note: do not make a paste or batter to fry the florets, just sprinkle the corn flour and mix well keep it dry. do not over cook the capsicum. and food color is optional. in the picture above i have added food color just for the appearance. If you want it as a gravy for fried rice then add more water and boil before adding the fried florets and adjust salt.

Feel the Food

Hi guys.... those who want to cook but doesn't do it because of laziness or because you don't know to cook.... just hear me out now. All such people has to simply go and stand in the kitchen with a hungry tummy... u will automatically pull out stuffs from the shelf and cook up something for the plate.. that is how we learn to cook... experimenting. Many friends asks me how i cook while they feel lazy or bored to cook.All i would say is feel the food.

          I am of course a foodie. When i say feel the food you have to see it, smell it, taste it and feel it with the tongue and your senses. The same dish when cooked by your mom tastes and smells different when done by your grand mother. You can only feel that difference if you are that sensible.

                                                                      The smell of the butter.... texture of melting chocolate.... the color of red kashmiri chilly....the mix of spices.... wow... there is nothing more good on earth than food. but there are certain dishes, which how ever you do you can never dish out the same way that the other person does even when the ratios are told pakka. and that is the magic of cooking... one cannot serve the taste as the other does. we always end up eating telling what is less or how badly it is spiced up hoping to do it the right way the next time. Always hoping for the best. Bon Appetit !

Kalkandu Vadai

Ingredients:

• Urud Dhal (Ulundhu) - 200gm
• Bengalgram Dhal (Kadalai Paruppu) - 1 tb sp
• Kalkandu - 150gm
• Oil - to fry

Method:

Soak both the dhal for an hour.
Grind with very little water when it is nearly ground add the kalkandu and grind.
Heat the oil in a kadai and make vadas.
The vadai will be of a nice brown color due to caramelisation of the sugar (Kalkandu).
If you feel kalkandu is not enough and two spoons of sugar.

Note: if the batter is too watery the vadai will bloat drinking in oil, add a hand full of rice flour mix well and make the vadai, oil consumption will decrease. Kalkandu vadai tastes better the next day rather than eating it hot hot. 200 gm will make up to 15 vadai.

Hello friends.... this is me Meenakshi Palaniappan. I am basically a nutritionist very very much interested in cooking. This step of mine, starting a blog is purely because i love to cook like anything and i keep it a habit to capture them with my camera... of course it is just with a Sony digital camera and not a professional SLR. but still i love it.... and there are whole lot of people encouraging my cooking. It all started so early i don't even know exactly when... i think it started with my mom leaving me and my day for few days when she goes to my native that my dad makes dosa for me.... or when i was the one at home when my grand ma had a fever and i ended up cooking.... or was it when my mom and dad went out-of-station leaving me and my bro with a container full of idly batter and side dishes and vegetables cooked and stocked in the refrigerator as that started to bore our taste buds i cooked for him..... but it just started.

I always wanted to do my degree in Catering and Hotel Management... but i ended up with Nutrition and dietetics. But still enjoyed it. Me and my friends ran a cafeteria in college catering for the whole college for two weeks.... thus got a bit popular. And not to tell, am always popular among my folks..... my home was a best learning ground. what ever the flaws were, be it over salted or salt less; under cooked or over cooked people always tried to put up with me.... told me what went went wrong and always ate spoon full. That obviously was the reason i am writing this blog now.

Now today when i thought to start this blog my plan is to post recipes that are purely chettinad, the reason i say purely chettinad is mainly because today we have so many restaurants calling themselves "chettinadu restaurant" but with no authentic or near to authenticity. Trust me, my recipes posted here will sure be authentic as i come from there.... yeah i belong to karaikudi.

Eating out today has become very expensive on the other hand cooking is fun.... joy.... adventurous.... experimental.... and can change your mood. Cooking helps my mood swings. When you know to cook, especially for people who are single, we dont have to be dependent on a hotel, mess or restaurants; for girlz at home we don't have to depend on mom, u cook and serve her too she will be more happy to give you permission for a night out with friends; and for would-be-brides knowing to cook is an easy way to win your spouse heart and love.

That is all for day one. I have my husband waiting for dinner as i promised to make parotta today... we will see loads of recipes of all sorts for all sort of people in days to come. Bon Appetit !