Raw Mango Dal / Mamidikaya Pappu

Preparing recipes using seasonal vegetables is a delightful experience. It is good for health as well as it saves you some cost. I try to pick and cook seasonal vegetables throughout the year. Even this year before the mango season wraps up, I thought of trying out some recipes using mango. Luckily my mom got a few kgs of it for preparing mango pickle.

What else then? I just picked one and tried out mango dal from this site with few modifications.

Since our ancestors were from Andhra, our day-to-day recipes closely resembles the Andhra cuisine. We know that this mango dal is also an andhra dish, but we know only by it's name and until now I've never cooked this dish at home. Only when I happened to read about this dal in Radhika's site,  I wished to prepare it. Loved the combo of the tangy mango and toor dal which gives an unique taste for this dal.

Basic Information:

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4-6 persons

Ingredients:

Raw Mango - 1 no, yielded about 2 cups when chopped
Toor Dal - 1 cup
Onion - 1 no, medium size
Garlic - 3 nos, chopped
Green chilli - 3 no, slit into two
Turmeric powder - 1 big pinch
Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Salt - to taste
Oil - 3 teaspoons
Mustard seeds and Urad dal - 1/2 teaspoons
Curry leaves - 2 strings
Dry red chillies - 3 nos, crushed
Asafoetida - a big pinch

Method:

1) Wash and soak toor dal for 30 minutes.
2) Meanwhile, Wash mango and wipe it using a kitchen towel. Peel the skin of the mango and cut it into one and half inch sized cubes. Chop onion and garlic.

3) After 30 minutes, take toor dal in a pressure cooker and add 2 and 1/2  to 3 cups of water. Heat it and remove the foam that forms on the surface of the water using the ladle.
4) Now, add chopped mango, onion, garlic and green chilli. Add turmeric, salt and cumin seeds. Mix well and cover using a lid. Pressure cook it for 3-4 whistles or till the toor dal becomes soft. Wait till the steam from pressure cooker subsides. Once it subsides, open the lid and mash the dal well. Taste and adjust the salt. Add more water if the dal is thick and bring to boil.

5) In a seasoning pan, heat oil. Add mustard seeds and urad dal when it is hot. Add curry leaves and asafoetida. Turn the flame off and pour this seasoning to the mashed dal.
6) Cover the dal till you serve to maintain the flavor.
7) Serve with hot steamed rice.

Notes:
1) My toor dal normally gets cooked well in 3 whistles after soaking it for 30 minutes and hence I mixed both toor dal and mango together to make the job easier. If not, cook dal and mango separately and add it together to make this dal. Add seasoning after mixing both cooked mango and toor dal.
2) Increase or decrease the water consistency based on your preference.
3) Make sure to chop the mangoes into big chunks in case if you are pressure cooking it along with toor dal.

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Banana Stem Stir Fry / Vazhai Thandu Poriyal

Before my marriage, I and my sis used to go to our native during weekends and my mom prepares some of our favorite vegetarian dishes using the fresh vegetables grown in the nearby farms. To be specific, she cooks bitter gourd for me and banana stem for my sis. My sister is a great fan of this stem. Sometimes she prepares juice out of it and drinks and ends up giving me a big lecture about its medicinal properties. I eat it occasionally when it is prepared at home for my sister. As days flew I couldn't remember how I developed an affinity for this health dish. Now I have started cooking this dish at home. Thanks to my sis who helped me to eat this healthy veggie.

Basic Information:
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4 persons

Ingredients:

Banana stem / Plantain stem / Vazhai thandu - 1 no, large size
Yellow moong dal - 2 tablespoons (optional)
Small onion / Shallots / Chinna vengayam - 1/4 cup, chopped
Green chillies - 3 nos, slit
Coconut - 3 tablespoons, grated
Turmeric powder - a big pinch
Salt - to taste
Oil - 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds and Urad dal - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 2 strings
Water - 4 cups (see notes)
Butter milk - 1/4 cup (see notes)

Method:

1) Wash and soak moong dal for 15 minutes. In a deep vessel, mix both water and buttermilk.
2) Wash and remove outer skins of banana stem. You need to use only the core part for preparing the stir fry.

2) Cut the core stem in round discs and again cut them into small parts. Remove the fibre that comes while chopping.
3) Transfer the chopped banana stem to a buttermilk water mixture. This helps to avoid discolouration.
4) Dip a steel or wooden skewer in to the vessel where you kept the chopped banana stem and swirl it for 30 seconds. After 30 seconds, take the skewer out and if you see any fibre then slowly remove these fibres. Repeat the swirling step until you don't see any fibre.

5) Heat oil in a pan. When it is hot, add mustard seeds and urad dal. Allow it to sizzle. Add curry leaves, slit green chillies. Saute it for few seconds.
6) Add chopped onion and saute it till onion becomes soft and translucent.
7) Simmer the flame and drain the water from chopped banana stem and moong dal. Add it to the pan. Mix well. No need to add water. The moisture in the banana stem is enough. Close the pan using a lid and cook for 2-3 minutes.

8) After 3 minutes, remove the lid. Add salt and turmeric powder. Mix well. Continue cooking in low flame. Stir well in between for even cooking. Cook till the stem becomes soft.

9) When the stem is well cooked, add grated coconut and mix well. Turn the flame off.
10) Serve hot with steamed rice and any of your favourite gravy.

Notes:
1) The water that is used for washing rice can also be used instead of buttermilk and water mixture to avoid discolouration of banana stems.
2) Try to use the stem within two days after purchasing it. Otherwise, the stem turns to dark color quickly when chopped.

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Banana Oats Peanut Butter Muffins

I love baking cupcakes and muffins. When TH gifted me few baking products including this Prestige cupcake tray, I felt my interest over baking cupcakes become an addict. Baking it almost every week and each time I feel as if I am baking cupcakes for the first time and proud of myself after seeing the perfect outcome.

I have tried many recipes over web and over a period got to know the basic idea of making cakes/cupcakes. Other than this recipe (which was tried from blueberry boy bait ), I am yet to try my own baking recipe. I don't get time to experiment with baking due to my busy official work and hence simply adapt baking recipes from the blogs I read and prepare them within the limited time I get. Work life balance is difficult part though, I will sure come up with my own baking recipe one day.

Fine, I'll come to today's recipe. It is bookmarked almost a year ago from this site along with Rainbow cupcakes. Revisiting old bookmarks helped to prepare few recipes including this one. I halved the recipe but I got nine muffins. It might vary from the brand or quality of the ingredients you use.

Basic Information:
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Makes: 9 muffins

Ingredients:

All purpose flour / Plain flour / Maida - 3/4 cup
Quick cooking oats - 1/2 cup
Baking powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Baking soda - 1/4 teaspoon
Salt - 1/4 teaspoon
Vegetable oil - 1 tablespoon
Granulated sugar - 1/3 cup
Eggs - 1 no, large size
Banana - 1/2 cup, mashed
Peanut butter - 3 tablespoons, Preferably creamy
Buttermilk - 1/2 cup
Vanilla essence - 1 teaspoon

Method:

1) Preheat the oven to 190C(375F) for 15 minutes. Line the muffin tray with muffin liners and keep it aside.
2) Meanwhile, In a large bowl, mix all purpose flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Keep aside.
3) In another bowl, mix vegetable oil, sugar, egg, mashed banana, peanut butter, vanilla essence and buttermilk. Mix till you get smooth mixture without any lumps and the egg is well incorporated.

4) Mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients. Stir well until you don't find any flour lumps.
5) Pour the batter equally to all muffin liners. Make sure to fill just up to the top.
6) Bake it for 15-20 minutes or until the tooth pin inserted into it comes out clean.

7) Remove the muffins from the muffin tray immediately and keep them in a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes:

1) If you don't have buttermilk, mix 1/2 cup of milk and 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar. Let it site for 5 minutes and substitute it for 1/2 cup of buttermilk.
2) Granulated sugar can be replaced with brown sugar.

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Plain Tamarind Gravy / Puli Kulambu

I supposed to post this recipe yesterday. But, nothing came into my mind when I sat to write a recipe. Sometimes it happens to me and I felt that was the worst part of writing a blog post. Though the recipe is one of my favorites I felt bored to write a story. So I skipped the story part (Ahh...I did it already in many recipes :p) and moving to the recipe straight forward. 

This Plain Tamarind Gravy is perfect pair for Urad dal rice along with black sesame seeds thogayal. This gravy is nothing but the thinner version of the pulikachal. The Urad dal rice can be eaten with vatha kulambu too, but this pair wins in taste.

Basic Information:
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 25-30 minutes
Serves: 7-9 persons

Ingredients:

For Gravy:

Tamarind - 1 small orange fruit size
Gingelly Oil - 1 tablespoon + 2 tablespoons
Mustard seeds and Urad dal - 1/2 teaspoon
Channa Dal - 1/2 tablespoon
Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
Asafoetida - a big pinch
Curry Leaves - 2 strings
Dry red chilli - 2 nos
Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Salt - to taste
Water - 4 cups

For Masala:

Coriander seeds / Dhania - 1 teaspoon
Whole black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 1 string
    
Method:

1) Soak tamarind in 1 cup of warm water for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, squeeze out the juice from it and keep it aside.
2) Dry roast the ingredients given under 'For Masala' and allow it to cool to room temperature. Make a powder of it once cooled. Keep it aside.
3) Heat a pan with 1 tablespoon of oil. When it is hot, add mustard seeds, urad dal and allow it to sizzle.
4) Add channa dal and fenugreek seeds. Let it turn to crisp, golden brown and releases nice aroma.
5) Add curry leaves, asafoetida and dry red chilli.
6) Add squeezed out tamarind juice.

7) Add 4 cups of water, turmeric powder and salt to taste. Let it roll boil for 10 minutes. After sometimes, you can see the gravy is reduced in its quantity.

8) Now, Add the prepared ground masala to the boiling gravy. Add 2 tablespoons of oil to the gravy. Allow it to boil for another 3-4 minutes.
9) Cover and cook till the gravy leaves out oil to the sides of the pan.

10) Serve hot with hot steamed rice or with urad dal rice.

Note:
1) The dry red chillies I used were very spicy and so I limited the quantity to two. Use more or same number of red chillies based on its spicy level.
2) Increase or decrease the tamarind quantity based on it sourness.
3) The same gravy can be cooked till it reaches thick consistency and it is called as Pulikachal.

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Aappam / Plain Hoppers

Amma makes Aappam every week and it is highly liked by all for breakfast, next to idly and dosa. We use sugar mixed coconut milk for serving. But, for the past few months, My dad has not been including coconut in his diet due to his health issues. So, We skip adding coconut now a days to the batter and also serve it with plain milk and sugar instead of coconut milk. You have to slightly compromise the taste but it gives the complete satisfaction as we get in aappam with coconut milk. Since the sweeter version is preferred by my family members, very rarely we prepare coconut based vegetable stew for aappam. When I prepare it for next time, I'll share the recipe here.

Basic Information:
Soaking Time: 5 hours
Grinding Time: 20-25 minutes
Fermentation Time: 6-8 hours
Preparation Time: <10 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 7-8 persons

Ingredients:

Raw rice / Pacharisi - 2cups
Idly rice / Par boiled rice - 2 cups
Urad dal - 1/4 cup
Fenugreek seeds - 2 tablespoons
Coconut - 3/4 cup, grind it to a paste
Salt - to taste
Cooking Soda - 1/4 teaspoon, optional
Water - As required

Method:

1) Wash Raw rice, Idly rice, Urad dal and Fenugreek seeds well and soak it for 5 hours.
2) After five hours, drain the water and grind it to a smooth batter. Add necessary water to help grinding. The batter should look smooth but when you touch it using your finger, you should see the slight grainy texture.

3) Add salt and mix well. Keep this batter in a container and allow it to ferment for 6-8 hours. The fermentation time differs from place to place.
4) Put the coconut pieces into the mixer and grind it to a paste. Add this ground coconut to the fermented batter. Add cooking soda if using. Mix well.

5) Add enough water and make thin batter. The consistency of the batter should be slightly thinner than the dosa batter. It should be easily pourable.
6) Heat the aappam pan. When it is hot, smear it with oil. It is not necessary, if you are using non-stick pan. Pour a ladle full of batter to the center of the pan.
7) Rotate the pan quickly by holding the holder of the pan using your hand and make the batter to spread well to the sides of the aapam pan.

8) Cover using the lid for 1-2 minutes.  After 2 minutes, Check the aappam is cooked. When it is cooked, the edges of aappam comes out from the aappam pan. If it is not, cover again and cook for few seconds.
9) If done, using a spatula, carefully take away from the aappam pan. No need to flip it.

 10) Serve hot with coconut milk and sugar.

Notes:
1) Cooking soda is optional. I didn't use it in my aappam preparation.
2) You can also add grated coconut while grinding the batter. But I never tried it till now and we follow above method only at our home. Also, After adding ground coconut / coconut milk to the batter, try to use it on the same day. Do not refrigerate it. 
3) Texture and consistency of the batter is important to get perfect shaped and spongy appams.
4) Some times I make batter in a large quantity, transfer the excess batter in a container and keep in the refrigerator without fermenting. Just before the day I plan to prepare aappam, I take the batter out of the refrigerator and ferment it. At most 2 days you can keep the batter inside the refrigerator. Also, I add coconut just before making aappams.

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