Kadappa

This is a speciality in Kumbakonam hotels. It is sometimes even called Kumbakonam Kadappa.
This is served with dosa and idli and is a great combination for chapatis.

Kadappa:

Garlic                                  : 100 g

Cinnamon/ lavanga Pattai     : 10 g
Clove                                  : 3

Onions                                :  300 gm

Potato                                 :  300 g

Moong Dal                          :  200 g

Fried Gram/Pottukadalai      : 50 g ( abt 4 table spoons)

Green chillies                       : 10/ 12

Corainder leaves

Coconut                              :half cup

poppy seeds/ gasagasa        : 20 gm ( 4 tsp) soak the gasagasa for a few minutes before grinding.

Turmeric powder                : 1/2 tsp

Method:

Cook the dal in sufficient water.
Boil potatoes and crumble them.
Grind fried gram, coconut, 4 cloves garlic, 20 g gasgasa and green chillies.

Heat oil and fry 4 cloves garlic. Add cinnamon and cloves.
Add onions and fry. Now add the water in which the dal  was cooked.. Add salt, turmeric powder, crumbled alu and the ground paste.
Bring to boil and remove from stove.
Add juice of a lemon.

This recipe is from the famous Madras cook Arusuvai Natarajan.

Kootu with sambar podi

This can be made with Chowchow, snake gourd, ash gourd, cucumber.

Ingredients:
Tur dal                          : 1/4 cup pressure cooked

Vegetable                      : 500 gms
Channa dal                   : 2 tblsp
Turmeric powder           : 1 Tsp
Sambar podi                  : 1 tsp
For seasoning:
Oil

Urad dal                        : 2 tsp
Red chillies                   : 2 or 3
Jeera                            : 1/2 tsp
Grated Coconut            : 2 tblsp
Mustard seeds
Curry leaves


Preparation Method:

Cut vegetable into small squares. Add turmeric powder, 2 tblsp channa dal and enough water.
When the vegetables are almost cooked , add sambar podi and salt and boil till they are fully done.
Now add the mashed dal and mix well. Boil together for 2 minutes.
Heat oil in a pan. Splutter mustard seeds. Then add Jeera, urad dal and red chillies. Switch off and add grated coconut and aasafoetida and curry leaves.
Pour over the vegetable- dal mix. Let the mix cook together for a minute and take off the stove.

Poricha kootu

Ingredients:

This kootu can be made with many vegetables like snake gourd, ridge gourd, keerai, chow chow, drumstick or ash gourd. For this recipe I will use  Ridge gourd.
Ridge gourd              :  2
Mung dal                   : 1/3 cup
Coconut                    : 3 tbsp
Urad dal                    : 1 tsp
Red chillies               :  2
Pepper corns            : 1/2 tsp
Jeera/ Cumin seeds  : 1/2 tsp
Turmeric                    : a pinch
Salt                            : as required
Curry leaves              : 10
Oil                              : 1 tblsp

Method:
Dry fry the Mung dal lightly and pressure cook it with sufficient water.
Peel off the skin and cut the ridgegourd into bite sized bits, add little water and turmeric powder and boil it for about 3- 5 minutes making sure it is tender but not mashed.
In a little oil, fry urad dal, red chillies and curry leaves.
Add this to cocnut and jeera and grind to a fine paste.
Add the paste and salt as required to the vegetable. Boil for 3 minutes.
Add the cooked dal, mix well, add some more water if the kootu is too thick and bring the mixture to a boil.
Remove from fire.
Temper with mustard seeds spluttered in hot oil.

Murungai ilai poricheri / poricha kari

Ingredients:
Drumstick leaves                      : 1 cup (cleaned)
Thuvaram paruppu/ Tur Dal     : 1/2 cup (pressure cooked)
Grated Coconut                        : from half a coconut
Dried Red Chillies                     : To taste (3 for medium spice)
Jeeragam/ Cumin                      : 1 tsp
Kadugu/ Mustard seeds            : 1 tsp
Ulutham paruppu/ Urad dal       : 1 tsp
Curry leaves                              : a few
Turmeric Powder                       : 1 Tsp
Salt                                            : To Taste
Oil                                              : 1 Tbsp (use coconut oil for added taste)


Method:

In a little oil fry 2 tbsp grated coconut till it turns light brown. Keep aside for garnish.
Grind the rest of the coconut with jeera and red chillies to a fine paste.
Add this paste to the boiled leaves.
Add the boiled and mashed dal.
Boil together for about 5 minutes on  low flame.
Heat oil and add mustard seedsn. Once they splutter add urad dal and curry leaves. Pour over the mixture. Finally add the fried coconut.
Serve with rice.

In place of drumstick leaves, mixed vegetables can be used : raw banana - 1/2; White pumpkin-  a small wedge; brinjals - 1 or 2; beans - a few; elephant yam (chenai)- a small piece; green peas - a fistful; drumstick - 1
Cut all vegetables into small squares.
Rest of the procedure is same as above. In this avatar, it is called Poricha kuzambu.

Method 2:

Ingredients:
Split green gram                        a fistful
Elephant yam                            150gms
Raw plantain                               or 2

Snake gourd                              1 small
White brinjal                               100 gms
Turmeric powder                        1 tsp
Salt                                             as required

to be ground to a smooth paste:
Shredded Coconut                     1/2 cup
Red chillies                                 3 or 4  (depending on tolerance)
Cumin seeds                               1 tsp

For tempering:
Coconut oil                                 1 Tsp
Mustard seeds                           1/2 tsp
Cumin                                         1/2 tsp 


Method:
Boil the dal separately in sufficient water mash it and keep aside. Can be pressure cooked.
Cut vegetables, add a spoon of turmeric powder and salt and cook in sufficient water.
Once the vegetables are cooked add the ground paste and dal and boil together for a few minutes.
Finally heat coconut oil, splutter mustard seeds , add cumin seeds and pour over the poricha kari.

Thalagam

Ingredients 

Vegetables: Any vegetable except onion and drumstick (raw banana is a must). Usually it is done with a mix of several vegetables.

Tamarind                                :  a lemon sized ball

Manjapodi/Turmeric Powder  :  1 spoon

Vellam/ Jaggery                      :  a small piece

Salt                                         :  to taste

Grated Coconut                      :  4-5 tblsp

Red chillies                             :  3-4 for a cup of vegetables (for medium spice)

Urad dal                                  :  1 tsp

Raw rice                                  :  1/2 Tsp

Curry Leaves                           :   a few

Oil                                            :  for frying and tempering.

Mustard                                    :  1 tsp

Method:

Cut vegetables in big sizes as for sambar. 

Extract  tamarind pulp. To this add  haldi + salt + lil jaggery and cook the vegetables.

Fry coconut very well.

Separately fry red chillis + urad dal + little rice + curry leaves.

Grind the red chillis and coconut to fine paste.

Add this paste to cooked vegetables and boil it once. Add curry leaves to this.

Season this with mustard + 1 red chilli.

This goes well with Thiruvadhirai Kali as well as hot rice.

pulingkari

Ingredients:
Vegetable of choice                : 300 gms (can use mixed vegetables together)
Tamarind juice                        : from a small lemon sized ball
Channa dal (kadalai paruppu): 1 tsp
Dried red chillies                     : 3 or 4
Methi seeds                            : 1/2 tsp
curry leaves
Raw rice                                  : 1/2 tsp
Freshly grated coconut            : from half a coconut
Turmeric powder                      : 1 tsp
Mustard seeds                         : 1/2 tsp
Jaggery (optional)
Oil                                            : 1 tsp

 Method:

Cut the vegetable and boil it in tamarind juice along with turmeric powder and salt. Add a small piece of  jaggery if you like. (a spoon if using powder)

In a little oil fry kadalaiparuppu, methi seeds, raw rice, red chillies and curry leaves. Grind together with coconut into a smooth paste.

When the veggies are cooked and the raw smell of tamarind evaporates, add the ground paste and boil for  a few more minutes.

Heat oil, splutter mustard seeds and pour over the mixture. Garnish with curry leaves and coriander leaves.

Ottuk kootu

Ingredients:

Vazhaikai (Raw plantain)  1

Chenai (Elephant yam)     ¼ kg

Pepper   corns                 1 tsp

Grated coconut                2 tblsp

Mustard                          ½  tsp

Urad dal                          2 tsp

Hing                                a pinch (or  a small piece fried and powdered)

Oil                                   for frying the urad dal and pepper and for tempering

Coconut oil                      a tblsp (optional)

Curry leaves                    a few

Salt                                 to taste

Rice flour                        1 spoon

 

Method:

Cut the vegetables into bite- size  bits and boil in enough water. Add salt.

Fry urad dal and pepper in a little oil, add fresh grated coconut and grind together to  a paste.

Add to the boiled vegetables. Add required quantity of water to make a kootu-like gravy and let the mix boil.

After the mix boils well, mix rice flour in a little water and add in case you need to thicken the gravy.

Heat oil. Add mustard and  curry leaves and pour over the kootu.
Add a spoon of coconut oil and mix well.
Serve with hot rice and papadam.

Keerai recipes

Keerai molaguttal / keerai kootu

Ingredients: 

Keerai                     1 large bunch

Moong or Tur dal    1/2 cup

Jeera                      1 spoon

Urad dal                 1 tsp

red chillies              1 or 2

Salt

Oil                           for tempering

Preparation Method:

Thandu keerai (Amaranth)  is best for the recipe.

Clean, cut and boil the greens with some cumin seeds. Mash the cooked keerai nicely with a wooden masher (Maththu). Using a blender doesn’t give the same taste as the maththu. but can be done in the absence of masher.

Boil dal (half cup or less depending on the quantity of greens used)

Add to the mashed greens. Add salt.

In a spoon of oil fry urad dal, red chillies and a little coconut . Grind and add to the mixture.

Cook together for a few minutes.

Heat oil. Splutter mustard seeds and a red chilli and pour over the keerai masiyal.

Mor keerai

Molai keerai/arai keerai  1 bunch ( about 3 cups of loosely packed greens of any type)
coconut                           grated, 5 table spoons
green chillies                  1
cumin                              1/2 teaspoon
coconut oil                      1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon
mustard                          1/2 teaspoon
Curd                               whipped
salt to taste
Method:

Rinse the greens very well and chop roughly

Grind coconut, chilli and cumin into a fine paste

In a heavy-pan add the greens and enough water to just immerse the greens, salt to taste
( add salt carefully - greens tend to shrink a lot and the quantity of the final dish reduces )
After the greens are cooked completely mash it well.
Add the ground paste and continue to cook for 3-4 minutes
Add the coconut oil
Finally add the tadka of mustard in coconut oil and sizzle over the cooked greens

Cool the dish completely and add the whipped yogurt just before serving.

Recipe Courtesy: Shalini Via dailysamayal.

Kadainja keerai / keerai masiyal

Ingredients:
 Any variety of greens- mulaikeerai*, araikeerai* or thandu* - 1 large bunch cleaned and cut
Onion                          a few Sambar Onions or one large onion diced
Garlic flakes                3 or 4 peeled and crushed
Tomato                        1 ; cut into large pieces
Gren chillies                3 or 4 slit
Tur dal                         half cup
Salt                      
For tempering:
Oil                               a little
Mustard                      1/2 tsp


Method:       
Clean and chop the greens.
Wash dal and boil it in water. When dal is half-cooked add all the other ingredients. Keep the vessel covered. periodically stir the contents. when the dal gets completely cooked transfer the ingredients to a large vessel and mash them together nicely using a Mathu (Curd churner pic)
If you want to use a blender carefully take out only the greens, chillies, tomato and garlic and mash them in the blender. For the dal use the back of a heavy spoon and make it into a smooth paste. Mix them together.
Heat oil, add mustard and when it splutters add it to the dal.

Note: onion and garlic can be avoided.

Keerai Sambar

The stems of Thandu keerai (Amaranth) are ideal for this. You can also add some keerai leaves along with the stems. Other keerais can also be used.

Ingredients:
Tur dal                                 1/2 cup pressure cooked and mashed
Tamarind water                    from a small lemon sized ball
Sambar podi                        2 tsp
Salt
Curry leaves                        a sprig

For seasoning
Oil                                       1 tsp
Mustard                               1/2 tsp
asafoetida                           a pinch

Preparation Method:
Heat a little oil in a vessel and add cut keerai stems and leaves. Add tamarind water, sambar powder and salt. Boil till raw smell evaporates. Now add the dal and mix well. Boil for a few more minutes.
Heat oil and splutter mustard seeds, add asafoetida and curry leaves and pour over the sambar.

Murungaikkai Morkootu (Koora)

Ingredients:

Murungaikkai (Drumstick)               : 5
Fresh Coconut (grated)                  : half cup
Green Chillies                                 : 3
Salt                                                 : To taste
Turmeric powder                            : 1 tsp
Thick buttermilk                              : 1 cup
Oil                                                   : 1 tsp
Mustard seeds                                : 1 tsp
Curry leaves                                   :  a few

Method:

Select drumsticks that are not too tender or too hard; They should be plump with a lot of pulp.
Cut each drumstick into 4 or 5 pieces. Boil water, add the pieces, turmeric powder and salt. Cook until the pieces are cooked..Drain and retain the water. Let the pieces cool.
Remove the pulp..
To this add the water in which the drumsticks were cooked.
Grind chillies and coconut into a smooth paste and add it to the drumstick pulp.
Boil the mix for 5 minutes.
Add thick butter milk and mix well. Bring the mix to a boil and switch off.
Heat oil ( coconut oil preferably)  and add mustard seeds. Once they splutter pour it over the mixture.
Add curry leaves.

soak one cup urad dal for an hour, then grind it with green chillies and salt like vada batter. Fry small balls of the dough and add it to the kootu for better taste.

Pooshanikkai pulikkoottu

Ingredients:
White Pumpkin                            : Half (say 500gms)
Kadalai Paruppu (Bengal Gram) : Half cup
Thuvaram Paruppu (lentils)         : Half Cup
Turmeric Powder                         : 2 Tsp

To Powder:
Coriander Seeds                         : 2 tblsp
Kadalai paruppu                          : 2 tblsp
Dried  Red chillies                       : 2
Whole black pepper                    : 1/2 tblsp
Perungkayam (Asafoetida)          : a pinch

For Seasoning:
Mustard seeds                            : 1 Tsp
Split Urad dal                              : 2 tsp
Curry Leaves                              : a few
Asafoetida                                   : a pinch
Coriander Leaves                       : a sprig
Gingely Oil                                  : 2 tsp

Salt                                              To taste

Preparation Method:

1) Take all the ingredients for powdering, dry roast until golden and then dry grind to a fine powder
2) Wash the Paruppus , add one tsp. of turmeric, adequate water and pressure cook until soft
3) Wash, deskin and cut the Pooshanikkai into small squares.
4) Place the cut vegetables in a  saucepan, add the tamarind juice, one tsp. of turmeric powder, one tsp. of salt and curry leaves. Add more water (if needed) to fully immerse the veggies. Cover and cook on medium heat until fully done
5) Once the veggies are cooked, turn the flame to low, add the cooked paruppu and the ground powder. Mix well and return to a boil
6) Wait until everything bubbles along nicely (about 5-6 minutes on medium flame), add the Kothamalli, adjust salt to desired level and switch off the flame
7) Heat 2 tsp of oil,  add mustard seeds, urad dal and asafoetida and pour over the Kootu

Variations: Instead of Pooshanikkai, this can also be prepared with Soraikkai (Bottle Gourd) or Mochakottai (Cholia)

Recipe Courtesy: ICANCOOK.(Via Dailysamayal)

Thani kootu

Ingredients:

Puli (Tamarind)                                    lemon sized ball

Vellam (Jaggery)                                 3-4 tablespoon

Uppu (Salt)                                          to taste

Dhaniya (Corainder seeds)                1 1/2 tblsp

Kadalai Paruppu (Split gram dal )      1 ½ tblsp

Vatral Milagai (Red chillies)                5 or 6

Thengai Thuruval (shreddedCoconut) 3 tblsp

Perungaya podi (asafoetida Powder) a pinch

Ennai (oil)                                            2 tsp.

Method:

Extract pulp of tamarind, add salt and jaggery and bring the mixture to a boil until the smell of raw tamarind is gone and the mixture thickens.

Heat a spoon of oil in a pan and fry the coriander seeds, dal, red chillies and coconut.Add a pinch of asafoetida powder and grind to a paste.

Add paste to the mixture.

As it is, the Thani kootu makes a good side dish for Pongal, Idli etc.

Any vegetable such as Kothavarangai ( cluster beans), Kathirikkai (brinjal) or even Pandhal avaraikkai (hyacinth beans) can be cut and boiled and added to the gravy. I like to sauté some onions and add it to the thani koottu and it tastes like Gothsu or Gojju.

If you are adding vegetables, then give the mixture a good stir and bring it to a boil.

Heat oil, add mustard seeds and pour it over the kootu. Add curry leaves, if desired.