Morkuzambu

Thanjavur version

Ingredients:

Channa dal                : 1tbsp

Dania                        : 1 tbsp

Jeera                         : 1 tbsp

Green chillies             : 6/7 (if small; adjust according to taste)

Red chilli                    : 3

Ginger                        : a one inchl piece

Coconut                     :grated from half a coconut

Turmeric powder       : 1 tsp

Thick butter milk        : 2 cups

Mustard seeds           : 1 tsp

Curry leaves              : a few

Preferred vegetable for Morkozambu is White Pumpkin. Alternatively Brinjals or ladies finger (Okra) can be fried and added.

No vegetable is needed if you are making it with dal urundai ( paruppu urundai - recipe below)

Method: 

Cut pumpkins to large pieces and boil them with turmeric and salt.

Soak Channa dal, dhania, jeera and red chilies for a about 5 minutes. Add coconut and green chillies and grind to a smooth paste.

Add this paste to the vegetable and bring it to a boil.

Add  thick butter milk and boil for about 3 minutes.

Heat oil. Add mustard and curry leaves and pour it over the kuzambu,.

Alternatively you can skip step one and mix the paste to the thick butter milk and boil it for about 3 -4 minutes.

Cut ladies finger into 2 inch pieces and fry them in oil and pour over the kuzhambu.

Tirunelveli version:

Methi                : 1 tsp

Red chilli           : 6/8

Urad dal            : 2 tsp

Fry the above till you get  a nice aroma.. Add coconut and grind to a paste.

Heat oil. Add Mustard , Curry leaves, 1 tsp haldi powder and vegetable. Add thick butter milk and the ground paste. bring to a boil.

Use drumstick or brinjal for this.

(if butermilk is not sour, you can add a little tamarind)

Parupurundai Morkuzambu

Soak 1 cup tur dal. Add salt, 4 red chillies and grind to a thick paste. make into balls and steam llike idlis. Add these balls when morkozhambu boils.

Palakkad version
Thick sour  butter milk : 3 cups
Coconut                        : 1/ 3cup
Red chillies                   : 3
Green Chilli                   : 1
Channa dal                    : 1 tsp
Dhaniya                         : 1tsp
Methi seeds                   : 1/4 tsp
Raw rice                        : 1/2 tsp
Salt                                : to taste
Curry leaves                  :  a few
Mustard seeds               : 1/2 tsp
Oil                                 : 2 tsp

Method:
Add a cup of water, salt and turmeric to the buttermilk and mix it well.
In a little oil, fry dhaniya, channa dal, red chillies , methi seeds and rice.
Grind this together with the coconut, jeera and green chilli to a smooth paste.
Add to the buttermilk and boil the mixture for about 5 minutes on low flame.
Heat a little oil and splutter mustard seeds and pour it over the mixture.
Vegetables like ash gourd can be boiled and added to the mixture before putting it to boil.
Or you can fry okra pieces or brinjal pieces and add them in the end.

Kadhi:

Thick buttermilk            – 4 cups

Besan (kadalaimavu)     – 1 cup

Chilli powder                – 4 tsp

garam masala               – 2 tsp

Daniya powder            – 2 tsp

salt

Mix all ingredients together.

heat oil. fry jeera, add the mixture and cook till besan is cooked

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.

Araichu vita Kuzambu

Ingredients:

Vegetable                                       Diced into bite sized pieces

Tamarind  pulp                               from tamarind the size of a lemon            

 Ellu/sesame seeds Til                   1 tsp

Dhania                                           2 tsp

Kadalai Paruppu/Channa dal         1 tsp

Thuvaram paruppu/ Tur dal           2 tsp

Vendayam / Methi seeds                1/4 tsp

Vathal Milagai / Dried red chillies   4 0r 5 (medium spice)

Perungayam/Asafoetida                 If it is hard fry it in oil first or use a pinch of powder

Grated Coconut                             2 tblsp

Kariveppilai/ Curry Leaves            A few

Vellam/ Jaggery                             a small piece (optional) or 1 tsp of jaggery powder

Method:

Extract juice of tamarind

Fry the ellu (sesame seeds) in a dry pan separately and transfer it to the blender cup.

In a little oil,  fry Dhania , channa dhall , thuvar dhall , methi , red chillis 4 and perungaym (preferably katti perungayam which u can fry first in the oil)

Then fry grated coconut separatey till it becomes golden.

Blend all the fried ingredients into a smooth paste.

Boil  the vegetable(s) in tamarind juice with salt and karuveppilai atleast for 15 to 20mts. 

Then add the ground paste, mix it well and bring it to boil.  

Some may like to add some vellam also towards the end.  

There is no need for additional tempering..

Note: 

If you add paruppu( dal) to this, it wll be like araichu vitta sambar, in which case you may have to use more puli & masala. 

But without the paruppu itself it tastes good and can be carried over too.  It can be had with rice and with curry and poricha appalam or vadam :).  This can make a good side dish also.

iru puli kuzambu

This is called 'iru puli kozhambu' because it uses two ingredients for the tartness -  puli as well as curd (preferably a little sour). It varies from Morkuzambu in that it uses red chillies intead of green chillies.This can be made with drumstick OR vendaikkai (Okra) OR mango - raw or a little ripe OR avaraikkai (flat beans) or even capsicum if you like that taste & flavour.

Ingredients

Any vegetable of choice                : cut into small pieces

Puli Jalam (Tamarind juice)           :  from tamarind the size of a large marble

Ulutham paruppu (urad dal)          : 2  tsp,  

vendhayam    (Methi seeds)          : 1/2 tsp

Vara milagai (Dried Red chillies)   : 3 to 4 red chillies depending on how hot they are
Fresh Coconut grated                   : Half a cup

Oil                                                  :   2 tsp
 Mustard seeds                              : 1 tsp
Curry leaves                                  :   a few

Method:

Fry urad dal, methi seeds and red chillies in very little oil and let it cool a bit. The  add fresh coconut and grind it to a fne paste. 

Boil vegetable  in tamarind juice with salt to taste.  The quantity of tamarind juice can be something like half of what you use for sambar or vathakuzhambu.

Once, the vegetables are well cooked and the smell of raw tamarind is gone and the quantity has become almost half, mix the ground paste with a small cup of curd (thick kadanja moru) and add it to the boiling liquid.  

Bring it to a boil and take it off the stove.

Heat a little oil in a pan or tempering ladle and add Mustard seeds. When they spluteer add a dried red chilli (optional) and curry leaves and pour it over the Kozhambu.

It can be taken with rice like any other kozhambu and is a good side dish for idly, dosa, upma etc. also.