Mint-Coriander-Curry leaves Thokku

Whenever the women of a family is planned to absent for some days from cooking, we have a habit of preparing thokku (pasty pickles) so that people at home can have it with idli or dosa or plain rice or even rotis. As a descendent of this custom, I had made this mixed thokku before my fil's surgery. I had all three greens and for convenience I had used all of them in this recipe, it did taste well with all flavours felt; generally it is made with one of the three greens in the same procedure.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1.     Mint leaves cleaned – 1 cup

2.     Coriander leaves cleaned with stem – 1 cup

3.     Curry leaves cleaned – 1 cup

4.     Green chilies – 2

5.     Ginger – 1” piece

6.     Red chili powder – 1 tsp

7.     Salt as per taste

8.     Tamarind pulp as required

9.     Gingelly oil – 3 tbsp

10.   Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

11.   Asafoetida – ¼ tsp

12.   Fenugreek powder – ¼ tsp

Method:

Step 1: Grind all leaves, green clilies and ginger into a smoot paste with minimum water possible.

Step 2: Heat oil in a kadai, splutter mustard seeds, sprinkle asafoetida and pour in the ground green paste.

Step 3: Add tamarind pulp, salt and chili powder and adjust these three by tasting.

Step 4: Simmer the stove and stir occasionally to avoid burning at the bottom.

Step 5: The thokku is done when moisture in it evaporates and oil separates. Turn off heat when done.

Step 6: Once cool store in a clean and dry air-tight container.

Urad Dal Ladoo

Urad dal as we know is good for health and very strengthening especially for girls during puberty and for women during pregnancy. I tried this recipe from nishamadhulika.com first time when I had visited my sister during her pregnancy. All of us loved it and I had made it many times after that, thanks to Nishamadhulika. In north India there is a habit of making these kinds of healthy ladoos when winter arrives to keep the body warm unlike we in south make sweets only during festivities or for occasions.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Serves: Yields 20-25 ladoos

Ingredients:

1.     Urad dal – 2 cups

2.     Bura or tagar – 1 ½ cups

3.     Ghee – 1 cup

4.     Cahew nuts – 4 tbsp

Method:

Step 1: Roast the urad dal in simmer until done and nice aroma emanates. Let it cool down.

Step 2: Grind the urad dal in a mixer to get a slightly coarse flour.

Step 3: Melt ghee, add chopped nuts and urad flour to it. Mix tagar or bura to it and mix well.

Step 4: Roll into ladoos between your fists.

TIPS:

*Check for the tagar or bura recipe from Besan ladoo recipe in this blog.

*You can add cardamom powder if you do not like urad flavour.

*Add nuts of your choice along with cashew nuts.

*Adjust sweetness and ghee according to taste.

*If you live in cold weather, heat the ladoo in microwave while serving to get the ghee melted and be flavourful.

*If the bura or tagar has lumps pulse it in the mixer.

Masala Dosa

I am sure at least every south Indian (Except for people who want to avoid potato) is always an ardent lover of masala dosa. Ironically, though it is simple to make at home, most of us eat it only in restaurants. As we live in a locality that does not give us the luxury of stepping into a decent tiffin centre as when we want, I was elicited to prepare masala dosas for dinner on a week day. They indeed tasted in comparison to the restaurant ones.

Preparation Time: NA

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1.     Dosa batter – 2 cups

2.     Potato – 3

3.     Green peas – ½ cup

4.     Onion - 1

5.     Green chilies – 2

6.     Curry leaves – 1 sprig

7.     Oil – 1 tbsp + as required for greasing

8.     Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp

9.     Cumin seeds – ¼ tsp

10.  Asafoetida – 1 pinch

11.  Urad dal – ½ tbsp.

12.  Gram dal – 1 tbsp

Method:

Step 1: Boil the potatoes, peel and mash them well. Blanch the shelled green peas with a pinch of salt.

Step 2: Heat oil in a kadai, splutter mustard seeds & cumin seeds, roast urad dal & gram dal until brown, sprinkle asafoetida, add chopped green chilies & curry leaves and sauté the chopped onion in it until translucent.

Step 3: Now add the mashed potatoes & blanched peas and sprinkle enough salt. Add enough water and get a juicy & soft consistency. If it is watery, it will soak the dosa and it won’t taste good. Keep masala aside.

Step 4: Heat dosa tava, ladle batter in the center and spread it around the tava till thin. Drizzle oil around and cover with a lid.

Step 5: Open lid when the top the dosa is done (white batter turns off-white), with the help of flat ladle flatten the top surface of dosa and spoon the masala in a vertical line of about 3” width.

Step 6: Check it the dosa has turned brown enough; when done fold both sides towards center like in the image. You can make triangular dosas as well.

Step 7: Serve hot with chutney or sambar or both.

TIPS:

*In my hostel, they smear spicy chutney over the dosa before placing masala into it; however I’m not a big fan of it. This chutney is made by grinding garlic cloves, soaked red chilies and salt together.