Avalose Podi

Avalose podi is a very common and popular snack from Kerala. As the name suggests, it is a snack in the powder form. Avalose podi has a long shelf life, hence it can be made in bulk and stored. This is usually eaten with sugar along with or without banana. I also know people who take this with their coffee or tea. Nowadays, it's readily available in shops, but trust me, you will surely love this homemade version more than the store-bought one.

Ingredients:
Raw rice- 1/2 kilogram
Coconut (scraped)- 1 full
Shallots-1-2 minced very fine
Salt a pinch
Cumin seed / Jeera- 1 teaspoon
Black sesame seeds- 1&1/2 teaspoon

Method
Soak rice in water for 4 hours, drain it, dry it and make it into coarse powder.I used my food processor and it was just perfect.  Scrape coconut and keep it aside.
 In a wide mouthed bowl, mix the rice flour, scraped coconut,shallots, 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, and salt.  Rub it nicely with your fingers and mix it nicely.  Keep it aside for 1 hour.  (Take care the rice flour should be dry)After one hour, heat a heavy bottomed pan or kadai.
 Add the rest of the cumin seeds and black sesame seeds and roast it.  Then add the mixture and roast it nicely till the color starts changing  to light brownish color at a low heat.
 As soon as it is done transfer the contents to another bowl.  Otherwise it will get over cooked by  the heat of the pan.
In case you have lumps sift the flour through a sieve (a bigger one) and then grind the bigger pieces that are left.  Fry that well and mix it with the fried avalose podi.
Allow it to cool and then store it in an airtight container.
 Serve it with sugar and bananas.

Deconstructed Deviled Eggs

If you are looking for ways to use up eggs from your Easter egg hunt left-overs, here is a popular and easy dish which is even further simplified. Hope you would all enjoy this as much as we did.
Recipe source: Honestly yum
Ingredients:
12 eggs
1/3 cup of good mayonnaise
1 teaspoon of dijon mustard
1 teaspoon of white vinegar
1/2 shallot
Parsley
paprika
Celery salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Method:
Make medium-boiled eggs. Bring a small pot of water to a boil (make sure the pot is wide enough so all the eggs fit in one layer). Use just enough water so they barely cover the eggs. Lower the heat to a very gentle simmer. Place the room temperature eggs in the boiling water very carefully. I use a large spoon to slide them in. Cook for 6-7 minutes and immediately remove from heat and run under very cold water to stop the cooking.
Peel the eggs and slice the eggs in half. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over them.
To make the dressing, combine mayonnaise, dijon mustard and roughly chopped 1/2 shallot in a food processor and blend. Add the vinegar and blend again until smooth. Place a dollop on each egg and add a pinch of paprika over the eggs.
Roughly chop the parsley and add a pinch on each egg.

Palpayasam

Wishing you all a very Happy Vishu!
Here is an easy recipe for making a delicious payasam to sweeten your Vishu celebration.
Ingredients:
Whole Milk - 3& 1/2 cups
Water-1/2 cup
Basmati rice - 2 tbsp
Sugar - 1/4 cup - 1/2 cup according to your preference
Butter-1tsp
Cardamom powder - generous pinch
Method:
Boil the milk,water and sugar in the pressure cooker. Wash the rice. When the milk starts boiling, reduce the heat to the lowest gas mark and add the rice.  Place a small spoon or a small shallow plate inside the cooker so that it will do the stirring action when the cooker is shut. Stir the contents well and close the cooker. Place the weight on the valve when steam escapes and allow the payasam to cook on a low heat. Switch off the stove after 20 minutes. Open the cooker when possible and add the butter and cardamom stir for a few minutes your delicious, creamy payasam is ready. 

Kurukku Kalan

Kalan is the second dish I always make in advance for a Kerala feast.This dish too stays well for a few days. Kalan is made with yogurt,coconut and a few veggies.
Ingredients:
Yam-1 cup
Raw plantain-1/2 cups
Pepper-2tbs dissolved in 1/2 cup water and strained(We are using the water)
Turmeric-1/4 tsp
Salt as required
Green chilli-2
Ghee-1tsp
Greek Yogurt-1 cup
Coconut-1 cup
Fenugreek powder-1/2 tsp
Cumin - 1/2 tsp
Coconut oil-3 tsp
Dried red chilli-2
Mustard-1tsp
Curry leaves-few
Method:
Add cut vegetables to strained pepper water along with turmeric powder ,green chilli and salt and cook until water dries up.Add ghee and yogurt and mix well,now cook this at low flame till it thickens.
Mean while make a fine paste of coconut ,cumin seeds add this along with the fenugreek powder. Bring this to a boil and remove from fire.Finally splutter mustard seeds ,dry red chilli and curry leaves and mix this to kalan.

Inji Puli / Puli Inji

With Vishu around the corner I thought I would post some Kerala sadya recipes.Vishu is celebrated with much pomp and festivities in central and north Kerala with full course Sadya . In all Kerala feasts there are some dishes that are prepared a few days in advance;  main reason being these stay good for few days or even a few weeks without any refrigeration. Here is one such dish:  Inji Puli or Puli Inji. As the name suggests the two main ingredients are Inji or ginger and Puli or Tamarind.This dish is spicy, sweet and tangy with pleasant flavor notes of ginger. Watch out for more sadya dishes in the run up for Vishu.
Ingredients
Fresh Ginger-1/4kg(finely chopped)
Tamarind-3 lemon sized
Coconut Oil-5tbs
Turmeric Powder-1/2tsp
Salt -to taste
Chilly Powder-1  tsp
Mustard seeds-1/2tsp
Curry Leaves-2sprigs
Small onion-3(chopped)
Dry Red Chilly-3
Green Chilly-4(finely chopped)
Jaggery/brown sugar-according to  taste

Method
Peel the ginger and cut into fine pieces,heat coconut oil in a kadai and add the ginger and fry it. Fry till it ginger turns  light  golden.Drain them and set aside.
Soak tamarind in one cup of hot water for 15 minutes  or you can microwave for 30 seconds and extract the juice .Sieve it and add to a deep bottomed kadai  along with salt,chilly powder and turmeric powder.
Mix well .Bring to boil . Once it starts to boil reduce the heat and simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until the raw taste of the tamarind is no longer there. By that time the gravy will be almost thick.If you like your
 inji puli to be sweet or purified  jaggery now.Now add the crushed ginger and ,lower the flame and allow it to come to a boil. Add hot water if it became too thick,Inji puli gets thicker when it cools down..
Now heat remaining oil in a separate pan and add mustard seeds.When it splutters add chopped onion,chopped dry red chilly,chopped green chilly and curry leaves and saute till it turns brown. Add this to Inji puli