Valaikkai Bajji / Plantain bajji

It is a very tasty snack, prepared from unripe banana fruit called plantain, liked by everyone at all time. It is also called vazhaikkai bajji. Kela ka pakora and kele ka pakoda are the names in Hindi.

Ingredients:

• Gram flour: 1 cup
• Rice flour: 1/4 cup
• Red chili powder: 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
• Cooking soda: 1 Pinch
• Plantain (Raw banana): 1 or 2 according to size
• Oil for frying
• Salt to taste

Method of preparation:

• Make a thick batter of gram flour, rice flour, turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt and cooking soda.
• Peel the skin of raw bananas with the help of a knife and make thin slices lengthwise.
• Dip the slices one by one in the gram flour batter and deep fry them in hot oil till the appearance of brown color.
• Serve hot with or without chutney, pickle or thokku.
  

Tasty tomato pickle

This is a very delicious and tasty pickle, suitable to enjoy with purotta, paratha, parantha, puri, chappati, chappathi, idli / idly, dosai / dosa, curd rice, biriyani / briyani.
It is called ‘Suvaiyana thakkali oorukai’ in Tamil.

Ingredients:

• Tomato: 1 Kg
• Garlic: 150 gm
• Turmeric powder: As required
• Chili powder: As required
• Fenugreek powder (Methi): 1 tbsp
• Asafetida (Hing): a little
• Gingelly oil (sesame oil / edible oil / til ka tel): for sauté
• Mustard (Sarson / Rai): for sauté
• Salt: As required
  

Method of preparation:

• Wash tomatoes and dry them.
• Remove skin from garlic.
• Grind them together in a mixer.
• Add salt and mix.
• Pour this on a wide plate and keep under hot direct sunlight so as to get it dry like jam.
• Heat and stir this in a sauce pan (Kadhai).
• After some time add turmeric powder, chili powder, fenugreek powder (methi powder) and asafetida (hing).
• Stir and turn the stove off.
• Use another sauce pan for sauté and mix well.

To view this recipe both in English and in Tamil, Visit

http://dailycookingtips.blogspot.com/2009/08/tasty-tomato-pickle.html