Thattai

Thattai is a flat disc shaped attractively delicious and crispy snack, liked by all. It is also called Ellu vadai, Elladai, Thattu vadai, Thattachchu, or thattachu.

Ingredients:

• Rice flour (Arisi maavu) -2 Cup

• Fried gram flour (Chutney dal flour / Pottukkadalai flour / Odachakadalai flour) -1/2 Cup

• Fried Gram -2 tsp

• Red chili powder -1 tsp

• Asafetida (Perungayam / Hing) -1/4 tsp  

• Sesame seed (Gingelly seed / Ellu / Til)-2 tsp

• Curry Leaves (Kariveppilai / karipaththaa) – a few

• Butter -1 tsp

• Edible oil -For frying

• Salt -To taste

Method of preparation:

• Put all the ingredients except oil in a pan, sprinkle water and mix well.

• Make thick dough.

• Make small balls out of the dough.

• Flatten the balls one by one on an oily plastic paper with your oily fingers.

• Heat edible oil in a thick and heavy bottomed pan.

• Transfer a flattened ball (Disc / Uncooked Thattai) from the paper to your palm and then slowly slide it into hot oil.

• Similarly repeat this for all thattais.

• Turn the floating thattais upside down so as to be cooked evenly brown.

• Remove them from oil, put them on a paper kept in a basket, let them cool and store them in an air tight container.

• Serve on any occasion, any season with or without tea, coffee or meal.

Quick Onion Pakoda

Onion Fritter, Vengaaya Bajji, Pyaaz pakora, piyaz pakoras, vengaya pakkoda

Ingredients:

• Onions: 2

• Rice flour: 2 tbsp

• Corn flour (chola maavu): 1tsp

• Gram flour (kadalai maavu, chickpea flour, garbanzo flour, or besan): 1tsp 

• Chili powder: 1tsp

• Curry leaves: a few

• Edible oil for deep frying

• Salt to taste

(Use 2 tsp of gram flour if not using corn flour)

Method of preparation:

• Slice the onions thin.

• Take a bowl, mix onions and salt.

• After sometime add chili powder and curry leaves.

• Mix well.

• Add gram flour, corn flour and rice flour and mix them well without adding water. (If water is added a little, we get non-crispy pakoda)

• Heat the edible oil in a pan, wok, iruppuch chatti, vaanali or kadai.

• Sprinkle the prepared mixture over hot oil.

• Fry till they become brown.

Serve this delicious and crispy Onion Pakoda hot with or without chutney (Thuvaiyal).

Potato Podimas

It is also known as urulai kizhangu varuval / urulaik kilangu podimaas / potato fry.

Ingredients:

• Potatoes (Urulaikizhangu / aloo / aaloo): 2
• Onion (Vengayam / biyaaj): 1
• Ginger (Inji / adarak): A small piece.
• Curry leaves (Kariveppilai / karipatha): 5
• Edible oil: 2 tsp
• Mustard (kadugu / Rai): 1 tsp
• Asafoetida / Asafetida (Perungaayam / Hing): a pinch of its powder
• Turmeric powder (Manjal podi / Haldi): 1/4 tsp
• Salt to taste

Procedure:

• Boil the potatoes. Peel them. Mash them into small pieces.

• Finely chop the onions.
• Finely chop the ginger.
• Heat oil in a non-stick wok / kadai / iruppu chatti
• Add mustard.
• When mustard splutters, add curry leaves, asafetida, turmeric powder and ginger.
• Add onion, salt and sauté for a few minutes.
• When onion turns slightly brown, add the potatoes and allow it to roast on a low flame.
• Turn the contents with care to have even cooking of the contents.

Tastes good with all rice preparations, chapatti, roti, parotta, puri, adai, vadai, bajji, bonda, pakoda, biriyani, Pulav, etc.

Broken Wheat Upma (Godhumai kurunai Uppuma)

Ingredients:

• Broken Wheat (Dhalia / Godhumai ravai / Godumai rava): 1 Cup
• Tomato: 1
• Green chilies: 4
• Curry leaves: A few
• Black gram (Uluntham Paruppu / Urad dal): 1 1/2 tsp
• Mustard (Kaduku / Rai): 1 tsp
• Asafetida (Perungaayam / Hing): A pinch
• Salt as required
• Oil
• Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method of preparation:

• Take a Wok (A metal pan having a rounded bottom, used especially for frying and steaming in Asian cooking.) (kadai (Iruppuch chatti / Vaanali) with a little oil and season with mustard, Black Gram and Asafetida.
• When the mustard splutters, add chopped green chilies, curry leaves and chopped tomatoes.
• Stir fry the tomatoes.
• Add broken wheat and roast with the seasonings.
• Add salt and 2 cups of hot water over the roasted and fried broken wheat.
• Close the lid.
• Let it get cooked.
• Open the lid.
• With a spatula, stir the Uppuma.
• Mix for 5 minutes by adding a few dollops of ghee.
• Garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve hot with pickle or chutney.

Egg curry

Ingredients:

• Eggs: 5
• Oil: 2 tbsp
• Onion: 1
• Tomatoes: 3
• Green chilies: 2
• Ginger root (grated): 1 inch
• Cumin seed: 1 tsp
• Bay leaf: 1
• Cumin powder: 1tsp
• Garam masala: 1tsp
• Turmeric powder: ½ tsp
• Red chilli powder: ½ tsp
• Salt to taste
• Chopped fresh cilantro leaves for garnishing.

Method of preparation:

• Hard boil the eggs.
• Grind onions, tomatoes and ginger to fine paste.
• Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a heavy bottomed pan.
• Add the cumin and bay leaf.
• When the cumin stops spluttering add the slit green chilies.
• Add onion/tomato paste.
• Roast to a light brown color till the paste thicken and leaves oil.
• Add garam masala, jeera/cumin powder, salt, red chili powder and turmeric.
• Stir well and let it cook on medium flame for about five minutes.
• Peal the hardboiled eggs, cut them and add them with the gravy.
• Reduce flame till the gravy thickens and coats all the eggs.
• Garnish with cilantro.

Banana Shake

It is an easy to prepare delicious beverage suitable to enjoy during summer.

Ingredients:

• Ripe Banana: 1
• Milk: 1 ½ tumblers /glasses
• Ice cream: 3 scoops
• Almonds: 5
• Cashew nuts: 5
• Sugar: as required

Method of preparation:

• Peel and slice the banana.
  
• Chill the milk.
  
• Crush the almonds.
  
• Crush the cashew nuts.
  
• Blend all the ingredients except almonds and cashew nuts until smooth.
  
• Pour into glasses and garnish with almonds and cashew nuts.
  
• Serve chilled.

Seeyam

Seeyam is a famous and delicious Chettinadu variety of easy to prepare sweet dish.

Ingredients:

• Split green gram (pasipparuppu / moong dal wash): 1/2 cup (cooked)
  
• All purpose flour (maida): 1/4 cup
  
• Cashew nut (broken into small pieces) / munthiri / mundhiri / mundiri / gaaju: 3 tsp
  
• Coconut (thengai / narial / nariyal): 1
  
• Brown sugar (jaggery / vellam / gur / gud): as required
  
• Sugar (seeni / cheeni / seemai sarkarai): 2tsp
  
• Cardamoms (elakkai / elaichi): a few
  
• Ghee: 3 tsp
  
• Oil for frying
  

Method of preparation:

• Coarsely dry grind the split green gram.
  
• Grate the coconut and roast in ghee till light brown.
  
• Add jaggery and fry.
  
• Add the pieces of cashew nut.
  
• Add cardamom.
  
• Remove from flame.
  
• Add half quantity of cooked split green gram.
  
• Mix well.
  
• Make small balls.
  
• To make batter, mix sugar, maida, remaining cooked split green gram and water.
  
• Dip the already prepared balls into the batter.
  
• Heat oil and deep fry the balls till golden brown.
  
• Serve hot or cold.