Coconut chutney with Coriander Leaves

Coconut chutney is a perfect side dish for idly, dosa, pongal, kichadi, bonda, vada, bajji... It can also be served with chapatti and variety rice. I prepared this for Rava kichadi. The blend of coconut with coriander leaves gives nice flavor.   

Let us see how to make this delightful chutney.

Kollu Rasam | Horse Gram Soup

                         Kollu rasam is good to have when you got cold. In my home, if anyone gets cold, the next day we prepare this rasam. I have already mentioned about the health benefits of Kollu in my previous post Kollu paruppu Masiyal.

Let us see how to make this tangy soup in step by step.

Kollu Paruppu | Horse gram Kadaiyal

Kollu kadaiyal is one of my favorite lentils. This is Kongu cuisine. Weekly once Kollu (horse gram) or paasi payir (green gram) is must in my home from my childhood. So mostly on Friday we prepare this. Not only in my home also in many of my friends home. Kollu is very good for people who are trying to reduce weight. There is a saying in Tamil, “Elachavanuku Ellu, Koluthavanuku Kollu” – sesame seeds for thin person to gain weight and horse gram for Fat person to lose weight. If you don’t like to use plain Kollu then you can make powder and keep. Use a tsp of Kollu powder in all your curries and gravies. It won’t change the taste of your gravy. Kollu helps to maintain body temperature as well.

Let see how to make this healthy and tasty lentil.

Vazhaithandu Kootu | Gravy with Plantain stem and moong dal

This delicious kootu with Vazhaithandu or Plantain stem is one of my favorite. Whenever I buy banana stem, I rather make poriyal than this kootu. But love this kootu a lot because of the excellent taste.  Learnt this kootu from my mom. Dal we use here is moong dal. The aroma and taste of moong dal with plantain stem is yummy. As we use moong dal, this is good for you tummy as well. This is a no grind and a healthy recipe which is very simple to cook.

Let’s see how to make this yummy kootu with Plantain stem and moong dal.

Ridge gourd with Tomato gravy

This simple gravy with ridge gourd and tomato can be served with steamed rice or dosa. This is easy to cook and yet healthy and delicious. You can also make delicious chutney with the rough skin peeled from the ridge gourd.

Let’s see how to prepare this easy gravy with ridge gourd and tomato.

Dal fry - Dal Tadka

                        

Dal fry is another comfort recipe you can make in jiffy. A tasty and healthy food liked by everyone. This goes well with hot steamed rice, pulao, jeera rice, pulkha,.. You can cook this whenever you are running out of time.

Let us see the how to prepare this simple yet delicious dal fry.

Pachai Sundaikai Kara Kulambu | Fresh Turkey berry spicy gravy

           Sundaikai has enormous number of health benefits. Sundaikai kulambu is an authentic south indian gravy very famous at my place. This spicy kulambu tastes better the next day similar to Ennai Kathiriakai Kulambu. So you can prepare night itself for next day lunch. It does not require refrigerating also. Just need to boil once again for 5 mins the next morning and just before serving. Before boiling add ¼ cup water if the gravy is very thick. Do not add water after boiling.

Let’s see how to prepare this yummy Kulambu.

Kathirikai puli kulambu | Eggplant tamarind gravy

Kathirikai puli kulambu is also an authentic South India recipe. This curry is easy to cook. This is my second attempt to make my hubby to have eggplant. He gave thumps up after tasting this. I like the chopped garlic in this tangy gravy. Please give a try and let me know your feedback.

Let us see how to make this yummy gravy using tamarind.

Pudalangai Moor Kootu | Snake gourd gravy with curd

Moor Kootu is traditional Iyengar recipe. This delicious kootu can be prepared in a jiffy. You can use various types of vegetables like Okra, carrot, beans, drumstick, Ash gourd, etc. You can also use mixed vegetables to prepare this. My Amma makes moor kootu only with Ash gourd. Today I tried Moor kootu with snake gourd. Please do try this and let me know your comments.

Let’s see how to prepare this easy moor kootu.

Mochai and Murungaikai kara Kulambu | Field bean and Drumstick spicy gravy

Whenever my Chithi family cultivates this field beans, we will get our share. This one will be cultivated just before Pongal. So for every “Maattu” Pongal, using fresh field beans, this spicy gravy will be prepared to serve for everyone. This gravy is special for “Maattu” Pongal in our place. We use to dry fresh field beans under the sun and preserve it in dry container for the whole year till the next cultivation. I have seen fresh field beans in many departmental stores in Chennai. Today I have used dried beans for this gravy. Dried beans have to be soaked overnight to cook. If you are using fresh field beans then just skip only the step to soak.

Let’s see how to prepare this traditional Kulambu.

Mullangi Thogayal | Raddish Chutney

                          Andra people make different types of chutneys. This Radish chutney is one among those chutneys. I got this recipe from my office friend. Her native place is Andra. I tried it today and it came out very well. This chutney is healthy and easy to cook.

                       Let’s see the steps to grind this healthy and tasty chutney.

Ennai kathirikai Kulambu | Eggplant gravy with Coconut

                 

                Ennai kathirikai kulambu is an authentic south indian gravy. This mouthwatering dish is one of my favorites. This tangy and spicy kulambu tastes better the next day. So you can prepare night itself for next day lunch. No need to refrigerate also. Just need to cook once again for 5 mins the next morning and just before serving.  Baby brinjal is preferred for this gravy.

Let’s see how to prepare this kulambu.

Kathirikai Porial | Brinjal / Eggplant fry

                Brinjal is one of the tastiest vegetables. It is so versatile and so you can use it in any type of curry or gravy. Brinjal is my favorite vegetable, but my hubby doesn’t like it and so rarely cooking this after marriage. Today I prepared Brinjal porial after a long time. It came out really well. He liked it very much. Now I am very happy. Do you know why? Because, I can prepare this porial very often.. J

Let’s see how to prepare this spicy brinjal porial.

Beetroot Chutney

For many of my friends in Chennai/Bangalore Beetroot Chutney is very new. But in my place this chutney is very common and most of the people like it and I am also one among them. It has mix of 4 different tastes (sweet, salty, tangy and spicy). The advantage of this chutney is you can make this in a jiffy. Just you need time to peel the skin.

Let see how to prepare this colorful and tasty beetroot chutney.

Vendaikai Puli Kulambu | Okra Tamarind Curry

                I can proudly say that I am expert in this kulambu. Only problem with Okra is you have to wash, wipe, dry and then only you can cut it. If water is there then stickiness won’t go while frying. But the taste of this kulambu will make all these difficulties vanished from mind. I like the shallots in this kulambu very much.

Baby potato fry

Potato is favorite one for many people. This is so versatile vegetable and you can make uncountable no. of dishes out of this. Today I have used baby potatoes to make this fry. I bought this baby potato first time and tried. It came out really well and tasty.

Let see how to make this fry.

Thattapayar Suraikai Kulambu | Cow peas and Bottle gourd Curry

                      Karamani or Thattai payar (Tamil), Barbati (Bengali), Lobia (Hindi), Alasande (Kannada), Payar (Malayalam), Chavli (Marathi), Chani (Oriya),  Bobbarlu (Telugu). This tasty and healthy payar takes more time to cook. So you can soak the cowpeas overnight or just before 4 hours to cook (hot water preferably if you soak only for 4 hrs). As usual, I like the way my Amma cooks. Let’s see the ingredients list and the method to cook.

Pusanikai/Parangikai Poriyal | Yellow Pumpkin fry

Pusanikai/Parangikai Poriyal | Yellow Pumpkin fry

I like to have Pumpkin along with curd rice. This also goes well with plain hot rice. Pumpkin is good for health. This is one of the very low calorie vegetables with no saturated fats or cholesterol; however, it is rich in dietary fiber, anti-oxidants, minerals, vitamins. The vegetable is one of the food items recommended by dieticians in cholesterol controlling and weight reduction programs. Pumpkin is a storehouse of many anti-oxidant vitamins such as vitamin-A, vitamin-C and vitamin-E.  The fruit is a good source of B-complex group of vitamins like folates, niacin, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin and pantothenic acid.  It is also rich source of minerals like copper, calcium, potassium and phosphorus.

Let see the ingredients list and the method to prepare this heathly porial.

Ingredients:

Yellow Pumpkin | Parangikai – 2 cups chopped

Onion – 1

Red chilly – 2

Chilly powder – 2 tsp

Salt

Coconut – ½ cup grated

Jagery/sugar/palm sugar – 1 tbsp

Pudalangai Kootu | Snake Gourd Kootu

             Kootu is my favourite one. My Mom cooks really super. This goes very well with white rice. A very easy and tasty one, you can cook in less than 30 mins. So a very good choice to cook when a guest is visiting your home..

Mango Patchadi | Mangai Patchadi with Coconut



Mango patchadi

This is one of my favorite side dishes. My Amma used to make this very tasty. Amma is always great and we won’t get that exact taste as how she prepares. This Mango Patchadi is also not as good as my Amma’s kai pakkuvam. But still it tastes good.