ISHTOO

Dish of the Day- Ishtoo
Place- Kerala

Ishtoo is Kerala's traditional stew made with potatoes swimming in coconut milk. Mallu cuisine uses a lot of coconut and this is a classic example of a coconut-laden Malayali dish.

As to how its name came about, I have a theory. When they first tasted it, Britishers probably called it stew and Indians couldn't pronounce it very well so the pronounciation of 'stew' was tortured by Keralites until it agreed to be called 'ishtoo'! But this is just conjecture on my part- please don't go around quoting my theory. Although on second thought, I would love it if someone quoted me..;)

The first time I ate ishtoo was at a friend's place. Poppu calls us for an aunthentic, traditional home-cooked South Indian meal every Onam and I personally await it more than my own harvest festival! The best part about it is we get to eat on banana leaves and we have to fold it up and keep our steel tumbler on the leaf once we're done. There's just some charm to these customs which makes me proud that I'm a South Indian.

I'm dedicating this post to Mini aunty who took time out to give me this recipe. She makes the world's best fish curry, and some day she'll teach me how to..:)

How to Cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)


Potatoes..............4 to 5 medium potatoes, peeled & cubed
Onions..................1 medium coarsely chopped
Ginger..................1 inch piece
Green chillies.....6 to 7
Curry leaves.......2 stems
Coconut oil...........1 tsp
Coconut milk.......1 cup of the thick milk (first extract) and  3 cups of the thin milk (second and third extract)
Salt to taste


Directions:-

* These days, you get the dried and liquid variants of coconut milk in the market. For each cup of thick milk, you can dilute it with one cup of water and use it as thin milk. If you want to do things the old-fashioned way (and I would suggest you do that because the flavour gets enhanced in a way I can't explain), here goes.

1) Grate 2 coconuts. Sprinkle some warm water over it and knead it slightly to squeeze out the milk. Strain it using a muslin cloth and keep it aside. This is the first extract or the thick milk.

2) Repeat the kneading, squeezing, straining procedure to get the second and third extracts.

Now back to the ishtoo.

1) Boil the potatoes, onions, ginger and green chillies in the thin coconut milk and keep stirring it continuously because it has a tendency to crack.
2) Then lower the flame to a simmer and leave it like that until the potatoes get cooked.
3) Add salt and the thick coconut milk to it and let it cook for some time- but take it off the flame before it starts to boil.
4) Sink in the curry leaves and drizzle it with coconut oil.


Ishtoo HAS to be eaten with Vellayappam- a Kerala version of the Tamilnadu dosa. If not, it goes really well with hot rice too.

UPMA KOZHUKATTAI

Dish of the Day:- Upma Kozhukattai
Place- Tamilnadu

Upma Kozhakattai is something we make every Ganesh Chaturthi. This is supposed to be a salted modak, an apparent Ganpati favourite!

There's a really cute story involving kozhukattai. Little Ganesh used to love eating modaks- both sweet and salted. One evening, he came back feeling very hungry and all the way home, he kept imagining his mother, Parvati waiting to welcome him with a plate of modaks.
On reaching, he realised that his mother has made no such thing for him. Dejected, he flops down in one corner with his face in his hands. Evening turned to night and the moon shone brightly in the sky. He looks up and sees the moon, and somehow believes that it was a kozhukattai that his mother had left for him in the sky. Suddenly he gets excited and jumps in the direction of the moon.
A mouse was passing by and it happened to catch the entire incident. It burst out laughing at Ganpati's foolishness. Ganpati was enraged that he had made a fool of himself and that a mere mouse was mocking him. So as a punishment, he made the mouse his servant and vehicle!

And that's why even today when we bring Ganpati into our house, we bring the mouse as well..:)

How to Cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)

Rawa (Raw Rice Semolina)........2 cups
Water............................................4 cups
Grated Coconut...........................3/4 cup
Urad Dal........................................1 tsp
Mustard Seeds............................1 tsp
Chana Dal.......................................1 tsp
Red Chillies....................................4-5
Curry leaves..................................1 tsp
Oil for seasoning
Salt to taste

Directions:-

1) Heat a little oil in a kadhai.
2) Put the urad dal, chana dal, mustard seeds, red chillies and curry leaves.
3) When the mustard starts spluttering, pour a little water and add the grated coconut.
4) When it boils, slowly fold in the rawa a little by little. Keep mixing it well so that the seasoning gets mixed evenly into the rawa.
5) When the mixture thickens, turn off the gas and keep the mixture aside. It will look like upma. Let it cool for about 10 minutes.
6) The grease your hand a little with water and make small balls out of the mixture. steam these balls in a steamer.
7) After about 15-20 minutes, the kozhukattais will be done. take them out of the steamer and serve hot.

* (You can make do with the apparatus used for steaming idlis)

Kozhukattai and Mulaka pachadi is the ultimate combination. Even thenga thogayal tastes good with it. Kozhukattai as a dish is a little bland and so to balance it, the chutney alongwith it needs to be spicy or tangy..

VELLAYAPPAM

Dish of the Day- Vellayappam
Place- Kerala

This post is dedicated to all the dosa lovers who were disppointed that my blog would have nothing to do with their favourite South Indian snack.

Vellayappam is the Kerala variant of a traditional dosa that we all are so familiar with. It's a crisp rice dosa- like item which is fried in a shallow wok: very different from the flat pan of the dosa.

Appam/ aapam (the pronunciation varies depending on the region) is a South indian pancake that has many different types, depending on what stuffing goes into it or how it served.

If the appam is made out of curly spirals of rice noodles, it's called idiyappam (Kerala)
When mashed plantains are put into the batter, it becomes unni appam. (Kerala)
With a rawa filling, it is sujiappam. (Andhra Pradesh)
Suppose the appam is made on a stone griddle, it has the name kallappam. (Tamilnadu)

Like I've said in the Ishtoo recipe, Vellayappam tastes best when dipped in Ishtoo.
Some non- vegetarians like substituting the ishtoo with fish/ mutton curry.

How to Cook it Up:-

Rice.....................................2 cups washed n soaked in water for 4 to 5 hrs
Fresh grated coconut.....1 cup
Cooked rice ......................1/4 cup
Yeast..................................1/2
Sugar..................................2 tsps
Salt to taste
Oil


* The batter should not be too runny, so that the dosas come out crisp.
Directions:-


1) Grind the raw rice, coconut and cooked rice to a batter. 
2) Take a cup of warm water and add sugar and yeast to it. When the yeast begins to activate, pour this into the batter.
3) Let the batter with the yeast in it rest for about 3-4 hours in a warm place so that it can ferment.
4) Once the dough is fermented, it would've risen to twice the quantity. Stir it well.
5) Then heat the shallow wok to make the vellayappam. Grease the pan with a cloth dipped in oil.
6) Pour a ladleful of batter into the centre and holding the wok from both the sides, tilt it so that the batter gets smeared all over the wok.
7) Let it cook on low heat for a few minutes and once it's done, scrape it off with the a dosa pick.


Vellayapam is soft in the centre and papery thin and crisp on the sides. 

UZHALAKAZHANGA BONDA

Dish of the Day- Uzhalakazhanga Bonda
Place- Tamilnadu

Bonda is a slightly tweaked South Indian version of something that we all know as Batata Vada. This is the best tea- time snack and the highlight of a Bonda is it's crisp, crunchy outer covering contrasting with the soft, mashed potatoes and pungent chillies filled inside.

Bonda is the name for anything that is fried in such a manner with this particular batter. Uzhalakazhanga is Tamil for potato and the Bonda can have any filling depending on what you want. The name will change accordingly. I personally prefer Bonda as a salty snack but there are other sweet variants as well.

Bonda's signature companion is some spicy kothmir chutney. Even tomato ketchup does a good job of complimenting its flavours.:) Bonda is my comfort food- no wonder then that an entire post has been dedicated to it..;)

This is my maternal grandmother's signature dish. 'No One Can eat Just One' definitely applies to her Bondas. When we go to her place in Thane, my sister and I end up having a 'Who gets more Bondas' competition.

There's a saying that goes something like- 'Eat too many bondas, you'll starting looking like one'. This is uncannily true for this calorie- laden potato snack.

How to Cook it Up:-

Potatoes............................................3
Onion, chopped finely.....................1/2
Cumin seeds......................................1/2 tsp
Green Chillies, finely chopped......2
Curry leaves.....................................2-3
Ginger Paste.....................................1 tsp
Chickpea flour..................................1 cup
Chilli powder.....................................1 tsp
Rice flour...........................................1 tbsp
Asafoetida/Hing..............................1/4 tsp
Water
Oil

Directions:-

1) Boil the potatoes and peel them off. Then mash them before they get cold, but not uniformly.
2) In a pan, add some oil and the curry leaves, ginger paste, green chillies, cumin seeds, onion, and finally the mashed potatoes. Saute them well and then turn off the heat. Keep this mixture aside. This is the filling.
3) Mix the chickpea flour, rice flour, chilli powder and asafoetida to make a thick paste with sufficient amount of water. Add salt to taste.
4) Heat oil in a wok for deep frying the Bondas.
5) Make small balls out of the potato mixture. Dip each ball into the chickpea batter and  cover it completely. Then slowly drop it into the wok and toss it until all sides acquire a lovely golden- brown colour.
6) Serve hot with green chutney or ketchup.

* My grandmother doesn't add onions and that turns out very well too. You could try both and decide which one you like better..:)

CHICKEN 65

Dish of the day- Chicken 65

Place- Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh.

This is my favourite Hyderabadi item (apart from biryani :P) From the land of Nawabs comes this tantalizing chicken starter that can be prepared dry or with a gravy. I personally like it dry.

I was fascinated about the reason behind this whacky name and I got an equally incredible answer from my dad. During the British rule, this chicken preparation was 65^th on the menu list of the military. The name just stuck because the Britishers liked it a lot and we didn’t bother to correct them..

The best part about Chicken 65 is its flavour. It has a distinct Hyderabadi kebab taste; but is usually garnished with curry leaves (Kadi patta) so that adds an Andhra cooking touch to it. Key ingredients include cayenne pepper, mustard powder, ginger and vinegar.

How to Cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)

Chicken (boneless, skinless thighs).....................1 kg

Corn Flour................................................................2 tsps

All Purpose Flour....................................................2 tsps

Egg.............................................................................1

Ginger(paste)..........................................................1.5 tsps

Garlic(paste)...........................................................1.5 tsps

Red Chilies(powder)...............................................2 tsps

Green Chilies...........................................................12

Yoghurt.....................................................................2 cups

Garam Masala..........................................................1 tsp

Food Color(Red)......................................................4 drops 

Curry leaves for garnishing

Lime juice.................................................................3 tsps

Salt to taste

Vegetable Oil for deep frying

*Please make sure that the food colour you use is red and not orange-red because otherwise the Chicken 65 loses all visual appeal.

*Garam Masala is actually a powdered mixture of cloves, cardamom and cinnamon.

Directions:-

1) Mix the corn flour, all purpose flour, egg, ginger paste, garlic paste, chilli powder and salt to make a thick batter. Add water if required.

2) Add the chicken pieces to the batter and marinate for an hour.

3) Deep fry the marinated chicken pieces till they turn golden

 4) Heat 4 tsp oil in a sauce pan and add slit chillies, yogurt, garam masala, red color, little salt and the fried chicken pieces.

 5) Shallow fry for 4-5 minutes and remove from heat.

6) Add lime juice, mix well and garnish with curry leaves.

Serve hot as a starter with drinks or with rice and sambhar :) 

MULAKA PACHADI

Dish of the Day- Mulaka Pachadi

Place- Northern Kerala

This is the Malayali version of what I've essentially grown up calling Pulimolangha Chutney. It's spicy, it's tangy and it has a lot of punch! 


It has that chatpata taste which leaves you tingling in the mouth. That feeling is what I love the most about Mulaka Pachadi. 


Mulaka Pachadi is the authentic chutney from Malabar and like most delicacies, it derives its name from the ingredients that go into it. Mulaka means chilli in Malayalam and pachadi is another word for chutney so the name of this dish very simply is 'chilli chutney' (Whoa! I love how that sounds)


The chillies make the pachadi very hot which is why we use jaggery and tamarind in it for that sweet-sour taste. It's probably starting to sound like Maggi Hot n Sweet, but that sauce is light years away from being as mouth-wateringly delicious as mulaka pachadi- especially the one that my mom makes.:)


*Be careful not to overdo the chillies while sauteing them, because otherwise they lose their colour.


How to Cook it Up:-

Long Green chillies…………….……...........5-6

Lemon sized ball of tamarind…..........1

Jaggery……………………………................….1/4 cup

Sesame oil or any other cooking oil..2 tbsps

Mustard seeds………………………..........…1 tsp

Curry leaves……………………............………one stem

Dried red chillies……………………........….2-3

Roasted sesame seeds………………........1/2 tsp

Mustard seeds for tadka………...1/4 tsp

Directions:-
1) Soak the tamarind in warm water for about 30 minutes.
2) Saute the green chillies in 1 tbsp oil. Keep this aside.
3) Squeeze the pulp out of the tamarind and put this pulp into some water and let it boil for about a minute.
4) Add the green chillies to this and let it simmer for about ten minutes.
5) Add the jaggery and let it melt into the tamarind. Add some salt to taste.
6) Powder the sesame seeds and mustard seeds and blend this into the tamarind and jaggery and tamarind mixture.
7) Stir it well and then take it off the flame.
8) Heat one tbsp of oil and put the red chillies, curry leaves and mustard seeds into it for the tadka.
9) When it splutters, add it to the chutney and let it cool before you serve.

Mulaka pachadi tastes best with kozhakattai- a Ganpati favourite! For the kozhakattai recipe, stay tuned..:)

THENGA THOGAYAL

Dish of the Day:- Thenga Thogayal
Place:- Tamilnadu

Thenga Thogayal or Coconut Chutney as it's more popularly known, is probably the shortest recipe so far. Whether you eat it with dosa or idli or even just plain hot rice, it has a devastating effect on your taste buds. Generally prepared spicy, this Tamilian pachadi is indispensable in terms of being a part of a South Indian meal.

Different states in South India follow different ways of serving the meal. Telugu people usually serve the vegetable (kora) first while Tamilians believe that rice should be the first thing that a person puts onto their plate. But irrespective of that, coconut chutney is ALWAYS part of the meal on festival days.

In the olden days, chutneys were ground with a mortar and pestle made of stone called ammikkal. They are usually wet with a coarse to fine texture. Chutneys usually contain idiosyncratic but complementary spice and vegetable mix.

How to Cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)

Grated Coconut.........................1/2 cup
Channa Dal..................................4 tsp
Urad Dal.....................................2 tsp
Hing/ Asafoetida.....................1/4 tsp
Tamarind paste........................1/4 tsp
Mustard seeds.........................1/4 tsp
Red Chillies...............................2
Green Chillies...........................2
Salt............................................1/2 tsp
Oil..............................................2 tsp
Curry leaves............................2 stems

Directions:-

1) Heat the oil in a pan.
2) Fry the urad dal, channa dal, hing, green chillies, red chillies, mustard seeds, tamarind paste and curry leaves until it starts spluttering.
3) Add the coconut to this and wet grind the mixture with salt.

* Without the channa dal, the chutney will be white.

SUJI APPAM

Dish of the Day- Suji Appam

Place- Andhra Pradesh

Suji Appam is traditionally made during 'pandaga roju' (auspicious days) and my very first memory of this dish is seeing my grandmother roll out puris wearing a wet saree. The wet saree is a sign of 'madi'. Andhra women that cook on festivals and other auspicious dates follow the custom of Madi where they soak their saree in water and then wear it while it's wet. No one is supposed to touch them until they've finished the entire cooking for the day.

What I like most about Suji Appam is that it combines two of my favourite dishes- puris and halwa. This is then South Indian version of a stuffed puri. It looks like malpua, but the only difference is that egg is not used since festival cooking in South India is pure vegetarian.

How to Cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)

Roasted Rawa...................1 cup

Grated jaggery................1 3/4 cup

Cardamom powder...........1 tsp

Maida..................................2 cups

Water...............................

A pinch of salt

Oil to fry

Directions:-

1) Make a dough of the flour, salt and water and keep it covered for 1/2 an hour.

2) Heat 2 1/2 cups of water and add the rawa to it.

3) Cook it till it becomes soft and add the sugar/jaggery and cardamom powder. Mix well and cook well till thick. Cool and make small balls.

4) Pat a small ball of the dough in a greased sheet, place a ball of the filling in the center and cover it with the dough.

5) Pat slowly with greased hands to make a round and flatten it to make puris; deep fry it in hot oil till it becomes crisp and light brown spots appear on both sides.

6) Drain out the excess oil on tissue paper.

7) Repeat the process for the rest of the dough.

* Make sure that the oil is hot enough before you put the dough in because if it's not, the Suji Appam won't get cooked and the oil will also get spoilt.

MYSORE PAK

Dish of the Day- Mysore Pak

Place- Mysore, Karnataka.

Mysore Pak as a sweet is probably one of the richest you will ever come across. Generous amounts of ghee and sugar make up this lovely yellow- brown sweet dish.

The origin of the Mysore Pak recipe was by a cook named Kakasura Madappa at the Mysore Palace, while experimenting with besan/ chick pea flour in the kitchen.

People watching their weight should not even look at a piece of Mysore Pak. The best way to tell if it’s an authentic mysore pak is to pop it in your mouth and see if it melts. If it does, I can guarantee you’ll feel like you’re in heaven! Loaded with calories, this mithai makes up for being so fattening by being equally delicious!

Food lovers must try the mysore pak at Sri Krishna Sweets- it is to die for!

How to cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)

Chick pea flour (Besan)……..1 cup

Pure Ghee………………………...1 cup

Sugar………………………………..2 cups

Water…………………………...…1/2 cup

Directions:-

        1) Mix the flour with a little ghee.

       2) Heat the sugar in water till reaches a ball consistency.

   3) Slowly add the flour stirring continuously so that no lumps are formed.

       4) When it is well blended, pour in the hot ghee very slowly and keep stirring continuously.

   5) Cook till the mixture becomes frothy and the ghee separates.

   6) Spread out the mixture on a greased plate.

   7) When firm, cut the mysore pak into squares.

* Cooking this dish requires a lot of patience and constant stirring to see that no lumps are formed.

* Do not share with neighbours- they WILL come back asking for more! ;)

PAZHAMPURI

Dish of the Day- Pazhampuri

Place- Kerala.

The first thing I tasted in Kerala was Pazhampuri so this dish holds special memories for me. 

When I told my Mallu friend that we were going to Kerala for our Industrial visit, the first thing he told me to do was to get off at a random station and order Pazhampuri. I didn’t even know what that was but it sounded exciting and because even has a passion for food like me, I trusted him.

I waited excitedly for us to get to the first station in Kerala so that I could start looking for fresh, hot pazhampuri.  So when the train pulls into Thirur, I hop out in search of it.

I was insanely excited on seeing vendors with big vats of oil in front of them, insisting that theirs is ‘fresh’; but once you pop one into your mouth, you realize that their definition of fresh ranges from three days to a week old! Still, this fried sweet dish that is the specialty of Mallu street food, appealed to me and Malavika. (We’re the only two South Indians in class!)

For those of you who are clueless about what Pazhampuri is, they’re banana fritters, which are invariably fried in coconut oil since Kerala is famous for its coconut trees and pretty much everything there is cooked in coconut oil. 'Pazham' means fruit and in this case, it's banana because ;like coconut, banans are also readily available in God's Own Country.

* ‘zh’ in Tamil and Malayalam is pronounced as ‘r’ while rolling your tongue and touching it to the roof of your mouth. So this is in fact, “pa- rum- puri”. :)

How to Cook it Up:-

Ripe Bananas……….……………………4

All purpose flour/ Maida……………1 cup

Fine rice flour …………………………...2 tbsp

Turmeric powder ……………………...a pinch

Baking soda………………………………1/8 tsp

Sugar………………………………………..1 tsp

Salt…………………………………………..1/4 tsp

Coconut Oil……………………………………………for frying

Directions:- 

1)Cut each banana lengthwise and then breadthwise into 4 pieces.

2)  Mix the maida, turmeric powder, rice flour, sugar, salt and baking soda with a little water to make a batter with a consistency that’s not too thick and not too thin.

3) Heat oil in a kadhai and dip each banana piece into batter before slowly putting it into the oil to fry.

4) Turn the heat down to medium and fry all the pieces the same way.

5) When one side turns light golden brown, turn it over and let it stay in the oil until the other side also looks like that.

I personally love eating this hot with vanilla ice- cream. Mmmmm. Yummy! J

MAJJIGA PULSU

Dish of the Day- Majjiga Pulsu

Place- Andhra Pradesh

Majjiga Pulsu is South India's answer to Sindhi kadhi. It has is a yogurt- based curry that goes very well with hot rice and papad. This post is dedicated to my grandmother whose Majjiga Pulsu you have to taste to believe! It's heavenly- not too spicy, not too sour, it's simply delicious..:)

For as long as I can remember, I've eaten this curry with rice and potato fry. It's almost become part of the weekly menu at home.

Majjiga means buttermilk and pulsu is generally the term used to describe a thin clear soup. Majjiga Pulsu is basically buttermilk flavoured with turmeric powder and vegetables. Bottle gourd is the predominant vegetable in this curry.

This pale yellow coloured stew calls for vegetables cooked in a delectable combination of coconut and green chillies paste and well-beaten sour curd, that is guaranteed to tickle your taste buds. 

How to Cook it Up:- (serves 4 people)

Cubed vegetables (Bottlegourd & Tomatoes)........ 2 cups

Thick Curd (preferably slightly sour)......................2 cups

Turmeric powder..........................................................1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

Water...............................................................................1 cup

Grated coconut...............................................................4 tbsps

Green Chillies..................................................................3

Coriander Leaves...........................................................2-3

Mustard seeds...............................................................1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds.....................................................................1/2 tsp

Hing/ Asafoetida............................................................1/4 tsp

Methi seeds.....................................................................1/4 tsp

Oil.......................................................................................1 tbsp

Curry Leaves...................................................................10-12

Directions:-

1) Make a paste out of the grated coconut, green chillies and coriander leaves.

2) Beat the curd well after adding water to make it acquire a smooth sauce- like consistency.

3) Combine the ground paste and the beaten curd and keep it aside.

4) Add half a cup of water to the cubed vegetables alongwith 1/2 tsp of salt and cook it till they are half-cooked.

5) Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds. Once they start popping, add the cumin seeds.

6) When the cumin seeds start turning light brown, put in the methi seeds and hing. After a few seconds, add the turmeric powder, red chillies and curry leaves till they start spluttering. Take it off the flame and keep it aside.

7) Add the curd- coconut mixture to the vegetables and cook slowly. Keep stirring continuously. Cook it until the vegetables absorb the flavours and the gravy thickens.

8) Do not let it boil. Turn it off heat and keep the lid closed for a few minutes before serving, to let the spices sink in.

* It is important to keep stirring because the pulsu has a tendency to curdle.

VANAKKAM ( Welcome)

Welcome to the land of curries, coconut and coffee! Karnataka (language:Kannada), Kerala (language: Malayalam), Tamilnadu (language: Tamil), and Andhra Pradesh (language: Telugu) are the four states that make up this region.

When people mistake me for a Bengali, I usually correct them saying I’m a South Indian. Promptly, the next question I get is, “Toh matlab Madrasi na?” That’s when I go on to describe how there are four states that exist and  how they’re all very different from each other but have a few common elements with respect to their cuisine, attire and style of living; and that the difference between Tamilnadu and Kerala is as vast as that between West Bengal and Assam.

“Arre lekin Bengal aur Assam mein toh bahut farak hai!”

That’s why I decided to start a blog. A blog that lets me write about my passion and that helps people understand what South Indian cooking is all about. Using the three C’s (coffee, curry, coconut) and four states;  with various permutations and combinations you can stir up a meal peculiar to each one of those states. The dishes are similar yet different, complicated but easy to cook, laden with spices yet not spicy! 

I invite you to try a few. You can taste them, rate them and maybe even whip them up at home! 
Most importantly, don't forget to get your banana leaf!