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!