Paal Payasam-Milk Payasam -Kheer

Paal Payasam

Payasam is a delicacy made as an offering to the Gods as neivedhyam. There are various types of payasams like paruppu payasam, arisi payasam, aval payasam. Here I have given a very basic milk (paal) payasam for the beginner......You can wow your guests with this easy dish!!

Ingredients

• 1 litre milk (full cream milk makes for great payasam!)
• 1/4 cup of rice (Basumati or Ponni Raw)
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 1/2 tsps of cardamom powder (Elaichi/Yellakai)
• 3 tsps ghee
• 10 cashewnuts-split into halves and chopped
• 10 raisins
• 2 strands of saffron

Method of preparation

• Rinse the rice a few times and allow to soak for 10 minutes.
• Pour the milk in a heavy bottomed vessel and heat it on a low flame, stirring frequently  so that it does not get stuck to the pan.
• Allow the milk to boil stirring continuously.
• Add a tablespoon of this milk to the strands of saffron in a cup and keep aside.
• Drain the water from the rice and saute on a kadai with 2 tsps ghee.
• Cook the rice in a pressure cooker with 1  1/2 cups of water for one whistle.
• On cooling, transfer the semi-cooked rice to the milk and continue cooking on simmer.
• Keep stirring for a few more minutes.
• Add the sugar to  the cooked rice-milk mixture and stir.
• Now add cardamom powder, chopped cashewnuts sauted in ghee and saffron and stir.
• When the payasam reaches a smooth consistency with all the ingredients well blended switch off the stove.
• Garnish with raisins and serve in bowls.

Ponga Kuzhambu with Ash Gourd, Pumpkin (Pooshanikai, Parangi kai)

Ponga Kuzhambu

pumpkin-parangikai

ash gourd-pooshanikai

Ingredients

• 1 lemon sized ball of tamarind

Soak in warm water and extract the essence till you get about 2 cups of tamarind juice.

• 1 tsp. turmeric
• 1 bit of jaggery

Vegetables

• 1 slab of white gourd or yellow pumpkin

Peel the gourd/pumpkin and cut into medium sized cubes.

For the masala

• 2 tbsps coriander seeds (dhaniya)
• 5 red chillies (Kashmiri or Badigai)
• 1 tsp.tuvar dal (thuvaram paruppu)
• 1  tsp. channa dal (kadalai paruppu)
• 1 tsp. urad dal (ulutham paruppu)
• 1 tsp. sesame (til, white yellu)
• 1 small bit of asafoetida
• 2 tbsps grated coconut (optional)
• 1 tsp of oil/ghee

Roast all the above ingredients till you get the aroma of the roasted ingredients.

Cool and grind into a fine powder.

Keep aside.

 Method of preparation.

• Boil the ash gourd/pumpkin than in the tamarind extract with a little turmeric and salt.
• When the than has cooked well, add the ground masala and stir well. 
• Let it simmer on the stove for a few minutes till you get a smooth consistency.
• Add a bit of jaggery and stir.
• Switch off the stove.

Tempering

• 1 tsp. mustard seeds
• 1 red chilli
• 1/2 asafoetida powder
• A few curry leaves
• A tsp. of ghee

• Temper the ponga kuzhambu with mustard seeds, chilli, asafoetida, curry leaves.

Serve hot with rice.

This dish goes well with dosai, adai, and idli.

Jeera-Milagu Rasam..(Cumin-Pepper Rasam)-TamBrahm style

Jeera Milagu Rasam

Ingredients

• 1 lemon sized ball of tamarind
• 1 tsp. rasam podi
• 2 tbsps. tuvar dal (tuvaram paruppu)
• 1 tbsp. jeera (cumin seeds)
• 1 tbsp. milagu (pepper)
• 2 red chillies (Kashmiri chillies)
• Curry leaves - a few springs
• 1 tsp.Salt

Tempering

• 1 tbsp. ghee
•  1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 red chilli, broken into bits
• A few curry leaves 

Method of preparation

• Soak the tamarind in warm water. Extract the essence from the pulp. 
• To the tamarind water (about 2 cups of extract) add the rasam podi, salt and curry leaves.
• Heat on a low flame for about 10 minutes.

• Soak the tuvar dal, jeera, milagu, red chillies and curry leaves in water and grind to a fine paste.

Ground mixture of jeera, milagu, tuvar dal...

• Add this ground mixture to the boiling tamarind extract stirring well.
• Continue heating till bubbles appear on the surface of the rasam.

• Temper the rasam with mustard seeds, 1 red chilli and curry leaves in ghee.

Serve hot!

(Note: This particular rasam which is generally a good digestive soup does not have tomatoes, ginger, green chillies or asafoetida)

Sambar Powder-Sambar podi

Sambar Podi

Ingredients

Ingredients for sambar powder

• Kashmir Chillies- 12 to 14 

• Dhaniya (Coriander seeds)-slightly more than 1/2 cup but less than 3/4 cup

• Tuvar dal- 1/2 cup

• Channa Dal- 1/2 cups

• Urad dal- 3 tbsps

• Methi (fenugreek)- 2 tsps

• Jeera (cumin seeds)- 2 tsps

• Pepper-2 tsps
• Turmeric -1 tsp

• Asafoetida - 1 lump 

• Curry leaves - a few twigs.

Method of Preparation

• Roast the tuvar dal, urad dal and channa dal in a kadai till they turn golden brown.
• Transfer to a plate or paper to cool.

• Next roast the red chillies and dhaniya with the flame in low. When the chillies become crispy transfer the ingredients to a plate to cool.

• Roast the methi, cumin seeds, pepper and hing and keep aside.
• Roast lightly the curry leaves and keep aside.

• Once all the above roasted ingredients have cooled, grind them in a blender alongwith turmeric. The powder should be finely ground.
• Store in an airtight jar and use as required.

Tomato Rice-TamBrahm style!

Tomato Rice....Thakkali Sadham

Ingredients

• 2 cups raw rice. 

Note:( I generally use the raw rice (ponni) available in the market. But basmati, jeeraga samba rice or any other variety can also be used. The water to be added will vary depending on the rice used.)

• 500 gms. tomatoes sliced into small pieces

          

• 3 onions chopped fine
• 1 tsp jeera
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric
• A generous pinch of asofateda

• 1 tablespoon sambar powder
• A few cloves garlic (optional)
• 1 inch ginger
• 2 green chillies
• Curry leaves
• Coriander leaves

Tempering

• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp urad dhal
• 1/4 tsp methi seeds
• 1 dry red chiili (preferably byadigae)
• 1 tbsp cashew nuts/peanuts
• 1 tbsp Oil
• 1 tsp ghee

Method of preparation

• Wash the rice well . For every cup of rice add 1 1/2 cups of water.
• Pressure cook for two whistles.
• On cooling, stir the rice with a little ghee till the rice looks fluffy.

• Blend the tomatoes in the mixie till you get a fine puree. Set aside.

• Heat the oil in a sturdy kadai (vanali or a pressure cooker).
• When hot,add the mustard seeds and red chilli.
• When the mustard seeds crackle, add the urad dhal, methi seeds and asafoetida. Stir well.
• Add the chopped onions, curry leaves and green chillies and saute on medium flame till the onions look translucent.
• Add the ginger garlic paste till the raw smell goes off.
• Add the tomato puree and add all the spice powders and salt, stirring all the while.
• Continue heating on medium flame till the oil seeps out.
• Now add the cooked rice to the kadai and stir well.
• Let it cook on low flame for one to two minutes.
• Temper the tomato rice with peanuts or cashewnuts roasted in ghee.
• Garnish with curry leaves and coriander leaves.

Serve hot with thayir pacchadi (raita) or pappadam.