RICE PUTTU (STEAMED RICE CAKE)

RICE PUTTU (STEAMED RICE CAKE)

I was so tired of having the usual fare, I thought why not try something different. I had never made Rice Puttu at home. Puttu can be made with Rice/ Wheat/ Ragi(Millet).I would love to share with you’ll the recipe of the traditional Rice Puttu.

Rice Puttu is one of the traditional breakfast items of Kerala. It is a steam cooked delight.There is absolutely no oil used in making Puttu, it is only made by steaming rice and coconut in layers.

Traditionally Puttu is made out of rice soaked and ground into a coarse flour and is cylindrical in shape. Nowadays Indian grocery stores sell Instant puttu mix (ready made puttu mix), so life has become easier for first time Puttu makers like me.

Freshly grated coconut is used liberally to enhance the flavor and taste of the Puttu. Rice and coconut are alternately layered either in a bamboo shoot or any other wooden tube or sometimes in the coconut shell. The more natural the equipments used to make the Puttu the tastier it is. Nowadays Puttu can be made in a Puttu maker which is a cylindrical shaped steamer. The utensil used to cook puttu is called Puttukutti. If you don’t have a puttu maker/puttukutti you can use a idili mould to cook it .It would be nice If you can make it in the puttu maker, I didn’t have one so I used Idli moulds to make mine.

The steaming hot Puttu emanates a lovely aroma of steamed rice and coconut which is totally irresistible.

The puttu is nutritious, healthy, filling and the best part is it is bland therefore it is light on the stomach. That does not mean you will be hungry soon. Puttu served with its accompaniments is heavier than a meal. Puttu is traditionally served with Konda kadalai Curry or Cherupayaru Curry (Paccha Payaru Sundal/Green Gram/Moong dal Curry).

It is also served with Ripe banana, Jaggery or Stew. In Singapore and Malaysia Puttu is generally had with Brown Sugar (which is bright orange in color and widely available in these countries.) See the picture on the right.

My Srilankan friend says Puttu is a hot favorite breakfast item in Srilanka.

I also had Puttu in Thailand. When I was on my way to Pattaya from Bangkok, on the way, there were these vendors selling eatables(homemade delicacies) on a cycle. Some of our friend’s reside in Thailand and they insisted on us to try this dish that is served in a bamboo shoot, they assured me that it is 100% vegetarian and when the guy opens the bamboo shoot and serves it to us….what could it be but our Puttu with some jaggery and freshly grated coconut and we washed it down with some cool Thai coconut water, they are cool as they are kept in thermocol boxes filled with ice. It was a memorable experience for me. Iam glad we rented a car and didn’t go by bus to Pattaya from Bangkok.

Puttu is eaten in India, Srilanka, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Isn’t that interesting.

Do check out the recipe, try it out and enjoy this delightful dish.

Ingredients
1 cup - Rice flour
1/2 cup - Freshly grated coconut
Pinch of salt
Water as required
Method

In a pan, add rice flour and dry roast lightly. Keep stirring continuously. Take care not to burn the powder. Slowly the color of the rice flour will change indicating its done. Cool the powder. To the rice powder, add a pinch of salt, mix well and rub in with the rice flour. Sprinkle this water on the rice flour, little at a time and with and mix the flour.

When the mixture holds together when pressed into your fist and at the same time can fall apart when pressed lightly you will know that now is the correct consistency for steaming.

If the consistency is not good, sprinkle some more water. Make balls of the rice flour with some freshly grated coconut inside. Steam cook for about 6 minutes. You can see on the plate in the picture the balls of Rice flour and some of the balls I have cut into half and sprinkled freshly grated coconut on top. I served Puttu with freshly grated coconut, brown sugar and coconut milk. It was very very tasty.

Tips: When re-heating Puttu use a steamer to make it soft again before serving.

RIBBON PAKODA

I would love to send this to my dear blogger friend Priti's Festive Food Event - Diwali

I would also like to send this for EC’s WYF- Party Food and

Srivalli’s JFI – Festivals – Diwali Event

RIBBON PAKODA

WISH ONE AND ALL A HAPPY DEEPAWALI AND MAY THIS FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS BRING CHEER TO YOU’LL

Here is a recipe for Ribbon pakoda, a crispy savory which is always made in my house for Deepawali (Diwali). It is known as Ribbon pakoda, because it is in the shape of Ribbons. Diwali is an excuse to make it, so I made good use of this excuse and churned out 2 bucketfuls of this savory. This stays for a long time and I always enjoy this more with my evening cup of tea later on. As they say, the person who cooks looses his apetite, so, on the day that I make the ribbon pakoda, other than the cursory bite to taste salt, spice etc. I don’t actually sit and eat it with relish. I do that on the other days following Diwali. It feels good as if someone else has prepared it for you.

Ingredients

Chickpea/ Gram flour (Besan) - ½ cup

Rice flour -1 cup

Butter – ½ tbsp (Unsalted butter would be nice, zero cholesterol Margarine can also be used)

Asafetida – ½ tsp

Chilly powder – 3 tsps full

Cumin powder – 1-2 tsps (If freshly roasted and ground it would be nice)

Salt as per taste

Oil for deep frying

Method:

In a big bowl, add the flours, add butter/margarine, asafetida, chilly powder, cumin powder and salt and mix well. Always mix the flour with all the masalas first before adding water, this ensures that everything mixes well. Now add water and mix well till you have soft pliable dough like chappati. Let it rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile in a wok, add oil, while the oil is getting heated, Take a Murukku press also known as “Naazhi” in Tamil, Choose the plate with a slit as shown in the picture.. Once you insert the plate, fill in the mixed dough and close the Naazhi. Squeeze into the hot oil into circles, as big as the pan can hold. After a while, turn to the other side, fry until golden brown. The oil stops frothing that indicates that it is done. Remove the circles and place on a kitchen towel to absorb the excess oil. When it is cool, you can store the ribbon pakodas in air-tight tins and enjoy this crispy savory with your evening tea or coffee.

SAMBA RAVA UPPUMA (SAMBA RAVA KICHADI)

I would like to send my Samba Rava Uppuma to Suganya of Tasty Palettes’ JFI – Whole Grains

and also send this recipe to Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen who is hosting the WBB - Grains In My Breakfast Event.

SAMBA RAVA UPPUMA (SAMBA RAVA KICHADI)

Samba Rava is broken wheat and as all know wheat is considered healthier than rice, it is less fattening and less in sugars. This uppuma is very good for people suffering from diabetes.

This is a very nutritious uppuma, adding vegetables with different colors makes the dish look very colorful and appealing to kids. I have added vegetables as per my choice but diabetics must follow the nutritional advice given by their doctors while adding the vegetables to this recipe. Not adding any particular vegetable doesn’t alter the taste of this dish.

Ingredients

Samba Rava (Broken Wheat Rava) – 2 cups

Onions – 1

Potato – 1

Tomato - 1

French Beans - 1 tbsp chopped

Carrots – 1 tbsp chopped

Green Peas – 1 ½ tbsp

Green chillies – 2

Ginger – a small piece

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Cumin seeds – ½ tsp

Chana dal (Bengal Gram) – 1tsp

Curry leaves – A sprig

Asafetida (hing) - a pinch

Turmeric powder – 1tsp

Salt to taste

Ghee (Clarified butter) – 1 tsp

Method

Now chop the onions and tomatoes. Peel the potatoes and carrots and chop them into squares. Cut off the top and bottom of the French beans and chop into pieces, Rinse the green peas, Chop the chilly into 2 pieces don’t chop it too finely else it will be very spicy for kids. Chop a small piece of Ginger. Now in a kadhai(wok), put 1 tbsp oil, add the mustard seeds, when it begins to crackle add the cumin seeds and the Bengal Gram, once the Bengal gram starts to turn light pink add the curry leaves and ginger and chilly, sauté for about a minute then add the onions and sauté till transparent, now add the tomatoes and sauté for a minute, after which you can add all the remaining vegetables, then add the salt, asafetida and turmeric and let it fry till you see the green peas turn light green in color, At this point add in about 3 cups of water, cover and let the vegetables cook, check for salt, if you find it less then add at this point. After 5 minutes open and check, if the vegetables are done, reduce the flame to sim, then slowly add in the Rava. Add the rava slowly with the left hand and with the right hand keep stirring so that it doesn’t form any lumps. Keep stirring. Soon you will notice that the Rava is absorbing the water. When the water content begins to reduce lower the flame and cook under cover for 5 minutes. Open Add a spoon of ghee, mix well and close the wok with a lid, let it rest for about 5 minutes. Then open the lid and serve hot. The samba rava gives a very good texture to the otherwise routine uppuma that we are used to eating. What more it is nutritious as its got lots of vegetables and samba rava is healthier than the Normal rava (Semolina) that we use.

Tip : You can add in Cashew nuts or peanuts while seasoning, if you want

KHICHDI VADA

KHICHDI VADA

I had made Khichdi (Also known as Pongal down south) and a lot got leftover, since we are not supposed to eat leftovers on festival days(It was Janmashtami the next day), we couldn’t finish eating it the next day and the khichdi was kept in the refrigerator.

Rice has become so expensive these days in Singapore that I didn’t have the heart to throw the khichdi, it was so tasty.

So on Day 3, I took out the khichdi and invented this new recipe Khichdi Vada,

You can make this with plain leftover rice also. The khichdi already has some spices, as it is already cooked and ready to eat, so when adding the salt etc, taste and see how much is required.

Ingredients

Leftover Khichdi /Rice – 2 bowls(Can serve 2 people)

Gram Flour – 1 cup

Bread crumbs – 2 tbsp

Onion – 1 medium size

Ginger paste – ½ tbsp

Green chillies- 2 finely chopped

Red Chilly powder – ½ tbsp

Cumin powder – 1 tsp

Freshly chopped coriander leaves – 1 tbsp

Method

In a bowl, Take the khichdi, add all the ingredients and mix well. Khichdi is usually soft and overcooked so the texture is a bit gluey unlike Pulao rice etc. This vada can be made with slightly overcooked rice only as that can be mashed to mix with the rest of the ingredients.

Heat oil in a frying pan and when the oil is hot, drop small balls of the batter, while dropping spread your fingers so they drop unevenly and look shapeless, this makes it more crispy. Fry the Khichdi vadas till golden and crisp on a slow fire. Remove and drain on a kitchen towel to remove excess oil. Serve hot with green chutney/ coconut chutney or tomato sauce.

Believe me the vadas were so tasty that no one at home could believe that it was made from leftover khichdi.

This taught me a lesson that its not necessary that we must throw leftover food, we can always make something so interesting that no one would be able to guess what it was just like in the Comic I had made earlier.

TOMATO OMELETTE

I would like to pack this tasty and sumptuous breakfast to WBB–Combi Breakfast hosted by Masala Magic

TOMATO OMELETTE

I had about 2 ladles of leftover dosa batter, so I decided to make Tomato Omelette. Tomato Omelette is a spicy pancake. This is one Omelette that is made without eggs. This dish can be rustled up quickly for breakfast or on a day when you are lazy to cook.

Tomato Omelette is usually served with a slice of bread. You can either place one Omelette between two slices of bread or eat it with one slice of bread spread with butter.

In my recipe I use some rice flour also, so it won’t be sticky and easy to spread on the tava (flat pan)

Ingredients

Gram flour (besan) - 2 cups

Rice flour – 1 cup

Left over dosa batter – 2 ladles (optional)

Onion – 2 medium size

Ripe Red Tomatoes – 2

Ginger – a small piece

Green chillies - 4

Chilly powder - ½ tsp

Cumin powder – ½ tsp

Asafetida – ½ tsp

Salt to taste

Freshly chopped coriander leaves – 1 tbsp

Oil

Method

Mix the gram flour, rice flour and dosa batter with some water. Put in a mixie/blender, this

batter, one onion chopped, one tomato chopped, ginger chopped, 2 chillies and the Cumin powder, chilly powder, asafetida and salt as per taste. Blend all this well into a fine paste. This ensures that the batter doesn’t have lumps and also the essence of the onions, ginger, chilly and tomato have entered the batter. This also ensures an even mixture.

Now chop the other onion and tomato into small pieces and add it to the batter. Also chop the other 2 chillies into small pieces and add to the batter. This you won’t grind, as when you make the Omelette you want to get some pieces of onions and tomatoes to bite upon. Add the finely chopped fresh coriander leaves and mix well.

Now take a tava (a flat pan), Heat on medium heat and pour 1/2 teaspoon of oil into it. Spread it evenly. Pour one ladle full of this batter onto the pan. Cook until you see the sides turning golden. At this point flip over and cook on the side. Once it is golden on both sides. Remove from pan and serve. This is eaten hot with a slice of bread, tomato sauce and green coriander chutney.

PEANUT CHAAT

PEANUT CHAATI rustled this up yesterday evening, since we were hungry and I was bored to make anything detailed, I decided to make this chaat. Peanuts are Yo’s favorite snack and I love Kurkure. So I thought why not combine the two. This is my twist to the dish.. Hope all of you enjoy this chaat also.
Ingredients
Groundnuts (with shells) - 3 cups.
Onion (chopped) -1 medium sized.
Tomato (chopped) -1 medium sized.
Green chillies (chopped)- 2.
Chaat masala - 2 tsps
Roasted cumin powder - ½ tsp
Salt to taste
Freshly chopped coriander leaves – 1 tbsp
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Kurkure (Spicy corn puffs) – 1 cup
Method
Pressure cook the shelled groundnuts with some salt for about 3 whistles. Drain and remove the peanuts inside the shell. Take these peanuts in a bowl. Add salt as per taste, chaat masala, powder, roasted cumin powder, onion, tomato, green chillies, coriander leaves, lemon juice and mix well. Add 3/4th cup kurkure (Spicy corn puffs available in Indian stores). Since this is spicy it will incorporate some spice into the chaat. If you are not adding kurkure u can add ¼ tsp of red chilly powder. Garnish with coriander leaves and kurkure and serve.

HOMEMADE KETTLE CORN

HOMEMADE KETTLE CORN
Kettle corn is a totally irresistible snack. Unlike the caramel corns which are very sweet. The kettle corns are slightly sweet and salty at the same time.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/4 cup popcorn kernels

2 tablespoons white sugar

Salt to taste

melted butter (optional)

Method
In your saucepan, heat the oil and popcorn kernels over medium-high heat, shaking the pan to keep the kernels from burning. When the kernels are about to start popping, they will become slightly lighter in color, and most importantly, they will start to smell like popcorn. At this point, sprinkle the sugar over the kernels and cover. With the lid on, continue to cook the popcorn by gently shaking the pan over the heat. When the popping has slowed (don’t keep cooking until the very last kernel has popped, you will end up burning the sugar), remove the pan from heat and empty the popcorn into a large bowl. Toss with salt immediately (when the sugar on the popcorn is still hot and sticky, the salt will adhere to the kernels better) and sprinkle with melted butter if you like. Enjoy while still warm.

HOME MADE POPCORNS

HOME MADE POPCORNS
Since a lot of good movies have suddenly been released at one go, me and Yo were on a movie marathon and what better way to enjoy it if not with a bag of homemade popcorn. I don’t enjoy the popcorn popped in the machine in the theatre stalls somehow. So I usually sneak my own homemade popcorns in. People may say popcorns are popcorns wherever you may have it and however you may have it. I beg to differ…..once you have had homemade popcorns you would never enjoy the Microwaveable popcorns that are sold in the market or the theatre stall popcorns, the reason being these have excessive artificial salts, some kind of butters(which make the roof of your mouth feel slippery) and excessive husks which stick to your teeth.
So here is my recipe for Homemade crunchy munchy tasty popcorns
Ingredients
Corn Kernels – 2 tbsps
Vegetable cooking Oil – 1 tbsp
Salt as per taste
Method
You need a big deep cooking wok to pop the corn kernels.Dont’t use a small wok as you’ll probably end up popping more than your wok can hold.
Add one tbsp oil or enough to cover the corn kernels. Add some salt and mix well. Keep the gas on high. Don’t cover at this point keep mixing the kernels with the salt, so they get well coated. When the first kernel pops, immediately cover the wok and enjoy the pop-pop sound. Once the pop-pop sound subsides or almost reduces to one pop, put off the gas. You will notice that the lid of the wok has risen and 2tbsps of corn kernels have given you almost 2 bags of popcorns equivalent to one jumbo pack of popcorn that they sell in the theatres.
VARIATIONS :
A low fat version would be replacing the vegetable oil with Olive Oil
And for those who can afford the calories , you can use butter

GRILLED POTATO -PEAS SANDWICH

This recipe will be a sure shot hit in any household, Can have it for Breakfast, lunch, brunch, tea-time or dinner. Its an all time favorite snack in my house. Its nutritious and filling.
GRILLED POTATO-PEAS SANDWICH
Ingredients
Sandwich bread – 4 slices
Potato – 1 Big
Green peas – 1 tbsp
Green chilies - 2
Ginger -1 inch
Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Freshly chopped coriander leaves
Garam Masala – 1-2 tsp
Salt as per taste
Oil – 1 tbsp
Butter – 1 tbsp
Coriander Chutney (check the link for the recipe in my blog)
Sandwich griller
Method
Wash, boil and peel the potatoes, mash them (don’t mash into a paste), just mash lightly. Boil Green peas. Keep aside. In a dry mill, put in the green chillies and ginger and make a paste. In a wok, put oil, add the cumin seeds, when they start to fry, add the ginger-chilly paste and fry. Then add the boiled peas, fry for 2 minutes, when the green peas turn into a lighter color, add the mashed potatoes, add salt, garam masala and mix well. In the end add freshly chopped coriander leaves. Mix well. Wait until the mixture is warm.


Then take 2 slices of bread, Spread butter and green coriander chutney on both slices. Now spread the peas-potato filling evenly on top. Cover with the other slice. Use a Sandwich griller, Grease the sandwich maker with butter and once hot, keep the slices inside, spread some butter on top and then close to grill. Once the sandwiches are grilled you will have crispy golden sandwiches with a lovely potato-peas filling. Serve hot with coriander chutneyand tomato sauce.

WORD OF CAUTION: Dont' rush to have a bite of the Sandwich as the filling is hot and you may burn your mouth.

CHEESE TOMATO CROISSANT

I would like to pack this sandwich for the picnic basket of “Waiter There’s Something in my……….Picnic hosted by Johanna of thepassionatecook.
CHEESE TOMATO CROISSANT
Croissants are made of a leavened variant of puff pastry by layering yeast dough with butter and rolling and folding a few times in succession, then rolling. A lot of time goes in making Croissants, so I decided I would buy it off the rack.
Ingredients
Croissant - 1
Tomatoes - 1
Cheese Slice - 1
Salt
Pepper
Method
Slice tomatoes, keep aside. Take one piece of croissant and carefully slice in the middle. Place one cheese slice inside and on top of it neatly place the tomatoes. Sprinkle some salt and freshly crushed pepper over the sliced vegetables. Enjoy this delicious sandwich.

VEGETABLE SANDWICH

I would like to pack this Vegetable sandwich for Johanna's(the passionatecook) picnic basket for her Picnic fare event.
I absolutely adore the logo which says “Waiter There’s Something in my………." which is a headline grabber for sure.
Here is an out and out picnic recipe from me which is nutritious, light on the stomach and can be assembled at the picnic spot with the help of friends.
VEGETABLE SANDWICH
I have used White bread in my recipe but brown bread would be a healthier option. Sandwiches taste best when freshly made, so here’s a tip, you can carry all the sliced vegetables in ziplock bags and assemble the sandwich at the picnic spot and enjoy the crunch of the fresh vegetables.
Ingredients
Two slices of White Bread/ Brown Bread
Cucumber – 1
Tomatoes - 1
Beet Root – 1
Potato – 1
Butter
Salt
Pepper
Green Coriander Chutney(Optional)(refer to link below for recipe)
Chat Masala (Optional)
Method
Peel and boil the Beet root. Boil and peel the Potatoes. Make slices of both and keep aside. Peel the cucumber and slice it. Slice tomatoes. Sprinkle some salt and pepper over the sliced vegetables. Once all this is done. Apply butter to one side. Place the sliced potatoes first, Place the sliced beet root over it, then place a layer of the sliced cucumbers and over it a layer of the sliced tomatoes. You can sprinkle a bit of Chaat Masala( is a tangy savory powder available in Indian stores)
On the other bread apply some Coriander chutney.(Click on the link for the recipe). Cover the sandwich with the slice of bread which has chutney on it. Top it with a bit of coriander chutney and tomato sauce as shown in the picture while serving it.

ONION FRITTERS WITH RED JALAPENO PEPPERS AND CASHEWNUTS

ONION FRITTERS WITH RED JALAPENO PEPPERS AND CASHEWNUTSIn the desi style we can call it Onion Bhajji/Bhajiya lal Mirchi aur kaju ke saath.

I guess I am hooked onto red Jalapeno peppers, I love the color, the flavor, the extra funk or you may say punch that it adds to any dish. Don’t replace the red jalapeno peppers with any other pepper, the taste won’t be the same. If you don’t get Jalapeno peppers in your country, you can use Red Capsicum. Here is yet another Original recipe of mine.

Ingredients Onions – 3-4

Red Jalapeno Peppers – 2

Cashewnuts – 1 tbsp

Gram Flour – 1 cup

Bishops weed (Ajwain/Omam) – ½ tsp

Asafetida – 1 tsp

Red Chilly powder – 1 tsp

Salt as per taste

Oil

Method

Chop the onion in thin slivers, Slit the Red Jalapeno peppers de-stem and de-seed them. Chop them in thin strips also. Put them in a bowl, Add the cashewnuts, then add 3 tbsps of gram flour, the bishops weed, Asafetida, Red chilly powder, salt and mix well. Allow the onions and chillies to marinate in the mixture for about 5 minutes. The onions start to sweat and you will notice the mixture to be moist, at this point, add the rest of the gram flour and some water, The water is added to make the mixture a bit loose and in dropping consistency as shown in the picture. Again keep aside for 4-5 minutes.

Heat oil in a frying pan and when the oil is hot, drop small balls of the batter, while dropping spread your fingers so they drop unevenly and look shapeless, this makes it more crispy. Fry the Bhajiyas(fritters) till golden and crisp on a slow fire. Remove and drain on a kitchen towel to remove excess oil. Serve hot with green chutney/ coconut chutney or tomato sauce

I would like to send this dish also to Lore's Original recipes Event.

MOONG UDAD VADA

MOONG UDAD VADA
Ingredients
Moong Dal – ½ cup
Udad Dal – ½ cup
Green Chillies – 2 -3
Ginger - 1 tsp.
Finely chopped Coriander – 2 tbsps
Curry leaves – a sprig
Asafetida – 1 tsp
Salt as per taste
Oil
Method
Soak udad dal and moong dal for 2-3 hours. Grind the dals along with 2 chillies and the ginger into a coarse paste. One chilly just chop into small pieces and add to the batter. Now add salt, asafetida, coriander and curry leaves, mix well and keep aside for 4-5 minutes. Heat oil in a frying pan and when the oil is hot, put small balls of the batter, shouldn’t be too even(very round) while dropping, when dropped unevenly it will be more crispy. Fry the vadas till golden and crisp, remove and drain on a kitchen towel to remove excess oil. Serve hot with green chutney or coconut chutney.