Vazhathandu Pachadi / Plantain Stem Curry

Banana tree / Plantain tree is one of the few species, where every part of the tree is useful. The tree as a whole (which had flowered) is used to decorate the entrance of the house or the place for an auspicious occasion.  The Stem, Flower and the Raw Banana is used as a vegetable. The ripen Bananas makes an excellent instant supply of energy. The fibre that comes while peeling the layer to extract the inner white part of the stem is used for tying purposes especially for tying flower garlands in Southern India. The leaf is not only makes a healthy and eco-friendly use & through plate but considered auspicious to feed the guests on special occassions.

Plantain tree Stem is very commonly used in Tamil Nadu and in some parts of West Bengal. Known as Vazhai Thandu (tamizh), Vazha Pindi (Malayalam), Kele ki dandi (hindi). Can be consumed raw or cooked.

1. It high in fibre content. 
2. Rich in Vitamin B6 and Potassium. 
3. It helps in detoxifying the body.
4. Regulates bowel movement.
5. Used in traditional medicine to treat kidney stones.
6. 
   

How to select a good Stem? : Go for the tender ones. It should look white, which means it is fresh. If you press the cut end you can feel how tender it is. The tender the stem is, more edible it is for consumption as less amount of cleaning work.

How to clean? : Remove the external layer around the stem (may be two or 3 layers that can be removed easily). wash. slice them into roundels. If you see fibre coming out while cutting, use your index finger and wind the fibre around it. this way you can remove the excess fibre. If the stem is very tender, fibre is less. Keep a vessel filled with water ready. Now cut the roundels into juliens and then finely chop them into very small cubes. Keep transferring the finely chopped pieces into the water to prevent them from blackening.

The yellow gravy is this dish. The green one is called molakootal made using green leafy vegetable.

There are variety of dishes made using this vegetable. I am going to share one traditional dish called "Puli Pachadi". This is dish with a combo of various taste (Sweet, Spice, Salt and Sour) - khatta meetha chatpata!

Ingredients :-

1. Banana Stem - 1 (Medium size)
2. Tamarind - 1 medium lemon size
3. Jaggery - 1.5 tbsp
4. Grated coconut - 1 cup
5. Green chillies - 2 - 3 nos.
6. Curry leaves - 8 nos. (4 nos. for masala and 4 nos. for tempering)
7. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
8. Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
9. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp (for masala grinding)
10. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp for tempering.
11. Asafoetida - 1 pinch
12. Oil for tempering - 1.5 tbsp
13. Salt to taste
14. Rice grain - 1/2 tsp

 Procedure :

• Boil tamarind in 1 cup water till it becomes tender. Extract water thrice by adding fresh water. it should be approx 3 cups of tamarind extract.
• Soak 1/2 tsp rice grain in water.
• Drain the water into which we have put the finely chopped plantain stem. Put them into the vessel with tamarind water.
• Add Turmeric Powder, Salt, Jaggery and boil till the stem becomes tender and cooked.
• In a tempering pan, dry roast the fenugreek seeds (methi seeds) till it little dark and start spluttering.
• Finely grind to a paste : Grated coconut, soaked rice grain, Mustard seeds, Green chillies, curry leaves 4 nos.,  roasted fenugreek seeds by adding water little by little.
• Add this paste to the cooked plantain stem, bring to boil. When foam forms on top, switch off the gas.
• Heat oil for tempering, add mustard seeds. After the seed splutters, add 4 nos. of curry leaves and add it to the prepared gravy.
• Yummy gravy / curry is ready to be served as a side dish with molakootal rice / curd rice / chapathi .

If you are looking for the green molakootal recipe, here it is!

 The roasted fenugreek seeds and mustard seeds in the masala paste gives a mouthwatering aroma to the dish and the combo of various tastes viz., spicy, sweet, sour, salt makes it more interesting, that will make you go for additional helpings again and again!

Suggestions : You can replace the Plantain Stem with Ladies Finger  or Brinjal or Pumpkin (yellow).

Happy New Year and Thiruvadira Prashad

Hi





Wish you all a very Happy New Year 2015



May this year bring you prosperity and good health.

Today being somvar Tiruvadirai, an auspicious celebration on an auspicious day (a working day for me) I managed to prepare the kali and the kootu .  sharing with you my humble mobile upload taken on a hurry. Virtual prashad for you.

May Lord Shiva - the destroyer of evil, bless you all with good health & a prosperous life.

Om Namashivaya

Orange thol pulikachal / Orange tholi puliinji / Orange Peel Sauce

Compliments of the season!  



Life is extremely busy and  i miss you and blogging very much

While bidding farewell to the year 2014, i would like to share with you a citrus flavoured chatpata and tangy side dish using Orange Peel.

The winter season has finally arrived at our place! For the last two weeks, the air is cold and dry. Sunrise is late. There is a light fog everywhere.

This is the season of Oranges, Strawberries and Grapes here! I could get nice organic oranges from our weekly market this time. They tasted awesome. I saved some peel to make our favourite side dish called Orange thol Pulickachal or the orange inji-puli. Orange Tamarind Sauce (yeah it can be used as a spread on wheat bread too or a side dish for dosa or for rice or for chapaties). An all rounder!! ;-)

Ingredients :-

1. Orange peel of one Orange
2. Tamarind - A big Lemon size
3. Ginger - 2" piece (finely chopped) - [Optional]
4. Green Chillie - 2 Nos. (finely chopped)
5. Curry leaves - 10 Nos.
6. Sesame Oil - 3 Tbsp
7. Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp
8. Asafoetida Powder - 1/4 tsp
9. Red Chilli Powder - 1/4 tsp
10. Chana Dal - 1/2 tsp ( split bengal gram)
11. Jaggery - 1.5 tbsp
12. Salt to taste

Video Recipe is here :- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1G5tUTcRc9Q&t=22s

Procedure :

•  Boil tamarind in hot water till becomes tender. Extract thick pulp and keep it aside.
• Chop the orange peel into big pieces.
• Heat oil in a wok, add mustard seeds. After they splutter add, Chana Dal. When it turns light red in color, add the cut orange peel and fry till it turns light golden in color.
• add curry leaves, Green chillies, Ginger and fry for a minute. 
• Add Tamarind Pulp, Turmeric powder, Asafoetida powder, Red Chilli Powder, Jaggery and salt to taste, bring to boil.
• Then lower the flame and keep it covered till the gravy thickens into paste consistency.
• Bring to room temperature and refrigerate.

In case if you have added more water by mistake, you can dissolve some rice flour or wheat flour in little water and add to it, bring to boil till the gravy thickens and turns glossy on top. Cool and refrigerate.

Masal Vadai

We had a pot luck lunch today and I prepared some masal vadai and joined my buddies for this event. It was very interesting as it was the first pot lunch event in my life.  We had a variety of delicious spread in front of us in the lunch table viz., Sindhi Curry, Dahi Balla, Dahi Vada, Soft rotis, Rice, Ladies finger curry, cauliflower, potato curries, two varieties of dal vadais, two varieties of milk kheer, Besan Ladoo, garlic chutney, etc.  Each dish had a unique touch of the person who prepared it, thus making it very special.  It was droolicious. I wish I had taken photo of the same. But the foodie inside me was more eager to taste them so I just got busy in helping myself with the goodies :p

Masal vadai is a flavourful form of dal vada (paruppu vadai / parippu vadai) which make the otherwise normal dal vada even more interesting. 

I used a bit of yellow peas dal (pattani parippu) which  makes it crunch rather than the regular soft vadais. Use of toor dal add to its taste than the regular mono channa dal.

Let us get on to the making of crunchy and tasty masala vadai.

You will need :- (makes approx. 30 meidum sized vadais)

1. Toor Dal - 1 Cup
2. Channa Dal - 1/4 Cup
3. Peas Dal - 1/4 cup
4. Urad dal - 1 tbsp
5. Salt to taste
6. Curry leaves - 12 Nos.
7. Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp
8. Red chillies - 5 Nos. (or as per taste)
9. Onion - 2 Nos (medium)
10. Ginger - 1.5" piece
11. Garlic - 3 pods (big)
12. Asafoetida powder - 2 pinches
13. Fennel seeds - 2 tsp
14. Oil for frying

Procedure :-

• Soak the dals together for 2 hours along with red chillies.
• Drain the water. Take a tbsp of the soaked dal, put it in a mixing bowl and keep it aside.
• Finely chop Onion, Coriander leaves, Curry leaves, ginger, garlic pods
• In a blender grind the dal coarsely along with chillies, chopped ginger and garlic pods.
• Transfer the coarsely ground dal mixture to the mixing bowl.
• Add chopped onion, coriander leaves, curry leaves, fennel seeds, asafoetida powder, salt to taste.
• Mix well.
• Divide into equal portions.
• Roll and flatten them. 

 I used to flatten with just one hand, by placing the ball on the four fingers and placing the thumb over it as shown in the above picture. thus you get a nice impression of your fingers on the back side while the other side reminds flat.

• Heat the oil in a wok. Put a piece of dal mix. If it rise immediately, then oil is ready for frying. If not, wait for some more time.
• Fry each flat vadais in hot oil on medium flame, by turning them in between so that they get friend equally. 

• Fry till they are nice golden in color.

• Drain them, transfer on a paper to remove excess oil.
• Store in an air tight container when cools down.
• Crunchy and tasty, flavourful masala vadai is ready to go as a snack or as an accompaniment with hot tea or coffee.