Rava Kesari

Ingredients

Ghee - 4 tsp full
Rava/Sooji - 1.5cups ( not the fine kind)
Water - 6 cups ( 4 cups water for 1 cup rava ) - boil separately
Sugar - 3.25 cups
Cardamom - 1tsp (powdered) 
Cashew nuts and raisins - fried in ghee.

Method
Fry the rava very well on a medium flame till the color changes lightly. The more you fry the better for making good kesari. Now lower the flame of the rava pan. Add the boiling water very carefully into the pan. Let the rava cook for a few  minutes. Add in the sugar and continue cooking. Add the ghee, elaichi powder and the fried cashew nuts and raisins.   

Garam Masala recipe

This is Meera Sriram's recipe.

500gms : Coriander seeds (Dhania seeds) - optional
50gms   : Bay leaves (Tej patta)
5gms     : Caraway seeds (Shajeera)
25gms   : Clove (Laung)
350gms : Cumin seeds (Jeera)
250gms : Whole black peppercorns (Kali mirch)
50gms   : Cinnamon sticks (Dalchini)
5gms     : Stone flower/Kalpasi  (Pathar phool)
250gms : Black Cardamom (Badi elaichi)
15gms   : Mace (Javitri)

Thenkuzal recipe

Ingredients

Raw rice flour - 2cups  (we use store bought raw rice flour)

1/4 cup roasted urad dal flour (dry roast and finely powder and sieve using a strainer)

1 tsp jeera

1 tsp hing

1 tsp white sesame

salt

chilli powder (optional)

2 tbsp soft butter  (adding more butter will increase the softness)

2 tbsp hot oil (from the oil for frying) : makes the murukku soft.

Method

Mix all the above in ordinary tap water until the butter is nicely incorporated and the dough is soft. The dough should be soft enough that it can be easily pressed out of the murukku maker. Also keep the dough closed as you are making or the dough may slowly dry out.

Note: It is important that the urad dal flour is finely powdered and seived in a fine strainer (tea strainer is good too). If you skip this step and small pieces of urad dal remain in the dough, they can burst in the hot oil.  

Kadachakka Poduthuval

Ingredients
1 Kadachakka (peeled and chopped to 1 inch pieces)
Curry leaves ( a few sprigs)
Coconut (grated)
3-4 green chillies

For tempering
2 whole red chillies
Mustard seeds
Urad dal
Oil (1 tbsp)

Method
Mix the chopped kadachakka with turmeric and salt. Transfer into a cooker vessel and cook in the pressure cooker for a single whistle. Don't add water to the vessel. You should ensure that it does not get overcooked. Heat oil in a pan and add the tempering ingredients. When the mustard splutters add the cooked kadachakka pieces. Coarse grind coconut and chillies and add to the pan. Fry for a bit until lightly browned.

Recipe for Verum Arisi Adai

Ingredients
2 cups parboiled rice (idly rice)
1/2 cup grated coconut
1 onion finely chopped
1 carrot (finely grated)
1 cup of chopped dill (optional). Can also use drum stick leaves instead.
Salt to taste

Soak rice overnight or 6-8hours. Grind along with the grated coconut  to a smooth batter similar to dosa batter. Add salt towards the end and grind once more. Mix the chopped onions, grated carrots and dill. The batter can be used right away or after fermenting for a minimum of 4 hours.

To make the adai, pour a big scoop of the batter on a hot pan and rotate the pan to spread the batter all over the pan. The adai has to be thin. So add water to the batter if it is too thick and does not flow evenly.

Recipe for Adai

 Ingredients
2 cups parboiled rice (idly rice)
1/2 cup cracked wheat (optional)
1 cup quick oats
1/4 cup channa dal
1/4 cup urad dal with skin
1/4 cup green moong dal
1 tsp salt (according to taste)
1/4 tsp for hing
1 stalk of curry leaves
4 dry whole red chillies ( add more if you like it hot)

Method
Soak rice, all dals, wheat, whole red chillies, curry leaves all together overnight or 6-8hrs. Grind this together with salt and hing. Towards the end add the oats and grind slightly. The batter should be grainy and thick (the thickness of idly batter but not as smooth).

The batter can be used immediately for making Adai or after fermenting for about 4 hours. The batter can be used for upto a week if refrigerated.

Authentic Vengaya Sambar

For paste
1 tbsp whole dhania
1/2 tsp channa dal
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
4 whole dry red chillies
3 shallots chopped
3/4 cup fresh grated coconut
a few sprigs of curry leaves
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Other Ingredients
2 tsp ghee
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 whole dry red chilly.
Peeled and washed shallots (a dozen) - chopped in half or quartered if they are big.
1 medium sized tomato - chopped
1 lime sized ball of tamarind
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp asafoetida
few small pieces of jaggery. 
1small bunch of cilantro (coriander leaves)
a few more sprigs of curry leaves
1 cup of cooked, mashed toor dal.


Instructions
In a pan, heat 1 tbsp oil and fry the channa dal, whole dhania, fenugreek, chopped shallots, red chillies, coconut and curry leaves. Once slightly browned, set aside to cool. This needs to be ground into a smooth paste.

In the same pan, add 2 tsp ghee. Add the mustard seeds and let splutter. Add a few sprigs of curry leaves and the whole red chilly.  Into this add the chopped shallots. Once the shallots are fried and almost translucent, add chopped tomatoes. Into this add tamarind water obtained from soaking the ball of tamarind in water for about 30minutes. Add salt, turmeric powder , asafoetida and the jaggery. Let it cook together for a few minutes. Then transfer all the contents to a heavy bottomed vessel and boil for about 15minutes until the raw smell of the tamarind goes away and the vegetables are nicely cooked.

Next add the ground paste to the vessel and stir well. Let it boil for a few minutes. Finally add the very well mashed toor dal. Again let the contents boil for a few minutes. In the end, add chopped cilantro leaves and curry leaves.

Vengaya sambar is ready!! 

Kalathu Podi

Ingredients
1 cup moong dal
1/2 tsp toor dal
1.5 tsp whole black pepper
2 tbsp roasted channa dal
2 whole dry red chillies
1/2 tsp salt

Instructions 
Roast the moong and tur dal together until light brown. Add the red chillies and roast. Finally add the remaining ingredient and roast till they are all headed up. Transfer to a plate and let cool to room temperature before powdering in a mixer.

Karuveppilai Podi

Ingredients
1 bowl dry curry leaves
1 tsp whole black pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Instructions
Remove curry leaves from the stock. You will need a big bunch. Wash fresh leaves and pat dry. The leaves need to be free of water. They can be dried in the sun or just put the on a baking tray in the oven for about 10mintures. Once the leaves are dry, simply powder them in a mixer with black pepper and salt.  

Thenga Podi / Coconut Podi

Ingredients
3/4 cup urad dal
10 whole dry red chillies
3/4 tsp asafoetida  (hing)
1 lime sized ball of dry tamarind (cannot substitue paste)
1.5 cups of grated coconut.
1 tbsp cooking oil
3/4 tsp salt

Instructions
Roast the urad dal in 1 tbsp oil until brown. Set aside. Separately fry the grated coconut until slightly brown. Wait until the dal and coconut cool down to room temperature. Now mix all the ingredients listed above and blend in a mixer. Thenga podi is ready to eat with idly, dosas or just mixed in Rice.

Molaga Podi

Ingredients
1 cup channa dal
1.5 cups urad dal
1 tbsp white sesame seeds
1/2 cup roasted channa dal
1/2 tsp asafoetida
20 whole dried red chillies (increase if you like it hot)
1.5 tsp salt
1 tbsp cooking oil

Instructions
Heat oil in a pan. Roast channa dal for a few minutes. Then add the urad dal and red chillies and roast them all together till the dals turn slightly brown.  Add sesame seeds and roasted channa dal towards the end and roast together again on a medium flame. Add salt to taste and the hing. Turn off the the flame and let it cool on the pan. The lentils will turn slightly darker. Stir again and transfer it to a plate to cool down. One cool, grind all of them in a mixer.

Humble Idli - King of all breakfasts

Feisty one-eyed grandmother

Foreword by my children

Memories of Hotel Kalyan

My association with cooking goes way back to the early days of my childhood in the town of Chitoor, Andhra Pradesh in the 1950's. We were a family of 6 children, three boys and three girls. I was the third child in line with two brothers above me. My paternal grandmother lived with us.

My father Subramaniam owned a hotel in Chitoor town called Hotel Kalyan, a south Indian vegetarian restaurant. He inherited this hotel from his sister's husband (Athimbere). It was right at the main bus stop always bustling with people. Hotel Kalyan was very popular in its days. My father also owned a lodge called Shanti Vihar and a shop that sells Coffee for a few years.

My father worked very hard to run the hotel. He had his nephew Padmanabhan's help to run the restaurant. They worked in shifts to ensure that the hotel stayed open from the wee hours of 4.30am in the morning to late at night. I remember workers working the huge grinding stones to grind batter for idlis and dosas. There were two to three people solely in charge of chopping vegetables. One person dedicated to make dosas. A "charak-master" who exclusively made sweets.

Breakfast for us kids always got delivered at home from the hotel. Most of the time it was Idlis. Evenings we were allowed to go to the hotel and eat any snack that we fancied. There was Vadai, Bonda, Oothapams and several other options to choose from. My grandmother primarily did all the cooking at our house with my mother's help. Though I never cooked until I got married, I was surrounded with the activities, sounds and smells involved with the hotel.

Hotel Kanyan closed down in 1970 after my father felt that it was too much for him to run it by himself. My brothers were not interested and choose other careers.

About Me

I am Vasanthi Viswanathan. I live in Toronto, Canada with my older son. My younger son lives in California. I am a grandmother of 2 little kids whom I adore. Here is a picture of my family.

Before moving to North America, I have lived in several places and traveled all over India. I was born in Chitoor, Andhra Pradesh. I have lived in Vizag, Ernakulam, Delhi and Chennai.