Ingredients:

• Raw bananas – 2
• Salt – to taste
• Chilli powder – 1/2 tsp
• Oil – for deep frying

Method:

Peel the skin off the bananas and using a slicer/grater, slice them into thin almost filmy slices (like potato chips)

Deep fry these slices in hot oil. Place them in a strainer and allow excess oil to drain out and cool off a bit. When they are slightly cooled off (please note that they shouldnt cool off totally), put them in a wide container, sprinkle salt and chilli powder and toss them so that the salt and chilli powder gets mixed well. Served as an appetizer/side dish.

Ingredients:

• Whole urad dal – 1 cup
• Ginger – 1/2 inch chopped roughly
• Onions – 1 medium (Diced)
• Green chillies – 2 diced finely
• Salt to taste
• Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
• Curry leaves – a few
• Coriander leaves – 2 tsp (finely diced)
• Curd (yoghurt) – 1 cup
• Oil – for deep frying

Method:

Soak the urad dal for 2 hours. Grind it into a coarse paste along with ginger and required salt. Add the onions and green chillies to this and mix well.

Heat oil in a kadai. Wet the palm of your hand with a little water. Take about a small-lime sized amount of dough and flatten in the palm to a disc. Make a hole in the center of the disc. Carefully remove from hand and drop in the hot oil. Fry until cooked on all sides and strain and keep aside. Repeat for the rest of the dough. Allow the vadas to cool down a bit.

In a wide and shallow bowl, add the curd and blend well with a spoon adding a little salt.
Take a small pan, heat a little oil (1 tsp), splutter mustard seeds, add the curry leaves and fry for a few seconds. Add this to the curd mix and mix well. Add in the coriander leaves to this and mix well.

Add the vadas to this curd mix one by one so they are almost immersed in the curd. Allow to remain for an hour before serving. Note: Can thicken the more kozhambu and immerse the vadas in this as well as an alternative.

Ingredients:

• Plaintain flower – 1 small size
• Onions – 1 medium (diced finely)
• Green chillies – 2 diced finely
• Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
• Gram flour (or Pottu kadalai flour) – 1/4 cup
• Salt – to taste
• Oil – for deep frying

Method:

Remove the outer cover of the plaintain flower, and pull a bunch of the florets out. Pull out of each of them the stamens and a little transparent covering at the bottom. Repeat these for all the florets in the flower. Then group a bunch of the florets and dice them finely. Rinse the diced florets in water and set aside. Pressure cook the diced flower along with a litte salt and turmeric.

Drain the water if any of the cooked florets, and grind them to a coarse paste along with the green chillies. In a bowl, mix the ground flower, diced onions, salt and flour to form a soft dough. Make marble-sized balls and flatten them into discs.

Deep fry these in hot oil so they are cooked well on all sides.? Excellent side dish/appetizer.

Ingredients:

• Carrot – 4 (Grated)
• Onions – 1 medium (diced finely)
• Green chillies – 2 diced finely
• Gram flour (or Pottu kadalai flour) – 1/4 cup
• Salt – to taste
• Oil – for deep frying

Method:

In a small pan, add 1 tsp of oil and saute the onions and green chillies and set aside. In a bowl, mix the grated carrots, along with the sauted onions, green chillies, salt and flour to make a thick dough. Make marble sized balls out of this dough and flatten them to discs.

Heat oil in a kadai (for deep frying) and fry these so that they are cooked well on all sides. Carrot vadas are ready. Goes well as a side dish/appetizer

Ingredients:

• Urad Dal – 1 cup
• Fenugreek seeds – 4 or 5
• Salt to taste
• Green Chillies – 1
• Ginger – 1/4 inch chopped finely
• Whole Black pepper – 1 tsp
• Curry Leaves – chopped 1/2 tbsp
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

Soak urad dal and fenugreek for over 3 hrs. Grind them with the ginger and green chilli and salt to a coarse thick batter. Do not overgrind else the batter will become very smooth. Add in the black pepper and curry leaves. Mix well.

Slightly oil the palm of your hand. Take about a small ball of the batter and drop into the hot oil. Fry until a nice golden brown. Make sure the heat is not on a very high setting, otherwise the inside of the bonda would not have cooked well.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot with coconut chutney and sambhar.
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 20 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Gram Dal – 1 cup
• Salt to taste
• Onions – 2 medium finely chopped
• Green Chillies – 1 finely chopped, 1 cut into two
• Red Chillies – 2
• Ginger – 1/4 inch chopped
• Coriander leaves – chopped 2 tbsp
• Curry Leaves – chopped 1 tbsp
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

Soak gram dal for about 2 hrs. Grind all of the dal (except 2 tbsp) with the ginger, red chillies and 1 green chilli and salt to a coarse batter. Do not overgrind else the batter will become very smooth. Add in the chopped onions, rest of the soaked gram dal (2 tbsp amount), green chillies and coriander, curry leaves. Mix well.

Slightly oil the palm of your hand. Take about a small ball of the batter and place it in the palm of ur hand. Flatten it slightly. Remove from hand and drop into the oil and fry until golden brown. Avoid adding too much water to the batter, else the vadas will crumble.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot as an appetizer/snack or with a meal.
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 20 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Urad Dal – 1 cup
• Fenugreek seeds – 4 or 5
• Salt to taste
• Onions – 2 medium finely chopped
• Green Chillies – 1 finely chopped, 1 cut into two
• Ginger – 1/4 inch chopped
• Coriander leaves – chopped 2 tbsp
• Curry Leaves – chopped 1 tbsp
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

Soak urad dal and fenugreek for over 3 hrs. Grind them with the ginger and 1 green chilli and salt to a coarse thick batter. Do not overgrind else the batter will become very smooth. Add in the chopped onions, green chillies and coriander, curry leaves. Mix well.

Slightly oil the palm of your hand. Take about a small ball of the batter and place it in the palm of ur hand. Flatten it slightly and make a central hole. Remove from hand and drop into the oil and fry until golden brown. Alternatively, you can make the vadas on a oiled plastic sheet instead of your hand. Can dip your hand between making the vadas in a bowl of water to avoid stickiness.

Serve hot with coconut chutneys/sambhar.

Note:
Can make these vadas without adding the chopped onions and green chillies to the batter.
When you soak the vadas in some sambhar with some ghee, delicious sambhar vadas are ready.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot with coconut chutneys/sambhar. You can make these vadas without adding the chopped onions and green chillies to the batter.? When you soak the vadas in some sambhar with some ghee, delicious sambhar vadas are ready. When you soak the vadas in some rasam, it is called rasa vadai. When you soak these vadas in a curd mixture with some temperings, delicious dahi or curd vadais are ready.
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 20 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Gram flour – 3/4 cup
• Rice flour – 1/2 cup
• Chilli powder – 1/4 tsp (optional)
• Salt to taste
• Onions – 1 sliced lengthwise
• Green Chillies – 2 finely chopped
• Coriander leaves – finely chopped 2 tbsp
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

Mix in the gram flour, rice flour with salt, chilli powder and little water to make a smooth paste without any lumps. Add in the chopped onions and green chillies and mix well. The mixture should be have the consistency of a thick batter.

Heat oil in a pan/kadai, and pour in a few tbsps of the batter randomly in the oil. Allow to cook till crispy and golden brown on all sides. Drain and pat dry with paper towels and serve.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot with ketchup as a snack/appetizer or a side dish to any meal. This is a crisp pakoda. To make more crispier pakodas, add in more rice flour.
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 15 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Gram flour – 3/4 cup
• Chilli powder – 1/4 tsp
• Orange food coloring – a little
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Veggies – Can use different vegetables to make different bhajjis -> Raw Banana (Vaazhakkai), Onions, Big Green Chillies, Potatoes – all cut into medium thin and flat slices. You can use Egg (hard boil the egg and cut into two), or Bread Slices (cut into 4) as well.
• Oil for deep frying

Method:

Mix in the gram flour with salt, chilli powder, turmeric, food coloring and water to make a smooth paste without any lumps.

Dip the cut veggies/egg/bread slices to coat them evenly with the paste and deep fry them in oil.
Drain and pat dry with paper towels and serve hot.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot with ketchup or any chutney (coconut or hot).
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 15 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Channa (white/brown)/ Gram Dal/ Black eyed peas/Dried yellow/Green peas/ Mocha kottai – 1 cup
• Onions – 1 small (finely chopped) optional
• Green chillies – 1 small (finely chopped) optional
• Red Chillies – 2
• Curry leaves – 4 or 5
• Chilli powder – 1/4 tsp
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Split urad dal – 1/2 tsp
• Oil – 1 tbsp

Method:

Sundal can be made with any of the dals/beans mentioned. All of these pulses have rich protein content. Makes a simple and healthy snack.

Soak the pulses (whichever sundal you want to make) for a few hours to overnight (soaking time depends on the type of beans you are using) and then pressure cook them with a little salt.

In a pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds, add the split urad dal, and then the red chillies and curry leaves and fry for 1/2 min.? Then, add in the onions and green chillies and chilli powder. Finally, add the cooked pulses. Sprinkle a little water and allow to cook for 5 min or until the raw smell of chilli powder disappears.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve as a snack. Very nutritious and healthy.
• Serves 5-6
• Cooking Time: 20 min
• Cuisine: Indian