Ingredients:

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

Method:

Mix in the gram flour with salt, chilli powder, turmeric and 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 medium – thin batter.

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

Can be served with ketchup as a snack or can go as a side dish with any meal. This is not a crisp pakoda, but will be soft.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve with ketchup as a snack or can serve as a side dish with any meal. This is not meant to be a crisp pakoda, but a soft one.
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 10 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Parboiled Rice – 3 cups
• Gram flour – 2.5 cups
• Asafoetida – 1/2 tsp
• Chilli powder – 3 tsps (around 10-15 chillies)
• Butter – 1 cup
• Salt to taste

Method:

Soak rice for 3-4 hours and grind with salt and asafoetida. Add chilli powder and gram flour and mix well with butter to make a thick dough. Put the dough in the murukku mould and squeeze out into hot oil and fry and strain. Use the 1 cm X 0.1 cm hole mould plate. Once it has cooled down, store in air tight container.

Miscellaneous:

• Cooking Time: 40 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Raw rice – 4 cups
• Urad dal – 1 cup
• Perungayam (asafoetida)- 1/2 tsp
• Butter – 1/2 cup
• Sesame seeds (black) – 2 tsp
• Salt – to taste

Method:

Dry grind the raw rice and urad dal (slightly roasted before grinding) separately. Soak the sesame seeds in water for a while and drain and set aside. Combine well both the flours together with some water, salt and butter. Then, add the sesame seeds and perungayam and mix well. The consistency should be like a thick paste to dough (a little loose than a chapathi dough). Put an apple sized dough into the murukku achu (mould for making murukkus, karasev) etc. Use the medium round/holes plate in the mould for making murukkus. Squeeze out in circles on the back of a ladle or slotted spoon used for deep frying.

Heat oil in a kadai (deep pan) and drop the squeezed out murukku in the oil. Deep fry till mild-golden brown.

Miscellaneous:

• Cuisine: Indian
• Cooking Time: 30-40min

Ingredients:

• Maida – 2.5 cups
• Red Chilli powder – 1 1/2 tsp
• Salt – to taste
• Asafoetida – 1/2 tsp
• Oil/Butter – 4 tbsp

Method:

Mix all the ingredients with some water and knead into a dough. Make balls out of the dough and roll them into chappathis using a rolling pin. Make sure you roll them with uniform thickness. Don’t make the edges too thick/thin. Make cuts using a bread knife/rolling wheel by drawing parallel lines and criss-crossing them with another set of parallel lines to make diamond shaped cuts. Carefully separate the diamond cuts.

Deep fry them in oil. Strain and set aside. After they have cooled down, store them in air tight container.

Miscellaneous:

• Cooking Time: 20-30 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Shrimps/Prawns – 1 lb peeled, deveined and cleaned
• Onions – 1 medium (chopped fine)
• Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
• Chilli powder – 1 tsp
• Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp
• Black pepper powder – 1/2 tsp
• Salt – to taste
• Oil – 2 tbsp
• Tamarind paste – 1/4 tsp (or less)
• Pottu Kadalai flour – 2 tsp
• Curry leaves – a few

Method:

Cook the shrimp adding a little water, salt and turmeric.

In a pan, heat oil and add the onions. Saute the onions for a while. Then, add the ginger garlic paste, curry leaves and saute. Then, add the turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder, pepper powder and salt. Fry this mixture for a few seconds and then add the pre-cooked shrimp. Sprinkle a little water and mix well. When the shrimp is fully cooked, add in the tamarind paste and mix. Allow to fry well. Finally, sprinkle the pottu kadalai flour and allow to become crisp.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot with rice, sambhar or rasam.
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 25 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Tomatoes – 3 (roughly chopped)
• Fenugreek powder (Vendayam) – 1 tsp
• Hing/Asafoetida powder (Perungayam) – 1/2 tsp
• Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
• Dry red chillies – 2
• Red Chilli Powder – 1 tbsp
• Salt – to taste
• Oil – 4 tbsp

Method:

Grind the tomatoes to a puree in a blender. In a pan, heat the oil and then splutter the mustard seeds and then add dry red chillies. Then, add the tomato puree and fenugreek, hing powders, chilli powder and salt and allow the mixture to boil. When the oil comes out on top, the pickle is ready.
Miscellaneous:

• Tips: This pickle goes well with idlis, dosas or upmas. Can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week
• Cooking Time: 20 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Raw Mango – 2 (finely chopped)
• Salt – 2 tbsp
• Red Chilli Powder – 3 tbsp
• Fenugreek powder (Vendayam) – 1/4 tsp
• Hing/Asafoetida (Perungayam) – 1/4 tsp
• Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
• Gingelly oil – 6 tbsp

Method:

In a bowl, mix the cut mango pieces with salt and allow to stand for 15 minutes (till the salt gives out water). Then add chilli powder and mix well. In a pan, heat the gingelly oil and splutter the mustard seeds. Then add the fenugreek and hing powders and remove from heat. Add the mango mixture to this and mix well. Store in a dry container.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: This pickle can be stored up to 10-15 days in the refrigerator.
• Cooking Time: 15 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Limes – 12 (seeded and cut into medium bite sized pieces)
• Salt – 1 cup
• Red Chilli Powder – 1/2 cup
• Fenugreek powder (Vendayam) – 1/4 tsp
• Hing/Asafoetida (Perungayam) – 1/4 tsp

Method:

Add 1 cup of water to the cut limes and allow to boil till soft. Then, add the salt, chilli powder and mix well. Then add the fenugreek and hing powders and mix well. Store in a dry container.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: You can add more salt in case limes are very sour or very big. You can also add or reduce chilli powder according to taste. Salt has to be good otherwise pickle will get spoiled soon.
• Cooking Time: 30 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Mochakottai – 1/4 cup
• Brinjals – 3 medium (diced) (optional)
• Dry Fish (Karuvaadu) – 1-2 slices cleaned
• Onions – 1 (medium) chopped
• Tomatoes – 2 (small) chopped
• Garlic – 3 cloves (small) – chopped roughly
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Chilli powder – 1 tsp
• Coriander powder – 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
• Tamarind paste – 1/4 tsp
• Oil – 3 tbsps
• Salt to taste
• Coconut paste – 3 tsp (optional)

Method:

Soak the mochakottai overnight and pressure cook with a little salt and set aside.

In a pan, heat the oil, splutter mustard seeds. Add the onions, garlic, tomatoes and saute for a while. Then, add the chilli, coriander, turmeric powders, brinjals and salt to the mix along with some water and allow the brinjals to cook well. Then add in the dry fish and allow to cook for a few minutes till it is cooked more than half. Then add the mochakottai to the mix and bring the contents to a boil. Finally stir in the tamarind paste. Bring to a boil.? (Optionally, can add in the coconut paste finally and mix well and bring to a boil.)
Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot with rice.
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 30 min
• Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

• Shark Fish – 1 lb
• Onions – 1 big (finely chopped)
• Green Chillies – 2 big (finely chopped)
• Garlic cloves – 4 finely chopped
• Fresh coriander leaves – 2 tbsp finely chopped
• Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
• Chilli powder – 1/4 tsp (optional)
• Ginger garlic paste – 1/2 tsp
• Salt – to taste
• Oil – 4 tbsps

Method:

Blanch/cook the Shark pieces in water. Drain the water and strain the water out of the pieces and pat dry.
In a bowl, shred them into tiny pieces. To this, add turmeric, chilli powder, onions, ginger garlic paste, green chillies, salt and mix well.

Heat oil in a pan, and add the chopped garlic, fry for 1/2 min and then add the mixed up contents of the bowl and fry till the raw smell of the shark disappears and oil starts to come out at the sides. Mix in chopped coriander leaves and serve.

Miscellaneous:

• Tips: Serve hot with rice. You can actually make this puttu with any other fishes other than shark also (choose ones that don’t have small bones – use any fillets from Tilapia, King Fish or Salmon also).
• Serves 4-5
• Cooking Time: 20 min
• Cuisine: Indian