Tomato Kadayal - Thakkali Kadayal

 Every other day we struggle to find out a side dish for idly, dosa or roti and chappati. When I came across one such dish, I decided to give it a try ofcourse with improvisation.

Ingredients:

Tomato - 8 nos medium sized (I used the country variety as it will have the required sourness)

Shallots - 8 nos

Green Chilly - 2 nos

Red Chilly - 2 nos

Curry leaves - a few

Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup finely chopped

Salt - 1 1/2 tsp

Hing - 1/2 tsp

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

Gingely oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Thuvar Dal - 2 cups (pressure cooked and mashed well) - Optional

Method:

Peel and chop the shallots into 2. Chop the tomatoes in a chopper or cut them into small cubes. 

In a pan heat the oil and add mustard seeds, when it splutters add the cumin seeds, hing, turmeric powder and saute a little. Slit the green chillies and add it to the oil along with red chillies. Add half of the curry leaves to the oil and saute it well. 

Add the shallots to the oil and mix it well. Keeping the flame in low and stirring it will turn it glossy. Add the chopped tomatoes and 1/2 cup of water. Increase the flame and let the tomatoes cook. Mash it well with a masher and add salt and bring it to a boil. 

Add the remaining curry leaves and the coriander leaves. 

Serve it hot with idly, dosa or chappati.

To serve the same with rice, add the cooked and mashed dal.

Sambar sadham for neivedhyams

 When we make mixed rice varieties one of the recipes that needs extra care and cooking is sambar saadham or sambar rice and when it is made for neivedhyam /prasad, onion is not added. It can be made with just one vegetable or with a few vegetables. It is similar to araichu vitta sambar

Ingredients

Rice - 1 cup

Thuvar Dal - 1 1/2 cup

Water - 5 cups

Tamarind paste - 3 tbsp

Gingely oil - 4 tbsp

Ghee - 4 tbsp

Dhania - 2 tbsp

Thuvar dal - 1 tbsp

Channa dal /  Kadala paruppu - 1 tbsp

Red Chilly - 8 nos

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - 1/2 cup

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup

Hing - 1/4 inch piece (or 1 tsp powder)

Salt (preferrably rock salt) - 1 1/2 tbsp

Cashew nuts - 12 to 15 nos (finely chopped)

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - /12 spoon

Vegetables to use:

Carrot - 2 nos

Potato - 2 nos (medium sized)

Beans - 150 gms 1(can also be avoided)

Green peas -1/2 cup (if using dry peas soak it the previous night)

Chow chow - 1 no small size

Brinjal - 2 nos (round ones medium sized)

Pumpkin - 1/4 kg

Method:

Wash and Soak 1/2 cup dal and rice seperately for 30 mins. Pressure cook it with 3 cups of water. Add 1 spoon of gingely oil to it. Once cooled and pressure is released mash it well. Transfer it to a bowl and keep that in a shallow plate with hot water so that it does not gets lumpy. 

Pressure cook 1 cup dal with a pinch of turmeric powder and mash it well.

In a hard bottom shallow pan add 1 tbsp of ghee and 2 tbsp of gingely oil. When it gets hot add dhaniya, thuvar dal, channa dal in the same order. When all these changes colour add hing and red chillies. Fry all these for 5 mins add 1/4 cup of  curry leaves, grated coconut and mix them all well till the coconut turns slightly golden. Remove from flame add the cumin seeds and let it cool. When cold grind it with 1/12 cup of coriander leaves to a fine paste by adding 1/4 cup of water. 

Heat 1 cup of water and add the tamarind paste to it and make it tamarind water.

Peel and chop carrots, chow chow and potatoes to cubes. Beans to 1 inch pieces. Brinjal to cubes, peel and cut the pumpkin to big pieces. If it is dry green peas pressure cook it seperately. If it is normal green peas add it along with the other vegetables. Pressure all with a pinch of turmeric powder and 1/2 spoon of salt for just 2 whistles. Let it cool.

In a hard bottom pan add 1 tbsp of gingely oil and 1 tbsp of ghee and once hot add the mustard seeds and when it splutters add the tamarind water slowly to it. Add the salt and bring it to boil. Once it starts boil add the pressure cooked vegetables and 1/2 cup of water and let it boil for a while. When it starts boiling add the ground paste and mix well. Keep stirring so that it does not settle at the bottom but is mixed well with the tamarind water. Once it thickens add the mashed dal and mix it well and bring it to boil. 

In a shallow vessel transfer the rice and add sambar slowly and keep mixing till it reaches the perfect consistency. 

In the tadka pan add the gingely oil and ghee. When hot add the finely chopped cashew nuts. Spread the remaining curry leaves on top of the mixed rice. Pour the cashew nut tadka on top of the curry leaves. Chop the remaining 1/4 cup coriander leaves and add it on top. Keep coered so all the flavour and frangrance is enhanced. Mix well before serving. 

Serve hot with fried appalam or pappadam or with potato kara curry. 

Araithu vitta sambar or Araichu Vitta Sambar

 Any Vegetable like White pumpkin, Drum stick, Raddish, Lady's finger, carrot, Small Onions (avoid this if it is made for festivls) can be used to make this Araichu vitta Sambar. 

Vengaya Sambar

Mullangi Sambar

Ingredients:

Thuvar Dal - 1/2 cup

Tamarind Paste - 1 1/2 tbsp

Salt to taste

Turmeric Powder - 1 pinch

For Grinding:

Coriander seeds - 1/4 cup

Thuvar Dal - 2 tbsp

Bengal Gram Dal - 2 tbsp

Red Chilly - 6 to 8 nos

Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp

Black Pepper - 6 nos

Curry Leaves - a few

Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup

Rice - 2 tbsp

Oil - 2 tbsp

For seasoning:

Ghee - 1 tbsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Asafodeita Powder - 1 pinch

Curry Leaves - a few

Method:

Cut the vegetables into bigger pieces. Fry coriander seeds, Thuvar dal, Bengal gram dal, cumin seeds, black pepper, rice and red chilly till they become brown in colour. Reduce the flame and add the grated coconut and fry it till becomes brown. Grind everything along with curry leaves to a fine paste.

Pressure cook the thuvar dal with a pinch of turmeric powder and mash it finely.

In a hard bottom vessel, add 2 cups of water, tamarind paste, vegetable and salt and bring it to a boil. Add the ground paste and mix well. Reduce the flame and bring it to boil. Add the mashed thuvar dal and mix well. If the sambar is thick add water.

Remove from flame. In a seasoning laddle, add ghee and oil and when hot add the mustard seeds and wait till it splutters. Add the asafodeita. Chop the curry leaves finely and sprinkle it on the sambar. Pour the seasoning on top of the curry leaves to enhance the flavour. Can also add a few coriander leaves.