Kulthi/Horsegrain/(Muthira and raw papaya puli)curry.

Horsegrain/Kulthi dal is a staple food mostly consumed in Southern parts of India. This miracle food is a rich source of vitamins and fibre. It is a very good food to keep your Kidneys healthy. One should include this health booster in one's menu. In Malayalam it is known as Muthira.

Ingredients

1. Kulthi dal- 100gm

2.Rawpapaya-50gm(half papaya)

3. Green chillies-2

4. Whole red chillies-2

5. Grated fresh coconut- a cup

6. Tamarind pulp- 2 tbs

7. Cummin seeds- 1 tsp

8. Tumeric powder-1tsp

9. Salt to taste

10.Shallots(Madras onion)-6

11. Coconut oil-2 tbs

12. Water - 4 glass

Method

Clean dal dry in a sieve (chalni) and remove any impurities present in it. Heat a wok/kadai and dry roast the dal on low flame for few minutes until you hear crackling sound. The dal breaks open while roasting.

Transfer it into a bowl, let it cool. Take a lemon size tamarind and soak it in lukewarm water for 10minutes. Extract the pulp and keep aside. 

Cut the raw papaya into small pieces

Grind together grated fresh coconut, green chillies, whole red chillies and cummin seeds  in a mixie. Keep aside.

 

Wash the roasted Kulthi dal nicely. In a cooker cook the Kulthi dal alongwith the raw papaya pieces, adding tumeric powder,salt and two glasses of water, six whistle. Transfer the papaya  kulthi dal mixture into a pan. Dilute the tamarind pulp with the remaining two glasses of water. Pour the tamarind water into the pan of papaya dal mixture, mix well. Place the pan on stove and let it boil for ten minutes. Add the grounded masala(gratedfreshcoconut,red chillies,greenchillies,and cummin paste) to the pan and boil further for 5 minutes. Switch of the flame.  

For the tempering chopp the shallots finely into small pieces.

Take a tempering pan, pour two tbs coconut oil, when hot add the chopped shallots and fry until brown. Pour this tempering over the curry and mix well.

Kulthi dal raw papaya puli is ready to be served.

(Pic courtesy Google images)

The Umbrella

On this father's day remembering my Acchan I would like to write down some memorable moments of my life. I don't know why a single day is being marked as a remberance for your loved ones?  For, the one who dwells in your heart doesn't need a day to be remembered. He is always there, alive, in some part of your brain. Don't know why so?? But I feel, the connectivity, or the bond is never broken, may be the soul is always connected. My Acchan as I have introduced to you all before, was a big hearted man, always loved and adored by everyone in our Kudumbam. He was that "Umbrella" who will protect his near and dear from the showers of pain and sadness even if the umbrella has a hole in it. He was so generous that he will give away whatever he has to the one in front of him even if he doesn't have enough for his family. He always used to count the needy first, than his needs. He is still remembered and loved by all. I would love to pen down an incident. This was the year I think may be 1977 or '78 when a major flood took place in Calcutta. The life in the city came to a stand still. It was pouring day in and out for weeks and the whole city was completely submerged in water and all places where the eyes can see, was water, water and only  water. The city was completely water logged and the water level on streets rose to a height of around second floor buildings. This was the time when boats were sailing on the roads helping out the estranged souls, and were also, giving out the medicines, to be safe from cholera. As kids we were all excited and really enjoyed the sight of boats on roads. All the houses on the ground floor and first floor were evacuated and people were shifted to care centers and shelter homes.  The situation was such that no daily commodities was reachable and the livelihood of the citizens came to a complete halt. It was during this period that my cousins, who were staying seperately after getting jobs  were finding it difficult to survive these odds. Their house, where they used to stay, all got submerged and they got stuck themselves in their offices. Their only ray of hope was my Accha. Their "Umbrella." They called him for help with utmost difficulty since telephone lines too were disconnected. My acchan made arrangements for their safety and when the water level receded, approached them to come over to our house. Our  home being on the third floor of the building was not much effected. So my cousins along with their room mates arrived and stayed in our home. The availability of gas or gasoline too was very difficult. Amma, and we all for the first time in our life used the chulha. Aduppu or wooden fire place of kitchen in Kerala, was entirely different from a Chulha. Chulha once ignited burns out the coal very easily, so one has to be ready with all the preparations of cooking first and then set up the flames of the chulha. It cooks very quickly and your meal get ready in no time. The best part is that it gives out warmth while cooling down  thus a remorse, from the dampness, because of continuous raining. We used to cling around, Amma in the evening when she used to make dinner to get the warmth from the chulha. My Amma did the cooking for everyone with whatever little could be managed by Acchan. The prior indication of rain and storm in the papers helped Amma to arrange for the groceries primarily, and all such necessary stuffs were stocked in advance. Thus we all, though having tough times, could have our stomach full. It took a month or two to get the life back on tracks. All my cousins and their friends were happy and were very obliged. They thanked my Acchan and Amma. Life went by as usual and years passed by, we all sisters by now were married and settled. 

It's so happened that my Amma and Accha were on a trip to Kerela.  Oh! I forget to mention one wonderful habit of my Acchan. My Acchan was a person living in the present. He never plans anything. He goes on with his life, as the life takes him. My Amma and Acchan were on their return journey to Calcutta, as said, my Acchan checked the tickets only when he reached the station and lol !! The tickets were not confirmed and more over the boarding station too was very far. They had to board a local train to reach their boarding destination. Now  Amma was loosing her cool  and Accha was trying to find a solution. In this haphazard situation of theirs out came a solace to them in person and helped them. Any guess??........

As said by the learnt, your good deeds always comes back to you as your karma. This person was none other;  He was one of those friends of my cousins who took shelter in our home during floods.  He was stationed as a Station Master in that Railway Station. He was overwhelmed seeing my Amma and Acchan. He now arranged a stay for them in  the Railyatri Niwas and also booked a confirmed ticket for them for their safe journey. The "Umbrella" was once again unflured but this time the other way.

I never liked Accha's haphazard way of handling things. But he always used to just smile and say "take it easy". Life is just to live so live fully. Acchan lived his life fully, being just simple, loveable and caring for others. And I am still trying to imbibe these values into my kids and myself for  experiencing life better. May be, because of this lively spirit, I could withstand this lockdown period so cooly.

Kadachakka/Breadfruit Masala curry

 

Breadfruit

Breadfruit/ Kadachakka in Malayalam is mostly found in the tropical area of the globe.This belongs to the family of mulberry and can be eaten as raw vegetable or as fruit when ripened. This veggie is a good source of Phosphorus,maganesium,

Zinc,iron, maganese and calcium. It is a complete meal in itself and boosts immunity. Being ethnic the availability in the local market is difficult. One can buy this veggie from online sites.

Ingredients

1. Kadachakka/ Breadfruit- 1

2. Corainder seeds -4 tbs

3. Whole Red chillies- 4

4. Pepper corns- 1/2 tbs

5. The three C Powder- 1 tsp

6. Grated fresh coconut1cup

7. Shallots- 5nos

8. Ginger- an inch

9. Curry leaves a few

10. Turmeric powder-1tsp

11. Mustard seeds-1tsp

12. Salt to taste

13. Coconut oil -2 tbs

14. Water- 3 cups

Methods

Cut the breadfruit into small pieces

boil it with two cups of water in a cooker adding tumeric powder and salt, two whistle. For the masala, dry roast the coriander seeds, whole red chillies, pepper corns and the (cinnamon,cardamom, clove,) the three 'C'.

and dry grind it in a mixie to a powdered form. Keep it aside. Wet grind together grated freshcoconut,shallots and ginger to a fine paste.

Open the cooker, transfer the cooked Kadachakka to a large pan, add the powdered masala, stir and let it boil for two minutes on a low flame.  When the masala is blended nicely add the wet paste (grounded coconut shallots and ginger) add a glass of water and cook for another two minutes. Remove from flame. Take a tempering kadai. Put two tbs of coconut oil. When hot add the mustard seeds one whole red chilli and curry leaves. Let the mustard splutter, pour this tempering on to the curry stir nicely.

Your Kadachakka masala curry is ready to be served. You can serve it with steamed rice or rotis.

👇

These trees are in plenty in Kerala and South Konkan areas of India. It is known as Bakri-chajar in Hindi.

Pic courtesy Google images

Broad beans in curd gravy/ Charu Kootaan.

Broad beans belong to the family of beans with lots of nutritional value. It's full of fibre, veg protein and is a good source of folate, phosphorus,manganese,maganesium, iron, calcium vitamin B-6 and B-12. It's a complete immune booster. Include this wonder veggie into one's meal. 

Ingredients

1. Broad beans- 250 gm

2. Green chillies- 5

3. Grated fresh coconut- a cup

4. Cummin seeds-1 tsp

5. Sour curd- 2 cups

6. Raw rice- 2 tbs

7. Salt to taste

8. Pepper powder -1/2 tsp

9. Hing Powder- 1/2 tsp

10. Tumeric powder-1 tsp

11. Coconut oil- 1 tbs

12. Water- 2 cups

13. Curry leaves a few

Method

Clean and cut the broad beans into two.

In a pan boil the broad beans  adding two glass of water,salt and turmeric powder. Cook till soft. Keep aside. Soak two tablespoon of raw rice in water for half an hour. Grind together grated fresh coconut, green chillies,cummin seeds and soaked raw rice to a fine paste.

Beat the two cups of sour curd nicely. Mix the grounded masala into  the beaten curd, keep aside. Place the pan of cooked broad beans on stove pour the masala curd mixture boil for two minutes add hing and pepper powder. Switch off the flame add curry leaves and coconut oil. 

The Charu kootan is ready to be served. Serve it with steamed rice.

Pic courtesy Google images

The Morning Alarm

Once again taking you all to my nostalgic lane. Out of so many favourite pastime one of my pastime was watching the market activities sitting on my window pane. Yes "window pane" in those days houses used to have large doors and windows with broad window panes where one can sit and sip down their favourite beverages. Kolkattians are in the habit of buying their veggies, fruits and fish early in the morning. As such the market footpaths or the outer market as one would say was the place of hawkers. These small scale vendors used to lay down their products very early in the morning. The first thing in the morning was the ice truck which was unloaded on the road in front of the ice shop. These ice slabs were very heavy and were covered with saw dust,  and unloading the same was a real thing, for the labourers used to unload it by pulling it down with an iron hook and then again pulling these into the shop. These ice slabs were then supplied to the cold drink shops, fish and meat markets to preserve their goods, since, there was no refrigerator or cold storage then. The saw dust covered ice looked very dirty and I never used to like it. I always used to think why it is covered so??🤔later as I grew up I knew 'saw dust' slow down the melting process. This ice truck after arrival used to ring a bell,and the truck's reverse turn also had a rythm by the cleaner boy, who used to bang his hand on the sides to give direction to the driver, this was my Alarm Clock for this truck used to reach daily exactly by 5am in the morning. The next is the 'Phool Wali' who used to lay down her flowers ,mogra, genda, jaba phool, tulsi etc, she will be calling out " phool niye nau takhoorer janne"5takka ek mala"..... this voice will be curbed by the banana vendor. "Ek dozen kola,  du takka, du takka kheye dekhun ekdum misti". (One dozen bananas only for two rupees its very sweet like rasogulla) All these noices, rather, I would say melodies, used to break my slumber and I  used to jump out of my bed to have the view and relish the morning. The spirit it gave was immence, for I used to get inspired by them,  I always wondered how dedicated these people are,  to make a livelihood they never missed their time or duty. The best part was the radio played by the tea stalls. Oh what a wonderful mornings were those. Songs of old hindi movies used to reach my ears mixed with all those chaos around. I an ardent lover of music used to relish the melodies flowing out,  and my storage book,  my mind,  used to download all those wonderful songs in my memory bank. Those days,  all songs of Lata ji was on my tips.,I used to remember every line and just hearing the background music,  I could guess the song. Listening to these radio melodies, I grew up and hindi movie songs are a part of me now.  The repeated hearing of these songs daily made me a small gayika. And this is still a part of my daily routine. Without music and melodies I find myself listless.  My radio is always humming songs for me through out the day. And I pay my tribute to Mohd Rafi ji, Kishore Kumar ji, Mukesh ji, Manna dey ji ,Talat Mehood ji, Mehendra Kapoor ji and all  others. I  really  miss those wonderful mornings which were filled with innocence and tension free.

Pic courtesy Google images

Steamed Omellet curry

Ingredients

1. Eggs- 6 nos

2. Onion- 2

3. Green chillies- 2

4. Coriander and curry leaves a few

5. Tomatoes- 2

6. Coriander powder- 2 tsp

7. Red Chilli powder-1/2 tsp

8. Garam masala(Cinnamon, fennel, cardamom,clove crushed powder )- 1 tsp

9. Ginger an inch

10. Garlic - 5 cloves

11. Tumeric powder-1 tsp

12. Coconut milk- 1 cup.

13. Salt to taste

14. Mustard seeds- 1 tsp

15. Coconut oil - 2 tbs

16. Pepper powder 1/2 tsp

17. Water - 2 glass

18. Grated fresh coconut-1 cup

Method.

Finely chop one onion, one green chilli, and corainder leaves. Keep aside. Beat the eggs until fluffy,add the chopped onion,green chilli, coriander leaves and salt, mix well. Pour the mixture in a greased shallow round cake tin or any steel vessel. Cook the Omellete in a steamer or in a cooker without whistle. Check with a butter kinfe or fork. If the kinfe or fork comes out clean then its cooked. It takes approximately ten minutes. Remove from the steamer and let it cool.Cut the steamed Omellete into square shape or long strips.

Chop the rest of the ingredients, onion, tomotoes, green chilli,ginger and garlic. Keep aside.

Heat a Kadai. Pour the coconut oil, when hot, put the mustard seeds, let it splutter, add the chopped onion, green chilli, ginger garlic and curry leaves. Saute until the onions turn pink, add the coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and pepper powder, fry for a minute, add the tomotoes and salt, fry until the tomotoes are soft and mushy. Add a glass of water and let it boil for 2 minutes. Add the omellete pieces and garam masala powder (Cinnamon, fennel, cardamom,clove crushed powder )cover and cook for another two minutes. Remove from flame and add  fresh coconut milk.

You can make this coconut milk with Nestle coconut milk powder or with grated fresh coconut. Pour a glass of warm water over the fresh coconut, slightly mix it with hand and churn it in a mixie for a minute, squeeze it out in a cloth. (See the pic)

Your fresh coconut milk is ready to be used. Serve the omellete curry with rotis, parathas or with any 🍞.

Pic courtesy Google images

KARINKALAN ( A curry with papad tempering)

(A combined dish made from ash gourd,greenpumkin and cow pea beans)

Ash gourd is high in fibre and water content and lowers one's calories thus promoting a good weight control. Green Pumpkin is a good source of  Vitamin A, and, cow pea beans are rich sources of micronutrients including folate,iron,copper and thiamine. A blend of these veggies together gives a packed punch of energy and is a light dinner supplement in most of the household of Kerela.

A quick and an easy recipe.

Ingredients

1. Ash gourd- 250 gm

2. Green pumkin- 250gm

3. Cow pea beans -100gms

4. Green chillies-  4

5. Mustard seeds-1 tsp

6. Par Boiled Raw rice -1tsp

7. Curry leaves- a few

8. Whole red chillies-2

9.Coconut oil for tempering

10. Kerela papad or plain urad  papad -  2 nos

11.Salt to taste

12. Water - two glasses

Method

Cut the green pumkin and ash gourd into thin and small slices, and the cow pea beans into long strips as shown in pic below.

Now boil all the three vegetables together in a pan, (if it's a clay one it will give more aroma and taste) adding two glasses of water, salt and slit green chillies cook until soft and cooked completely. Do not mash. Keep aside. Heat a tempering pan. When hot pour the coconut oil. Put the mustard seeds, raw rice,whole red chillies spilt into two and curry leaves,when the mustard seeds splutter add the magic ingredient papad cut into small pieces. Fry for few minutes, pour this tempering on to the curry and serve with steamed rice. Your simple and healthy dish is ready to be served with crispy papadam as toppings.

Kerela papad.⏫

Pic courtesy Google images