Kandathippili Rasam / Long Pepper Rasam

Kandathippili Rasam / Long Pepper Rasam is one of the traditional rasam recipes of Tamil Nadu. This rasam has numerous health benefits. It helps to cure severe cold, soothes cough and it is used to cure stomach related problems and good for digestion. It increases the appetite, removes toxins from your body and boosts immunity.

My mom used to make this rasam whenever we complained of any body aches, especially after coming back home from a long trip. 

In our household, rasam is enjoyed by everyone and they all love to drink the rasam as an Appetizer.

Ingredients

For Rasam Base :

Thick Tamarind Water - 1 cup 
Hing / Asafoetida - 1 Dash
Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp
Sambar Powder - 2 tsp
Salt - As Required
Jaggery - 1 pinch
Crushed Tomatoes - 1.5 Cup
Water - As Required
Corainder Leaves - To Garnish 
Cooked Toor Dal Water - 1 cup

For Seasoning:

Ghee - 2 tsp
Hing - 1 pinch
Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Curry Leaves - Few

For Grinding :

Coriander Seeds - 3 tsp
Black Peppercorn - 2 tsp
Cumin Seeds - 4 tsp
Dry Red Chilli - 1
Kandathippili ( Long Pepper ) - 6 sticks

Preparation :

• Soak tamarind in hot water for 10 minutes and extract the tamarind juice and keep it ready.
• Roast the ingredients for making the Kandathippili powder and grind them in the mixer.
• Add all the ingredients for making the rasam in the cooking vessel. 
• Adjust the consistency by adding required amount of water.
• Close the vessel and allow the rasam to boil for 4 or 5 minutes.
• When the raw smell of the tamarind completely goes away, add the kandathippili powder, toor dal water and mix them well.
• Allow the rasam to cook for few more minutes on medium flame till you see a frothy layer on top of the rasam.
• Switch off the flame and do the seasoning separately.
• Pour the tadka over the rasam vessel.
• Garnish with crushed coriander leaves and enjoy this healthy homemade rasam with hot rice and ghee.

Tips

Try to make rasam always in "Eeya Sombu" , a pure tin vessel and enjoy. 

Healthy Salad for Weightloss

Earlier, I was not a big fan of raw salads. I found it really difficult to pick them and chew little by little, I totally did not enjoy it. Slowly, few salads that I had at outside restaurants triggered my tongue and I discovered the way of enjoying the salad in my own terms. Its always good to eat raw vegetables and fruits daily. If you like to reduce your weight or fat from your body, consumption of raw vegetables helps you to achieve the results quickly. This is one of the salads I make often. I don't follow any rule or formula specifically while making a salad for myself. I fix my salad with any leftover veggies and if I like the combo, I will record it and follow the same pattern sometimes.  This salad was also recorded in the same way. 

Ingredients

For the Salad :

Romaine Lettuce - 1 cup roughly chopped
Cucumber - 1/2 cup chopped 
Grated Carrot - 1/2 cup
Steamed Corn - 1/2 cup
Cherry tomatoes - 1/2 cup ( Cut the cherry tomato in half )
Mixed Bell Pepper chopped - 1/2 cup ( I used red bell pepper, orange bell pepper and green bell pepper ).
Salt - As required
Coriander Leaves - 1 tbsp ( Shredded Leaves )

For the Dressing:

Lemon Juice - 1 tbsp
Salt - As required
Black Pepper powder - 1 tsp
Mexican Seasoning Powder - 2 tsp
( If you don't have this, you can add 2 tsp of crushed red chili flakes and cumin powder )

Preparation

Wash all the vegetables and cut into desired shapes.
Assemble them in your salad mixing bowl.
Meantime, make the dressing and keep it ready.
Add required amount of salt and pour the dressing into the bowl.
Mix it thoroughly and enjoy.

Tips 

You can add any chopped nuts of your choice into this salad and enjoy. Nuts like Walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and almonds are best suited.

Dangar Pachidi / Dangar Pachadi / Urad Dal Raita

Dangar Pachidi / Urad Dal Raita /Dangar Thayir Pachidi is a very traditional recipe,which is not talked by people nowadays. In fact, I wonder how many people of our generation know about this easy thayir pachidi.  This is one of the no cook raita / thayir pachidi which can be easily prepared at home. This fiber rich pachidi is a good source of Iron, folic acid and is best suited for women. It reduces cholesterol and has numerous health benefits too. It serves as a good accompaniment to Vatha Kuzhambu, Milagu Kuzhambu or any spicy Kara Kuzhambu.

We can add vegetables if we like, I added few fried  ladiesfinger / okra into this pachidi. My grandma used to add fried vathals along with tadka into this pachidi. Dont forget to make this yummy pachidi with a vegetable of your choice and enjoy with some spicy kuzhambu. This Pachidi helps you greatly especially when you are making a very big feast with 15 items for some guests. 

Ingredients

Thick Curd - 1.5 Cup

Water - As required

Black Urad Dal - 1 tbsp

Salt - As Required

Oil - 2 tsp

Hing / Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp

Jeera / Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Curry Leaves - Few

Dry Red chili - 1

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

Red Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp

Cut Okra / Ladiesfinger / Vendaikai - 2 Cup ( As you Like )

Preparation

• Dry Roast the Black Urad dal till you notice a nice aroma.

• Powder it in a mixer and add it to the curd mixture. Add water to adjust the consistency of the pachidi.
• Add required amount of salt to this and keep it aside.

• Meantime, add oil in a frying pan. When its heated, add mustard seeds, jeera, hing, curry leaves, dry red chili, turmeric powder. 
• After that, add the cut okra,salt,red chili powder and fry them till the okra is nicely cooked and fried.

• Transfer the hot fried okra/ ladies finger curry into the Dangar Pachidi mixture.
• Enjoy with Vatha kuzhambu and Appalam. 
  

Tips 

1. You can add grated carrot or grated cucumber / zucchini into the pachidi directly. If you prefer to add freshly grated veggies, make tadka separately and pour it over the pachidi.

2. I like to make this Pachidi with black urad dal. You can make this with white urad dal too. 

3. This pachidi tastes very good with fried veggies or vathals.

4. I like to make this with fresh curd or light sour curd as its a no cook Pachidi.

Gooseberry Cucumber Curd Pachidi / Nellikai Vellarikai Thayir Pachidi

In every meal of the day, I love to include one curd pachidi with either cucumber, carrot or any other suitable vegetable. Though we don't get fresh Gooseberries year round here, I bought a pack of frozen gooseberries from the Indian store.  Using those gooseberries, I made this fresh curd pachidi for our Saturday lunch thali. I make this pachidi whenever I buy frozen gooseberries. Gooseberry also called as "Nellikai" in Tamil is a good source of Vitamin C, boosts immunity in our system, good for diabetes and has numerous health benefits. I also added a small cucumber along with gooseberries while making this pachidi but its totally optional. Personally I like the blended mixture of cucumber with gooseberries and coconut.

Try to make this curd pachidi often in your kitchen and enjoy. Try to add tadka to your curd pachidi always, it definitely adds more flavor and enhances the taste of the curd pachidi. 

Ingredients

Gooseberries - 5 or 6 medium size
Cucumber - 1 Small

Green chillies - 3 

Fresh Coconut flakes - 1/2 cup

Cumin seeds / Jeera - 2 tsp

Ginger - 1 small piece

Salt - As required

Fresh Thick curd - 1 cup

Coriander leaves - To Garnish

For Tadka

Oil - 1 tsp

Hing - A Dash

Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp

Urad Dal - 1 tsp

Curry Leaves - 2 or 3

Dry red chili - 1

Preparation

Grind gooseberries, shredded cucumber, coconut flakes, green chillies, jeera, ginger along with little curd in a blender. Add required amount of salt and grind again for few seconds. Transfer the mixture into a serving bowl. Add the remaining curd to the pachidi and mix it well. If its too thick, add little water to the pachidi and adjust the consistency. Prepare the tadka in a pan with little oil and pour the tadka over the curd pachidi. Garnish with few crushes coriander leaves and include this delicious curd pachidi in your thali / meal.

Avocado Chappathi / Avocado Roti / Avocado Paratha

Avocado is one of the veggies which always occupy a permanent space in our refrigerator. Avocado is incredibly nutritious, high in Potassium, loaded with fiber, good for heart, etc., Today I made Avocado Chappathis using a perfectly ripen Avocado, instead of making my regular guacamole. The rotis are extremely softer and it melts in your mouth. No need to add water while kneading the roti dough, the fatty texture from the avocado itself is enough to knead the roti dough. With a side of cucumber salad and spinach chole, the dinner was perfect with hot Avocado rotis.

Avocado roti dough should be made a little thicker as it would be easier to make the rounds. 

Ingredients 

Ripen Avocado - 1

Salt - As required

Ajwain Seeds - 1/2 tsp

Crushed green chili - 1 medium

Olive Oil - 1 tsp

Whole Wheat Flour - 1 Cup

Bajri Flour - 1/4 cup

NO WATER REQUIRED

Preparation

First, peel the Avocado and add it in the mixing bowl. Smash the Avocado completely and make a smooth paste. Add all the other ingredients into the mixing bowl and knead the dough without adding any water. Keep it aside. After 20 minutes, make a small round and fry the roti on the heated tawa

both sides. Apply little ghee on top of the avocado roti before serving. Enjoy the rotis with good accompaniments. 

Majjiga Pulusu / Mor Kuzhambu without Coconut

Any gravy or side dish made with curd or buttermilk always tempts me. Though I love to make Mor Kuzhambu in my regular meal, sometimes if you run out of fresh coconut or not in a mood to grind the paste for mor kuzhambu, Majjiga Pulusu is the better option. Neither we need fresh coconut nor we need to grind the paste for making this yummy Pulusu. My husband taught me how to make this simple, easiest Majjiga Pulusu using the leftover sour yogurt. You can either make this Pulusu with just onions or with tomatoes, grated cucumber or any veggies of your choice.  Pour this over a plate of hot rice and enjoy this with a side of some spicy potato fry.

When you are making a big meal and if you like to include a gravy item with yogurt, Majjiga Pulusu is a wonderful choice. 

Ingredients 

Thick Sour Yogurt/curd -  2 Cups

Water - As required

Red Onion - 1/2 cup sliced

Salt -  To Taste

Coriander Leaves - To Garnish

Tadka 

Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon ( Optional )

Hing / Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp

Cumin Seeds / Jeera - 1 tsp

Dry Red chilies - 2 

Grated Ginger - 1/2 teaspoon

Green Chili - 1 

Curry Leaves - 1 Small Stem

Urad Dal - 1 tsp

Channa Dal - 1 tsp

Preparation

Take 2 cups of thick yogurt/curd in a vessel.  Add some water into it and adjust the consistency as you like but try not to make it thin. Add required of salt into it.  On its side, heat 2 tsp of oil in a tadka pan. Add the ingredients as mentioned under Tadka. Pour the tadka over the vessel and let it remain on the stove for 3 to 4 minutes on medium flame. Switch if off and garnish with coriander leaves. Enjoy this pulusu with hot rice.