Sambar for idly / dosa

Tur dal - pressure cooked till soft - 1 cup
Onion -  cut into slightly thick slices - 1 cup
Tomato - 1 - diced
Green chilli - 2 - slit
Tamarind - 1 small ball about the size of 1/2 a lemon
                -  soaked in water and 2 cups of pulp    removed
Jaggery / palm sugar- 1 tbsp
Sambar powder - 1 1/2 tbsp
salt
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil (preferably coconut) - 2tbsp
mustard - 1 tsp
curry leaf - 6
red chilli - 2 broken
coriander leaf - 2 tbsp

Optional :
Ladies finger - 2 - cut into 1 inch batons
drumstick - 2 inch batons - 5 no:s
red pumpkin - 6 cubes

Heat oil and splutter the mustard, red chillies and curry leaf.
Into this add the sliced onions and green chillies and cook till onion turns transparent.
Add the tomatoes and cook till it turns soft.
If you are adding ladies finger or drumstick, add now and saute for a minute.
Add the tamarind pulp, salt and turmeric powder.
Pumpkin can be added now.
If not using the optional ingredients, simmer on a medium high flame . Otherwise cook covered on a low flame till the veggies (drumstick, ladies finger, pumpkin) get cooked.
Add the sambar powder and cook for another 2 minutes on a low flame.
Add the jaggery and the tur dal.
Boil for another 2 minutes.
Serve hot topped with coriander leaf.

Wheat / gothambu dosa

When you do not have dosa batter, but want to eat dosa!
It stays soft for hours...

Basic Ratio
Wheat flour : Rice flour : Maida (all purpose flour)
Ratio is 3:1:1
Meaning : If you use 3 cups of wheat flour, then you use 1 cup each of rice flour and maida.

My base measure was an extra extra large spoon which will be equal to 3 heaped tablespoon. And the following is the quantities I used :

Garnish :
Oil - 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Green Chilly - 2 tbsp
Ginger - 1 tsp
Curry leaf - 6
Coriander leaf - 2 tbsp
Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

Extra ingredients
Salt to taste
Gingelly / sesame oil to cook

Method:
Mix the 3 flours together with water to make a thin batter with no lumps.
(I had to use 5 glasses)
Heat oil and splutter the mustard seeds and add the urad dal. Heat until the dal turns red.
Turn off the flame and add the asafoetida powder and rest of the ingredients.
Cool to room temoerature.
Add to the batter.
Add salt, mix well and taste.

Heat the dosa tawa and pour the batter along the sides. Make a sort of net. Add sesame oil along the sides and in between. Cook till golden brown.
Turn over carefully and cook till done.

Make more 'godhambu' dosas and relish with onion chutney or dosa podi.

Masala Tea / Chai

There is nothing as tasty as Masala Tea on a rainy day. Serve it with vada / bonda or banana chips or kadachakka chips and to quote The Carpenters - 'rainy days and mondays' will never get you down.

To make 2 cups
Ingredients:
Water - 1 cup
Milk - 1 cup
Sugar - 2 tbsp
Ginger - 1 inch slice
Cardamom - 2 pods
Mint leaves - 6 (optional)
Tea dust - 1 tbsp (Preferably 'strong' variety , do not use tea leaf)

Method:
Pound the ginger and cardamom together.

Boil the water and milk together with sugar, ginger, cardamom and torn mint leaves (if using).

Add the tea and reduce flame. Simmer for 3 -5 minutes until you nearly reach the desired color. It will darken further while resting.

Cover and keep aside for further 2 minutes.

Strain into another vessel.

Serve hot with your favorite snack.

Kichadi

Fresh or Deep fried vegetable mixed with curd.

There are 2 ways of doing this. Either you just add curd or you can grind and add coconut to the vegetable and then add curd. 

And you can choose to add spluttered mustard.

Ingredients: 
Vegetable - 1 cup
(Ladies finger - cut in 1 cm pieces
 Bitter gourd - cut into small pieces. Add salt and keep aside. Squeeze to remove all juice.
 Tomato - seeds removed and cut into small cubes
 Cucumber - grated , juice squeezed out
 Carrot - grated)

Curd - 1 1/2 cups
Salt

(Optional) to be ground into a fine paste -
Coconut - 1/2 cup
Green chilli - 1
Ginger - 1 inch slice

(Optional) To splutter:
Oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard - 1/2tsp
Red chilli - 1, broken
curry leaf - 4

Method: 
If using Ladies finger or bitter gourd , deep fry until brown and crisp.
Otherwise, mix the vegetables, salt, curd and if using, the coconut paste just before serving.
Splutter the mustard, red chilli and curry leaf in the oil and add to the kichadi.

Kaalan

Cooked sour curd with spices. This dish is a MUST for onam and all sadyas.
The best part is the dish can be prepared in advance, and the day of Onam or sadya, the dish can be finished off.
So this recipe is in 2 parts.
The first part deals with the prior prep till onam day.
The second deals with the final bit before serving.

Before we start....A confession. I had NO YAM. So I made my kaalan with just the raw banana. Please excuse.

Kaalan  - to be stored

Curd - made from 1 liter milk (use home made variety 24 -36 hrs after fermenting)
Yam - 1/4 kg , skin removed and cut into big chunks
Banana - starting to ripen - Nethirakka - 1 large, washed and cut into thick pieces with skin
salt  - 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder - 2tsp
Pepper - 1tbsp
Chilli powder - 2tbsp

Cook the yam with a little salt and turmeric powder until a knife can run through it but it retains shape.
(I usually pressure cook and wait for 2 whistles.)
Boil the banana in another vessel until cooked.
While the vegetables are cooking, start boiling the curd with the salt, chilli powder, turmeric powder and pepper.

Keep on a steady boil stirring in between.

When the banana / yam is cooked, add it without the water into the curd.

After nearly half hour this mixture would have reduced more than 1/2.

This is almost done but the easiest way to find out if done is to not stir for a minute and wait for the smoky burnt smell from the thick slew settled at the bottom.
You might feel that it is liquidy at the top and thick at the bottom, but wait till this cools.
Cool until room temperature and store in single portion size vessel.
Cover tightly and freeze.
Keeps well for a long time.

Kaalan - when ready to use

Kaalan mixture - 1 large cup
Coconut - 1 cup
Green chilli - 2

To splutter :
Coconut oil - 1 tbsp
Mustard - 1 tbsp
Red chili - 1 or 2 broken into pieces
Fenugreek seed / methi - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaf - 2 sprigs

Grind the coconut and green chilli into a fine paste.
Add to the kaalan mixture and heat until frothy.

Splutter the mustard, red chilli, fenugreek seed and curry leaf in coconut oil.
Add to the kaalan and mix well.
Serve at room temperature.

Pachadi (General)

Taal Pachadi

Ladies finger pachadi

Pineapple pachadi

Elavan / ash gourd pachadi 

Pachadi is the 'sweet' accompaniment served on the right hand corner of the banana leaf during a sadya.
There is an ongoing debate on it's name. Some people call it 'kichadi' and some of us 'pachadi'.
For me kichadi is always the one with raw uncooked curd in it and is always white.

Again there are many permutations and combinations make this pachadi. Stating 2 below.
1. Some people add tamarind extract, which removes the general yellow colour of the curry. This has to be done when you cook colacasia stem and pindi or you might end up with a post lunch/dinner itching session.
2. And while grinding the coconut, I personally prefer the mustard. But it looks like many people like jeera.
So, the choice is yours.

Try my mother-in-law's superb special recipe of  Mango pachadi  which has no ground coconut. You can also try making mango pachadi with ground coconut like the recipe below.
Ladies finger pachadi is simple and tasty, but here the vegetable is first sauteed, before it is cooked in tamarind syrup.
Taal or Colocasia stem is also cooked in Tamarind syrup. But be very careful while choosing the stems as they can cause severe itching.

The following is a GENERAL recipe.

Ingredients:
1.Vegetable - 1 cup, skinned and cut into thin slices
(Ash gourd (elavan) / Pineapple / Ripe mango / Banana stem (pindi) / colacasia , arbi, taro stem (taal)/ ladies finger)
2. Salt
3. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
4. Chilly powder - 1 tsp (optional)
5. Jaggery / sharkara - 1 tbsp
6. Use either : Curd - 3 tbsp (or) Tamarind pulp extracted from 1/2 a lemon sized ball - 1 cup

To be ground:
Coconut - 3/4 cup
Raw mustard - 1 tsp (or) Jeera - 1 tsp
Green chilly - 2

To  splutter:
Coconut oil - 2 tsp
Mustard - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaf - 4
Red chilly -1  broken

Method:

1. Boil the pineapple and mango in water with salt and turmeric powder till cooked.
    If using elavan, boil in water with only salt and no turmeric powder.
    Boil the pindi and taal in tamarind pulp with salt and turmeric powder till cooked.
    If you plan to make ladies finger pachadi, look up the recipe here.
    To learn how to prepare the colocasia / arbi / taro stem aka taal, please click here.

2. Grind the coconut, mustard or jeera and green chilli into a very fine paste.
    Once the vegetables get soft add the ground mixture and jaggery.
    Do not add jaggery to elavan / ash gourd.

3. If you have cooked either ash gourd or pineapple or mango add the curd to it. Mix well.
    Boil until frothy. Do not do a steady boil, or the curd separates.

4. Splutter the mustard, red chilli and curry leaf in coconut oil.
    Add to the curry and cover until ready to serve.

Ripe Mango Pachadi - variety 1

Ripe mango - 1medium or 2small
Ash Gourd / cooking cucumber (vellari) - 1 cup, cut into thin slices
Green chilli - 4, slit
Salt
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Jaggery - 1 tbsp

To splutter
Coconut oil - 2tbsp
Mustard - 1tsp
Fenugreek seed - 1tsp
Red chilli - 4 large, broken into pieces
curry leaf - 5

Remove skin of mango (peel by hand and not knife) and put the skin in a vessel.
Cut the flesh from the sides of the seed and save them with the seed for later.
Pour a cup of hot water on the mango skin and use your hand to remove the juice from the skin.
Pour this into your cooking vessel. Repeat with another cup of water and discard the skin.
Add the salt, turmeric powder, green chilli and gourd to the mango water.
Cook covered for about 7 minutes and add the mango flesh and seed.
This will take a further 5 minutes to cook.
Once the mango gets cooked add the jaggery and mix well

Splutter the mustard, fenugreek, red chilli and curry leaf in the coconut oil.
Add to the curry. Cover and open when ready to serve.


Note:
Please do look up Pachadi (general) for another variety of ripe mango pachadi