Vessels in Chettinadu

New joiners to Umayal Kitchen. This is called "Adukku" meaning Adukki vaikkalam, goes inside of each vessel. Mainly will be used as serving dishes. Same way we display vessels during marriages from bride's parents side called "Saaman parapuradhu". Main advantage is, less place consumption and used as per capacity while guest arrives or depends on the curry we prepares. In our native for veg and non-veg, always they maintain different set of utensils including Pan, Knife, Laddle.... #Adukku #newjoinerstoumayalkitchen #umayalkitchen #silverutensils #utensilsdisplay #chettinadumarriages #saamanparaparudhu

Thenkuzhal / Seepu Seedai / Pachai Thenkuzhal

Thenkuzhal & Seepu seedai is a traditional snack in Chettinadu,  while thinking about Seepu seedai, first thing strikes in my mind during childhood days while my Mom preparing this snack, me and my Bro wear it as rings in each finger and taste it. Its really fun for kids, Good thing for ladies making in this snack is it will  not burst like normal Seedai. My daughter loves Thenkuzhal, so my mom prepare murukku flour and send it to me, always there will be stock in my freezer to prepare for her, while store it in freezer, flour will be fresh and bug free. I alter Thenkuzhal flour to Seepu Seedai by adding Roasted gram - Pottukadalai & Coconut milk.

Ingredients:

Flour preparation for Thenkuzhal:

Raw Rice or Pachai arisi - 7 cups
Broken Urad Dal - 2 cups (as whole Urad dhal will not be roasted quick)

Adding some ingredients for Seepu Seedai with Thenkuzhal floor:

Roasted gram or Pottukadalai - 1 cup
Warm Coconut milk - 2 cups (mixture of first and second milk)

Method of making Thenkuzhal:

1. Wash the rice and dry it in the Sun or you can wet the towel in water, squeeze it nicely, take a handful of rice, rub it in towel, do the same for entire rice, dry it under fan by spreading up in paper.

2. Then dry roast the Urad dhal, by taking handful quantity into the pan, keep the fire as low and roast it else it will become red and not roasted. May be five to six times u need to roast the entire quantity of Urad dhal.

3. Allow the Urad dhal to cool, add it with the rice and take it to the Mill.

4. Take additional two cups of rice, as this flour has to be grinded only if rice floor is grinded before else Muruku floor, any other ingredients has been grinded than rice taken by us can be used to grind, later we can grind Murukku mavu. If Thenkuzhal mavu is grinded after wheat flour or ragi, it will spoil the taste of the murukku you are making. In Chettinad we don't add anything else to the mavu, like chilly powder, omam or jeeragam, that will make the murukku to crack and burst in oil causes a danger, so that murukku will be plain, white and no cracks.

Once the mavu is ready, things are simple. Just add enough water and salt, mix the flour. Fill the kuzhal or kattai, we call muruku pillium kattai, mine has seven different sills or plates to make different dishes and shapes like Idiyappam....

Pls note the following while making murukku:

1. Wash the kattai with sill before using it.

2. Make the shapes of flour to fit in kuzhal and keep it ready, more helpful to fill the kuzhal every time.

3. Fit the sill, for Thenkuzhal it has five openings, shape is straight, for mullu muruku, shape will has its teeth, fill the mavu in the kattai, press it in the oil directly, slightly rotate it, my youtube channel video describes how to press thenkuzhal, after finishing it, break the joint for next one. Some use to press in Spatula and drop it in oil, it changes the crispiness of the murukku, its well and good to drop it in Oil directly.

4. While making dough nicely mix it, all should be blend properly, else murukku will burst, stay away for safety purpose for some time while murukku is getting cooked. Fire should be medium not too high and too simmer else murukku will be burnt or it will drink so much oil. 

5. Make ready of air tight container, while oil is dripped from murukku, you can store it in but don't close immediately. then crispiness will be gone, once all murukku comes to room temperature, you can close it.

6. Before taking out the murukku from oil, check its cooked, sound should be reduced & oil should not be too hot, rather u will lose crispiness. 

7. Store it in air tight container, enjoy it for a month.

Pachai Thenkuzhal:  This murukku will be served with evening tiffin in the marriages, which will not be cooked properly. This murukku is taken out from the oil after few seconds, it has bit more oil content while compare to normal murukku. Diet conscious will skip this one, tastes good, can be served immediate while guests are arrived with maavu urundai as its a instant one.

Method of making Seepu Seedai:

        I usually make Seepu seedai by altering murukku mavu by adding above mentioned ingredients like one cup of pottukadalai powder and 2 cups of warm coconut milk. Definitely you need to a helping hand to make shapes like press, cut and shape it, one person need to roast it.  

Pls note the following while making seepu seedai:

1. Wash the kattai with sill before using it.

2. Make the shapes of flour to fit in kuzhal and keep it ready, more helpful to fill the kuzhal every time.

3. Sill is like flat one with one drop, fit the sill, fill the mavu, and press it the paper.

4. Then cut by leaving proper length to make it round by turning it in Index finger.

5. Follow the same to allow the shapes fill a plate.

6. Make ready of air tight container, while oil is dripped from seedai, you can store it in but don't close immediately. then crispiness will be gone, once all seedai comes to room temperature, you can close it.

7. Before taking out the seedai from oil, check its cooked, sound should be reduced & oil should not be too hot, rather u will lose crispiness. 

8. Store it in air tight container, enjoy it for a month.

Tips & Tricks:

1. While making dough nicely mix it, all should be blend properly, else murukku will burst, stay away for safety purpose for some time while murukku is getting cooked. Fire should be medium not too high and too simmer. Else it will be burnt.

2.Make ready of air tight container, while oil is dripped from seedai, you can store it in but don't close immediately. then crispiness will be gone, once all seedai comes to room temperature, you can close it.

3. Before taking out the seedai from oil, check its cooked, sound should be reduced & oil should not be too hot, rather u will lose crispiness. 

4. Wash the kattai and sill before use to avoid hard press.

5. Some use to press in Spatula and drop it in oil, it changes the crispiness of the murukku, its well and good to drop it in Oil directly.

6. While store the flour in freezer, flour will be fresh and bug free.

7. If Thenkuzhal mavu is grinded after wheat flour or ragi, it will spoil the taste of the murukku you are making. 

 

Kumayam

Kumayam is a traditional sweet in Chettinadu. Usually this will be the sweet in weddings for the evening tiffin in Ponnai allaicha Palagaram. This sweet is very healthy and good for Uterus similar to Ulandham Kazhi, once girl child attains puberty they will serve this sweet, to reduce waist pain along with Gingelly oil and Egg. I usually prepare this sweet for Neivedhyam on special occassions.

Ingredients:

Flour Preparation:

Whole Urad dhal - 5 cups
Raw rice - 1 cup 

Moong dhal - 1 cup

Rest:

Kumayam Flour - 1/2 cup
Jaggery or Palm Jaggery - 1/2 cup
Ghee - 5 Table spoons
Cardamom Powder - 1 Tea spoon

Method:

Take the ingredients under flour preparation, dry roast it and powder it. Take a 1/2 cup of Kumayam flour, 1/2 cup of Jaggery or Palm Jaggery, make a pagu with Jaggery by adding little water, filter it. Add water to the flour make it kind of dosa batter, add jaggery pagu, cook it till u get better consistency, add Cardamom powder for flavour and add ghee as final touch, remove it from flame, serve it to the dish, hope it helps.

Tips:

Quick sweet if you have flour in stock. I usually store it in freezer as it's mom preparation to save from bugs.

My mom says before making it fry the flour in ghee to get better rich taste.

Chicken kuzhambu

This is my first Non-Veg recipe in my blog as everyone started asking me that whether I am vegetarian?   I would say this Chicken kuzhambu is in modern style as we saute all the ingredients step by step. This Kuzhambu suits for Rice, Idli, Dosa, Chapathi, Puri. I usu ally prepare this kuzhambu in pressure cooker, so that Chicken will be cooked very nicely. Soon I will post authentic style kuzhambu.

Ingredients:

Chicken - 1/2 kg
Onion - 1 no. big in size

Tomato - 2 no's

Garlic pods - 5 no's
Green Chilly - 1 no.
Salt - required

Chilly Powder(curry) - 3 Table spoon
Chicken powder (Garam masala) - 1 Table spoon
Turmeric Powder - 2 Tea spoon
Tamarind - An Amla size
Coriander leaves - few

To Grind:

Onion Shallots  - 5 no's
Tomato - 1 no.
Garlic pods - 3 no's
Ginger - 3 pieces

Cumin seeds - 2 Table spoons
Pepper - 1 Table spoons
Grated Coconut - 3 Table spoons

To Temper:

Oil - 5 Table spoons

Fennel seeds - 1 Tea spoon
Fenugreek seeds - 1 Tea spoon
Cumin seeds - 1 Tea spoon
Bay leaf -  1 no.
Cinamon - Small piece

Curry leaves - few

Method:

1.Wash the chicken gently thrice with plain water, add Turmeric, mix it keep it aside. Turmeric acts as effective disinfectant, so its good to add with Chicken.

                 
Place a pan and add oil, good to have Gingelly oil for better taste, once oil is hot, add the ingredients mentioned in "To Temper" list, one by one. 

3. Then add garlic. Once garlic turns golden brown, add onion.

4. Once onion turns to translucent color, add tomatoes with required salt and turmeric powder, close the lid to get cooked.

5. Tomatoes will be smashed, add Chicken, once its cooked, turns soft, add Chilly powder, it can be curry powder and add grounded paste.

6. Close the lid, wait for 2 whistles....Once the pressure is released add extracted tamarind water to the kuzhambu, add Chicken curry powder or Garam masala for flavor.

7. Once Kuzhambu get boiled, Garnish with Coriander leaves.

Tips:

1. Chicken curry powder added at the end to keep the flavor.
2. Fennel seeds and Fenugreek seeds in the "To Temper" list can be added as powder once its finely roasted, gives a better flavor.
3. For rich flavor, you can add Kasa Kasa and Cashews in "To grind" list
4. Either Country Chicken or Broiler Chicken suits this recipe, Country Chicken always taste great and good for kids.

Thengai Kanji

Thengai Kanji is delicious dish which has medicinal values. Very helpful to recover from cold and fever, stomach and mouth ulcer. It has medicinal values as it has ingredients like Fenugreek seeds, Garlic and Coconut milk. It's easy to swallow and as its not spicy, so kids love to have this dish, easy to intake while having mouth ulcer. My daughter love this dish and my mom prepare this dish for breakfast on Sunday after head bath to reduce body heat. Side dish can be Pickle/Milagai Vathal/Paruppu Thogaiyal.

Ingredients:

Raw rice/Sona Masoori rice - 1 cup
Garlic pod - full with all cloves

Fenugreek seeds - 5 Tea spoons
Coconut milk - Extracted

Salt - required

Method:

1. Soak the Rice with Fenugreek seeds for half an hour.

2. Boil 8 to 10 cups of water in a vessel for 1 cup of Rice.  Peel off the Garlic and add it as whole Garlic cloves to the boiling water with Fenugreek seeds, Rice once it's drained.

                                                    

3. Rice has to be cooked, reduce the flame till you get consistency to be well smashed.

4. Add required Salt and Coconut milk, usually I buy a can of Coconut milk, while extracting it add first and second extract of Coconut milk which will be more thicker.

5. Once u added Coconut milk texture become pure white and switch off the flame, don't cook it further, once Coconut milk is added, as it will change the flavor.

Tips:

1. Rice has to be cooked properly like Curd rice, Pongal consistency and Coconut milk should be thicker to get better taste.

Kosamalli

Kosamalli is authentic side dish in Chettinadu, suits very well with Hot Idli, Dosai, Idiyappam. This dish is made with cooked Eggplants. For better taste choose Eggplants with seeds. With this dish, I bet you, people have excess numbers on main course.

Enjoy your breakfast and dinner with this awesome Side dish...:-)

Ingredients:

Eggplant - 5 to 6 no. big in size

Tomato - 1 no

Onion - 1 no
Potato - 1 no

Green chilly - 3 to 4 no

Salt - required
Tamarind - Small Amla size

Coriander leaves - few

To Temper:

Oil - 5 Table spoons

Mustard - 1 Tea spoons

Urad dal - 2 Tea spoons
Red chili - 1 broken

Curry leaves - few

Method:

1. Cut the Eggplants, Potatoes into half, soak it in water, so that color will not change to dark. Pressure cook for two whistles on Eggplants and Potatoes, drain the excess water, allow it to cool to room temperature, don't change the temperature drastically by dropping them in cold water, this will spoil the taste and lose the nutrients of veggies. Chop the veggies required for this dish. Don't chop it finely, you can have straight cuts of Onions and Tomatoes, Slit the Green Chili's. so that it tastes good, they usually say, "Sendhapula irrukkum"

2. Soak the Tamarind in water, quick tip, if want to get soaked immediate, you can soak it in hot water for better results.

3. Peel the cooked Eggplants and Potatoes. Just smash it by mixing Tamarind extract, do filter tamarind extract before adding it.

4. Heat the Pan, add Oil, add one by one in the "To Temper" list. Saute the Green Chilly, Onion, Tomato one by one by adding Salt.
5. Add the Tamarind/smashed Eggplants&Potatoes extract to it, add required Water & Salt, allow it to cook by closing the lid of the pan for 10 minutes.

6. Add a bit of  Idli/Dosa batter to give better consistency, but its totally optional, this step can be skipped if you are adding potatoes smashed that it helps to give consistency.
7. Once Kosamalli gets its proper consistency, switch off the flame, add chopped Coriander leaves and serve it to the dish.

Tips:

1. Add water depends on the main course, if its for Idiyappam, Dosa, consistency can be thicker than for Idli.
2. Use seeded Eggplants for better taste....Usually I buy bigger ones.

3. Don't change the temperature drastically by dropping cooked eggplants, potatoes in cold water, to peel them, this will spoil the taste and lose the nutrients of veggies.

Enjoy your breakfast and dinner with this awesome Side dish...:-)

Uppu Kozhukattai

Uppu Kozhukattai is a traditional and healthy snack in Chettinadu, authentic name is "Aati Kindi Kuzhakattai". My Mother-in-law says that they usually prepare this kozhukattai while watching Sunday cinema in Doordharshan, serve to neighbors as well who come and watch movie in their house. It's a good idea to prepare this Kozhukattai while grinding Idli batter, if you add one more cup Idli Rice extra, u can use that to make Uppu Kozhukattai for evening snack. Kids will love it and healthy too as it is steamed item. Its too good for older generation too and easy for digestion.

Ingredients:

Idli Rice  - 1 cup
Salt - required

To Temper:

Cooking oil - 2 Table spoons

Mustard - 1 Tea spoon
Urad dhal - 1 Tea spoon
Red chilly - 1 no
Curry leaves - few
Shredded coconut - 1/4 cup

Method:

1. Grind a cup of Idli rice in Grinder or you can take some quantity of flour which u have finished grinding already for Idli batter (Rice alone) as I said before, in Idli batter consistency and add Salt to it.
2. Heat a Non-stick pan, add one by one in the "to temper" list. Before adding Coconut add the batter, mix it well, batter should get thick consistency, add the shredded Coconut, switch off the flame.

3. Make medium size kozhukattai's in round shape and steam it in Idli vessel for 10 to 15 minutes.
4. Check the Kozhukattai with fork that it is cooked properly.
5. Serve hot, enjoy the healthy Kozhukattai's.

Tips:

1. It's a good idea to prepare this Kozhukattai while grinding Idli batter, if you add one more cup Idli Rice extra, u can use that to make Uppu Kozhukattai for evening snack.