(RIBBON) PAKKODAM

Pakkodam or Ribbon Pakodam is another variety of murukku – using rice flour and gram flour (besan). This is prepared during Diwali or as an any-time snack.
As all the ingredients are easily available in the market anywhere in the world, it is worth a try!

Ingredients

Rice flour – 2 ½ cups

Besan (gram flour) – ¾ cup

Red chilli powder – 1tsp

Asafetida – ¼  tsp

Salt to taste

Butter – 25-30 gms (1/4 of a 100gm butter pack)

Oil for frying

Method

Mix rice flour and besan. Add salt, red chilli powder, asafetida and butter and mix well.

Add ¾ cup of water and mix well. Add more water gradually and make a slightly loose dough. (Put a tbsp of the dough into the chakli-maker and try squeezing it onto a plate – if it comes out effortlessly, it is fine. If it is t too tight to squeeze, add a little water and mix well.

Heat oil in a kadhai.

Fill the ‘naazhi’ (chakli-maker) with the dough and squeeze it in the hot oil moving your hand in a circular motion.

After 2 minutes, flip it gently.

When both sides are golden brown, remove and drain off the oil and place on a tissue paper.

Prepare pakkodam with the entire dough.

After cooling, store them in air-tight containers.

 © Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.

LADDU

Laddu is an elaborate sweet prepared all over India – especially for Diwali and weddings. It is also known as Boondi laddu in North India - of course the boondis are smaller!

It was my maternal grandma who taught me to make this – way back in 1974! She was visiting me when my son was one and a half. She couldn’t remain idle – she was itching to prepare special items for us. I suggested ‘Laddu’ and she was as excited as me. I observed the way she prepared the batter and sugar syrup – their consistency. At the end of it I noted down the recipe in my recipe book. I would try it out once in a while – and successfully – I had observed its preparation you see! That is the best way to learn a recipe.

It’s after a long gap that I ventured to make ‘laddu’.

Ingredients

1. Besan(gram flour) – 2 ½ cups
2. Rice flour – 1 tsp
3. Orange food color - a drop
4. Water - about 1 cup
5.  Cashew nuts – 2 tbsp
6. Raisins – 2 tbsp
7. Cloves (optional) – 8-10
8. Ghee – 1 tbsp
9. Oil for frying

For sugar syrup

1. Sugar - 3 cups
2. Water - 1 1/2 cups
3. Cardamom powder - 1 tsp
4. Saffron strands - 1/2 tsp / Rose water - 1 tsp

Method

1. Mix besan and rice flour and add water to make a fairly thick batter, making sure there are no lumps.
2.  Add a drop of orange color and mix well.
3. Heat 1 ½ cups of water in a big vessel and add sugar. 
4. Stir and keep boiling till you get a thick syrup. 
5. Add a few strands of crushed saffron strands / rose water. 
6. Add a drop of orange color and mix well.
7. Heat oil in a large kadhai. 
8. Use a boondi maker (you can even use a steel colander) to make the boondis.
9. Hold it above the hot oil, lower the flame and add 3-4 tbsp of batter and allow the boondis to fall in the oil, making sure they don’t stick together.
10. Gently turn the boondis till they are done ( when the bubbles in the oil almost disappear).
11. Drain off the boondis and drop them in the hot syrup.
12. Clean the bottom of the colander before making each batch of boondis.
13. Keep adding hot boondis to the warm syrup till the syrup is completely absorbed.
14. Warm the vessel at the end to melt and mix the thickened syrup sticking to the sides of the vessel.
15. Heat ghee in a small kadhai and fry the cashew nuts and raisins separately till they are golden brown and add to the laddu.
16. Sprinkle cardamom powder too and mix gently.
17. Cool for a little while and make laddus. 
18. If you are unable to make laddus, don’t worry – leave it as boondi – they taste really great too!

Tips

1. The boondis should be round and not flat. You can try to rectify by adding a little more water / besan to the batter.
2. If the sugar syrup is extra-thick and boondis don’t absorb it, try to add a tbsp of water and heat on low flame, scraping the thickened sugar sticking to the sides.
3. The syrup should not be very watery – laddus will be too soft and will not last.

 © Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.

CHAKKA VARATTI (Jackfruit Halwa)

During the jack fruit season (April - June), jack fruit-lovers have a go at it. In Kerala, most houses have jack fruit trees. I still remember my granny serving us - then kids -  HUGE helpings of 'chakkavaratti' when we went there on vacation from wherever my dad was posted. No, granny would just supervise; the 'chakkavaratti' would be prepared by the cook, assisted by the maid in cleaning and chopping the jackfruit during the season.'Chakka varatti' - my favorite - is very tasty by itself. It is also used to make delicacies like 'Chakka Pradhaman' and 'elai adai'. It is usually prepared during the jackfruit season (April-May) and stored for up to a year (in the fridge).

Ingredients

Jack fruit pieces – 2 glasses

Jaggery – 1 glass

Ghee – 3-4 tsp

Method

Remove the seed from the jack fruit whole-pieces and chop them into small pieces.

Sprinkle a tbsp of water and pressure cook it in a separate vessel for 2 whistles.

On cooling, blend it well in a mixer / food processor.

Dissolve the jaggery in minimum water and boil well.

Add the jack fruit paste to the jaggery syrup and stir well on high heat for a few minutes and then on medium heat.
Stir continuously so that it does not get burnt.

Add 2-3 tsps of ghee and stir well till it is thick and leaves the sides of the vessel.

Cool and store in a clean, dry container in the fridge.

This jack fruit halwa is very tasty to eat.

This can also be used for a variety of desserts - ‘chakka pradhaman’ and 'elai adai'.

© Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.

ADA PRADHAMAN

A speciality of Kerala, ‘Ada Pradhaman’ makes use of ‘palada’made from rice, jaggery and coconut milk. Traditionally it would be made at homes from scratch but nowadays you get very good ones in the market.

Ingredients

Rice palada – 100 gms (1/2 cup)

Jaggery – 1 cup

Coconut – 1 (extract milk)

Raisins – 2 tbsp

Cashew nuts / almonds – 2 tbsp

Cardamom powder – ½ - 1 tsp

Ghee – 2-3 tsp

Method

To prepare coconut milk -

Grate a big coconut.

Grind it with a tbsp of water, put it in a thin cloth and extract the thick milk and keep aside the 1^st milk.

Again put the same coconut in the mixer, add 2 tbsp of water and grind again.

Extract the 2^nd milk (thinner than the first one) and keep aside separately.

Again grind the same coconut with a little water and extract the thinnest 3^rd milk and set aside.

 To prepare ‘Ada Pradhaman’ -

Heat 1 ½ -2 cups of water in a thick-bottomed vessel and cook the palada on low heat, constantly stirring, till it gets cooked.

Dissolve 1 cup of jaggery in ¾ cup of water and make a syrup.

Add the cooked palada and stir well on low heat.

Add the 3rd coconut milk (dilutest) and boil for a few minutes.

Add the 2^nd milk and boil for 2 minutes.

Turn off the heat.

Add the thick coconut milk and stir.

Add cardamom powder.

Fry the raisins and nuts in 3 tsp of ghee and add them to the ada pradhaman.

Serve hot / chilled.

 Tips

If extracting coconut milk is too cumbersome, try coconut milk available in packs.

I would rather add regular milk because marketed coconut milk does not have the freshness!

 © Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.

ONAM SADHYA (FEAST)

‘Onam’ is the harvest festival of Kerala – the 10 day festivities celebrate the annual ‘visit’ of the legendary King Mahabali to his kingdom – Kerala – now also known as ‘God’s own country’. It is celebrated in 'Chinga maasam' (Aug - Sep). 'Pookkalam' (floral rangoli) competions, 'vallam kali', 'pulikkali', and traditional dances and festivities are the highlights of the festival.

Every household decorates the front yard with ‘pookkalam’  and indulge in festivities. On ‘Thiruvonam’ day, they wear new clothes, distribute ‘ona kodi’ to all the servants and enjoy an elaborate feast. These days when family members are scattered all over the globe, they make it a point to have a family reunion at least during this period.

The ‘ona sadhya’ typically consists of all the dishes mentioned under ‘sadhya' (feast).

              Ona sadhya items                  

Feast items beginning from left outer circle -

kichadi (white), pachadi (golden brown), thoran, urulakizhangu roast, koottu, olan, avial, kaalan, puli inji, maangaakary, vadai, sharkaravarati, chips, curd, paal paayasam.

Inner circle - beginning from left from near end - ghee, paruppu, rice, pappadam, sambar, rasam.

         

View of the same items from the other end in the above pic! 

The banana leaf should have the narrow end to the left hand side of the eater.
The items should be served in a particular sequence. Also each dish has an allotted spot on the banana leaf! Here's the complete feast served in the right sequence (as in the above photo).

First paal paayasam is served on the near right end.

Next, the dishes are served in order from the far right end of the eater -

kichadi, maanga pachadi, vegetable (urulaikizhangu roast), thoran (avarakka), koottu, avial, olan, kaalan, puli inji, maangaakary.

Near-end beginning from left end -

pappadam, pazham, chakka pazham (optional), sharkaravaratty, varathuppery, chakka uppery, paruppu vada, rice, ghee, sambar and paruppu.

The steel cups from left to right at the far end contain- paayasam, rasam and curd.

If you want to make 'ada pradhaman' / 'palada pradhaman', instead of 'paal payasam' go ahead!

                © Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.

VINAYAGA CHATHURTHI - KOZHAKATTAI

Vinayaga (Pullaiyar) Chathurthi is celebrated on the ‘chathurthi’ day of  Aug-Sep all over India. The ‘Palakkad’ Iyers prepare ‘kozhakattai’ ('modakam) – three varieties – ‘vella kozhakattai’, ‘ulundu kozhakattai’ and ‘ammini kozhakattai’. The last mentioned is a simple variety which makes use of the left-over rice flour dough and is simply delicious too.

I still remember, we used to gorge on the different varieties of ‘kozhakkattai’s - sweet and savoury - alternately and would have bellies resembling ‘Ganesha’s’ at the end of the day!

                         

'Kozhakattai' (modakam) is supposed to be the favorite of Lord Ganesha and is prepared as offering to him in South Indian households on Ganesh Chathurthi. It is also prepared whenever Ganapati homam is conducted. The recipes for Vella Kozhakattai and Ulundu Kozhakattai are given separately. But the same rice flour is an ingredient for both - so powder desired quantity of rice and use for both recipes. Use the leftover dough to prepare 'ammini  kozhakattai.

VELLA KOZHAKATTAI

Makes 25-30 kozhakattais.

Ingredients –
For outer covering -

Freshly powdered rice flour – 2 cups

Water – 21/2 - 2 3/4 cups
Filling -

Coconut – 1 – finely grated – 2 ½ -3 cups

Jaggery – 2 cups

Ghee – 1 tsp

Cardamom powder – ½ tsp

Method –

To make fresh rice flour -

Wash 2 1/2   cups of raw rice and soak it in water for an hour.

Drain in a colander and spread on a paper and leave it for 10-15 minutes.

Powder in a mixer and sieve well. Spread it and leave it for at least a couple of hours. This will give 5 cups of rice flour.

Use 2 cups for 'vella kozhakattai' and 2 cups for 'ulundu kozhakattai' and 1 cup for 'ammini kozhakattai'.

Vella Kozhakattai -

Outer covering -

In a big kadhai, heat 2 glasses of water.

Add 2 tsp of oil and a pinch of salt and stir well.

Add 1/2 - 3/4 cup of water to the rice flour and mix well.

When the water starts boiling, lower the heat.

Add the rice flour batter to the boiling water and keep stirring well till the water is absorbed and rice flour gets cooked. There should be no lumps. 
Turn off the flame and keep covered for 5-10 minutes.

When it cools, knead it into soft dough with oiled palm and set aside.

Filling –

Heat ½ cup of water in a kadhai.

Add 2 cups of jaggery and keep stirring on a low flame till it dissolves completely.

After it cools a bit, strain it to get rid of tiny particles of dirt if any.

Heat it again and add the grated coconut and keep on high flame till excess water gets evaporated. Add a tsp of ghee and stir well.

Turn off the heat.

After 10 minutes add ½ tsp of cardamom powder and mix well.

To make kozhakattai –

Take 2 tsps of oil in a small bowl to dip your fingers into. Oil your palms and fingers.

Take a small lemon-size ball of dough and roll it into a ball.

With your oiled fingers, flatten the edges first and then the centre part till it has the shape of a little bowl.

Put a teaspoonful of the coconut filling into the dough-bowl and bring together the edges and keep a little elongated upper portion – to look like a coconut.

Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling.

Oil a flat colander and place the kozhakattais gently on it without touching one another and steam for 5-7 minutes.

Open after 5 minutes. The kozhakatais should have a glazed look. They should also not stick to your fingers. If they are sticky, steam for a couple of minutes more.

Gently remove one by one when they have cooled a bit.

Tips –

The rice flour can be stored (after drying it for 20-24 hours in the shade) in an airtight bottle in the fridge for later use (for up to 10 days).

The dough and filling can be prepared a day in advance and kept in the fridge to reduce the elaborate work on a single day.

ULUNDU KOZHAKATTAI

                                 

                                   

Makes 20 ulundu kozhakattai

Ingredients –

For covering

Fresh rice flour – 2 cups

Water - a little more than 2 cups

Salt to taste

For filling

Urad dal – 1 cup

Tuvar dal – 2 tbsp
Whole red chilli – 1-2

Grated coconut – 4-5 tbsp

Oil – 3-4 tsp

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Urad dal – 1 tsp

Whole red chilli – 3 pieces

Asafetida – ¼ tsp

Curry leaves – 10

Salt to taste

Method

To prepare the outer covering -

In a big kadhai, heat 2 glasses of water.

Add 2 tsp of oil and salt to taste and stir well.

Add ½ - 2 3/4 cup of water to the rice flour and mix well.

When the water starts boiling, lower the heat.

Add the rice flour batter to the boiling water and keep stirring well till the water is absorbed and rice flour gets cooked. There should be no lumps.

When it cools, knead it into soft dough with oiled palm and set aside.

Filling –

Wash urad dal and tuvar dal and soak in water for 40 minutes.

Drain off the water and grind coarsely along with whole red chillies in a mixer.

Add salt to taste and mix well.

Steam like idlis for 10-15 minutes.

When cooled, crumble it well.

Heat 2-3 tsps oil and add mustard seeds, urad dal, red chilli pieces and asafetida.

Add curry leaves and add the crumbled dal and mix well.

Add grated coconut and mix well.

When cooled, make oval shaped balls for the filling.

To make kozhakattai –

Take 2 tsps of oil in a small bowl to dip your fingers into. Oil your palms and fingers.

Take a big lemon-sized ball of dough and roll it into an oval ball between your palms.

With your oiled fingers, flatten the edges first and then the centrerpart till it has the shape of an oval bowl.

Put one dal ball into the dough-bowl and bring together the edges and keep a little elongated upper portion all along – like the shape of a semi-circular karanji.

Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling.

Oil a flat colander and place the kozhakattais gently on it without touching one another and steam for 5-7 minutes.

Open after 5 minutes. The kozhakatais should have a glazed look. They should also not stick to your fingers. If they are sticky, steam for a couple of minutes more.

Gently remove one by one when they have cooled a bit.

AMMINI KOZHAKATTAI

Ingredients

Kozhakattai dough - 1cup

Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp (optional)

Salt to taste

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dal - 1/2 tsp

Asafetida - a pinch
Whole red chilli pieces - 2
Curry leaves - 5
Coconut pieces - 1 tbsp

Oil - 2-3 tsps

Method

Use the remaining rice flour dough (of the covering) to make this.

Add required salt and red chilli powder and mix well into the dough with your hand.

Make marble sized balls.

Place them in an oiled flat colander without touching one another and steam for 5-7 minutes.

Remove them after 5 minutes.

Heat 2-3 tsp oil in a kadhai and add mustard seeds, urad dal, red chilli pieces and a pinch of asafetida, followed by curry leaves.
When they splutter, add the small kozhakattais and coconut pieces and gently stir. It's ready to eat!

Tips - Some add whole red chilli pieces to the 'tadka' instead of mixing red chilli powder to the dough - so the 'ammini' is white instead of  orange.
It is better to prepare the rice flour covering the previous day and store in the fridge as kozhakattais will be easier to make. It will also not overburden you on the day of the festival.

© Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.

DIWALI DELICACIES - MYSORE PAK

Diwali is the ‘King of Festivals’ in India. Interestingly among the Palakkad Iyers, it is purely a time for jubilation – there is no ‘neivedhyam’ on this occasion!

Of course the ladies of the household get busy a week in advance – planning and making preparations for the snacks to be prepared for Diwali. You’d be surprised (no?!) to hear that everything would be prepared at home – from scratch. There would be a sort of competition among relatives and friends as they’d vie with one another sharing the special items prepared. Why, to this day, I'm proud to proclaim that I make all my Diwali snacks at home – three sweets and three savories – yes!

On Diwali morning the members of the household wake up early, light the lamp, burst a few crackers, have oil bath and don new clothes. Then they enjoy the Diwali snacks. Then the lady would get busy making separate packets for distribution among family and friends as the rest of the family would gape at the alarming rate at which the items would disappear! This also gives the lady a chance to show off her new saree (Kanjeevaram or otherwise)!

‘Ukkaarai’ used to be a must on this day but it is on the wane now.

Breakfast is usually ‘idlis’ – with chutney, molagappodi or sambar as per the convenience!

MYSORE PAK

A very popular South Indian sweet, Mysore Pak is a must at weddings and for Diwali and any special occasion. Those made by hoteliers and caterers drip in ghee and are delicious of course. But what my mom used to make was yummy as well, soft and melting-in-the-mouth. So here is our home-made yummy Mysore Pak with less ghee - for the calorie-conscious and others!

Ingredients -
Besan - 1 cup
Sugar - 2 1/4 cup
Pure ghee - 1 cup (melted)
Water - about 1/2 cup


Method -
Spread out the cup of besan and make sure it doesn't have any lumps.
Heat the ghee on a low flame till it is hot and set aside.
Take water in a thick-bottomed kadhai and add sugar and heat it.
Keep stirring till the sugar dissolves and boil for 1-2 minutes.
Add the besan and keep stirring well.
Lower the flame.
Add the hot ghee - a little each time and keep stirring till almost the entire ghee is used up.
Continue to stir till bubbles start appearing and add the remaining ghee. Keep stirring till the mixture leaves the sides.
Pour on to a greased plate.
After 3-4 minutes, make cuts in diamond shapes (right through the entire thickness) with a knife greased with ghee.

Cut along the same lines and remove the pieces only after 10 minutes.

Tips -
Use hot ghee for better results.
Make sure there is no disturbance especially when you are in the final stages. Better to try it when your hubby is away or baby is asleep or when you don't expect the door bell.
The critical point is tricky - mom used to make soft Mysore Pak which is my style. This will have the glaze - the finish point is when bubbles just start forming and the mixture leaves the sides.
If you want porous and slightly harder version, stir for a couple of minutes more till more bubbles are formed and the glaze disappears.
Don't worry, you'll arrive at the optimum point after a couple of trials but in all cases, the sweet will be delicious.
Draw the lines through and through only 3-4 minutes after pouring out the mixture. If it sticks to the knife, wait for a couple of minutes more.
Don't forget to remove them carefully - separating the pieces before they are completely cooled.

© Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.