The Best Of Samaithu Paar (10 page)
Read The Best Of Samaithu Paar Online
Authors: S Meenakshi Ammal
IBBON
T
HENKUZHAL
Mix the rice flour and Bengal gram dhal flour together. Dissolve the salt in water. Pour into the mixed flour. Add chilli powder and asafoetida water. Knead into a firm dough with the ghee or butter, adding enough water.
Heat the oil in a frying pan. Insert the ‘ribbon disc’ in the ‘thenkuzhal’ press. Put a little of the dough in the bottom part of the press. Holding the press over the oil, press out the ribbon ‘thenkuzhal’ into the hot oil. Cook one side till brown and break the ribbons into convenient lengths with a flat spoon. Turn and cook the other side till the hissing sound ceases. Remove and drain excess oil. When cool, store in an airtight container. Fry in batches till all the dough is used up.
Ingredients
Rice flour
1 cup
Bengal gram dhal flour
2 cups
Salt
3 tsp
Chilli powder
3 tsp
Asafoetida water
1 tsp
Ghee or butter
(for kneading) ⅕ cup
Oil
(for frying) 2-3 cups
MAPPODI
Mix 1 cup of rice flour with 2 cups of Bengal gram dhal flour. Add asafoetida water. Dissolve salt in ½ cup water. Add about ¼ cup of salt water to the flour and knead into a dough with half the ghee or butter.
Insert the disc with the small holes in the ‘thenkuzhal’ press. Put a little of the dough in the bottom part of the press. Holding the press over the oil, press out the omapoddi into the hot oil in a circular motion. Cook one side. Turn and cook the other side till golden brown and the hissing sound ceases. When cooked, the omappodi rises to the top. Remove and drain excess oil. Prepare dough with the remaining ingredients and make omappodi till all the dough is used up. When cool, store in an airtight container.
Ingredients
Rice flour
2 cups
Bengal gram dhal flour
4 cups
Salt
¼ cup
Asafoetida water
1 tsp
Butter or firm ghee
(for kneading) ⅓ cup
Ghee or coconut oil
(for flying) 2-2½ cups
Thenkuzhal Press (with omappodi disc)
Note:
You can also use Bengal gram flour and rice flour in equal quantities (i.e., 1 cup of rice flour and 1 cup of Bengal gram dhal flour).
ARA
B
OONDHI
Mix rice flour and Bengal gram dhal flour. Take half the quantity. Add half the baking soda, 1 tsp chilli powder and 1 tsp salt. Add 1-1½ cups water. Pour asafoetida water over the flour and mix into a thick batter.
Insert the kara boondhi (‘kunja ladu’) disc. Pour out the batter into the press with a spoon and rub it through the holes with the bottom of the spoon while holding the press over the oil. Cook the boondhi into a fine gold colour, turning them often with a big spoon. Remove and drain excess oil. Mix the remaining ingredients and prepare boondhi till all the batter is used up. Fry the cashewnuts and the curry leaves separately. Mix with the prepared boondhi. When cool, store in an airtight container.
Ingredients
Bengal gram dhal flour
2 cups
Rice flour
1-2 cups
Baking soda
¼ tsp
Chilli powder
3 tsp
Salt
3 tsp
Asafoetida water
1 tsp
Vanaspati or coconut oil
(for frying) 2-2½ cups
Cashewnuts
20-40
Curry leaves
12-15
Note:
The boondhi can be prepared without using chilli powder. Use only salt and baking soda along with 2 tsp pepper.
You can also fry 7 or 8 red chillies with a little bit of asafoetida, powder them with salt and use it.
IXTURE
Fry the beaten rice flakes, Bengal gram dhal, cashewnuts and curry leaves separately in ghee. Winnow the groundnuts and roast. Cut coconut into tiny little bits. Fry in ghee to a reddish colour. Fry asafoetida and red chillies. Powder fried red chillies with salt and asafoetida. Mix all the ingredients and the chilli-asafoetida powder together. Mix in kara boondhi (See
recipe
) and omappodi (See
recipe
). Dissolve the sugar in a little water. Mix ¼ cup of ghee and the sugar solution with the refined wheat flour and knead into a dough. Roll out the dough in a circle on a floured board: Cut into small diamond sized bits and fry, adding them at the end to the ‘mixture’.
Ingredients
Beaten rice flakes
150 gms
Bengal gram dhal
50-60 gms
Cashewnuts
(Broken) 100 gms
Curry leaves
¼ cup
Ghee or oil
(for frying) 2-3 cups
Groundnuts
100 gms
Coconut
½ (Medium)
Asafoetida
A pinch or to taste
Dry red chillies
8-10
Salt
¼ cup
Omappodi
250 gms
Kara boondhi
100 gms
Sugar
2 tbsp
Ghee
¼ cup
Refined wheat flour
(Maida) 1-2 cups
Note:
Do not add coconut, if the mixture is to be kept for a long period.
Instead of fried Bengal gram dhal, roasted Bengal gram (‘porikadalai’) may be used (without husk), while it is still hot.
Potatoes cut into thin long bits and fried can also be added.
Instead of frying the beaten rice flakes, dry roast the flakes with sand in a pan. Sift out the sand and use the puffed flakes.
ERMICELLI
P
AYASAM
(SEMIA PAYASAM)
Heat ghee in a frying pan. Fry vermicelli till reddish brown. Fry cashewnuts separately.
In another vessel, boil the water. Add the fried vermicelli. Stir and cook till soft. Test by pressing the vermicelli between the fingers. When soft, add sugar. Let it mix well. Add milk along with the fried cashewnuts, cardamom, saffron and borneal flakes. Serve hot.
Ingredients
Ghee
¼ cup
Vermicelli
175 gms
Cashewnuts
15-20
Water
2 cups
Sugar
1½ cups
Milk
2 cups
Green cardamoms
7-8
Saffron
¼ tsp
Borneal flakes
¼ tsp
To serve
4 persons
Note:
One-fourth of a nutmeg, fried and powdered, can also be added.
REEN
G
RAM
D
HAL
P
AYASAM
(PAYATHAM PARAPPU PAYASAM)
Powder the cardamoms. Heat ghee in a frying pan and fry cashewnuts till golden brown. Dry roast the dhal lightly. Wash four or five times.
Boil the water in a vessel. Add washed and roasted dhal. When dhal breaks up and mixes well with the water, add the jaggery. Let it melt completely. Add milk or coconut milk and remove from fire. (If coconut milk is being used, heat for a few seconds before removing from fire.) Add fried cashewnuts and cardamom powder and serve.
Ingredients
Green cardamoms
7-8
Ghee
1 tbsp
Cashewnuts
20
Green gram dhal
¾ cup
Water
2 cups
Jaggery
1 cup
Milk or coconut milk
1 cup
To serve
4 persons
Note:
Instead of using only green gram dhal, ⅓ cup green gram dhal, ¼ cup broken rice and ⅛ cup Bengal gram dhal may be used to make the payasam the same way.
AGO
P
AYASAM
(JAVVARISI PAYASAM)
Powder the cardamoms. Fry the cashewnuts in 2 tsp ghee till golden brown. Keep aside.
Heat a frying pan. Add the remaining ghee. Fry the sago till reddish brown. Add water and stir. Keep stirring to avoid lumps. Cook the sago till it swells, becomes transparent and very soft. Add the sugar and mix well. Pour in the milk. Add powdered cardamom, saffron and borneal flakes. Mix well and bring to boil. Add fried cashewnuts and serve hot.
Ingredients
Green cardamoms
5-6
Cashewnuts
12
Ghee
4 tsp
Sago
3½ tbsp
Water
1½ cups
Sugar
½ cup
Milk
1 cup
Saffron
¼ tsp
Borneal flakes
¼-½ tsp
To serve
4 persons
Note:
Raw sago may be added to boiling water or raw sago mixed with cold water and then brought to boil, and the payasam prepared. Fried sago has a bitter flavour but is less sticky
LMOND
P
AYASAM
(BADAM KHEER)
Heat ghee. Fry cashewnuts and pistachios till light brown. Keep aside. Soak the almonds in ½ cup warm water for an hour. Remove the skin and grind into a very smooth paste. Mix the paste with 2-3 cups of water and the milk. Bring the mixture to boil, stirring frequently, until you get the aroma of almonds. Add the sugar and mix well. Stir till sugar dissolves. Add the fried cashewnuts, pistachios, the cardamom, borneal flakes and saffron. Serve chilled.
Ingredients
Ghee
4 tsp
Cashewnut
(Broken) 1 tbsp
Pistachio
1 tbsp
Almonds
(Shelled) 100 gms
Milk
2-3 cups
Sugar
1 cup
Green cardamoms
7-8
Borneal flakes
½ tsp
Saffron
¼-½ tsp
To serve
4 persons
