Punjabi Kadi Pakoras - ICC Event September 2010

Punjabi Kadi Pakora

This post goes for the ICC event for the month of September 2010.

Hi Friends, Back to ICC event after a gap of two months, before last month we are moving from California to Atlanta and busy in packing and unpacking of things and hence could not participate and last month my Sister-in-law and family came to my place to spend some time together, So no time for me to look into the event also busy in enjoying time with my Sister –in –law and my sweetest nephew. So this time I really don’t want to miss the event and when Srivalli  posted the September challenge I was really happy to hear that as Panjabi Kadi Pakoras is one dish I always thought of trying and due to my laziness it got postponed from days to months and finally achieved it today . It’s easy to prepare and my pakoras came out really very well so soft and the kadi came out very well with a thick consistency and pakoras came with a small little tails at the end, By the time R came back to home I served him the hot  Kadi pakoras with Roti . Within no time the bowl is completed and my job is to refill the Kadi in his bowl before I eat my 2 rotis. So you can understand how it turned out. There is a small variation  in the recipe given by Srivalli , I added ginger, green chillies mix to the yogurt and Besan mixture and the pakoras are only simple Besan balls with a little bit of Baking soda added to it .Thanks to Srivalli for sharing the recipe, So here goes my recipe:

For Kadi

• Besan / Senaga-pindi – ¼ cup
• Yogurt/ Curd – 1 cup (sour curd is preferably the best)
• Green chillies – 3
• Ginger – ½ inch piece
• Onion – 1 small one cut into length wise
• Salt as per taste

For Seasoning:                                                                                      

• Methi seeds/Menthulu - 1 tsp
• Avalu/Mustard Seeds – 1tsp
• Hing /Inguva/Asafatodia – 2 pinch
• Dry Red Chillies – 2
• Few Curry leaves (optional)
• Few Cilantro leaves (optional) for garnishing.

For Pakoras:

• Besan – 2 tbsp
• Oil for Deep Frying

 Method:

For Kadi:

• Mix the Besan into yogurt without forming any lumps and add little salt to it and whisk it well. (Don’t forget to add salt to the mix, once we keep on stove top there might be a chance of curd mix getting spoiled)
• Grind the green chillies and ginger and add it to the yogurt mixture   and keep it aside.
• Heat a pan and add some oil for seasoning and add Avalu, Menthulu and Hing and red chillies and once they start spluttering add the length wise cut onions and fry them till transparent or golden brown in colour, stir them in the middle (don’t turn them to black) 
• Finally add the seasoning with onions to the yogurt mixture and bring the whole mixture to boil.
• Mean while, Prepare the batter for pakoras.

Preparation of the Batter for Pakoras:

• Take a small bowl with Besan into it and add slowly little bit of water to make semi – thick batter consistency.

Method for Preparing Pakoras:

• Make small ball from that batter and drop it in the oil and fry the pakoras till golden brown in the colour and remove them from oil and place them on paper towel to absorb the excess oil.
• Soak the pakoras in Luke warm water for a minute and add the Pakoras to the Kadi.

• Boil the Kadi along with Pakoras for some 3 min and garnish it with curry leaves and cilantro leaves.

• Serve hot kadi with pakoras.

Besan and Yogurt mixture 

Onions,Ginger and Green chillies 

Onions in seasoning

Pakora (Besan Batter)

Pakora in oil 

My Kadi Pakora with little tails (hahaha...)

Pakoras Dipped in Kadi

 

Punjabi Kadi Pakora

Palakura Ava Pulusu /Spinach stew

Normally, this stew is made with bachali Kura (in Telugu), but for a change I made it with palak. This stew tastes good with mudda pappu/ simple toor dal and a dollop of ghee in hot white rice. Just by thinking of it, hu… it’s so yummy and mouths watering … you too give a try. Here goes the recipe…

Ingredients:    

• Bottle gourd – 1 small size (cut into cubes)
• Okra /Ladies finger – 4 (cut into 2” length)
• Green chillies – 3
• Salt as per taste
• Cilantro leaves – few handfuls (fresh)
• Tamarind pulp – goose berry size / 1 tbsp (all measurements are as per US Standard measuring spoons)
• Spinach – 1 bunch (finely chopped and washed)
• Red chilli powder – 1 tbsp
• Rice flour – 1 tbsp
• Mustard seed powder / Rai powder – 1 tbsp

Seasoning:

• Menthulu /fenugreek seeds – 1tsp
• Avalu/Rai seeds – 1 tsp
• Jeera – 1 tsp
• Hing – 1 tsp
• Red chillies – 1 or 2

Method:

• Wash the spinach leaves and finely chopped them and keep it aside.
• Take all the chopped vegetables in a vessel along with spinach leaves and boil them by adding sufficient water, salt and turmeric.
• Soak the tamarind in hot water for 5 min, and extract the pulp of it.
• Take a bowl and add red chillies powder, rice flour and rai powder mix them thoroughly by adding very little water so as to form the mixture into a paste. .
• Once all the vegetables and spinach are well cooked and become tender soft, add the above rai mixture to the cooked vegetables, add the extracted tamarind pulp also and let them all boil together for 5 – 7 minutes.
• Heat a pan with some oil in it and add all the seasoning items and let them pop up and once they splutter, add to the above stew.
• Palak (spinach) Ava pulusu is ready to be served hot.

Tomato Rasam

This is another South Indian recipe which is normally called as Rasam/Charu. Enjoy this rasam when it is hot.

Ingredients:

• Tomatoes: 2 (Medium size)
• Green chillies -2
• Tamarind:  little gooseberry size.
• Rasam powder: 1 tsp
• Jeera: ¼ tsp
• Dry red chillies: 2
• Coriander leaves:  a few handfuls chopped
• Salt: Taste enough
• Turmeric powder: 2 pinch
• Oil: 2 spoons
• Asafoetida: 1 pinch
• Sugar: ½ tsp (optional)
• Mustard seeds: ¼ tsp

Procedure:

• Take 1 cup of water and let it boil for sometime.
• Grind the tomatoes along with green chillies and tamarind in a mixer.
• Add this mixture to the boiling water and add sufficient enough salt and let it boil for another 5 min.
• Now add the Rasam Powder and sugar and let it boil for another 5 min.
• Take a kadai/mukudu/thick bottom vessel and pour some oil and bring it to heat
• Add the asafoetida, mustard seeds / avalu, jeera, fenugreek seeds, red chillies and let them splutter.
• Add this tadka to the Rasam and serve Hot.

Bellam Pulusu /Mukkala Pulusu

This is yet another Andhra famous dish “Bellam Pulusu”.  Bellam is also called as Jaggery/Gudd.  Pulusu is like a stew. This bellam pulusu is a great combination along with mudda pappu (plain cooked toor dal) with hot rice and ghee. It is so mouth –watering dish. Try it once and let me know how you feel about it. As you are using all vegetables in it, it is a nutritious food also.

Ingredients:

• Bottle gourd - 1 cut into pieces of 2" size
• Tomatoes (Chopped) – 2 medium size
• Sweet Yam(Sliced) -6 pieces
• Green chillies- 5 chopped length wise
• Drum sticks – 2 (cut 3" long)
• Okra (Bendakayalu cut into half) -3
• Carrot – 2
• Tamarind Extract  -1/4 cup
• Jaggery/Bellam(according to taste) – 50 gms
• salt to taste
• Turmeric powder -1tsp
• Gram Flour/ Rice Flour – 1 small cup

Tempering /Tadka:

• Oil – 1tbsp
• Fenugreek seeds/Menthulu – 1tsp
• Mustard seeds/Avalu -1 tsp
• Red chillies (Halved)-2 or 3
• Asafoetida / Hing -1tsp

Method:

• Wash all the vegetables and keep them a side.
• Boil all the vegetables along with green chillies with adequate water and covered with a lid in a sauce pan (or) in a pressure cooker.  So that the chilli taste will also get blended along with the vegetables.
• Ensure that they should not become too soft (or) mushy
• Take a small bowl and put the rice flour in it and add little amount of water to make a batter consistency and add this batter to the cooked vegetables and let them boil, this will give the stew/ pulusu a thicker consistency.
• Grate the required amount of jaggery as per taste and mix it in the above mixture.
• Mix the tamarind extract also to the above mixture and mix well the mixture
• Boil the complete mixture for 5 min and add the tempering.
• Garnish with some curry leaves and Coriander leaves.

Note: The vegetables used can be anything of your choice. But normally carrot/bottle gourd /yam/sweet potato/eggplant/okra/tomato/drum sticks are used.

Majjiga Pulusu

One of the authentic Andhra foods and one of my favourite dishes.  My father is a great lover of this Majjiga pulusu. Everyone has their own way of making majjiga pulusu. Here is one way which I know and easy to make and tasty, It's very delicious and nutritious dish. Sour Curd is the best to prepare this dish.

Ingredients:

• Plain sour yogurt (blended) – 3 cups
• Bottle gourd /Sorakaya- 1 small (peeled and cut into 1" pieces)
• Tomato – 1 or 2 medium size
• Carrots -2 (peeled and cut into 1” pieces)
• Onion-1 medium size (cut into 1" pieces)
• Green Chillies -3 or 4 (upon your spicy level)
• Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
• Chick pea flour/Snegapindi/Besan – 5 tbsp
• Salt - as per taste,
• Oil – 2tbsp

For tempering / popu / tadka:

• Mustard seeds/Avalu – 1tsp
• Fenugreek seeds/Menthulu – 1tsp
• Cumin seeds – 1tsp
• Curry leaves/Karivepak – handful
• Hing /Inguva -1tspp
• Dry Red chillies - 3

Method:

• Boil the cubed vegetable pieces, green chillies (cut length wise), salt turmeric with water until they get tender soft.
• Beat the curd well adding water to form a smooth sauce like consistency.
• To that curd add besan flour (snegapindi), mix well without any lumps
• Grind ginger and add it to curd mix and once again mix well.
• Add this curd mixture to the vegetables which are already boiled, (Before adding them check for salt)
• Heat oil in a separate pan and add fenugreek seeds/menthulu, mustard seeds/Avalu, cumin seeds, dry red chillies, asafoetida and curry leaves and let them splutter
• Add this tadka  to vegetables and curd mixture and cook for 5 min on a slow heat .
• Garnish with coriander leaves.
• Serve hot with white rice/chapathi