Mullu murukku...(snack)

This is a favorite snack of South India, made mainly from rice flour. You require the

Sevanazhi or the special press or contraption with the different chips to make this snack. 

Ingredients:

1:  Rice flour: 2 cups

2:  Urad flour: 1 cup

3: Sesame seeds:
   (black or white) : 1-2 tbsp

4: Butter: 1/2 a stick or 50 gms

5:  Jeera/ cumin seeds: 1 Tsp

6: Asafoetida/hing: 1/2 tsp

7: Salt: to taste

Mix all the ingredients with melted butter and enough salt an bring it to a soft, thick dough with the smooth consistency to squeeze through the Sevanazhi. It's somewhat like a cookie press. You got to put the right kind of chip in and fill the press with the dough and close it.

Heat enough oil in a pan and when it comes to a boil, squeeze the handle of the press and move it around to create a spiral. Stop the flow when you get 3-4 spirals and make several small ones directly into the boiling oil.

Turn the Murukku around as it starts browning and cooks both sides. Take care not to burn the little spirals. This is a sure treat anytime.

Coconut chutney for Dosa or Idli made the Tamil way

Coconut chutney made in the traditional Tamil way is a must for Dosa or Idli along with Sambar for the family.I would like to share the recipe here, its a quite common one, if you like it try it in your kitchen to go with Dosa or Idli.

Ingredients :

1: Coconut, fresh ( frozen, shredded works well too.

    Just need to thaw if frozen)                                          -   1 Cup     

2: Pottukadala/ roasted bengal gram                                -  1/4  cup

3:  Green chilly                                                                  -  6 or 7 or as required for taste/ degree of heat

4: Ginger                                                                          - a small piece, an inch long

5: Coriander leaf/Cilantro                                                  - a few sprigs

6: Curry Leaf                                                                    - 2 sprigs        

7: Garlic                                                                           - 1 piece

8:  Salt                                                                             - to taste

9: Urad dhaal                                                                  - 1 tsp

10: Mustard seeds                                                            - 1 tsp

11: Oil                                                                             - for garnish

    Method: 

Grind all the ingredients from 1 to 8 adding enough salt to taste with a small amount of water to make into a paste with chutney consistency.

Put the chutney in a bowl and heat a Tava or a pan, adding 2 tbsp oil to it for garnishing. when the oil heats up, add the mustard seeds and let them splutter, then add the urad dhaal and curry leaves and fry them for a few seconds and take off the stove. Pour this garnish over the chutney. This chutney does not need to be heated or warmed before garnishing. One point to be kept in mind is this is best used fresh and maybe good until the next day. 

The fresh coconut chutney

Dosa / Idli Podi or Powder

  

This is a favorite of mine from very younger days. I remember oftentimes going on trips with my family in the family Ambassador car and one of the things that I fondly remember is my mom packing up lots of Idlis and this powder or Podi along with some fresh edible coconut oil to add to it before mixing it up and feeding us, stopping the car on the wayside somewhere. We used to use banana leaves as makeshift plates too. This can be made and stored in airtight boxes for future use.

Idli coming off fresh from the steam

   

 Ingredients:

1: Toor Dhaal                                             - 1 cup

2: Channa Dhaal                                         - 1 cup

3: Urad Dhaal (Black/ white)                        -1 cup

4: Ellu /sesame seeds(black/white)               -2 spoons

5: Dry red chilies -100 gms

6: Curry leaves                                           -2 sprigs

7: Hing / perumkayam/ kayam                    -2 -3 small pieces or 1 tsp powder

8: Salt                                                        -to taste

 Method of preparation:

First, dry roast the sesame seeds and put aside, then one by one dry roast the each Dhaal(Toor, Channa and Uraad) separately and put aside to cool. Now dry roast the Hing/Kayam if you are using the hardened form and add the red chillies and curry leaves and dry roast them too.

Let all the ingredients cool down. Then grind all these ingredients in a mixer/grinder one by one along with enough salt and put them in a large bowl and mix them all well together. Let the powder cool down before storing it away. Enjoy this powder as a side for idli/ dosa adding coconut oil or gingelly oil or any edible oil to it and mixing it up. A tip to remember about grinding the Dhaals, try not to make a too fine powder of it.

 I roast them all together, as I add one cup each of the Dhaals at a time and reduces the number of chilies to balance the heat as you can see in the picture.