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Authentic Kerala Cuisine & much more…

Archive for July, 2006

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Naan

Posted by Annita on July 30, 2006

Last week i’ve tried an amazing recipe from our dear cake girl,Archana of Spicyana.Her naan was super tempting and I couldn’t wait to try it out .It turned wonderful,Archana.I haven’t prepared naan as good as this one.It was very soft and fluffy and indeed a beauty.It is now in my treasured recipe list and a very easy one too..

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Naan

Here’s the recipe….

Ingredients:-

All purpose Flour – 2 cups.
Dry Yeast – 1 tsp
Sugar – 1 tsp
Salt – 1 tsp
Ghee/Melted Butter – 4tbsp
Yogurt -2 tbsp
Luke warm Water – 2/3 rd cup.

Toppings I used:-
Sesame seeds
Dried parsley

Method:-

Take luke warm water in a cup,dissolve yeast and sugar in it and keep it aside.Allow it to rise.It normally takes only about 5-10 minutes to rise well.Sift flour and salt into a bowl and add yeast- sugar mixture,yogurt and half of the ghee into it.Mix together to form a smooth dough.Again knead it on a flat surface to make it more smoother.Then it has to be kept in a greased ,covered bowl(preferrably in a warm place,may be inside the cooking range) and allow it to stand for almost 1 hr,by which the dough will be sized double.Knead the dough for 5 more minutes by punching it down.Divide into lemon sized balls.Flatten each ball using hand,and add the toppings .Now heat a skillet( I didn’t have a grill pan,so I used a skillet) on the stove top.Grease it with oil and wipe it off with a cloth or kitchen tissue.Place the flattened dough on it ,and cook it on medium heat.Within few minutes,it will puffs up ,then apply ghee on 2 -3 spots and turn it over.Cook for few more minutes and remove.Immediately wrap it in a kitchen towel.Serve hot.

Thanks for this lovely recipe,Archana.

Posted in Blogger's Recipes, Bread & Rotis | 12 Comments »

Mushroom-Peas Pulao

Posted by Annita on July 30, 2006

I’ve also tried a pulao from Vineela’s Cooking.I’ve always been fascinated by her variety & creative dishes .This one was quite simple,flavourful and fast.Thanks Vineela for such a cool recipe.Mushroom lovers will surely fall for this one.I’ve added some mint leaves also to the recipe,as I love the flavour of mint,rest remains the same.

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Mushroom-Peas Pulao

Here’s her recipe..

Ingredients:-

Boiled rice – 2 cups
Fresh button Mushrooms sliced – 5 nos
Frozen Green Peas -2 cups
Sliced Onion -2 nos
Green chillies julienned – 3 nos
Chopped garlic – 1tsp
Chopped ginger – 1tsp
Cinnamon – 1/2 inch piece
Cardamom(crushed) – 2nos
Cloves(crushed) – 2 nos
Cumin -1 tsp
Chopped Mint leaves – 1/4 cup
Red Chilly Powder – 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder – 1/2 tsp
Salt – to taste
Oil – as needed

Method:-

Heat oil in a pan and saute ginger and garlic.Add cumin seeds,green chillies and onions into it and saute until onion turns brown.Add mushrooms and saute for few minutes.Stir in Cinnamon ,Cardamom,cloves ,salt and green peas into it and cover it with lid.Allow it to cook in medium heat for 3-4 mins.Add in mint leaves,red chilly powder and the boiled rice.Mix well and simmer for 2 more minutes.Serve hot.

Posted in Blogger's Recipes, Rice & Noodles | 10 Comments »

Mango Mousee

Posted by Annita on July 30, 2006

Another one i’ve tried is also from Spicyana.This time,a dessert which i’ve been longing to prepare .Thanks Archana,that was one nice sweet to be served on parties.We all loved it,especially my little one.

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Mango Mousse

Here goes the recipe for Mango Mousse..

Ingredients:-

Ripe mangoes -2 nos
Orange Juice or Honey – 1 tbsp(to add with mango puree) + 1/4 cup(for mixing gelatin)
Condensed milk – 4tbsp
Sugar – 1/4 cup
Egg – 3
Plain Gelatin – 1 tsp
Whipping Cream -200 ml

Method:-

Puree the mangoes by adding orange juice and strain it .Microwave (or heat) 1/4 cup of orange juice for 10 seconds and add gelatine into it.Mix it well and keep aside.Eggs and sugar are mixed together to make a cream.Heat the stove and boil the cream in medium heat,stirring continuosly till it becomes thick.Remove from heat and add gelatine into it.Now slowly stir in condensed milk,and allow it to cool.Add mango puree to the cooled egg-sugar mixture and mix it.Keep it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.Whip half of the cream well and fold it gently into the mixture.As Archana said,ready made sweetened whipped cream can also be used .Chill for another 4-6 hrs and serve with whipped cream,mango slices or anything of ur choice.I’ve had it with the cherries I brought from home.

Posted in Blogger's Recipes, Desserts & Cakes | 7 Comments »

UppuMaanga(Salted mangoes)

Posted by Annita on July 27, 2006

Back in my home,when the mango season arrives,there will be mangoes all around ,we could eat it all the time no matter what time is.And my amma used to preserve these mangoes in different forms,to have it in off-mango season as well.Different types of mango pickles,‘Manga Thera’(ripe mango pulp spread on a mat and dried in sun for 2-3 weeks and then rolled and preserved.Oh god..its so delicious..!!),Uppu Maanga are all her masterpieces.
Uppumanga(Raw mangoes in brine) and Kanji(rice porridge) -This combo has been my all time favorite and comfort food.Now after trying out many different cuisines,I could say I haven’t found anything as comfortable and delicious as this home made simple dish.Its really sad,that we cannot get those kind of mangoes used to prepare Uppumanga ,here in U.S.Small unripened mangoes,having thin skin is usually used for making this.As the peels are so thin,the brine will penetrate deeply inside.We call it ‘Nattumaanga’,sorry i don’t know any other name for it.

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Nattumaanga

Traditionally,Uppumaanga is preserved in huge ceramic jars called ‘Bharani‘.See our blog queen Indira’s collection of Bharani’s here.
And now the recipe…

Ingredients:-

Mangoes as a whole – 1 kgs
Salt – 165 gm
Water – 3 cup

Method:-

1.Wash the mangoes well.Pat them dry and keep aside.
2.Boil water along with salt and allow them to cool.
3.Put the mangoes in a big ceramic jar or a ‘Bharani’ .
4.Now pour the cooled brine solution over the mangoes into the jar.
5.Tightly cover the jar and keep it in a quiet place for atleast 1 month.If you are preparing Uppumanga in a bulk,extra care has to be taken to prevent it from fungii attack.A handful of sand tied in a cloth ,attached to the top of the Uppumanga jar is one such method.The total salt taken is divided into 4 parts,and adding each part to the mangoes in 4 consecutive weeks also helps.Uppumanga preserved in this way will lasts for more than a year.

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Uppumaanga stored in Bharani

Preparing Uppumanga Chutney:-

Mash 10 shallots and 5 green chillies together.Do not make it a paste,just beat them together.Again traditionally,this is done using a Mortar and Pestle.Pick 3 or 4 salted mangoes from the jar and add it to the mashed green chillies- shallots mixture.

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Preserved Uppumaanga

Mix them well,and add 2 teaspoon full of coconut oil.Mixing them with hand enhances the taste,but the hot chillies can burn your hands too..:))
Yeah..Uppumanga is now ready to be served…Along with Kanji,it really pays a treat to your tastebuds as it deserves!!..

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Uppumaanga Chutney

This is my entry to Revathi’s FMR#7- Comfort Food  and to Tony’s Weekend Curry Mela 

P.S :- I took the snaps during my last Kerala trip.

Posted in Chutneys & Pickles, Traditional Kerala Dishes | 35 Comments »

Cherries

Posted by Annita on July 25, 2006

I am very much fond of these processed cherries,which i’ve brought from Kerala .Those bright red colored cherries are indeed a treat to your eyes as well as your taste buds,they are sweet,juicy and very delicious.But I am not sure if this is available in U.S,I haven’t seen it anywhere not even in Indian grocery stores.If anyone knows,pls help me with it.

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Processed Cherries

In Kerala,these are mostly used for decorating cakes and puddings.But I love to have it just like that.Here goes a quick fruit snack with cherries,and its definitely a party pleaser too.

Ingredients:-

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Pineapple ,Cherries and Cheese Slices

Diced pineapple – 20 pieces
Cheese slices(preferrably American) cut into small 1/2 inch squares- 5 slices
Cherries – 20
Jalapenos /Green Chillies sliced thin – 2(Optional)

Method:-

Skewer it up with a pineapple dice,2 layer of cheese slices(You can add more cheese slices ,if you wish),a thin slice of jalapeno and a cherry.

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A simple fruit snack

(P.S I didn’t use jalapenos/green chillies here as I prepared this for lil’ Milan)

Posted in Fruit Dishes, Lil' Milan's Choice, Snacks & Appetizers | 16 Comments »

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