Sambharam - Spiced Buttermilk

Hot summer noons and cool, refreshing buttermilk go hand-in-hand. While the summer isn't too harsh on us yet, spiced buttermilk does bring on some respite. The other day I saw Nags' spiced buttermilk recipe and decided to piggy-back on that as my entry to MBP-Mixed drinks hosted by Sig of Live to Eat. Thanks Sig for extending the deadline, I'll squeeze in my entry too!

A variant to the more famous lassi, Sambharam or spiced buttermilk is a combination of buttermilk, salt and spices to suit your taste. The proportion of water added to the buttermilk may be more or less depending how thin you prefer the sambharam. You may also add a pinch of asafoetida, some grated ginger or a few kaffir lime leaves for a different flavour.

You need:

1 cup yoghurt/curds

4 cups water

2 green chillies slit

1 sprig of curry leaves

3 tbsp coriander leaves

2 tbsp mint leaves

1 stick of lemongrass

salt to taste

some icecubes

Blend the yoghurt, water, salt, curry leaves, coriander leaves and mint leaves well till frothy. Add the green chillies, lemongrass and icecubes and let it sit in the refrigerateur for half an hour till the spices infuse into the buttermilk. Strain and serve chilled.

Methi Aloo

Methi alu is a dry side accompanying rice or rotis, combing the benefits of methi with the ever popular potatoes, mildly seasoned with turmeric, chilli and garlic. Fenugreek or methi has been used in ancient Indian and Chinese medicine to treat a number of ailments from bronchitis and arthritis to inflammations, rashes and digestive disorders and promoting healthy metabolism. Recent studies have shown that fenugreek lowers blood glucose and cholestrol levels and are hence used in treating diabetes and cardiovascular problems. Read more about benefits of methi here and here. Turmeric, popularly used in Indian cooking is considered a cleanser, blood purifyer, antiseptic and most importantly for it anti-cancer properties. Read about the benefits of turmeric here and here. This healthy combination of fenugreek and turmeric in the form of methi aloo makes an appearence on our table whenever fresh methi is available at the wholesale market. Methi aloo is clearly not a favourite due to the bitterness of methi. Sauteing the methi leaves till they wilt lightly removes the bitter taste. This post goes to Barbara for her LiveSTRONG with a Taste of Yellow event.

You need:

1 onion finely chopped
1 tomato finely chopped
2 large potatoes boiled and chopped
2 cups fenugreek leaves/methi
1 green chilli minced
1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp chilli powder
salt to taste

Heat a pan and add the fenugreek leaves/methi to it. Stir till it wilts slightly. This removes the bitter taste of the leaves. Remove the leaves from the pan. Now add some oil to the pan and throw in the cumin seeds and allow it to splutter. Add the onion and garlic and stir-fry. Add the potatoes, green chilli and tomato and cok till the tomato turns soft. Add the fenugreek leaves, salt, red chilli powder and turmeric and cook for 5 minutes till the flavours blend. Serve hot with rice or rotis.

Dalwali Roti/Dal Parathas

Attending weddings and all the ceremonies that accompany them are a whole lot of fun - the family gatherings, dance and music, dressing up in finery, the gossip and merry-making and most importantly, the lavish variety of cuisines that Indian weddings offer. Gorging on the rich, feasty spread day after day for almost two weeks, my tastebuds died and my senses could no longer take in the sight or smell of typical wedding food! All my hungry stomach craved for was some warm dal and rice. Back home in Dubai, I promptly made, what else, dal-chawal for the dil!!

I often end up with left-over dal which are converted into dal parathas or dalwali rotis, which are easy to make and perfect for a filling breakfast. I used leftover toovar dal which tastes the best in the roti/paratha but moong/masoor dals will also work fine. If the dal is too watery, heat it to evaporate the liquid as much as you can, allow it to cool and keep it in the fridge to thicken, before using it for the rotis.

Depending on the consistency of the dal, add atta/whole wheat flour to it, sufficient to make it into a dough. To give the rotis a crunch, add 1 minced onion, 2 minced green chillies and a handful of finely chopped coriander leaves even if the dal already has these ingredients. Add salt if necessary and knead into a dough in the same way as for rotis. Divide the dough into small balls. Roll out a ball into a circle and apply some ghee. Bring the edges together and twist into a ball again. Roll out the stuffed ball into a roti and roast evenly on both sides on a skillet till orange spots appear. Apply ghee on the roti and roast again till it is slightly crisp on the outside but soft inside. Serve hot with a dollop of butter, yoghurt and pickle.

What you do with left over dal? Let me know through your comments.

RCI - Cuisine of Kerala Round-up

The much-awaited round-up of RCI - Cuisine of Kerala is here. With 91 wonderful entries, it was raining coconuts! Thankyou to each and everyone of you who participated, I was happy to open my email every day and see an entry waiting for me to read. It was a pleasure to see some "first-time-event-participants", some regulars competing for the most number of entries and to gently nudge some dormant bloggers to participate. It also led some new bloggers to discover my blog and me to theirs. Thankyou LakshmiK for giving me the opportunity to host this event, I had great fun hosting it! Those who missed the bus may link their recipes to this post or leave a link in the comments section. My apologies for any missing links, mis-spelt names, mislaid entries or mismatched pictures.

Menu Today and Sia of Monsoon Spice have shared some pretty pictures of Kerala; go over to their space to read more on their experiences in this vibrant state. And then begins the parade of recipes, categorised for easy reference.

Beautiful Kerala - Pic courtesy Menu Today

Unthu vandi - Pic courtesy Sia of Monsoon Spice

Uppu manga - Pic courtesy Sia of Monsoon Spice

Herbal Rememdies :

Chukku Kaapi - Shn of Mishmash

To break-the-fast :

Appam - Asha of Foodie's Hope

Aapams & Vegetable Stew - Namratha of Finger Licking Food

Whole Wheat Appams and Stew - Meera of Enjoy Indian Food

Appams - Srivalli of Cooking 4 all seasons

Idiappam - Easy Crafts of Simple Indian Food

Erachi Puttu - Seena of Simple and Delicious

Chemba Kuzha Putta with Kadala Curry - Lavanya of Home Cook's Recipes

Puttu - Kadala Curry - Asha of Foodie's Hope

Upmaavu - Giniann of Salt and Pepper

On the side :

Chutney :

Chuttaracha Chammanthi - Nags of For the cook in me

Ulli Chutney - Jyothsna of Currybazaar

Pearl onion-red chilli chutney - Jayasree of Experiments in Kailas Kitchen

Coconut Chammanthi Podi - Jayasree of Experiments in Kailas Kitchen

Roasted coconut chutney - Asha of Foodie's Hope

Pickle :

Gooseberry Pickle - Jayasree of Experiments in Kailas Kitchen

Injipuli - Maya Shanbhag of All about Konkan

Crunchies :

Ashgourd peel fries - Seena of Simple and Delicious

Tea-time favourites :

Savoury crunchies and munchies:

Tapioca chips: Happy Cook of My Kitchen treasures

Sweet goodies :

Kumbil Appam - Bharathy of Spicy Chilly

Achappam - Sandhya of Sandhya's Kitchen

Steamed Plantain - Shankari of Stream of Conciousness


Pazhampori - Seena of Simple and Delicious


The big meal :

The vegetarian corner :

Avial - Padma of Padma's kitchen

Avial : Siri of Siri's Corner

Avial - Laavanya of Cookery Corner

Kaalan - Raji of Rak's Kitchen

Kalan - Pravs of Simply Spicy

Kadala Curry - JaiBee of Jugalbandi

Erissery - Menu Today

Nendrapazham Pulissery - Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen

Banana Pulissery - Bharathy of Spicy Chilly

Pineapple Pulissery - TBC of The Budding Cook

Pineapple Pulissery - Deepa of Recipes n More

Thiruvathira Puzhukku - Chithra of Kudampuli

Thiruvathira Puzhukku - JaiBee of Jugalbandi


Kappa Puzhukku - Bharathy of Spicy Chilly


Kappa Curry - Roopa of My Kitchen Treats

Manga Pachadi - Seena of Simple and Delicious

Ulli Theeyal - Nanditha of Satvika

Theeyal - Prema of My Cookbook

Vegetable Kurma - Bhags of Crazy Curry

Vellarikka Parippu curry - Nags of For the cook in me

Idichakka Thoran - Asha of Foodie's Hope

Asparagus Thoran - Shamin of My Comfort Food Network

Cabbage Thoran - Jyothsna of Currybazaar

Papaya Thoran - Bharathy of Spicy Chilly

Beetroot Thoran - Jyothsna of Currybazaar

Pindi Thoran - Nags of For the cook in me

Beans Thoran - Rajitha of Hunger Pangs

Kootucurry - Asha of Foodie's Hope

Vegetable Stew - Raaga of The Singing Chef

Vegetable stew - Sra of When my soup came alive

Vegetable Stew - Nandita of Saffron trail

Mixed Vegetable Stew - Grihini of Grihini

Olan - Kamini of Bubbling Cauldron

Olan - Deepa of Recipes n More

Koorka in Dal - Injipennu of Ginger and Mango

Koorka Mezhukkupuratti - Jayasree of My experiments with food

Vegetable Moilee - Vaishali from Holy Cow!

Non-Vegetarian fare :

Duck Roast - Lissie of Salt and Spice

Parotta and Egg Masala - Superchef of Mirch Masala

Kerala Parotta and Chicken Roast - Remya of Spices 'n Flavours

Kozhi Pidi - Shynee of Indian Potpourri

Kozhi Mappas - Asha of Foodie's Hope

Kappa with fish curry - Mallu recipes of Spice and Rice

Simple Kerala Meal with Fish Curry - Nags of For the cook in me

Moluttathu with kappa - Reshma of Green Chutney

Kerala Fish Curry - SC of So what's new today?

Fish Vevichathu - Rachel of Tangerine's Kitchen

Fish Gravy - Kerala Style - Rina of Rina's Kitchen

Fish Molee - Kitchen Fairy of Secret of Taste

Fish Molee - Maya Shanbhag of All about Konkan


Spicy Fish Curry in Coconut Milk - Vrinda of Spice Coast Kitchen

Kozhuva Meen Tilapichathu - Devi of Tamil Spice

Fish Fry - Sumitha of Kitchen Wonders

Fish Fry - Kavita of Kichdi

Fish Varathathu - Bharathy of Spicy Chilly

Pan Fried Fish with Roasted Onion marinade - Mandira of Ahaar

Chemeen Biryani - RP of My Workshop

Njandu varatharachathu - Shn of Mishmash

Turkey Wings Curry - Kerala Style - Rina of Rina's Kitchen

Panni Ularthiyathu - Sig of Live to Eat


Oh-so-sweet desserts :

Coconut barfi - Susan of The Well-seasoned cook

Parippu Pradhaman - Shn of Mishmash

Godambu Payasam - Mallugirl of Malabar Spices

Idichu Pizhinja Payasam - Mythreyee of Paajaka

Pal Payasam - Anjali of Anna Parabrahma

Beetroot Thoran

A gentle reminder to all of you to send in your entries to RCI - Cuisine of Kerala by January 25th. Please remember to send the link to the entry you are sending in and a picture of the dish. Late entries shall not be entertained, but you can link your post to the round-up which will happen by the month end.

My final entry to RCI - Cuisine of Kerala is a beetroot thoran. I was hoping to post more interesting recipes for the event but got too busy then. This recipe is here simply for the lovely colour beetroot imparts - wild and pink!

You need:
1 large beetroot boiled and grated
3 tbsp coconut grated
1 onion minced
2 green chillies minced
1 tsp mustard seeds
a sprig of curry leaves
juice of half a lime

Heat a tbsp of oil in pan. Add the mustard seeds and let it crackle. Add the onion, green chillies and curry leaves and sautee till the onion is translucent. Then add the beetroot and coconut, mix well and allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the lime juice and stir. That's all. Can it get quicker than this?

Onion Chutney

The prayers for rains have been answered. The last ten days have been overcast, the sun hasn't peeked out and yes, it rained! After the typical winter delicacies like carrot halva and pinnies, the rains called for piping hot, spicy pakodas, vada-pavs and ginger tea or simple, comfort foods with a spicy chutney or dip on the side. One such chutney is ulli chutney or onion chutney, simple and spicy and goes with idlies, dosas, adais, vadas etc.

You'll need:

1 large onion

4 red chillies (more if you want it spicier)

1 small cup grated coconut

a sprig of curry leaves

salt to taste

Slice the onions and grind it along with the rest of the ingredients with a little water. Adjust to the consistency you prefer. Add a tsp of coconut oil on top. That's it, a simple, spicy chutney is ready!

You can make variations by adding tamarind to it for a bit of sourness or roasting the onions and chillies before grinding them.

This is my entry to RCI – Cuisine of Kerala, event conceived by LakshmiK of Veggie Cuisine as well as JFI-Onions, hosted at Radhi's Kitchen, event created by Indira of Mahanandi.