Thattai (a crunchy savory snack)

This is my favorite snack ever! Uses very simple ingredients but you won't be able to stop with one.

I have used Meenakshi ammal's Pachai Arisi Thattai recipe here.

Two main ingredients are Rice flour and Urad flour

Ready made rice flour is easily available everywhere now.

Urad flour is available too, if you don't find it, just dry toast some urad dal and let. lol, grind to a fine powder and run through a sieve.

I made two kinds today

Regular Thattai made with red chili powder. 

Makes 50 thattais (approx)

Rice flour - 2 cups

Urad Flour- 2 tbsp

Ghee- 2 tbsp

Salt - 3/4 tsp and a pinch

Red chili powder - 3/4 tsp

Water- 1 cup and two tbsp 

Chana dal (soaked for half hour) - 1 and 1/2 tbsp 

Curry leaves - 7 or 8

Oil- enough to deep fry

Start by sieving both the flours and the chili powder through a strainer or a sifter. Add the ghee, chili powder and salt, ghee, Chana dal and curry leaves. Mix it well. Add the water in and make it a moist dough. 

Cover it with a wet cloth so the dough won't get dry.

Heat the oil in a thick bottomed pan. If you have an electric fryer set the temperature to 400 deg.

Once the oil is hot you are ready to start making it.

Take a plastic sheet (I used a used ziploc bag)

Oil it well. Keep some water in a small bowl near by. 

Make about a dime sized ball from the dough. Dip your fingers in the water and flatten the dough to a round circular shape. Make a batch of 6 or 8 and slowly drop them one by one in the hot oil. 

After a minute or two, turn them and let them cook. The Thattai is ready when it is a nice Holden red in color and it makes a hard noise when you lift it with your ladle.

Repeat the same process until you run out of dough.

You can make a different variation of this using Black pepper. Coarse grind about 1 tbsp of black pepper in a mortar and use it instead of red chili powder. Everything else stays the same.

The ones on the left is made with black pepper. 

Happy Snacking!! 

RibbonBakoda

 

(Ribbon Bakoda pictured with kesari)

Ribbon Bakoda is also called ribbon for obvious reasons! It's an easy to make snack. It's crunchy, salty and deep fried. Now how can it not taste great!

I followed the recipe from Meenakshi Ammal's 'Samaithu Paar' which translates to 'Cook and See'. It is a bible for Tambrahm Cooking.

Here goes!

You need

Oil to deep fry and this 

Gadget called achu for pushing the dough on to the oil. It's available for $15 dollars at any Indian store. It comes with different achus to make all kinds of snacks from the book!

I have two kinds, the one on the left is easier to handle. The one on the right is a traditional achu.

The dough you make has to be made a little dry but not too dry. 

You need:

2 cups Kadala Mavu(Besan/Chickpea flour)

1 cup Arisi Mavu (Rice flour)

1 1/4 tsp Salt

1 heaped tsp Kara Podi (Chili Powder)

3 pinches  Perungayam (Asafoetida)

1 tablespoons Ghee or Unsalted Butter

 

Put the salt and chili powder in 1/4 cup water and let the salt mix well in the water

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl

Add the salt and chili powder to this

Keep some extra water on hand and knead until the dough becomes a bit thick like puri dough

In a thick bottomed pan, add oil.

On a medium flame, let the oil become hot.

To check of the oil is ready insert a wooden spoon in, you should see bubbles coming out or put a small ball of dough in the oil and you should see it rise to the top. 

Keep the flame in the same temperature.

Put the dough in the achu and push some out in to the oil.

It's done when it's a nice golden brown all over. 

Makes a great evening snack!

In my house we also have it as a side for curd rice!! 

Tips

Make sure you have time to make the ribbon once the dough is done. 

Is the dough rests for a while the Bakoda might become oily

Monitor the oil temp through out. If the oil gets too hot then the ribbon will become black. 

You say Pakoda, I say Bakoda

Bakoda is a nice crispy snack and pretty easy to make. It makes a great appetizer.

 

My mom would make all kinds of Bakodas. Coriander Bakoda, Mint bakoda, Cashew Bakoda and ofcourse, the famous onion Bakoda. 

Today I have used onions, a bit of methi, a bit of coriander and some cashews.

For about 8 to 10 servings you need:

Chopped onions - 4 cups

Salt- 1.5 tsp (I use sea salt in my cocking, pls adjust the salt measurements according to the salt u use)

First chop the onions and add the salt and mix it well and keep it aside for 10 mins. You will see that the onions let out water because of the salt.

In the mean while, keep the oil on the stove on a medium high flame. 

Now add 

1 and 1/2 cups of gram flour

1 and 1/12 cups of rice flour

1 tsp of turmeric powder

1 tsp of chili powder

6 or 7 green chilies chopped

* I added a handful of chopped coriander leaves and methi leaves, this is optional

2 strands of fresh curry leaves

2 tsp of ghee

Mix everything well. Do not add any extra water, keep mixing it and u will see that it becomes a thick paste like dough. 

Check if the oil is ready by adding a small ball of the dough to it. It should come up and start to get golden brown in color. 

Once u see that it's ready, pinch the dough on to the oil. Bakodas should be shapeless and that's how they get crispy.

 

Palak Wadi ---- Healthy (Iron Rich )Green Squares

                                     Collard Greens Wadi

I learnt this from my friend's (Priya) mom, Mrs.Anjali Ambekar. Traditionally this is made with Spinach. My cousin Aparna gave me two big bunches of Collard Greens, which she got for under a dollar, back in November I think. This was the first thing which came to my mind. Even though it is time consuming, it is worth it. It is essentially a finger food, can be had as an appetizer or as a side to Rotis or Pulav.

For an appetizer, Maggi Hot and Sweet Sauce tastes great with it. It can be made ahead of time. It also freezes well too. This tastes best with Spinach, but since I had collard greens, made it with that.

  Please try this with Spinach, for best results...                      

Collard Greens Wadi

                                                               
                                                              Step  by Step Photos

You will need
 One Bunch Collard Greens (which will amount to approximately 8 cups of greens)
Gram Flour - 1 and 1/2 cups
Rice Flour - 3/4th cup
Salt - 3 teaspoons (more or less, as you may need)
Chili Powder - 4 Teaspoons )more if you can handle spice)
Coriander Powder - 3 Tablespoons
Haldi Powder - 2  Teaspoons
 Oil -- 3 to 4 teaspoons
Red Chili - 2 or 3
Urad Dal - 2 Teaspoons
-----> Wash and drain the collard greens and pat dry.
-----> Chop them in to small strips and keep in a big bowl.
----->  Run them through the food processor once, if you feel the pieces are all too big.
------> Add all the spices to this along with the flour and start to mix with your hand, the mixture should be dry but still bind together.
-----> In a flat vessel, put some oil and spread it all around so the mixture wont stick to the bottom
------> Place this in a steamer and steam for 15 minutes.
------> Let cool and then cut in squares
------> put these squares on a flat pan and grill them lightly so they get a bit roasted on both sides
------> Put the roasted squares in a serving bowl or a box if you plan to serve them later
When you are ready to serve, heat the squares first and then
------> In a dry Kadai, add oil, and when it gets hot, add the mustard seeds, red chili and urad dal
------> When the dal gets roasted pour it over tge warm squares...
Enjoy!!!

Paneer Fingers

When ever I think about Paneer Fingers, I am reminded of this small fast food place in Chennai called ‘Dilli Haat’. (This has no connection to the Dilli Haat in Delhi).

When I lived (for one year) in Chennai with my kids in 2002, we used to frequent this place often.
 They closed it in 2003, after we left...

For people who know Chennai, it used to be inside the mall where Adyar Bakery is there on Luz Church Road, right next to Tulsi Silks. That was the one place where my kids would not get sick after eating Paneer in India. Anyways, after they closed I kept trying to make it myself at home, but still would not completely match the taste of theirs.
The Paneer fingers you get there will be crisp with a subtle taste of garlic and crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
This post is a result of me trying to make the perfect Paneer finger and I   succeeded.My kids also approved this…..

You will need

Paneer (standard packet, you get in Indian Stores)

Ginger 1 inch Piece

Green Chili 2 (more if your kids like it spicier)

Garlic 4 cloves

Yogurt – 2 tablespoons

All Purpose flour – 3 Tablespoon

Turmeric Powder – 1/2 Teaspoon

Chili Powder – 1 Teaspoon

Salt – as needed

Method

1. Cut paneer in to desired shape for soaking in the marinade
2. Grind the Green Chili, Garlic and Ginger to a smooth paste, to this add the yogurt and chili powder, salt and Turmeric powder, grind again.
3. Add the All purpose flour to this and grind again, and pour in a flat dish so all paneer can get soaked well.
4. Soak for half an Hour.

1. Heat oil in a Kadai (a thick bottomed iron pan) on Medium flame.
2. once the oil is hot, (test it by dropping a small piece of paneer, in to it, it should be a nice rich golden brown color, if it blackens the pil is too hot, reduce fire.)
3. one by one, roll the paneer in Ground Panko Breadcrumbs and then drop in oil and fry to a golden brown color.
4. Serve with Ketchup or Hot and Sweet Sauce… 

The first one was made with regular panko, it tasted good but still did not look like it, but then my husband ground the bread crumbs and it tasted and looked exactly like the one we used to get in Dilli Haat... !!

The only downside to this dish, is it gets over, before you bring it to the table.   :)

Deep Fried Snacks... Thenkuzhal

Thenkuzhal is one of the most rewarding snacks you can make and almost foolproof.

The above pictures were taken in Madurai when I was in India, when my Grandma made some for me. She made it with the help of Viji, a wonderful lady who is my aunt's kitchen helper.

She used a traditional press.

What I have here in the US is more modern version of the press.

What ever you have at home, if you make this, it will be over in a few days. It is a great snack to munch on.

The recipe

Rice Flour - 1 Cup

Urad Flour - 1/4 Cup

Jeera - Make sure it is clean, 1 teaspoon

Salt - about a teaspoon

Butter -  1/2 Cup Softened to Room Temperature
Water- as needed

Method

---> Mix all the ingredients to make a hard to a little soft dough.

---> In a pan, heat some oil and test the temperature by adding a small amount of the dough to it. It should immediately rise up to the top.

---> Make in to balls and stuff in to your press. Use the mold with one hole in the middle and holes all around.

---> Slowly make the thenkuzhals by pressing the press in small circles in the oil.

---> Make 3 to 4 at a time, depending on the amount of oil you are using.

---> Once it becomes a light golden color, turn around and after a few seconds, when it is golden all over, take it out and drain on an absorbent paper towel.

---> If your thenkuzhal is becoming red in color, then you may have used too much Urad Flour.

Deep Fried Snacks....Vella Cheedai, Uppu Cheedai

Yesterday August 13th was Gokulashtami...Lord Krishna's Birthday.....

So I attempted to make some of the Savories that are usually made, Vella Cheedai, Uppu Cheedai and thenkuzhal.

I took these recipes from Aparna, who is an expert making the Cheedais. The Uppu Cheedai

All of them use more or less the same ingredients.

Vella Cheedai

Vella Cheedai is the sweet version of the Cheedai as the name suggests, Vellam means Jaggery I a raw form of sugar)

You Need

Rice Flour 1 cup

Urad Flour - 2 teaspoons

Jaggery 1 cups

Sesame seeds- 1 teaspoons

Cardamom - 5 or 6 peeled and powdered

Coconut (cut like small teeth) - 3 tablespoons OPTIONAL

Method

---> In a heavy bottomed pan, add the jaggery and about 2 tablespoons water. Keep the fire at low flame.

--->In 10 minutes the jaggery would have melted and become completely liquid.

--->At this point, switch off the stove and add the cardamom powder, coconuts, sesme seeds, the rice and urad flour.

--->Mix well to make a batter

---> Make round balls and deep fry till it becomes dark brown but take it out before it becomes black.

---> When Deep frying, as always keep the fire on a low to medium flame, otherwise the outside will cook fast and become black but the inside will remain uncooked.

Uppu Cheedai

Uppu Cheedai is known to create catastrophies in the kitchen. Heard a lot of stories, that if you don't make the dough right, the moment when you out the small balls in the oil, it will start bursting. Because of this, I have never attempted this in the past. Armed with Aparna's recipe I was determined to overcome my fears :) )

It turned out great, the only disappointment was I made tooooooooo little :(

You Need

Rice Flour 1 cup

Urad Flour - 2 teaspoons

Salt - As needed (i added 3/4ths teaspoon to a teaspoon)

Sesame seeds- 1 teaspoons

Butter (Melted ) - 1/4 stick

Water - as needed to make a thick dough

Method

--->Mix well to make a batter

---> Make small (smaller than the Vella Cheedai) round balls and deep fry till it becomes dark brown but take it out before it becomes black.

---> When Deep frying, as always keep the fire on a low to medium flame, otherwise the outside will cook fast and become black but the inside will remain uncooked.

---> when it turns an even golden brown, take them out.

Both of them tasted really good. I also made Thenkuzhal. I will post the recipe for that tomorrow.

How to make Bajji?

I wanted to do this post a long time ago, but whenever I make it, bajjis get over in a second before I can take a picture. So this time, I planned and took step by step pictures....

I don't know why, but in India, whenever it rains we would crave for bajji and Mom would make it for us.... I mentioned this to my kids casually and then one day they both came running from the bus stop and showed their elbows where there was one rain drop and requested me to make bajji!

In our house potato (my son) and onion bajji (my daughter) are very popular, I like the green chili bajji and the indian eggplant bajji, but i dont have pictures of them.

I learnt this recipe from my mom, she never added soda or anything to the bajjis and they were the yummiest...


In chennai, long long ago, when we used to frequent Marina beach, there used to be an old mami who would make the best ever vazhaikai (raw banana) bajji, but now a days there are lots of stalls that sell this but not even close to what she used to make.....
Lets go to the recipe
You need
for the dough
Chick pea flour - 1 cup
Water - 1/2 to 3/4 th cup
Yogurt - 2 to 3 tablespoons
Salt - 1 to 1 and 1/2 teaspoons
Chili powder - 1 teaspoon
Hing - 2 dashes
Oil - 3 cups
desired vegetables
potatoes -- slice in even rounds, not too thick or thin
onions -- slice in even rounds, not too thick or thin
or other options are
Indian eggplant , Raw green banana -- cut lengthwise
Green chillies, Banana pepper --slit
Method
---> Take the chick pea four or besan and the water and add the water slowly to it and mix well so there are no lumps, and add the yogurt to this
---> Add the spices and salt and mix well and keep aside for atleast 5 minutes
---> The dough should be like a thick dosa dough, if you put your finger in and take it out there should be an even coating of the dough on your fingers and the dough should remain on your fingers, if the dough is runny then your bajjis will not have the covering.....
---> In a pan, add the oil, (the pan should be big enough to hold atleast 5 cups, otherwise, once you put your bajjis, it will overflow and make a mess) (the pan should also be deep)
---> Keep the fire on medium flame and let it become hot
--->After a few minutes test the temperature by adding a dollop of the dough, it should immediately bubble and rise up, if it does then it is ready
---> Now insert the veggies one by one and slowly put them in the oil, without burning your fingers
---> The bajjis will rise up and turn them if they are golden brown on one side and take them out of the oil once they are golden all over....



**** Never leave the stove unattended because oil can catch fire if you leave it for tooo long.
**** If you like you may add some food color to make them orange, but I like them the natural color.

Butter Corn

This is one of the snacks I make for my kids, when they are back from school.

It is one of the easiest. I have taught them to make it for themselves also.

You need

Frozen Corn- 2 cups

Salted Butter- 2 Tablespoon

Lemon Juice - 1 teaspoon

Water - 1/3 cup

Method

---> In a pan, add the frozen corn and water and keep the stove on a medium fire, and let it boil for 3 to 5 minutes, until most of the water is evaporated.

---> (you can do this in the microwave also, add little more water if you do that, cook for 3 minutes)

---> Add the butter and lemon juice to this and eat it hot...

(The only thing is the microwave dries it out and on stove top it is moist. So add more water and little more butter)

Tastes great on a cold winter day.

We first had it in Spencer Plaza, Chennai, India, and ever since my son became a fan.

He makes this on his own.

In chennai they make the plain version which is the one above, a chinese version (instead of lemon juice add soy sauce and some chili sauce), a chaat version (along with lemon juice and butter, add some chaat masala and red chili powder) and one more version, i cant remember. The smallest size cup was the bathroom cups they have here and it would sell for 70 rupees in 2002. We would end up spending 600 rupees there itself!

Mixture

As the name suggests, this is a mixture of lot of things....If you make laddus, then this becomes easy....
You need to make,

Karaboondi (Spicy Boondi)

Oma podi (Fine and Thick sev)

Murmura

Shakkar Para

Roasted Channa Dal

Roasted Peanuts

Method

Karaboondi

Follow the same recipe as boondi in the laddu recipe, but add some salt and some chilli powder to it. Deep fry till it gets crisp, drain and keep aside

Oma Podi
To make the sev, the ratio is two parts rice flour to one part Channa Dal (besan) flour.

1 cup Rice flour

1/2 cup Besan

2 table spoons melted butter or ghee

Salt as needed

Omam powder (Powder some Ajwain or Bishep's weed in your mixer)

Make a thick dough and use your sev maker to make this and keep aside

Murmura

This is puffed up rice,you get this in Indian stores.

Take some murmura and deep fry this in hot oil and keep aside

Shakkar Para

Follow the recipe and make it and keep aside

Roasted Channa Dal

Soak some Channa Dal for two hours, drain and let dry on a dry towel for an hour.

Deep fry this in hot oil and keep aside.
Roasted Peanuts

Take some unroasted, peeled peanuts and deep fry in hot oil and keep aside.

For spice,

Deep fry 4 dry red chillies in oil and keep aside.

Powder this coarsely with rock salt by hand or a mixer and add this to the big bowl where you are going to mix everything.

And just mix everything with a dry hand and store in an airtight container.