Kovakkai Pirattal (Ivy Gourd in Thick Gravy)

This dish features one of my favorite vegetables - kovakkai or ivy gourd. Another one that is based on a segment from Sun TV's Unavum Aarogiyamum series with chef Jacob. I've been meaning to make this for a long time, but somehow hadn't been able to get around to it until recently.

According to the chef, kovakkai pirattal is a Naanjil naadu dish. Naanjil naadu area of Tamilnadu extends from Madurai to Kanyakumari, he said. He also said that the use of deeply roasted coriander powder is characteristic of this cuisine.

This particular dish utilizes the roasted coriander powder, green chillies as the exclusive source of spice, and both coconut and poppy seeds to give a creamy texture. The ivy gourd remains crisp-tender after cooking and the explosion of flavors is amazing!


Ingredients:

Kovakkai/Ivy gourd - 2 cups, cut in half lengthwise (if very large gourds, cut in four lengthwise)
Onion - 2 medium, chopped
Tomatoes - 2 medium, chopped
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander seeds - 3 tsp, dry roasted until dark brown and powdered
Fennel powder - 1/2 tsp
Garlic-ginger paste - 2 tsp
Poppy seeds/gasagasa - 1 tbsp, soaked in warm water for 15 minutes
Coconut, grated - 1/4 cup

For seasoning:

Oil
Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
Green chillies - 10-15, finely chopped
Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Method:

1. Grind coconut with poppy seeds and keep aside.

2. Heat oil in pan. When hot, add fennel seeds and fry until they turn brown and splutter a bit. Add the curry leaves and green chillies.

3. Add onions and fry until golden brown. Then add garlic-ginger paste and fry until the raw smell disappears.

4. Then, add tomatoes, turmeric powder, roasted coriander powder, fennel powder and fry until the tomatoes soften a bit.

5. At this point, add the kovakkai/ivy gourd, salt, and enough water to cook the gourds. You can cook them on medium-low heat without closing the pan, but it will take longer than if you close the pan for a bit. So, if you're in a rush, close the pan and cook (on low heat) until mostly cooked, but still a little crunchy.

6. When the gourds are crisp, but tender add the coconut-poppy seed paste. Let it barely simmer (just a bubble or 2 on the surface) and turn off.

This kovakkai dish goes extremely well with rice dishes, pulav rice, white rice, or even chappathis. It was excellent and would be equally delicious without the coconut paste (in my humble opinion!).

One more look:

kovakkai pirattal

Mor Kuzhambu (Buttermilk gravy)

Any Tamil movie fans out there? Do any of you remember that song, "Ada yennatha solvenungo? Vadu maanga oorudhungo... Thayir sadham ready pannungo!" from the movie Sivakasi? Well, anything to do with curd (curd rice, mor kuzhambu, etc) reminds me of this song and makes me laugh.Yeah, yeah, yeah. Major digression, I know. :)

Ok, ok. I'll get to the point now. This is another simple dish that you can make with water based vegetables (white pumpkin, chayote, bottlegourd, even zucchini!) or okra (fried in oil first) and makes for a light meal. Warm, tangy, and a little creamy, it's a great one especially in this cold weather. I used chow chow (chayote) here, but you can use the same method with any of the other veggies I mentioned!

Ingredients:

Chayote (chow chow) - 1 medium, chopped into bite size pieces
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Buttermilk or beaten curd - 1/2 cup
Salt to taste

Grind to smooth paste:

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 8, or to taste
Coconut - 2 tbsp
Fried gram dal (dalia, pottu kadalai) - 2 tsp

For seasoning:

Oil
Whole red chillies - 2
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Method:

1. Place cut chayote in a pan with very little water, turmeric powder, and a pinch of salt. *Be sure not to add too much water, as the vegetables will let out water as they cook.*

2. Take the ground paste and mix the curds or buttermilk with it.

3. Once the chayote is cooked, add the buttermilk paste, salt, and lower the heat to low. When tiny bubbles are just starting to form on the surface, the gravy is done. **DO NOT let this boil because the mixture will separate (due to buttermilk and coconut combination), so be careful with this step. :)**

4. Do the seasoning and pour into the cooked gravy. Again, heat until tiny bubbles start to form and turn off the heat.

5. Enjoy with hot rice and pickle! My choice of pickle? Vadu mango, of course!

chow chow mor kuzhambu

Keerai Kootu (Spinach in Lentil Gravy)

This is basically just a quick and delicious dish that you can make with fresh or frozen spinach. Great for those days when you really don't feel like doing anything, but still want a tasty and healthy dinner!

Ingredients:

Spinach, fresh - 1 medium bunch (or a 10 oz package of frozen spinach)
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Tomato - 1 large, chopped
Green chillies - 7,or to taste, slit in halt vertically
Moong dal (paasi paruppu) - 1/2 cup
Cumin powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

For seasoning:

Oil
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp (optional)
Curry leaves - 1 sprig
Whole red chilly - 1 (whole or broken in 1/2 for more spice)

Method:

1. Wash moong dal and place in pressure cooker along with onions, tomatoes, green chillies, turmeric powder, water and a pinch of cumin powder. Do not keep too much water or the resulting kootu will be watery.

2. Pressure cook for 2 whistles. Let pressure release and open cooker. If a lot of water remains, evaporate some of the liquid (place on medium high heat for a few minutes) before adding spinach.

3. Now, add spinach, cumin powder, and salt. Cook until spinach is cooked and kootu has thickened. Try not to let the spinach lose its vibrant green color.

4. Do the seasoning and add to the kootu. Let it come to a boil and then turn the heat off.

5. Serve with piping hot white rice, pickle, papadam, ghee and enjoy! :)


Note: I normally go a little heavier on the spinach, but this was all I had the day I made this dish. If you're like me, you can put up to 2 bunches of spinach or a 16 oz bag of frozen spinach!

Palak Paneer

I am sitting here shocked and a bit amused. Why, you ask? Well, after all of these years I have managed to resolve issues with my arch enemy: palak paneer! Yes, I'm sure there are many die hard fans of this dish, but I have never been able to handle it. I guess that's because it was always slimy any time I saw it being served. On top of which, it was a standard dish at any Indian function, so I was forever tormented by that slimy pile of green goop!

So, what did it take to convert me? Well, I was looking at Sailu's site one day and there was a photo of palak paneer that actually looked somewhat appetizing?! I decided at that point to try out her recipe and it was fantastic!

I did make some minor changes, such as using curd instead of cream, but it was her recipe that converted me. Thanks so, so much to Sailu for converting me to liking palak paneer! I even ate the leftovers! :) I'm not actually going to write a recipe here since I basically followed hers. Do try it out. You'll be very pleased!

Pumpkin Puli Kuzhambu (Pumpkin in Tamarind Gravy)

Ok, so here's my latest addiction... Pumpkin puli kuzhambu. You know, I've always been the weird one in the family to like yellow pumpkin, just as a side dish... But no one else in the family seemed to be a big fan of this poor vegetable at all. Yet, I managed to do the seemingly impossible task of converting them to liking pumpkin by putting in in puli kuzhambu. The best part about this? My mother (a self professed pumpkin hater) is now a die hard fan of this kuzhambu!


I think it's the mild sweetness of the yellow pumpkin that sort of balances out the tanginess and the spiciness of the gravy. I have never been a fan of puli kuzhambu until recently and I can't seem to get enough of this one. So, please do yourselves a favor and try this one out sooooon!

Ingredients:

Yellow pumpkin, diced - 2 cups
Shallots, chopped - 4
Tomatoes - 1 chopped
Chilli powder - 2 tsp or to taste
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Jeera powder - 1/2 tsp
Tamarind - lime size soaked in water and extracted
Salt to taste

Seasoning:
Oil (Highly recommended - sesame oil)
Methi (vendheyam) seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Method:

1. Heat oil in pan. Fry methi seeds and curry leaves for a few seconds. Add shallots and fry until golden brown.

2. Add the masala powders (turmeric, jeera, coriander, chilli powders) and fry for a few seconds.

3. Then, add tomatoes, yellow pumpkin, tamarind extract, water (enough for gravy), and salt to taste.

4. Allow to boil until raw smell of tamarind goes away and the pumpkin is cooked.

5. Serve over hot, steaming white rice and tell me you are not in love with this dish!
Notes:
1. This same method can be used to make puli kuzhambu with other vegetables (e.g, eggplant and drumstick, okra, potato, etc.)

2. In using other vegetables, try adding 2-3 chopped cloves of garlic after the onions have browned. Add and fry it a little to enhance the flavor.

3. Using a whole head of garlic and no vegetables (except maybe drumsticks) would make this into poondu kuzhambu (garlic gravy).

Small onion sambar (Chinna vengayam sambar)

small onion sambar

Chinna vengayam sambar... It's a classic with idli. I have to say, it's my all time favorite sambar! It makes me drool. Man, I could eat 2 idlis with 2 buckets of this sambar!

Ok, that really made me laugh... See, eating idlis with tons of sambar runs in my family! My thatha (grandfather) was infamous for doing that. He'd go to a hotel and order idlis, but he'd keep calling the waiter to bring more and more sambar. Soon, he was known in the local hotels as well for his "sambar drinking!" My father and brother also do this. So, Amma knows to make a lot of onion sambar if we're having idli!

By the way, these days we only make sambar with moong dal (paasi paruppu) for dietary reasons, but please feel free to make this with tuvar dal (thuvaram paruppu) as well. Recipe is pretty simple and goes as follows:

Ingredients:

Small onions - 2 cups (fresh or frozen), uncut
Moong dal - 1/2 cup
Green chillies - 8-10 or to taste
Jeera powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Tamarind - small key lime size, soak in water and extract juice
Tomatoes - 1 medium, chopped
Salt

For seasoning:
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 tsp (optional)
Curry leaves - 2 sprigs, plus few extra to add at the end
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp, chopped, plus little extra to add at the end
Asafoetida/hing/perungayam - pinch
Whole red chillies - 2-3 or to taste

Method:

1. Cook moong dal separately with pinch of turmeric powder and pinch of jeera powder. This can be done on stove top or with the pressure cooker (1-2 whistles) since moong dal cooks very quickly. Mash slightly after cooked, if needed.

2. In another pot, do the seasoning with red chillies, mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves, asafoetida. Then, add small onions and fry until the onions are nearly cooked.

3. Now, add green chillies and tomatoes. Fry until tomatoes are little mushy. At this point, add tamarind extract, jeera powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, water(to give enough liquid) and salt to taste. Boil until raw smell is gone.

4. At this point, add the cooked dal and let it simmer for 5 minutes and turn off. Add few curry leaves and small amount of coriander leaves at the very end to enhance the flavor of the sambar. This is optional, but really adds sooo much flavor to the dish.

Enjoy with soft, fluffy idlis and tell me you don't want a bucket or 2 of sambar for yourself!