Kitchen Tips: Home Made - Idli Rava or Rice Rava

Idli Rava in many a homes I know in my native place is made and created at home. This also reminded me of the days when Mom used to spend hours together with her little Grinding stone singing local folklore and the white rice stealthily getting pound, ground to a coarse perfection. The grinding stone has a central dent, where the rice is passed with a palm folded quantity, and then the metal handle is spinned away to glory, till the coarse rice powdered comfortably slips out on the side and perches around the lower slab of the stone.

Idli Rava is the coarse, powdered Rava added to the Idli batter. While there are times I have bought the store variety I prefer the home made one, simply because its-made-at-home. The Rava is quite easy to make and you don't have to sweat it out in kitchen for long. I also use this Rava for coating Fritters which I pan-fry. So just in case I am running out of Sooji/ Coarse Rava, I use this method to make Rava at home.

Preparation time + Processing time: 190 minutes

Ingredients:

Rice (Sona Masoori or Dosa Rice variety) - 2 cups

Water - For soaking

Contraptions used: Traditional Grinding stone or Blender

Method: Wash and drain rice till water is clear. Soak rice in water for 2-3 hours. Drain off the water and spread on muslin cloth or cheese cloth. Keep in a warm place with enough air to dry it off. Once water content completely goes off and each grain is dry (takes around 2-3 hours), grind in a blender to a fine powder. If you are using the Rava for coating fritters, ensure its coarse. If using for Idli, grind to a coarse to fine powder consistency. Store in a air tight container and use as per choice.

Traditional Konkani Grinding Stone (Daantey/ Zaatey/ Zaatuh)

Traditional Grinding/ Milling Stone or Daantey as its termed amongst Konkanis. This one which my mother uses even to this date is almost 50 years old. This is a traditional Grinding/ Milling Stone used and found in many a Konkani houses. Some of them use Blenders and Mixers nowadays out of sheer convenience. This stone is called Zaatuh in Marathi, Zaatey in Goan Konkani and Daantey in GSB Konkani. As much as I love these traditional contraptions, I cannot carry them with me back here in US. We use this contraption to make Idli Rava, Whole Urad Daal grinding and numerous other grinding/ milling purpose. The best part about using traditional mills is that you can control the granularity of your milled grains, pulses and lentils. They are more custom made and can be coarse or fine as per choice. Even to this date, Mom prefers the Idli Rava ground on this stone.

This Grinding Stone was gifted to my mom by my Grandmom. It is one of our prized possessions and probably the most ancient vintage Konkani contraptions we have in our household. This rocky, smooth stone grinder is very heavy and easily weighs between 10-12 pounds.

Shan Chicken Keema Curry

Shan Masala has been one of my favorite out here in US. I love utilizing local masala's because they add the much needed flavour especially for meat dishes. I had a packet of ground Chicken and wanted to make apt use of it for some curry. Thought Chicken Keema curry would be an awesome pairing for some warm Malabari Paratha. This recipe is simple and followed the recipe on the packet to the T. Nice warm curry for cold winter dinners.

Recipe Source: Shan Masala Recipe

Preparation time + Cooking time: 30-45 minutes

Ingredients:

Ground Chicken - 1 pound

Shan Keema Mix Masala - 2 tablespoon

Onions (chopped) - 2 cups

Ginger-garlic paste (finely minced) - 2 tablespoon

Green Chillies (sliced) - 2

Salt - As per taste

Oil - For frying

Cilantro (chopped) - 1/4th cup

Method:

Thaw the ground Chicken in microwave for a minute or keep out on room temperature for 30 minutes. Heat oil in a deep dish saucepan, saute onions which are chopped to a caramelised texture. Add ground chicken and cook on a low-to-medium flame. This is a long process and takes lot of time, almost 15-20 minutes; You need to smash the meat till it wilts and becomes flaky. Once its cooked, water and fat completely oozes out, you will notice that the water content evaporates. Add the masala, add minced ginger-garlic paste and adjust salt as per taste. Add enough water for gravy consistency. Bring to boil and simmer on low flame for 10 minutes. Turn off flame, garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve warm with Parathas or Rotis.

Sprouted Desi Chori Beans Curry in Spicy Coconut Gravy (Kirla-ailey Bagde Aambat)

Kirla-ailey Bagde Aambat or Sprouted Desi Chori Beans in Spicy Coconut Gravy is an epic dish amongst Konkanis. The reason I term it as epic because this dish is one of its kind, the sprouting process takes around 4 days, which means it requires great deal of planning. The sprouts have to be peeled off the skin; this is a painstaking process and used to demand lot of "distribution of labor". In my house, each of us were given our share and we were supposed to peel off the skin so that the burden does not fall on one person. No wonder the dish tasted really well, after all it was hard work contributed from everyone!

Kirla-ailey Bagde or Chori Beans in Konkani implies Sprouted Beans; Kirla in GSB Konkani implies sprouts, hence sprouted Chori Beans. This is a local delicacy loved a lot by all my family members. Although its quite difficult to finish the sprouting and peeling process, the taste makes your forget all the hard work required for this dish. The beans can be found at Asian stores across US.

The first day once you soak the Bagde beans (konkani term for Desi Chori beans) in water for 8 hours till they swell up in size. Remove them from water, keep in a warm oven and leave for the night. Next day you would see the seeds swollen up, all plump and thick. Soak them again in water for 8 hours. During the night, drain the water and keep the Beans in a warm oven or on a warm stove top. Next day around you will notice long sprouts shooting out of the centre point of the bean. Keep them out for the day to allow the sprouting to complete. Before you begin use, keep them in water again for 3-4 hours for the skin to come off. Once ready to peel, drain water completely and peel them off the brown skin. Throw away the skin, retain the white plumpy bean. Some of them will not sprout and they are aptly termed as Chor Bagdo or the sproutless ones. I enjoy Garlic Usal with Goda Masala or Saaru with Garlic tadka of the sproutless ones. Both taste nice. Retain or discard Chor Bagdo as per choice. Discard the peeled skin. Cashew nuts and Onion seasoning provide the extra zing to the dish.

Preparation time: 120 minutes of peeling off the brown skin of Chori Beans

Cooking time: 45 minutes for curry

Ingredients:

Desi Chori Beans or Bagdo - 2 cups

Onions (finely chopped) - 1/2 cup + 1/3 cup for garnishing

Cashew nuts (chopped) - 1/2 cup

For the Gravy -

Red Chillies - 3-4

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Tamarind pulp - 1 teaspoon

Salt - As per taste

Oil - For frying

Water - For gravy consistency

Method:

Boil the white beans which are peeled off the brown skin with onions in water good enough to soak the beans (approx. 1:1 ratio). Once cooked completely, grind the gravy ingredients and add to the curry. Add chopped cashew nuts bits as well. Bring to a boil and simmer of low flame for 10 minutes. Pour a seasoning of onions chopped, sauted and caramelised in oil on the curry. Serve hot with Urad-Rice dosa or plain white Rice.

Calcutta Egg Roll/ Kathi Rolls

I first sampled the Egg Rolls or Kathi Rolls at a friends lunch party in Bangalore. My friend A, makes lot of yummy Bengali dishes. I wanted to ask her the recipe but then sooner or later, it got buried. The taste still lingered in my mind. I later sampled the Rolls in one of the Calcutta joints in Bangalore. I like the Calcutta food especially the lighter food items like Ghoogni- a pasty dish of Chickpeas cooked in mild spices, Jhaal Mooree - puffed rice with spices, onions and cilantro, Lebu Chaa - lemon tea which is soothing and subtle, Puchkaa - the good old Pani-Puri Calcutta style et al.

The other day when I was blog hopping, I came across Sandeepa's blog of Bong Mom's Cookbook fame. I was blown away with the recipe of Egg Roll. Much to my amusement, I also found Kawan - Malaysian Paratha for binding in the roll at local Asian grocery store. The final outcome was very tasty, aptly coupled with a Coke Can! Now, we regularly munch on Parathas and snack big on different variations of this roll. Thanks a lot Sandeepa. I tweaked the spice and stuffing; this recipe is a saviour when you want to snack on something easy, quick and tasty.

Recipe Source: Bong Mom's Cookbook

Preparation + Cooking time: 30 minutes ~ 4 rolls

Ingredients:

Paratha Stuffing -
Kawan Paratha - 4
Onions (sliced) - 1/2 cup
Tomato Ketchup - As per taste
Mozzarella Cheese - 1/2 cup
Chaat Masala - 1 tablespoon
Lime Juice - 4 tablespoon
Green Chillies (chopped) - 2

Egg Topping -
Egg (beaten with 1 tsp milk each) - 4
Salt - As per taste
Pepper powder - 2 teaspoon
Red Chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Foil - 4 strips to hold the wrap

Method:
Take an individual Kawan Paratha from the freezer and fry immediately on a heated pan. This requires no oil and can be used straight out of fridge. One need not thaw the Parathas before use. Pan-fry the Paratha evenly on both sides till the dough is cooked and fried on both sides.
Separately, break an egg; whisk with salt, pepper and a teaspoon of milk. Beat well to make it fluffy, spread this mix on side of the the Paratha and flip over till the eggs gets cooked on both sides.
Transfer to a plate with the Eggy side on top. Add the topping of onion slices, chaat masala, mozzarella cheese (shredded), green chillies, tomato ketchup, some salt and pepper. Finally, squeeze fresh lime juice and roll half the Paratha with a foil. Serve hot with desired beverage.

Taro Root Fritters (Kaale Alvaa Maddi Phodi)

I am always on the pursuit of adding age-old recipes which I believe would be easily buried down and under as generations progress.Taro is known to all for the leaves used to make Patrado, a popular Konkani pin-wheel roll steamed with a paste of flour and spices. Taro Root is a kind of Yam quite familiar to Asian communities. The root of Taro is also consumed with relish. Taro Root Fritters or Kaale Alvaa Maddi Phodi is my dad's favorite. In laymans terms in Konkani we address it as "Maddi or Maaddi". Much better if the Maddi is obtained from Black-stemmed Taro leaves and not the green-stemmed ones. The meat of the Taro root is extremely delicious and one of its kind. This should not be confused with Sooran or Surnu or Yam. Sooran is a different root vegetable, is compressed, circular in Asian regions and short about 1 foot sized, little bit tall if grown in Carribean or South American regions.

Its a seasonal produce and the harvest usually results in Taro Roots coming to the markets in October-December in India. I have seen them in local markets in Mumbai, Goa, Bangalore, Udupi and Mangalore. The raw Taro roots appear as shown in the picture. Some who do not eat regularly, would not know the actual taste of this vegetable. Its delicious and soft. Sometimes, after consumption you would find an itchy sensation in your throat, but its out and out tasty and one of its kind vegetable. To combat the sensation, ample amount of Tamarind or a souring agent like Bilimbi is added. So as you conclude from the habits, in Konkanis we make abundant use of seasonal vegetables and produce.

I got this picture of Taro Root from a local market in India. As you see from the picture, the root is huge and bulky. The pink snout on top of the Taro can be saved by green thumbs to plant and grow more Taro leaves. I did that as a kid, got two tiny leaves, which Mom used for Patrodo, also got three tiny pieces of Maddi, which we pan-fried with spices. Time to time I used to check on the growth and progress of the sapling. The memories are still vivid and bring a smile to my face.

More often than not, we cook it to at home to make Fritters or Fries or Phodi. One can also make Alvaa Maddi Gojju, just boil them, mash them, add spice powders crushed in Coconut (grated) and green chillies and garnish with coconut oil. My mom makes this often and taste is nice and subtle, very earthy so to say. The chopping process of a Taro Root entails chopping off, of the sides of the root to get a white meat in the centre. The ridges can be chopped off in strips with a knife. Sometimes, your hands could itch, so its advisable to wear kitchen gloves while chopping them. After chopping off the ridges, the white tube shaped stem is chopped into desirable pieces. Macerate the vegetable in spices powders of choice and pan-fry them.

Preparation + Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Taro Root or Maddi - 6-10 pieces

Red Chilli powder - 1 teaspoon

Salt - As per taste

Turmeric powder - 1/3rd teaspoon

Asafoetida - 1/4th teaspoon

Garam Masala powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Tamarind pulp - 1 teaspoon

Oil - For frying

Rava or Sooji (coarse) - 3 tablespoon

Water - For steaming vegetables

Method:

Take a Taro stem and chop off the ridges on the side which are thick and sturdy. Wear Kitchen gloves to prevent any itching sensation while chopping the pieces. You will find the white meat inside. Cut them into bite sized pieces. You could boil them in water for 20 minutes before applying the spice rub. One of my Pacchi does it that way and the taste is very soft and tender. You could also directly macerate in the spice powders for 30-45 minutes.

Dredge them in Rava and pan-fry with oil on the sides. Once fried turn them over, add oil on sides. After couple of minutes sprinkle water and cover with a lid. Allow to roast on low flame. Check if the pieces are completely cooked. Once done, turn off flame and serve hot as a side item.

Peanut Masala

Peanut Masala - I tasted this first in Bangalore. Loved the flavour, but did not gather how to recreate the dish at home. Years later, one day my sister made this for me and I was like, "What is the recipe?". Nice flavour, nutritious and great for tea-parties and get togethers. I later found out that its quite a prominent dish in Bangalore. It is also known as Raja Masala in Bangalore, infact some places serve the best ones I know, only in Bangalore.

Its raining Awards at my blog. Supriya, a sweet fellow blogger from My Kook Book fame, has gifted me with some blog awards. Thanks Supriya. Its humbling and a nice gesture. Feels great when someone takes the effort to recognise you and makes your day! Yayy!!

Preparation time + Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

Peanuts (roasted) - 3 cups

Onions (finely chopped) - 1/2 cup

Cilantro or Coriander leaves (finely chopped) - 1/4th cup

Chaat Masala - 1/2 teaspoon

Oil - 2 teaspoon

Red Chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Tomato (chopped) - 1/4th cup

Lime juice - 2 tablespoon

Salt - As per taste

Method:

Roast Peanuts for 1 and 1/2 minute in Microwave. Allow to cool or pan-roast on medium flame for 3-4 minutes. Allow to cool. You will notice that the peanuts are little soft upon roasting, allow them to cool, because they tend to get more robust and firm once they cool. Give a shake gently with hands and take off the peanut skin. It is a painstaking process but worth it because the skin interferes with the final taste. I was in a hurry so chose to retain the skin. Add all the ingredients and mix well. If you are adding Tomatoes, you need to serve immediately as the tomato juice would make the peanut texture soft, less tasty and tangy. Add Lime juice while serving. Garnish with chopped Cilantro.