Dal Makhani / Creamy Black Lentils (but) No-Cream Recipe

I have posted my original dal makhani recipe before. The problem with that recipe was, it lacked colour although the flavour was just fine. Also, that recipe has cream in it. Why use cream when you can get lovely, creamy Dal Makhani without the cream. I've been 'hooked' to this Dal Makhani recipe since coming across Meena's recipe.

Dal Makhani Recipe
Serves 2
Adapted from: Hooked on Heat


Ingredients:

 1/2 cup whole black lentils / whole urad dal
 1 onion, minced
 1 tomato, finely chopped
 2-3 cloves of garlic
 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
 1 tbsp tomato paste (or 1 large tomato, pureed)
 2 tbsp milk
 1/2 tsp red chili powder
 1 tsp coriander powder
 1 tbsp butter
 1 tbsp oil
 fresh coriander leaves, for garnish
 water, 1 to 2 cups
 salt to taste

How I Made It:

 1. Heat the oil in a pressure cooker and saute onions till lightly browned. Stir in salt, chilli powder, coriander powder, ginger-garlic paste, and tomato paste and fry for a few seconds.

 2. Add in the chopped tomatoes and cook for a few minutes to combine well. Add dal and enough water to cover them (about 2 cups). Pressure cook for 4-5 whistles minutes till lentils are soft and done. Stir in milk and let it come to a boil.

 3. In a separate pan, heat butter and add whole garlic cloves slit in the middle. Stir the tempering into the lentils and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

 Serve with warm rotis or pulao.

Dal Panchratan / Pancharatni (Dal Curry with Five Lentil Types)

Dal or lentil curry is my go-to dish when my vegetable tray looks empty and I need a quick-fix lunch or dinner. Both TH and I love it with roti and if I am in no mood to mix, roll, and cook up rotis, I just make an easy jeera rice (please ignore the pictures in that jeera rice post. kthanx) and we are good to go.

What's better than a simple dal tadka or dal makhani? Dal Pancharatni! Panchratan means five jewels and in this particular recipe we use a mix of five different types of dal or lentils. A dal cannot get more interesting than that!


I got a bag of mixed dal from a  supermarket in Delhi when I was there last. This makes the job of making panchratan dal so much easier because otherwise you'd have to buy the dal separately. I haven't seen this in Singapore though.

Dal Panchratan / Pancharatani Recipe
Serves 2-4

Ingredients:
 4 tbsp chana dal (split Bengal gram)
 1/4 cup tuvar (arhar) dal
 1/4 cup moong dal (split green gram)
 3 tbsp urad dal (whole black lentils)
 1/4 cup masoor dal (split red lentil)
 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
 1 large tomato, pureed
 1 large onion, ground to a paste
 1" piece of ginger, grated
 3 cloves of garlic
 1 tsp red chilli powder
 Salt to taste

For tempering:
 2 tsp ghee (or oil)
 1/2 tsp jeera / cumin seeds
 1/4 tsp mustard seeds (optional)
 A few curry leaves

How I Made It:

 1. Pressure cook the mixed dal (lentils) with 5 cups water and the turmeric powder for 4-5 whistles or until the dal is cooked mushy. Alternately, bring the dal and water mixture to a boil and simmer on low heat until cooked. This will take between 45 mins to an hour.

 2. Heat oil for tempering in a kadai (that's big enough to hold everything) and add the ingredients in the given order. Let the cumin seeds splutter and turn brown and the mustard seeds (if using) pop. Next, add the ginger and garlic and fry for a minute.

 3. The onion paste and red chilli powder go in next. Cook until the paste is fried to a ligher colour (about 3-4 mins). Next, add the pureed tomato and salt. Mix well and let it simmer for another 3-4 mins.

 4. Finally, add the cooked dal, mix well and simmer for 5 mins until all the flavours have blended. Check salt.

Kappayum Meenum / Boiled Tapioca with Kerala Fish Curry

Kappayum Meenum! Need I say more? Every person who grew up in Kerala must miss this when they are out of their nests. Oh, unless they are vegetarian. Then they would miss... I don't know! What do vegetarians miss when they leave Kerala? Enlighten me.

Anyway, I miss this. Among other things of course but this I miss one of the most because it represents home so much to me. Suma, our maid, brought some kappayum meenum for sis and I and of course I took the banana leaf that happened to lie around in amma's kitchen and clicked it. I later asked amma for the recipe so I am not sure if this is hers or Suma's. Either ways, it works, trust them if not me.

Meen Mulakarachathu, as we call it in Kottayam, is not my favourite Kerala fish dish but with kappa, its unbeatable. Its called by so many names by the way - Meen Vevichathu, Meen Mulakittathu, and even Meen Pattichathu. All one and the same folks!

Kappa Puzhukku / Boiled Tapioca Kerala Style

Ingredients:

1 kilo tapioca / kappa

3/4 cup grated coconut

5 green chillies

5 flakes of garlic

5 shallots

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp cumin seeds / jeera / jeerakam

3 sprigs of curry leaves

3 tbsp coconut oil

Salt to taste

How Its Made:

1. Peel and wash the tapioca well. Cut into small cubes and add to a pan with water 3" inches higher than the level of tapioca. Bring to boil and add salt. Let it simmer on medium-low flame until the tapioca is almost soft.

2. Meanwhile, grind the other ingredients except curry leaves and oil. Once the tapioca is almost soft (just short of mushy stage), add the ground paste, along wtih the coconut oil and curry leaves. Mix well and let it heat through. (Alternately, you can heat oil in another pan, add curry leaves to it and then mix with the tapioca).

3. Remove from fire and serve with tangy and spicy fish curry /  meen vevichathu.

Meen Mulakarachathu / Meen Vevichathu / Meen Mulakittathu / Kerala Style Fish Curry

Ingredients:

1/2 kg any firm fish, cleaned and cubed (ideally with bones)

3 tbsp red chilli powder / mulaku podi (use Kashmiri chilli powder or a mix of that and the regular one if you can't take heat)

1 tbsp coriander powder / malli podi

3 pieces of kudam puli

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds / uluva

3 sprigs of curry leaves

5 shallots

5 garlic cloves

1" piece of finger

3 green chillies, slit

3 tbsp coconut oil

How Its Made:

1. Crush shallots, ginger, and garlic together in a pestle and mortar (or grind together).

2. Heat oil in a pan and add the fenugreek seeds. When they start to brown, add the crushed ginger-garlic-shallot paste. Fry for 10 seconds and then add the coriander powder, followed by the red chilli powder. Fry for another 10 seconds. Add curry leaves and green chillies and mix together well.

3. Now add the turmeric powder and the kudam puli with 2 cups water and salt. Bring to boil and let it boil for 2-3 mins before adding the fish.

4. Simmer on low heat for another 10-12 mins until the fish is cooked through. Check for salt and tanginess and add more of either if necessary. 

Goes best with kappa puzhukku.

Cherupayar Payasam (Kerala Parippu Payasam) | Onam Recipes

Being away for Onam for the past 6 years, one would imagine I would be used to the acute feeling of homesickness each time. Nope. Doesn't look like that's happening.

Although I had resolved to get more involved in cooking for festivals, I failed miserably for Onam this year. A sudden work trip took me away from home and I didn't even have my camera with me to do something about it.

Anyway, what's all that in the face of a good, warm (or cold) bowl of payasam, eh? Any payasam with sharkkara (vellam or jaggery) is my absolute favourite. Of course, TH can't stand jaggery and won't even come near anything made with it but each time I go home to Kerala, I bring back two of these jaggery balls and store them in the fridge. Leave out for a few mins before grating with a knife if you like to do the same. I prefer this darker, no-salt version to the white terribly salty versions that seem to be available everywhere outside Kerala. Use this for a genuine Kerala flavour to anything with jaggery.

This jaggery is also the reason for the deep brown colour for my sweet (kozhukkattai) modak poornam filling.

Although kadala parippu payasam is also a favourite, I decided to go with cheru payar (moong dal or pasi paruppu) this time.

Cherupayar Payasam (Kerala Parippu Payasam)




Ingredients:
1/4 cup of cheru payar / pasi paruppu / moong dal
3/4 cup more or less of grated jaggery (or brown sugar, but it's a poor substitute)
3 heaping tbsp of ghee
10 plain, unsalted cashewnuts
A few of raisins
1 cup of thick coconut milk (onnaam paal)
3-4 cups of thin coconut milk (rendaam paal)
4-5 cardamom, crushed


How I Made It:

1. Roast the parippu in a dry pan until it turns golden brown.

2. Add the thin coconut milk (rendaam paal) and pressure cook for 5-6 whistles until mushy.

In hindsight, I probably should have left some whole dal in there too, for some texture. I think I mashed it up too much.

3. Add some water to the grated jaggery and heat it on medium flame until it begins to melt. Stir well until the jaggery fully melts, strain, and mix in with the cooked dal. 

4. Return the dal mixture to the fire, bring to boil and add the thick coconut milk. Heat through, add the crushed cardamom and remove from fire. Do not boil after adding the thick coconut milk. 

5. Now, heat the ghee in a pan and add the cashew nuts and raisins. When the nuts turn golden brown and the raisins have puffed up, remove and add to the payasam. Mix well.

Notes:

1. I used canned coconut milk so I think it was thicker than I expected. My payasam turned out thicker than I am used to eating back home but it was still very tasty and I couldn't sense any difference in flavour. 

2. Don't mush up the dal too much, leave some bits whole for some added texture. 

Muringayila Thoran / Drumstick Leaves cooked with Coconut

Drum stick leaves will always remind me of my maternal grand mom and her immense patience when it came to cooking. As I type this, I can imagine her squatting on the kitchen floor, her tongue flicking out now and then to wet her lips as she plucks out each leaf with great concentration.

Needless to say, I did this extremely time-consuming task watching tv and recruited TH to help me too. He did it with an expression that seemed to say "why are we doing this again? I don't feel compelled to eat this thing if prepping it is such a pain you know". I ignored it and kept plucking diligently until I had a large plate full of fresh drum stick leaves.

Then I realised I didn't know how exactly aatha (amma's amma in Reddiar telugu) cooked this so I called amma. She told me you need to rub the leaves with the spices you are going to use and then cook in a low flame with water sprinkled over it. This is how amma makes most thoran although I cook the vegetable first before adding spices. For the drumstick leaves, I decided to go the aatha way.

Muringayila Thoran / Drumstick Leaves cooked with Coconut

Serves 2

Recipe Source: Amma, Aatha

Ingredients:

4 cups drumstick leaves  muringayila

1 cup grated coconut (adjust amount to taste)

1 tsp red chilli powder

A large pinch of turmeric

2 shallots

1/2 tsp jeera / cumin powder

Salt to taste

1 tbsp coconut oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

How I Made It:

1. Remove the drum stick leaves from the stems. Wash thoroughly.

2. Add salt, turmeric and red chilli powder to the washed leaves. Set aside for 30 mins. It will let out water.

3. Grind coconut coarsely with the shallots and cumin powder.

4. Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the marinated leaves, stir around to combine. Cook closed on low heat for about 5 mins. Open, add the ground coconut mixture and stir well again.

5. Cook closed for another 5-10 mins until the leaves are cooked through and soft. Make sure you mix in between to prevent browning at the bottom.

Serve with rice and any pulusu / kozhambu of choice.

Kerala-Style Chemmeen / Prawn Roast - A Spicy Treat

I hardly ever cook non-vegetarian food but whatever little I have tried so far has come out super well, no idea why. When I was in Mountain View earlier this year and met up with Saks, the talk obviously turned to food and she mentioned how she loves Varsha's version of Kerala Style Spicy Prawns Roast. It sounded delicious and I made a mental bookmark.

I tried it a couple of months after getting back but never got around to posting it. Here it is, finally.





The process may seem a bit long-wound so I would recommend lining up all the ingredients so that you can add them in one by one. Preparation time is about 20 mins and cooking time another 20 so it doesn't take that long at all. Note that I got cleaned prawns so if you don't, then that will take extra time to prep.
Kerala-Style Chemmeen / Prawn Roast Recipe

Serves 4
Adapted from Will-O'-the-Wisp


Ingredients:
3 cups prawns, cleaned and deveined
2 tbsp coconut oil
1"piece cinnamon, 3 cloves and 2 cardamom pods coarsely powdered
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
3-4 dry red chillies, halved
a handful of curry leaves
2 tbsp small coconut pieces (thenga kothu)
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 tbsp minced garlic
2 cups peeled shallots (or use 2 onions)
3-4 green chillies
1 tomato, cut into small cubes
1-2 tsp vinegar
1 tsp red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
1 tsp coriander powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
1 tsp garam masala (optional)
Fresh coriander leaves / cilantro to garnish
Salt to taste

How I Made It:

1. Heat oil and add the ground cinnamon+cloves+cardamom. Fry for 1o seconds and add the mustard seeds, fennel, fenugreek seeds, and red chillies. Fry for another 2o seconds.

2. Next, add the curry leaves, coconut slices, minced ginger and garlic. Saute until the raw smell disappears - about 1 minute. Then add the shallots/onions and slit green chillies. Saute until the onions turn a light brown.

3. Next, add the cubed tomatoes and cook until the mixture turns mushy.

4. Meanwhile, mix the vinegar with some water and add the red chilli powder, coriander powder, pepper, and turmeric. Add this to the mixture on the stove. Mix well and cook until the oil separates at the sides of the pan - about 3-4 mins.

5. Now add the cleaned prawns and mix well. Cook covered on low heat for 10-12 mins until the prawns are cooked just right. Overcooking will harden them. Don't add water at any stage, the prawns will release water.

6. Add salt, sprinkle garam masala on top if using, and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot with steamed white rice.

4. Meanwhile, mix the vinegar with some water and add the red chilli powder, coriander powder, pepper, and turmeric. Add this to the mixture on the stove. Mix well and cook until the oil separates at the sides of the pan - about 3-4 mins.

5. Now add the cleaned prawns and mix well. Cook covered on low heat for 10-12 mins until the prawns are cooked just right. Overcooking will harden them. Don't add water at any stage, the prawns will release water.

6. Add salt, sprinkle garam masala on top if using, and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot with steamed white rice.

Sakkarai Pongal / Chakkara Pongal Recipe

We don't celebrate pongal. Which explains why I am posting this traditional pongal festival recipe in March. I mean, how off the mark can you get? About 2 months, that's how much.

But like I said, we don't celebrate pongal, and by that I mean my family. TH's family definitely does, but nothing elaborate like at my sister's place. Mostly it involves making pongal of the savory kind and this sweet version, sakkarai pongal.

My mom makes it as and when she feels like.  Usually, when we need a quick dessert for guests, sakkarai pongal gets made. Admittedly, its not my favourite sweet but recently. I had this tremendous craving that was quite inexplicable so I made a teeny weeny bit (TH hates it) and had it all by myself at around 10pm in the night, which explains the very not-nice picture.

Sakkarai / Chakkara Pongal Recipe

Recipe source: scribbled on a piece of paper that was lying around in an old diary. 

Amma's recipe, I'd guess

What I Used:

1 cup raw rice

1/4 cup moong dal / cherupayar

3/4 cup grated jaggery / vellam / sharkkara (this is on the sweeter side so adjust to taste)

1 cup full fat milk + 1/2 cup water (or 1.5 cups low fat milk)

A few cashewnuts (I used almonds)

A few raisins (if you like them, I added very few)

2 tbsp + 1 tbsp ghee

3 cardamom pods, crushed well

A pinch of nutmeg (optional, I didn't add this)

How I Made It:

1. Traditionally, the rice and dal is simmered in the milk until soft but who has that kind of time these days? Definitely not me. So bring out your pressure cooker if you are anything like me. Wash the rice and dal together. Add the milk + water and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. We want this nice and mushy.

2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp ghee and roast the cashewnuts / almonds and the raisins until golden brown (the raisins will become plump). Remove from fire and sprinkle cardamom powder and nutmeg, if using, on top. Give it a mix and set aside.

3. Once the pressure leaves the cooker, while still hot, mix in the grated jaggery, roasted almonds and raisins. If the pongal is too thick, add some boiled milk by the tablespoons. If the mixture is too loose, keep on a low fire and mix continuously until desired consistency is achieved.

4. Mix in one more tbsp of ghee and serve warm. I also like it cold from the fridge the next day.

PS: I have a feeling amma adds coconut to this, let me check with her.

PPS: The reason why my sakkarai pongal is a darker shade of brown than what you may have seen is, I used the super unrefined dark brown jaggery from Kerala. Its also unsalted so I mixed in a pinch of salt with the mixture but since you'd all be mostly likely using the salted version, don't bother. The colour of your sakkarai pongal may be lighter but don't worry. Will taste yummy!