Tavala adai

Ingredients

Raw rice – 1 cup
Boiled rice – 1 cup
Chenna Dal – 1/3 cup
Toor Dal – 1/3 cup
Urad Dal – 1/3 cup
Black peppercorn – 1.5 tsp
Fenugreek powder – 3 tsp
Cumin seeds – 1.5 tsp
Salt to taste
Curd (sour curd is good!)
Oil (gingelly oil preferably)

For Tadka
Mustard seeds
Chenna dal
Urad dal
Asafoetida
Curry leaves

Get cooking!

1. Grind the raw rice, boiled rice, chenna dal, toor dal, urad dal, fenugreek powder, peppercorns, cumin seeds into a medium to fine powder.
2. Mix the powder with some salt, curd, water to make a thick batter consistency.
3. Do a tadka with gingelly oil, asafoetida, mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds splutter, add a tsp or so of chenna dal, a tsp or so of urad dal, curry leaves.
4. Pour the tadka into the batter. Mix well and set aside closed for a couple of hours.
5. Check the batter, if it has become thick, pour in some water to make a thick adai-like batter
6. In an appakadai (I used a shallow kadai), pour in a tsp or two of oil. Pour in a ladle of batter. Close with a lid and cook for a couple of minutes on medium heat.
7. Open and flip, cook for a couple more minutes. You may pour a few drops of oil around if you feel so.
8. Once done, serve with chutney, milagai podi or paruppu podi

Tips

You can reduce black pepper corns and use some red chillies. Add some mor milagai to the tadka. I have the powder made and kept in an airtight jar, so can whip this up when required.

Bread Upma

Leftover bread close to expiry date? This is a good way to finish them off! There are different ways of doing this. This is just one of those many!! Also works with any variety of bread

Ingredients

Bread slices – 4 chopped to cubes ( or crumble if you like)
Tomatoes- 2 roughly chopped
Onion – 1 roughly chopped ( optional)
Green chillies – roughly chopped
Ginger – finely chopped
Curry leaves
Coriander leaves/ cilantro – chopped
Mustard seeds
Chenna dal
Split urad dal
Cumin seeds
Turmeric powder
Red chilli powder
Asafoetida
Lemon
Oil

Get Cooking!

1. In a wok, heat a spoon or two of oil. Add mustard seeds.
2. When the seeds splutter, add in the chopped green chillies, ginger, curry leaves, chenna dal, urad dal, cumin seeds, asafoetida. Toss around.
3. Add the chopped onions and cook till translucent.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes, turmeric powder, red chilli powder. Pour a little water and let the tomatoes soften.
5. Add in the chopped bread. Toss around gently to coat the bread with the flavours.
6. Turn off heat. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice. Toss gently to mix in.
7. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Tips
Added a pinch or two of oregano (omam) powder to the tomatoes. Also used kasoor methi leaves instead of cilantro to garnish.
One may also add chopped garlic when adding ginger.
Add in grated tomatoes , chopped capsicum , shelled green peas and cook them in before adding the bread to add to nutritive value of the upma.

Mor Kazhi

This is a south Indian snack made with rice flour.

Ingredients
Rice flour
Salt – to taste
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Yogurt or buttermilk
Oil – 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Bengal gram – 1 tsp
Peeled broken Urad daal – 1 tsp
Green chillies (or mor millagai)
Red chillies

Get Cooking!
1. Mix up the rice flour, salt, turmeric powder and the curd such that they form a powdery consistency. (Do not make it watery)
2. Sauté the chillies, daals, mustard seeds in a pan.
3. Put in the rice flour mixture into the pan and cook until the colour of the rice flour changes.
4. Can be fried until it gets a crispy feel. (Would require more oil)

Tips
Yogurt can be replaced by either lime juice or tamarind water. Curry leaves, asafoetida powder can also be added to the sauté for added taste.