Saturday 26 April 2014

Onion Muruku



Murukulu are a traditional and classic snack that are crunchy and addictive with a cup of coffee or garam masala chai. This is a favorite savory snack in our home and I always look for occasions to make them.


So this time I tried to give the regular muruku a twist and added onions to get additional taste and flavour to this snack and they have turned out pretty well.  


Its fun to make these deep fried savories at home with help of a family member, I always take my husbands help :) Also be extra careful around oil, keep the children away from the kitchen and wear short sleeves and cotton clothes only while deep frying anything. 


Ingredients 


Rice flour - 2 cups
Roasted chana dal powder - 1/2 cup (Putnala Pappu)
Ghee/Butter - 25 gm.

Chilli powder - 1 +1/2 tsp.
Chopped onion - 1/2 cup.

Ajwain/Carom seeds 1/2 tsp
White sesame seeds 1/2 tsp (Optional)
Salt as per taste
Oil for deep frying


Method:-


Grind 1/2 cup chopped onions into a fine paste in a blender.

In a bowl mix rice flour, roasted chana dal powder, chilli powder, ghee, salt and ground onion paste. Now slowly add water little by little and make stiff dough. The dough should be just soft enough to pass through the muruku presser. 

Muruku Presser is easily available and any super market or condiments shops.(Following is the image of the same)


Mean while, heat the oil. To check whether oil is hot, put a small piece of dough into an oil, when it pops out immediately,it is an indication that oil is hot.



Take muruku press, with a star shape plate. Fill it half with dough we prepared and press it in a circular motion. When the muruku starts to change color, flip again using a slotted ladle and fry till light golden. Make sure to cook evenly. Drain on kitchen tissue and leave it to cool.


Repeat the process until you finish off the dough. You can store them in an air tight container and enjoy!!

Saturday 12 April 2014

 

 

Malabar Parotta

(Served with Spicy Daal Fry)

 
Kerala Parotta is a layered flat bread of south India, It is similar to north India’s Laccha Parotta. They are usually made in 2 ways, 1 very rich with egg and milk and 2 light variant without eggs and milk.


I crave for them pretty often. So,instead of buying them always from eateries, I decided to do some research on them and make at home. Also, I used both wheat and maida flours instead of only maida as they can be too heavy and not very healthy. Following is a vegetarian recipe for the same.

You can make them as you like and of-course only maida may have different flavor. So do not hesitate to explore and try this recipe. I served them with spicy daal fry Recipe and everyone loved it!!

Ingredients:-

Wheat flour- 1 cup
Maida- 1 cup 
Oil/ Ghee 2tsp
Baking soda 1/4 tsp
Hot water to knead dough
Salt as per taste
Butter for garnishing

Method:-

Sieve both the wheat flour, maida with baking soda and keep aside. Add salt, hot water and knead the dough till soft, smooth and elastic with help of some oil.
 

Cover with a moist cloth and keep aside for 45 minutes to 1 hour to rest.

Now divide them into round balls,  dust the working surface with flour and roll each ball as thinly as possible into a large roti. Apply oil/ghee on the entire surface of the rolled dough.
    


Hold the roti from the top on both sides and pleat them till bottom. Once its pleated hold one end of the long strip and roll it towards the other end to create a spiralled balls and tuck the end under.




Prepare with the rest of other thick rotis and keep them greased at all times. Cover with wet cloth and keep aside for 15 minutes.

Take each rolled ball on a dusted working surface, roll it softly without applying pressure. Make sure to roll only on one side

Heat the pan and place the Parotta on the tava and fry on both sides with oil/ghee drizzled on top and the edges till the Parottas are crisp and golden.




Once done, use both hands and pat on the sides of the kerala Parotta to get the layers. Butter and serve them with any spicy curry or dal fry!!  

Saturday 5 April 2014

Masala Dosa

(With fiery red garlic spread) 



Masala dosa is one of my favorite food. Almost every time I am in a south indian restaurant I order masala dosa! So today I am sharing recipe for a crisp dosa lathered with a fiery red chutney and stuffed with some mashed aloo filling. 

Though making masala dosa is a long process, trust me its totally worth it. These dosas are incomplete without the spicy garlic spread on top, so I take extra efforts to make best spread and I like my aloo masala filling to be as lump free as possible, so the trick here is be patient and let aloo cook perfectly!

Ingredients for Spread/Chutney

Garlic - 2 whole pods
Urad Dal - 2 tsp 

Red Chili -5

Oil - 1 tsp 
Salt to taste

Ingredients for Aloo masala

Onions 3
Aloo 2
Red Chillies 3
Green chillies 2
Finely chopped ginger 1 tsp
Turmeric powder 1 tsp

Curry leaves few
Cumin seeds 1/2tsp
Mustard seeds 1/2tsp
Salt to taste
Oil 2 tsp
Butter for garnishing

Method:-

For garlic spread, dry roast all the ingredients mentioned above without adding any oil. Now add them in a blender and add salt and blend to a smooth paste. If the mixer you use is not small enough to blend this to a smooth paste, you can add little water to it.

Wash and pressure cook aloo with 1/2 cup water for 3 whistles. Peel off the skin and mash it well.

Heat a pan with oil and temper with cumin seeds,mustard seeds, curry leaves and red chillies. Now add ginger, green chillies and saute for a minute. Add onions and cook them until they turn soft. Add the mashed potatoes, salt and mix well. Fry for 5 minutes, add oil if needed more.

Take a non stick pan and when it gets hot put a ladle full of batter and spread it evenly on the pan. Use your spatula and flatten the top of the dosa to make it uniformly thick as possible to ensure even cooking.


Now spread the garlic masala on top of the dosa and drizzle oil generously on top.  Add 2 spoonfuls of the potato masala and dollop of butter and fold one edge of the dosa over the other when the first side has browned reasonably well.




Serve them with coconut chutney and enjoy!