Paal Payasam / Rice Payasam

Yes…I am back after more than a year.. Nice to catch u up all after so many days. Out of my interest in photography I started this cooking blog .So to learn more on photography I took a year break .There had been calls from friends , dear and nears to restart the cooking blog. So decided to post atleast one recipe a week.

When u have time ,please have a look at my Ra Aa Photography page in facebook

Anything should be started with a sweet... hence..Here comes my Paal Payasam \ Rice Payasam recipe.The recipe seems to be very simple ..But the taste of the kheer is just awesome.I am great admirer of solai Aachi. I came across this recipe in her blog and just followed the steps and successfully made this yummy payasam.

 

KootanChooru...A Tirunelveli Special One pot meal...

This is the dish which I had been waiting for to make.My Husband HH keeps recalling  the taste of this dish which he had tasted at his neighbour's house in Tirunelveli.Since my marriage I had been searching for an authentic Kootanchooru recipe.The one I had posted is the traditional recipe of Tirunelveli.I should say the taste is just unexplainable...

 

I got the recipe from one of my friend who is also a food blogger Asiya Omar

I just gave a try and the dish tasted too good.Thank u Asiya for sharing the recipe..

 

After relocating to Tuticorin one of my friend who is a native of Kovilpatti introduced this tasty authentic dish to me.One  of her aunt makes yummy Kootanchooru..It tastes very good even when it is not hot...but unfortunately I could not get the recipe from her :)

 

This dish is a perfect and healthy combination of lentils,greens,vegetables and rice.

 

A quick brief about how this dish got its name...

 

In earlier days kids used to play Seppu at the backyards..Kids play a realistic drama by bringing in real ingredients and cook a meal...Like one kid brings rice,other lentils,some other vegetables,some greens etc..They mix them in a pot add water make it to cook and make a meal.Then they share them with all the friends..This builds the teambuilding,cooperation,sharing concepts with the kids..But now with the advent of computers and video games and changing family structure to nuclear family this type of playing is not found in Big cities..Still it prevails in small villages ...

 

This is a step that makes the kids to learn cooking too!!

 

Make this healthy one pot meal and share this authentic,traditional dish of Tirunelveli with your kids...

 

For the recipe click read more below:

 

Vellai Poori---My grandma's way..North Arcot Special..

The name and the colour of the dish has no relation,but I don't know why they named it so.May be because rice is the main ingredient they would have named it as Vellai Poori.This is one of the snack that is made in the evenings.It is quite heavy snack and one can take only 2.

Being brought up in the North Arcot District of TamilNadu I always have a deep love for the food items that are special there.To name some : Brinjal Serva,Maccan Beda,Arcot Biriyani,Vadaicurry,Vellai Poori etc..I had never heard people making this vellai poori either in places near Salem/Erode/Coimbatore/Tirunelveli/Madurai.So I thought posting this dish is a special one to my blog.

 

So I requested my mother to make this Poori.She makes it so tasty and yummy.She had learnt it from her grandma.This is the only snack which my father loves the utmost..Even now when we make it at home we miss our dad..and this is the only reason for which I hardly make this snack at home..For the sake of posting it in my blog I made few pooris..

 

For the recipe please press READ MORE below...

 

Ammini Kozhukattai(Spicy version)

Wishing the readers a very happy

Ganesh Chaturthi....

 

 

Kozhukattais are one which I loved to have at any time.As they are steam cooked they don't impart any harm to our diet system...This Ammini Kozhukattai is the regular one which we take as dinner/Breakfast/Snacks.We don't make it on Ganesh Chaturthi as it consumes more time...I make it for a evening snack/Dinner.

 

My daughter named it as koli(Marble) kozhukattai as it looked like marbles.It is also called as mini kozhukattai.My mom used to make these when the dough gets remained after making the stuffed modak.When pooran Modaks are there we hardly take these ammini kozhukattais..

 

I love the texture of the kozhukattais.These ammini kozhukattais look very appealing and attract the kids much..

 

With no wait just click READ MORE to get into the recipe..

 

Beetroot Rice

My girls love pink colour.They want everything to be in Pink.And this is the only reason why they love to have beetroot.I had already posted Pink Poori which is my gals favourite breakfast..So wanted to try a rice recipe too with this vegetable and in this regard here comes the pink rice or the Beetroot rice.They are very apt to pack for lunch box.

 

For the recipe click READ MORE below:

 

Vegetable layered/Dum Biryani

I always make biryani in a pressure cooker and I find this method to be  more easy and it takes very less time to cook.Last week I wanted to try this Layered/dum biryani.Though it takes lots of time to prepare this dish the final taste and flavour is too good and it is worth trying out this dish..

For the recipe please click READ MORE below..

Sambhar Sadham(Saravana Bhavan Style)

One pot meals always make my cooking job more  easier.I prefer it when compared to elaborate meals for  lunch.Almost all weekdays I end up at cooking some one pot meal.But I see to it that the meal that I cook makes a complete meal with all nutritions in it.In this lane Sambhar Sadham/Rice is my family's most favourite one pot meal.

 

Cook this one pot meal which tastes similar to Hotel Saravana Bhavan ...

 

For the recipe click READ MORE below..

 

Ghee Rice/Nei Choru

 

 

On the other day I made fresh homemade ghee from the butter. The whole house was filled with the aroma of clarified ghee. Next day being a sunday I preferred to make ghee rice with a non-vegetarian  kurma  and a simple curd rice. Its hot here and could not spend much time in the kitchen.

Nei Choru/Ghee rice is the one which my kids love eating.It is very easy to make and also it goes well with any hot spicy curry.It has strong flavour of ghee and it is rich in raisins and cashewnuts.The aroma of the rice is very strong in ghee and it is a bland rice which nil spicyness.

For the recipe please press READ MORE below..

Soya Chunks Briyani

 

 

Soya chunks/meal maker/Soya nuggets are high source of protein and also it lowers the cholesterol level and prevents heart diseases.Most of the people avoid taking it due to its odour and bland taste.The odour can be removed if u follow the methods I had mentioned in the procedure and also addition of more masala powders will give taste to the soya chunks.

 

U can make variety of dishes using the soya nuggets.To start with I had tried this one pot meal which is easy to pack for lunch..

 

Try this out and let me know how it turned out..

 

For the recipe please press READ MORE below..

 

Arisi Paruppu Sadham (Coimbatore special)

I prefer one pot meal than an elaborate lunch..In that series I have a special love for this lentils rice.Though this rice calls for very less number of ingredients the taste is unexplainable. It is less spicy and apt one for the kids..I had been at Coimbatore for more than 7 years..I happened to taste many kinds of this lentil rice at almost all of my friend’s house.I liked all the variations ..It tastes so good when it is hot and had with buttermilk/mango thokku.A very simple rice to make and also has all the healthy aspects.

Anyone who had tasted this rice will not deny the fact that it tastes exotic..

 

Simple to make yet yummy is the taste

Try this out at ur home ..

For the recipe please press READ MORE below..

Spicy green Peas Briyani

I love to make one pot meals..Usually I make peas pulao with  green peas which always needed an accompaniment.But this spicy green peas briyani goes well with the simple raita or Pappad.I got this recipe from a tamil magazine.With little bit of modification I made this one and it turned out too well.The aroma of the mint that is added for the dish is very much appealing in look as well as in taste.

 

I used seeraga samba rice as I feel Basmathi rice takes much time in digestion.

Hot Briyani,Pappad,Curd rice would make a complete packed lunch.

 

For the recipe please press READ MORE below..

 

Arisi Ravai Upma/Broken Rice Upma

This is my dad's favourite breakfast..My mother makes it very often at home.This one is usually cooked in VengalaPaanai and all of us at home love to have the Kaanthal(the burnt part of the upma).This goes very well with coconut chutney.With the same ingredients we also make Upma Kozhukattai which is served as an evening snack/Dinner.As this contains rice and dhal it would be an apt one to have for the breakfast.

 

I break the rice to kurunai and use it for the idlies too.The rice-dhal mixture that we make can be stored for long days.I make it ready in a bulk quantity and reserve them for further cooking in future when I run out of vegetables and time

 

For the recipe please press READ MORE below

 

VenPongal

 

 

I remember the days at my college life where we use to eat pongal for breakfast and find hard to control our sleep at the boring lecturing hours.From then on till now if I have pongal it will make me to sleep.I tried deleting the ghee and other rich parts..still it is always a bothai marunthu for me...So I hardly make it even though HH loves to have it!!

 

Pongal festival being nearing I thought of posting the main VenPongal recipe.Pongal,Ulunthu Vada with   Brinjal Kotsu n Coconut chutney makes a grand and great breakfast.At most of the south Indian hotels Pongal is always accompanied by Ulunthu vada.

 

During pongal they make kai Kari Kootu and this goes very well with pongal. I love this combination too.At hotels they use dalda and I mostly avoid eating pongal outside

 

For the recipe pls press READ MORE below..

Ginger Garlic Rice(Inji Poondu Satham)

After the travel everyone at home are at the advent of cold ad cough.I didn't have stamina to cook much..I wanted something hot and hence ended up  making this rice.To mention specifically this rice is a bland one and those who need very spicy food will not like this.It is very easy to make and also can be done within minutes when you run shortage of vegetables.Have it with any hot chutney,pickle,chicken curry..Then you will appreciate the flavour of the dish.

 

This rice goes very well the chicken kurma or with the vegetable kurma.It can be had only when it is hot.So make it hot and have it when u are running short of time and vegetables!!

 

My kids just love this rice and they love to have it with pappad.

 

For the recipe please press READ MORE below...

Paneer Pulao

It is one of the most easiest dish one to cook.The left over rice can also be used to make this dish. I make it quite often as my kids loved  it most and also it is very easy to pack for the lunch..

 

Paneer as everyone know is a rich source of calcium and protein.Some kids love to have the paneer just as they are...This dish is not very spicy and apt for the kids and sometimes for us also.There may be variations in the masalas one add.I had added the powders which are kids friendly and attract them to finish it off without leaving anything behind..

 

For the recipe Pls press READ MORE...

 

Bisebelabhath

 Bisebelabhath which means hot lentil rice in kannada is a famous dish in Karnataka.It has a slight variation from the sambar rice.After my marriage I was invited for lunch by one of my hubby's colleague who hails from Karnataka.She served us hot hot bisebelabhath with a nice aroma of ghee.That was the first time I taste the rice..From then on I became a fan of this dish.Still I can get back the flavour and the taste of the one she had served me..It brings me back my nostalgic memories.....

 

I had been trying various combinations of bisebhelabhath powders and after many trials I was satisfied with the one mentioned by Mrs.Mallika Bhadrinath in her cookbooks.The one I had mentioned here is the recipe adapted from her cookbook.

 

In a cold day,bisebhelabhath and appalam makes a fantastic pair.I wanted to specially mention about the appalams made from Kallidakuruchi,Tirunelveli.This is the place where they make all types of appalams(Infact the movie gentleman was also shot here!!!).Kallidakuruchi appalams have a very special taste.This is because of the pure Tamirabharani water that is being used ....Arisi(rice)and kizhangu(Root vegetable) appalams are very famous.So if you happen to visit Tirunelveli along with Iruttu kadai alwa do get some kallidakuruchi appalams too!!Preserve some appalams for having with Bisebhelabhaths...;-)

 

For the entire recipe please press READ MORE below..

 

Sesame Rice/Ellu Sadam

One cannot explain the flavour of sesame seeds .More than the taste the aroma of the rice will tempt you to eat more.I had tasted once the rice at one of my friend's house.It tasted so good that I had bookmarked the same and had been searching for the recipe.when I was browsing through the net I came across the recipe in rakskitchen and thought I could give a try.I made it in a day and it tasted the same as that of the one they give you in the temple.I had altered a little bit in the quantities of the ingredients.Appalam goes very well with this rice.

For the recipe please press Read More at the bottom....

Tomato Briyani

This rice comes handy when there are no vegetables available at home except the onions and the tomatoes.It is very quick to make and a nice lunch to pack up.The normal potato wafers/chips goes very well with this.My kids are very much  hesitant to the tomatoes.But when made to pulav/Briyani they very well take it.It is easy to pack and have it for lunch at the office.The recipe I had given below serves 3 persons and the best partner is potato wafers.This is one of the methods of making the briyani.There are various methods of making the tomato rice and I will add the remaining methods one by one as I make it at home.Green peas can also be added.

Arisi Paruppu Sundal(PasiParuppu/greengram dhal Rice)

                 This is one of my favourite rice,that I cook most of the time.It is very easy to make and don't need any special items to make.Its taste and the aroma of the dhal will make you to finish off the dish. This is a perfect lunch that you can give for your kids.They call it as Arisi Paruppu Sundal..It is named Sundal because the rice grains and the dhal won't get smashed after cooking.When I run out of vegetables I make this rice and serve it with raita.

Mint-Coriander Rice

                 

               I hated this green rice until i learnt this method from one of my friend at Erode.There is a little difference when we add shallots to it..The whole taste gets changed and it doesn't taste like a rice mixed with Coriander/Mint  chutney.Most of the kids are hesitant towards the green leaves and this is the best way to make kids eat.They are very colourful,attractive and also tastes very good.They are the best lunch box items to be packed for ur hubby n children.This particular rice comes on my  dining table atleast once in 10 days.