Mor Koozhu (porridge) and Fun with 'ZH’

MOR KOOZHU (PORRIDGE) and FUN WITH 'ZH’

This is yet another dish which has to be spelt with a 'ZH' syllable. Many words of Tamizh (Tamil), when written in English are forced to use the syllable 'ZH', for want of a closer match to the pronunciation. Kozhambu, Kozhal Puttu, Vazhapazham… the list goes on. My fourteen year old grandson has a flair for languages. He wondered how readers could correctly pronounce the names of the dishes which had a 'ZH' in the spelling. He has made the notes given below for convenience and correct pronunciation!

The 'Z' or 'ZH' in the word is called as a PALATAL AND RETROFLEX consonant. To pronounce 'ZH' , the sound 'AA' is made after rolling the tongue backward (retroflex) and by pushing the tongue against the upper palate (palatal).

We had great fun when we tried to say ‘ZH’ without rolling the tongue backwards which resulted in just an ‘AA’ sound, rather than ‘ZH’! I am happy to write this note as it has been ‘tested and tried’ by us to everybody’s amusement and intrigue at home!

Now coming to MOR KOOZHU (say 'u' using a palatal retroflex!!), it is one of the very easy and quick recipes using rice flour as the main ingredient. My great grandmother who lived up to her 96th year enjoyed the dish, and it was often for tiffin at home. The gingili (sesame) oil used in the recipe is non-carcinogenic. It has a very good nutritional value, enhances HDL (good cholesterol) as well as has the property of reducing the LDL (bad cholesterol).
Gingili oil has a very important place in AYURVEDA (the Indian medical science). Gingili seeds and the oil extracted from it have been in use since 2000 years. Fresh gingili oil has the colour of honey and has a very pleasant aroma. The name ‘NALLA ENNAI’ in Tamil means ‘Good Oil’. Hence gingili oil can be used without any hesitation or reservation.

'MOR MILAGAI' used in the recipe are readily available green chillies, that are soaked in spiced curd, and then sun dried. These sun dried chillies are usually fried until crisp and used as a side dish. Indian Stores should stock this.

INGREDIENTS:
Rice flour – 2 cups
Sour curds – 1 1/2 cups
Salt – 1 ½ tsp
Gingili oil – ¼ cup.Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp
Black gram dal – 1 tsp
Bengal gram dal – 1 tsp
Asafoetida – 1 pinch
Curry leaves -10
Red chillies – 4
Mor Milagai - 2
Freshly grated coconut – ½ tea cup

METHOD:
1. Mix salt, curd and rice flour, adding water to make a batter which is little more watery than the normal dosa batter consistency.
2. Heat oil in a kadai and add mustard seeds and asafoetida.
3. When the mustard splutters add the dals and roast till golden in colour.
4. Break and add the red chillies and the mor milagai.
5. When the chillies become crisp add the curry leaves.
6. Now add the curd and rice flour batter and keep stirring.
7. Continue stirring to avoid lumps till it becomes a thick ball and leaves the sides of the kadai.
8. Spread the Mor Koozhu on a deep plate, and sprinkle the freshly grated coconut on it.
9. Cut into Cubes or any other desired shape and savour with fried mor milagais.

This post goes to Srivalli's Rice Mela at Cooking 4 All Seasons blog.

Tapioca/Kappa cutlet

Tapioca is one of the staple food of Kerala, next to rice. Every part of Kerala refers to Tapioca in a different name. Kappa, Kolli, Poola, Marachini are some of the names to my knowledge. May be there are more which I am not aware of. Last year, during this time, my Dad was here with us for a month. He visited my grandma during his stay and happened eat some fresh Kappa there. On his return, he got the stem of the plant for me, so that we too can enjoy tasty kappa at home. This is the bounty I got from a single plant this year. Thanks Appa. There were five plants. I have kept one for him, who will be reaching here, next week.

As like any Keralite, kappa is a hot favorite at my home too. We enjoy kappa boiled with salt and turmeric. The ideal dip is the classic ulli chammanthi. I can have that for lunch and dinner too. This variety was very fast to cooking. It got cooked in less than 10 minutes on stove top. Usually, I pressure cook. I made some tapioca chips, prepared the usual upperi as side for rice. Made this cutlet to be served with tea on a weekend.

Tapioca chopped into cubes - 2 cup

onion - 1

green chilly - 4 nos

ginger - a small wedge

curry leaves

turmeric

salt

oil for frying

Maida - 2 tblspn

bread crumbs - 1 cup

Cook tapioca with turmeric and salt. The cooked water is usually discarded since some toxic from the root is released on cooking. Heat oil in a kadai. Add the chopped chillies,ginger and curry leaves. Add chopped onion to it and saute till pink. Crumble the cooked tapioca and mix with the seasonings. Check the salt and let it cook for few minutes. Cool and mix together. Take lemon sized mixture and shape into patties.

Take 2 tablespoon of maida and add water to make a thin batter. Add a pinch of salt. Dip the patties in the batter and roll it over the bread crumbs.Heat a tawa. Drizzle few drops of oil. Place the cutlets on tawa and drizzle few drops of oil on the cutlets. When the bottom is browned, carefully flip it and cook the other side. Serve with your favorite chutney or sauce. I was in a hurry, so could not roast them longer for even browning.

Vidhaas has passed me the Perfect friendship and Hard working blogger award. Thank you Vidhaas and I appreciate your thoughfulness.

These cutlets are off to Local Eats Event hosted at Joelen's Culinary Adventures.

Dal kichdi

We all know how to make dal. In our family, plain cooked dal is used extensively in sambar and rasam. Sometimes we make as a side dish for rotis. I have never made a one pot meal like Dal kichdi before. I came across this recipe from Sunshinemom's blog. It is the simplest and bestest comfort food.

Ingredients:
Mung dal-1/4 cup
Thur dal-1/4 cup
Salt
Turmeric-a pinch
Hing-a pinch
Rice-3/4th cup or 1 cup uncooked
Coriander leaves chopped-1 tsp

To tamper:
Oil-1 tbsp
Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp
Jeera-1/2 tsp
Thinly sliced garlic-1 pod
Thinly sliced onion-1/4 cup
Curry leaves- a few
Red chilli-2
Cashews-4

Method:
Cook rice and set aside.
Pressure cook both the dals together with turmeric and enough water till done.
Do the tampering till onions turn crisp and golden brown.
To the cooked rice, add salt, hing and cooked dhals. The mixture might be very thick. Add little water and bring it to desired consistency. Add the tampered ingredients and garnish with coriander leaves.