Ulundhu Kali / Uddi Sankatti / Rice Urid Dal Kali

Today is Thiruvadhirai day. Woke up early and prepared thiruvadhirai kali to offer to Lord Shiva. Thiruvadhirai is a festival that popular among the Hindu community in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the two southern states of the Indian subcontinent. It comes on the full moon day of the Tamil month of Margazhi (around December-January) and also on the day of adhirai star.



Thiruvadhirai = Thiru + Adhirai. Adhirai is Lord Shiva's birth star and thiru is is added to it to give a sacred feeling. (which gives the meaning of 'holy' or 'sacred'). This day is also called as Aruthraa Dharshanam. On his birthday, Kali (rice and dal mixed paste), Adai (rice pancakes) and Curry with 7 vegetables will be offered to him.



I am sure every home will be preparing their own version of thiruvadhirai kali. We usually prepare Ulundhu kali(Ulunthan kali) on this day.



Apart from this special occasion, we prepare this kali for breakfast at our home. Due to its protein rich health benefits, it is being served to girls after they attain the age(puberty) to strengthen their back bones.



We usually mix both the rice flour and urid dal flour of equal quantity to make this kali. I always have this flour mixture at home to prepare it often. So I have skipped the picture for it, but I have explained it briefly below.

Basic Information:

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Serves: 2 persons



Ingredients:



For Making Rice and Urid Dal Flour Mixture:



Raw rice / Pacharisi - 2 cups

Urid dal / Ulutham paruppu- 2 cups



For Making Kali:



Rice and Urid dal flour mixture - 3/4 cup

Jaggery - 1/2 cup (See notes)

Water - 3 cups

Gingerly oil / Sesame oil - 2 tablespoons

Whole cardamom / Cardamom powder - 1/4 teaspoon (Optional)

Dry ginger powder / Sukku powder - 1/4 teaspoon (Optional)

Salt - a pinch

Method:



For Making Rice and Urid Dal Flour Mixture:



1) Take equal quantity of rice and urid dal. No need to roast it.

2) Make a smooth powder of it using the mixer/food processor.

3) Store it in a air tight container and use it whenever you need to prepare kali.



For Making Kali:



1) Mix Jaggery, cardamom and dry ginger powder with 1 cup of water in a saucepan and heat it. Once the jaggery dissolved, filter it to remove the impurities. Keep it aside.

2) Take a heavy bottom wide pan and mix remaining water and flour together. Make sure not to form any lumps. As I don't have any heavy bottom pan with me, I used pressure cooker bottom without lid.

3) Keep this in flame and stir continuously using a long spatula.

4) When the flour mixture slightly thickens, add the filtered jaggery to it.

5) Keep stirring continuously till it reaches thick smooth consistency. Whenever the flour mixture sticks to the sides of the pan, pour a teaspoon of oil and stir it.

6) Add the remaining oil before turning the flame off if any.

7) Serve hot.

Notes:

1) Increase or decrease the sugar as per your taste.

2) I added karupatti vellam* to prepare this recipe.You can add any type of vellam to make this recipe.



*Mandai vellam - Jaggery made from sugarcane, has more sweet

*Karupatti vellam - Jaggery made from palm wine, has less sweet compared to mandai vellam



3) Addition of cardamom and ginger powder are optional.

4) Use gingerly oil or sesame oil for authentic taste.

Kaalu Uppittu - Broken Rice And Field Beans Upma

KAALU UPPITTU 

Once again it is Kaalu season! The  Kaalu obsession has taken over the  fanatics and  we love to exploit its flavour  in as many dishes as possible till the season lasts. I always wonder about how this simple and shiny green  bean is capable of lending a magical  aroma to any and every dish it touches! Even a simple straight forward Akki Uppittu is elevated to a  star status when a handful of  Kaalu is thrown in while cooking!

  

INGREDIENTS 

Raw rice - 1 cup 
Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp 
Field beans / Kaalu ( cooked till tender but not mushy) - 3/4 cup 
Fresh grated coconut - 4 tbsps 
Salt - 1 tsp 
Sesame oil - 3 tbsps 
Mustard seeds - 1 pinch 
Black gram dal - 1 tsp 
Bengal gram dal - 1 tsp 
Broken red chillies - 3 
Asafoetida - 1 pinch 
Curry leaves - a few 

METHOD 

1. Dry grind raw rice using a mixer till it resembles Semolina. 
2. Add the cumin seeds and run the mixer for another 10 seconds. 
3. Heat the sesame oil in a heavy bottomed pan or kadai. 
4. Add mustard seeds. 
5. When the mustard seeds splutter add both the dals and fry till they turn golden in colour. 
6. Add broken red chillies, lower the heat and roast till the chillies become crisp. 
7. Add asafoetida followed by curry leaves and the cooked field beans.
8. Saute for two minutes and then add three cups of water, fresh coconut gratings, and salt to the seasoning and increase flame. 

9. When the water starts boiling, gently add the broken rice and cumin seeds mixture.

 

10. Keep stirring till the broken rice is cooked and all the water is absorbed. 

11. When the cooked Kaalu Uppittu comes together reduce flame and cover it with a lid. 
12. Switch off flame when it is thoroughly done.

Enjoy the flavoursome Kaalu Uppittu as it is, or with any pickle of your choice, and a cup of thick curd.

Mom’s Chicken Biriyani

By mid-December, I feel deeply vexed by the commercialism that threatens to swallow up Christmas. To cope, I meditate on places that are deeply meaningful to me: my parent’s kitchen, a friend’s comfy couch, a peaceful aisle at the public library. I also ponder places beyond my reach. High on that list is my grandma Amachi’s prayer room. 



Counting all the family trips we took to India and the one time she visited the states, I spent a year with Amachi at most. She was a boxy woman with soft, doughy cheeks. When anyone leaned in for a kiss, she gently inhaled as if trying to breath in their essence. Like other women of her generation, Amachi fastened her hair in bun and wore a white chatta and mundu which seemed to glow when she moved about her kitchen and other dimly-lit spaces.



Since Amachi never learned English and I spoke Malayalum like a toddler (‘patti’ (dog), ‘poocha’ (cat), ‘kozhi’ (chicken)) our communication rarely involved words. We pantomimed. We nodded. We laughed. We frowned. 



During our trips, I came to know Amachi best by observing her gentle, rhythmic ways in the kitchen and watching her undetected in the prayer room. By mid-afternoon, she began boiling water for tiffin. Around 4 p.m., she covered a section of the expansive table she had used to nourish 14 children with perfectly steamed plantains, unda rolled from avalose podi, and hot, milky tea. Even now, when I eat a ripe plantain I think of the safety of her kitchen
.


Amachi’s prayer room was the size of a walk-in closet. It had a Syrian Christian cross (with curly ends) and a large statute of Mother Mary with the Christ child, arms open wide. On occasion, I walked by it at night, having misplaced a book or a hairbrush. In shadowy light, produced by the bouncing of candles, I would see Amachi’s outline: head bowed, hands clasps, lips moving in prayer. 



Mom's Chicken Biriyani

Serves 6 to 8

Biriyani is a richly-flavored Muslim dish commonly prepared with lamb or mutton in Kerala. We always serve it at Christmas (swapping in chicken) and for other meaningful occasions. The ingredient list is admittedly long, but friends that’s what it takes to eat like a Mughal Empress.



For rice:

½ cup butter
10 cardamom pods
10 cloves
1 (2-inch) cinnamon stick
2 onions, finely chopped
2 cups basmati rice
4 cups water
Pinch saffron
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon salt

For chicken:

3 tablespoons coriander
1 tablespoon fennel
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
8 cardamom pods
10 cloves
3 teaspoons canola oil
1 cup finely chopped onions
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2½ teaspoon minced ginger
1 medium jalapeno, cut in half lengthwise
1 (2-inch) cinnamon stick
¾ cup chopped tomatoes
1 pound chicken, preferably bone-in
3 tablespoons yogurt
1/3 cup water
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice

For garnish:

3 tablespoons butter
½ cup thinly sliced onions
¼ cup roughly chopped cashew nuts
3 tablespoons raisons

INSTRUCTIONS

For rice:

Soak rice in water for 30 minutes. Rinse until water becomes clear. Drain. 

Melt butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium-low heat. Add cardamom pods, cloves, and cinnamon. Cook for 1 minute.

Stir in onions and cook until they just begin to caramelize, about 10 minutes. 

Add rice and stir to coat it with butter. Cook, stirring frequently, until rice granules separate and begin to look opaque.

Add water, lemon juice, salt, and saffron, pinching it to release its essential oils. Stir. Bring to a boil. 

Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook until rice is tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Do not stir rice while it is cooking. 

For chicken:

Blend coriander, fennel, turmeric, cardamom pods, and cloves in a spice grinder.

Place onions, garlic, ginger, jalapeno, cinnamon, tomatoes, chicken, yogurt, water, salt, lemon juice, and ground spices in in medium-sized stockpot or a Dutch oven. Stir together. 

Cover and cook on medium-low heat until chicken flakes when pulled with a fork, about 20 to 25 minutes. If there is more than 1/3 cup of gravy, remove chicken and reduce it to 1/3 cup. 

For garnish:

Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a small skillet over medium-low heat. 

When it melts, add onions and cook until they begin to caramelize. Transfer to a bowl. 

Melt the remaining tablespoon butter and add cashews and raisons. Cook until cashews turn golden, stirring frequently.

You’re almost there (!):

Place a layer of rice in a large casserole dish (or one medium-sized casserole dish and a small casserole dish). Remove cardamom pods, cloves, and cinnamon stick. 

Top with a layer of chicken. 

Add another layer of rice, removing the rest of the cardamom pods and cloves. 

Add another layer of chicken.

Top with cashews, raisons, and onions. 

Bake at 400 degrees for an hour. 

Serve with cucumber tomato salad and lentil wafers.