Pulikuthi Upperi ~ Kerala Iyer Special

Any dry vegetable side dish is referred as Upperi/thoran in Kerala cuisine. Pulikuthi upperi is a signature dish of Palakkad iyer cuisine. Its a medley of veggies cooked in tamarind and curry powder. And the most relished combination for this side is a simple Tomato rasam. This combo is often made during the monsoon season during when, piping hot rasam is preferred. In Kerala, during the rainy season, we get monsoon variety of Ladies finger and Brinjal. Those special varieties give an extra kick to the already delicious dish. I don't have the pictures of those monsoon veggies. Shall update it later. This is a dish which uses only traditional/naadan veggies. In most homes, the veggies will be often handpicked from their backyard.

You need
Brinjal - 3 nos
Raw plantain - 2 nos
Lady's finger - 8 nos
Arbi/Taro root/Chembu leaves - 4 nos
Green chilli - 3 nos, slit.
Turmeric - a big pinch
Tamarind - marble sized
Salt


To dry roast and powder
Raw rice - a fistful
Red chillies - 3 nos
Methi seeds - 1/2 tspn


Seasoning

Coconut oil - 1 tblspn
Few curry leaves

Dry roast rice and red chillies together till rice turns slightly brown.Add the methi seeds just few seconds before you switch off the fire, since it gets roasted fast. Cool and powder it. Keep it aside.

Wash and cut the vegetables in to 1 inch long pieces. Cut the arbi leaves into strips of 2 inch width. Roll and tie into a knot. Cook the vegetables in enough water with turmeric, salt and tamarind extract and green chillies. Vegetables can be cooked well or fork tender. Both ways it tastes good. Its up to each one's preference.

Once the vegetables are cooked, stir in the ground powder and cook till all the moisture dries up. If you like it mushy, you can stop cooking before it turns dry. Sprinkle a tablespoon of coconut oil and few curry leaves. The dish is mildly spiced with little tanginess from the tamarind. Serve with rice and bowl of tomato rasam.

Changes to Plumbing Code Can Save You Money!

Do you know about the new law that goes into effect January 1st, 2010? It is a change to the existing plumbing code that says that anything installed in a potable water system, where people are going to drink the water, has to be almost completely lead free!



This is even more restrictive than the existing law, that went into effect some years ago. You can read the text of the new law here, but basically it says that, if the water is for human consumption, anything you install as part of that system has to have less than 0.25% lead in the surfaces that get wet. So, a kitchen faucet or bathroom faucet has to meet this requirement, but a shower valve or laundry sink faucet does not have to.



"Well, that's very interesting!" You say, "But how does that save me money?" There are two ways: read on!



Manufacturers have to find new ways to make their faucets, valves, etc., and it will cost them more money to make these changes. This means that the cost of the part is going to go up come 1/1/10! If you have the work done now, with the existing parts that cost less, you will save money.



As we get closer to January 1st, plumbing supply houses will be cutting prices to get rid of the inventory that they cannot sell next year (maybe!). Just as with most other plumbing companies, at AB&R Plumbing, part of the cost of a job is based on how much the parts cost us. If we pay less, you pay less! (And don't forget to check out our coupons section!)




If you have been thinking of changing your kitchen faucet or replacing the fixtures in your bathroom, you can do it now and save money. If you are worried that your angle stops (the valves under your sinks that shut off the water to the faucets) might be old and corroded, you can save some money by changing them now, rather than waiting until next year.


So, why am I telling you this? Well, if you do the work now, you will save money. We are always trying to drum up more business, but we don't want you to spend money you don't have to. One of the saying we use around here is, "Pigs get fed: hogs get slaughtered!" All we want to do is get fed. If we charge you too much, we will quickly run out of customers willing to get ripped off. That is why we tell you about things like this, that's why we have a coupon section on our website, that's why we are constantly reviewing our price book to see if we can make changes that will save you money.

If we save you money, you will tell your friends and neighbors. If we rip you off, you will tell everyone you know! We'd much rather have the positive advertising, thanks!


As always, if you have any questions, you can contact us at the office. Our numbers are:

North County - 714-641-3200

South County - 949-642-7900

Toll Free - 800-645-2689

Banana Chiffon

Bake this chiffon for many times but have no time to post it here. Although I find the recipe is good but I believe many of you know how to make it as it's quite a famous flavour of chiffon.

I added some chopped bananas into the mixture to give it some extra texture so that I don't feel boring when just biting a plain banana chiffon but with some little chunky bananas. Another thing that I like is to eat it cool from the fridge as I feel it's much refreshing, super soft and fluffy. If you like to have the recipe. Please let me know I'll try to post it. Cheers!

Recipe for 21cm round chiffon pan:

For the egg whites mixture: 180g egg whites / 110g caster sugar / 10g corn flour/ 140g chopped banana (in snall chunk)

For the egg yolks mixture: 70g egg yolks / 30g water / 70g vegetable oil or olive oil / 90g mashed banana / 70g plain flour

How I made it:

1. Mix all the egg yolks mixture except flour. When everything well combined then add in sifted flour (I used electric mixer, its came very handy for this process). Mix everything well combine and no lumps left. The mixture would be very thick and smooth. Gently mix in the chunky banana.
2. Beat the egg whites in a clean large bowl until peak foam. Gradually add in sugar, one tablespoon at a time. Then finally add in corn flour. Make sure the corn flour mix well in the egg mixture (Using an electric mixer would be great!). The egg whites mixture should be peak foam, smooth and shiny.
3. Gently fold in 1/3 of the egg whites mixture into the egg yolks mixture. When everything well combine then gently fold in the 1/2 of the remaining egg whites mixture. Lastly, fold in the remaining egg whites mixture. (Note: This stage took some times and patient and practice. Make sure all the egg whites mixture well combine with the egg yolks mixture without breaking the egg whites. Little egg whites left will cause a big hole in the cake during baking. And, over mixing will cause it hardly rise during the baking.)
4. Pour the well mix mixture into a 21cm chiffon cake tin and bake at a 160-170'C preheated oven for 40 - 50 minutes. After baked, let the baked cake turn upside down for cooling before unmold it.
5. Unmold the cake, keep the cake in the fridge it could last for 5 - 6 days. Best serve in 3 days.