Life is beautiful !!!

Happy friendship day !!!

2010-08-01T09:28:00.000+02:00

Varutharaicha murungakai pulikuzhambu / Drumstick in fried coconut based tamarind gravy

2010-07-28T14:44:00.001+02:00

Here is one more pulikuzhambu version which I like very much. This is a kerala style theeyal recipe. The smell of drumstick and the smell of golden fried coconut gives a unique taste and aroma to this dish. The scientific name of drumstick tree is Moringa oleifera. The leaves, flowers and immature pods of drumstick tree are used as food. Leaves are the most nutritious part of the plant. They

Happy weekend !!!

2010-07-24T09:46:00.000+02:00

Oyster mushroom fry / Sippi kaalaan varuval

2010-07-19T15:13:00.006+02:00

When rainy season comes and when there are a few days of thunder and lightning, these beautiful delicacies grow on plantain stems. In my village, our neighborhood boys go to the plantain farms early in the morning and collect these mushrooms for us. As I have already said, naturally growing oyster mushrooms (Sippi kaalaan) are several times tastier than the store bought, commercially grown ones

Have a beautiful weekend friends !!!

2010-07-17T09:42:00.001+02:00

Spring onions and egg curry / Ulli aaku, kodi guddu koora

2010-07-12T08:58:00.002+02:00

Dear friends, I am back after a long break. Thanks to everyone who remembered me during my absence :). I learned this egg curry from my sister-in-law. In my home my mom never used spring onions. At those times we rarely get these leaves in market. But in my in-laws place they get lots of ulli aaku (spring onions) from their farm. They use spring onions regularly in their cooking and it

Happy weekend !!!

2010-06-26T09:10:00.001+02:00

Milagu, kozhi vathakkal / Pepper chicken

2010-06-24T16:42:00.003+02:00

I got this recipe from one of my friend. Thank you Raghavan for this simple and tasty recipe. When I heard about this dish, I am sure it is going to taste great. I do make pepper chicken but in a different way with many spices. But this recipe is very simple without any spices other than pepper. I have heard from my dad that his grandma prepares mutton only with salt and green chillies !!!

Chinna vengaya sambhar / Shallots sambhar

2010-06-23T15:09:00.011+02:00

This is one of my favourite sambhar. I actually forgot about this recipe until I saw Viki's post on this. I just can't wait to prepare it. It is one of the most tastiest and aromatic sambhar. This dish goes well with hot rice, idly or dosa. The scietific name of shallots is Allium ascalonicum. It is a relative of onion but tastes a bit sweeter than the onions. Shallots are easily digestible

Milagu Vendakkai / Black pepper stuffed ladies finger or okra

2010-06-22T17:12:00.004+02:00

This easy recipe was given by my dad to me. I think he read it in some magazine. My dad was the first person to encourage my cooking expeditions :). Whatever dish I prepare he just loved it. I am not sure whether he liked the dish or the fact that it was prepared by his daughter. Sometimes when my mom says to him that I prepared a particular dish (eventhough I haven't ) he appreciated it

Thakkali saadham / Tomato rice

2010-06-21T17:28:00.005+02:00

I brought some attractive, reddish, juicy and ripe tomatoes. They looked very beautiful, I enjoyed clicking them :). I have two people in my home who love tomatoes crazily- my mom and my hubby. My mom's vegetable shopping is never complete without buying tomatoes and so is Rajender. Both of them love dishes made with tomato too. The scientific name of tomato is Solanum lycopersicum. It is also

Have a beautiful weekend !!!

2010-06-19T08:13:00.002+02:00

Era varuval / Prawn fry

2010-06-18T13:38:00.003+02:00

This is a very simple prawn fry. We just loved it. Hope you will also like it. Here we get big variety, frozen prawns but nothing can be compared to the small variety, fresh prawns which I ate when I am young. Might be the above statement is true or might be its just the age that matters :). My mom used to deep fry the prawns and I still have that taste in my tongue, a bit sweet yet spicy and

Nataraja Iyer Rasam

2010-06-16T15:21:00.005+02:00

This rasam recipe was invented by Nataraja Iyer. Long time ago he wrote a cookery column in a tamil magazine. At that time he gave this recipe to his readers. My mom used to prepare it often. It was a big hit in our household. Everyone liked it. I forgot this recipe for a long time and one fine day I remembered about this rasam. I asked my mom for the recipe even she could not remember it. So

Broccoli-Seasame stir-fry

2010-06-15T14:27:00.005+02:00

When I am very young I read about broccoli in English story books. Most children, in the books I read, hate to eat broccoli and their parents made sure they eat broccoli because it is very good for health. I used to wonder how that vegetable would look !! I saw broccoli for the first time after I came to Germany. A green coloured cauliflower !!! I tasted it for the first time in mensa (

Rava dosai

2010-06-14T22:20:00.003+02:00

A very simple dosa preparation. No need for soaking, grinding, mixing, fermenting etc. This is a slight variation of the usual rava dosai preparation. I have used eggs instead of maida. I learned this from one of my friend. They taste much better than the maida version. A healthy version too because we are substituting a simple carb with good quality protein. Try it for a wholesome breakfast.

Have a happy week end friends !!!

2010-06-12T08:11:00.001+02:00

Meen kuzhambu / Fish pulusu / Fish in tamarind gravy

2010-06-11T15:03:00.007+02:00

Meen kuzhambu needs no introduction. Most NV eating people simply love it. I remember Sivaji's Mudhal mariyathai movie whenever I make this tasty dish. He acted so nicely, even people who doesn't like meen kuzhambu will be tempted to try it. Such a great actor !!! If you get a good variety fish then meen kuzhambu has no equals. In villages, people make this dish in an earthenware. Fish cooked

Kovakkai oorugai / Dondakaya pachadi / Tindora or Indian ivy-gourd pickle

2010-06-10T15:21:00.007+02:00

One more invention in my culinary journey :). It all started just yesterday. I was looking in the fridge and found few kovakkai. They were very less for making a dish. I donno what to do with them. Then I thought of pickling them. I am seeing many of my blogger friends preparing nice pickles and I wanted to make one too. Kovakkai is very crispy, delicious to eat even when it is raw and it

Vendakkai, verkadalai varuval / Bendakaya, palli vepudu / Okra or ladies finger stir fry with groundnut kernels

2010-06-09T15:11:00.005+02:00

My husband's favourite vegetable. Groundnut is also his favourite. If I serve them together he just loves it. This dish is inspired by a ladies finger and groundnut deep fry recipe which my in-laws prepare often. (I will share that recipe later). That dish tastes awesome and is served in wedding parties or other grand functions. I like that dish but I feel guilty to deep fry this green,

Dondakaya vepudu / kovakkai varuval / Tindora or Indian Ivy-gourd stir-fry

2010-06-08T17:21:00.011+02:00

Rajender prepares this dish wonderfully. Only after marriage I got to taste kovakkai (raw tindora). When I am young I used to eat kovapazham (ripe tindora) which grew near our home. The colour of the fruit is so attractive children will immediately love them. The tindora fruit is also a favourite of parakeets. In tamil literature, tindora fruit colour is compared to the lip colour of women :D.

Godhumai, kezhvaragu dosai / Whole wheat and ragi dosa

2010-06-07T17:55:00.004+02:00

This is an easy to make dosai and tastes very yummy with coconut chutney. I make it with whole wheat flour and ragi. Whole wheat flour is very rich in protein and fiber. It is also a rich source of calcium, iron and selenium. Ragi or finger millet is also rich in fiber and an excellent source of amino acid methionine. It is also high in Iron and calcium. Both ragi and wheat are very good for

Have a beautiful weekend !!!

2010-06-05T10:43:00.002+02:00

Kodi pulusu / Chicken gravy

2010-06-04T15:12:00.006+02:00

The first time I tasted this chicken dish made by my mom-in-law, I immediately fell in love with it. Have you ever prepared chicken without onions?. In this preparation there is no onion, no tomato and no masala items like cloves, cinnamon or cardamom. A very simple way of preparing and it is very, very tasty too. Give it a try, perhaphs you might also like it. Ingredients : Chicken- 1/2

Pachai karamani poriyal / Achinga payaru thoran / Yard long beans stir fry

2010-06-02T19:51:00.008+02:00

Another beans recipe!! I am fond of this long, green veggie too. This is called as achinga payaru in malayalam and in tamil they call it as karamani. I have never seen this in Madurai. But after coming to Germany I saw them in a grocery shop and explained its physical characteristics to my mom. She only told me that this is achinga payaru and gave me a recipe to prepare it. They taste very

Mullangi sambhar / Radish sambhar

2010-06-01T21:17:00.008+02:00

Sambhar is very versatile. You can use almost any vegetable to make this wonderful dish . It brings out the real taste and flavour of the vegetable without overpowering it. Eventhough any sambhar is a sambhar (:D) you can't find many similarity in taste between drumstick sambhar and radish sambhar. Sambhar acquires its taste depending on the vegetable used. Radish sambhar is loved by many. My

Kothavarangai poriyal / Goru chikudukaya koora / Cluster beans stir-fry

2010-05-31T15:30:00.014+02:00

I love this vegetable a lot. We call it as kothavarangai or cheeni avarakai. In telugu it is called as goru chikudukaya, matti kaya or gokarakaya. In hindi it is called as gavar. In english it is called as guar or cluster bean. When my mom makes it I am the one to finish it off by eating it just like a snack. Vatral made out of cheeni avarakai is another delicay which has a unique taste and

Happy weekend!!!

2010-05-29T09:24:00.001+02:00

Urulaikizhangu varuval / Deep fried potato scrappings / Bangaladumpa fry

2010-05-28T15:37:00.007+02:00

This unhealthy (yea I agree!!!) but a very tasty, crispy potato fry I learned form one of my sister. She prepared this for her daughter who was in hostel at that time. When we went to the place where she was studying, my sister gave a tiffin box to us to give to her. When we reached the place we handed it over to her. She opened the tiffin box and I saw that the entire tiffin box is being

Vendakkai finger chips / Ladies finger chips / Bendakaya vepudu

2010-05-27T20:05:00.006+02:00

A very simple recipe with the gorgeous ladies finger. It will suit people who dislike its gluey nature. Children will absolutely love it. I loved it the first time I made it and finished it within no time. Ingredients : Ladies finger / Vendakkai- 250gmsGram flour / besan- 2 tbspnsRice flour or corn flour- 2 tbspnsRed chilli powder- 1 tspn Jeera powder- 1 tspnPepper powder- 1 tspnSalt to

Chenai kizhangu fry / Suran fry / Yam fry

2010-05-26T19:30:00.005+02:00

A very simple fry, yet very tasty. It pairs excellent with sambhar saadham. A healthy alternative to potatoes. Try it. You will love it. Ingredients : Chenai kizhangu / suran / yam- 1/4 kgGarlic- 10 pods, crushed with skin intactCurry leaves- three fistfuls (its a lot but imparts a very nice flavour)Red chilli powder- 1 tspnTurmeric- a pinchMustard, jeera and urid dhal- 1/2 tspn Salt to

Spargelcremesuppe / Asparagus cream soup

2010-05-25T16:49:00.012+02:00

Germans go nuts over spargel. The previous statement is not an overrated one. It is 100% true. When I came to Germany my labmate got a bundle of spargel from one of her friend. Her face was shining more than usual and I am very curious to know what that white coloured bundle was. She told me it is spargel and it is called as asparagus in english. I asked her how she will prepare it. She said

Oyster mushroom kuzhambu / Gravy with oyster mushrooms

2010-05-24T21:02:00.005+02:00

Hi friends, hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Our weekend was fine. We went on a trip to a city called Hamm. There is a big Kamakshi Amman temple. Will be posting some pictures of the journey soon. Here in Germany, today is a holiday too. We enjoyed this long weekend and I really feel lazy to get up earlier tomorrow :(. How many of you like mushrooms? I guess not many. I am also not a fan

Wish you all a very happy, happy weekend!!!

2010-05-22T08:39:00.002+02:00

Uzhundha vadai / medhu vadai / mina pappu garelu / urid dhal fritters

2010-05-21T16:18:00.008+02:00

A very healthy and tasty snack, especially for children. I love the smell, outer crispiness and inner softness of this vadai. Quick and easy to prepare and it makes a wholesome snack too. Any tamilian will go ga-ga for this vada preparation :). Usually this vada is served along with venpongal or idly in hotels and it goes very well with sambhar and coconut chutney. In south India it is a must

Vazhaipoo kola urundai / Arati puvvu vada

2010-05-20T16:54:00.006+02:00

Vazhaipoo kola urundai is one of my favourite dish . Plantain flowers not only look very beautiful but they are very tasty too. Each and every part of banana plant is used in cooking. Since there are lots of plantain farms near my home we get these infloresence more often. When I come from school I can easily say whether there is plantain infloresence (Infloresence is the collection of banana

Kollu rasam / Horse gram rasam / Ulava chaaru

2010-05-19T16:27:00.003+02:00

Kollu in Tamil, ulavalu in Telugu, kulith in Marathi and horsegam in english, these lovely little beans look very beautiful. My mom never used this lentil in cooking. I am introduced to this lentil by one of my friend named Singaravelan. He used to bring this rasam. He prepares it himself. Sometimes he even has beetroot in his rasam preparation :). Few times I got a chance to taste his kollu

Chaalna / Salna

2010-05-18T16:49:00.010+02:00

Chaalna with parotta, a drool-worthy combination :). In Madurai there are lots of road-side restaurants and they were in news very recently for the wrong cause too. Please do forget about it and enjoy this post. Most road-side restaurants in Madurai prepare parotta and chaalna in the evening. If you cross those stalls the smell of this chaalna will be very inviting. When I get a chance to eat

Vegetable pulao

2010-05-17T19:25:00.009+02:00

When I am in a hurry and need a wholesome luch or dinner I prepare this vegetable pulao. Since I love my dishes to be colourful, I use whatever veggie I have, both fresh and frozen. I prepare this one pot meal in rice cooker and it will be ready in minutes. Tastes simple and great. Definitely a bachelor freindly recipe :). Ingredients :Basmati rice- 2 cupsAny veggie of your choice- 1-2

Have a beautiful weekend !!!

2010-05-15T09:16:00.001+02:00

Milagai bajji / Mirapakaya bajjilu / Fritters with green chilli peppers

2010-05-14T18:04:00.007+02:00

Do you love the smell of green chilli peppers? I do. I just love the smell and these bajjis are an excellent way to enjoy their warmth and flavour. My first meeting with chilli bajjis was during our school trip to Ooty. Everywhere you can see small vendors selling them hot, hot and for that cold ooty climate they make an excellent snack. Recently, during our India visit we had fresh, very hot

Maangai thuvayal / Raw mango chutney

2010-05-13T17:54:00.007+02:00

A very simple, no-cook dish. I love it from my childhood. When my mom makes it I will be waiting nearby her to get that first tasting experience. Remembered it after a long time and asked my mom for the recipe and here it is for you all. The fresh smell of raw mango, pearl onions, green chillies and ginger makes this dish divine !!! Ingredients : Raw mango- 1 small, sour onePearl onions /

Vengaya bajji / Onion bajji / Fritters with onion

2010-05-12T15:16:00.004+02:00

Very tasty and aromatic snack. Can be prepared in no time. When we go to Rajender's native and visit our friends and relatives there, this was the main snack item they serve us. Enjoying their talk, sitting with a plate of vengaya bajji in hand and a cup of hot tea - that is what is called as heaven on earth :). This is a perfect dish for onion lovers. Ingredients : Onions- 2 nosBengal

Chenai / Senai kizhangu pulikuzhambu / yam in tamarind based gravy

2010-05-11T14:37:00.002+02:00

Back again with another pulikuzhambu :). I hope most of you know about this senai kizhangu. In english it is called as yam but there are several varieties of yam. Yam is a common name for starchy tubers of the family dioscorea. I have seen some varieties of yam that are unique to Africa and Srilanka. The picture above shows an Indian variety yam. Yams are high in vitamin C, dietary fiber,

Tomato, potato and capsicum curry

2010-05-10T16:55:00.005+02:00

Before, Rajender used to prepare this gravy very often. Actually you give him tomato and any other veggie, he can make a curry out of it. He loves tomatoes. He taught me this. He used to say that his friend's sister taught him this curry. I just love it. This curry tastes excellent with hot rice and goes very well with chappathis too. The flavours of capsicum, potato and tomato mingled together

Thayir saadham / Curd rice / Dadojanam

2010-05-09T17:17:00.007+02:00

When Jyoti of Panch Pakwan announced mother's day event, I am not sure what to send. I thought of many dishes which my mom makes. But nothing felt so special. I needed a dish which speaks of my moms love, which is very soothing to my heart and stomach. Atlast I decided that, this thayir saadham will be the best entry for her event. From my schooling to college, most of the days my lunch box

Happy mother's day!!!

2010-05-08T21:15:00.001+02:00

Happy weekend!!!

2010-05-08T08:22:00.001+02:00

Kurbis suppe/ kürbissuppe / Pumpkin or cucurbita or squash soup

2010-05-07T14:37:00.011+02:00

Yesterday was a very cold and rainy day. The weather forecasts say that, this horrible condition will last for another week. I need sun and warmth. I just hate Germany's weather. Because of this weather I felt very lazy and just wanted some warm fluid food to gulp down. No mood for the routine rice dishes. So thought of making some rich soup. I love soups. I am a big fan of Knorr soups which

Kalkandu sadham / Ksheeranam

2010-05-06T16:38:00.003+02:00

This is a sweet dish which will conquer your taste buds. My mom never prepared it at home. I tasted this dish in temples and in some marriage feasts. Rice, ghee, milk and sugar candy (kalkandu).....should I say more about this combo :). They call this dish as ksheeranam too. I made it for this tamil new year. We all loved it. Hope you will love it too. Ingredients : Rice- 11/2 cupWater- 5

Urulaikizhangu podimas / potato podimas / 'kizhangu pottalam'-Nagapattinam mittai kadai special

2010-05-05T13:32:00.007+02:00

Sorry, but as usual I have a story for this dish too. I normally prepare dishes which are close to my heart and that gives me immense happiness. So every dish I blog almost has a story attached to it. In Madurai, opposite to the west tower of the temple there is a small shop. You would not even notice it if you are not so concentrated on what you are looking for. It is such a small shop. It is

Beetroot raita

2010-05-04T14:42:00.006+02:00

A very simple raita and very colourful too. Mixing beetroot with curd is very eye-catching. I have a very vivid memory about the first time I saw this combo. I have a friend called Anitha. We studied together from 1st to 3rd std. Her grandma used to bring lunch box for her. We used to have lunch together. One day I noticed her eating beetroot poriyal with curd rice. The curd rice turned into a

Lemon couscous

2010-05-03T14:04:00.016+02:00

This dish is very new for me. I tried it only recently. The reason for trying this dish is my friend and collegue named Sascha. He prepared a similar dish with couscous. The dish was very attractive for me because the individual coucous grains were seperate and they looked lovely. It tasted great too. Before, I have tasted couscous a few times but I did not like it. But Sascha's preparation was

Happy weekend!!!

2010-04-30T22:06:00.001+02:00

Vaazhaikai bajji/ arati kaya bjjilu/ Raw plantain fritters

2010-04-30T16:11:00.002+02:00

In Madurai, at around 4'O clock in the evening, every small tea shop and hotels will have this snack. They serve it with coconut chutney. Vaazhaikai bajji and coconut chutney- a super yum combo !!!. I personally love this bajji than any other bajji preparation. The soft meat of raw plantain covered with a crispy outer coat of batter will keep anybody longing for more and when it is served with

Mochakottai pulikuzhambu/ Endu anapa ginjalu pulusu

2010-04-29T15:10:00.007+02:00

I love this beans. We call it as mochakai. I have no idea how it is called in english. After some search I came to know that they are addressed as field beans but I am not quite sure about it. May be this beans is localized only to certain regions so that we do not have an english name. I haven't seen these beans in my husband's place (telangana region). In Madurai we get fresh ones in the

Chicken fry/kozhi varuval/kodi vepudu

2010-04-28T16:41:00.003+02:00

This is my most favourite dish. In my home I was the only NV eater. When sunday comes I would go to the meat shop and buy 1/4 kg of chicken. My mom would prepare this for me. Beautiful days they are !!! I will grind the masala in 'ammi kal'. The smell of garlic and ginger ground together....simply awesome!!! So until today if I smell garlic and ginger only this dish flashes in my mind. The

Ellu thuvayal/ Nuvvulu pachadi/ Seasame chutney

2010-04-27T15:11:00.004+02:00

A very simple side-dish for lemon rice, idly, dosa and curd rice. I just love the smell of seasame. I love cocnut too. They together form a perfect combo. I have tasted this from one of my friends tiffin box :). Most of the time she used to bring lemon rice and ellu thuvayal. I just loved it. Very easy to prepare. This thuvayal can be prepared in no time when you have all the ingredients in

Vendakkai pulikuzhambu/ ladies finger or okra in tamarind based gravy

2010-04-26T17:50:00.006+02:00

This is one of the best way to cook ladies finger. Tastes very yummy and this kind of preparation totally removes the gooiness from this vegetable. In united states and here in Germany they call this veggie as okra. In India we call it as ladies finger (ofcourse a very beautiful name !!!). Its scientific name is Abelmoschus esculentus. I am very surprised to know that in some part of the world

Happy weekend!!!

2010-04-24T09:19:00.001+02:00

Keeri muttai/ Boiled egg with fried onions

2010-04-23T15:38:00.005+02:00

One of our favourite dish. Very simple, aromatic and very tasty too. My mom used to make it often. The most funniest part of this dish is its name. We call it as 'keeri' muttai. There is also a small mammal called keeri pilla (mongoose). Ofcourse this is hen's egg and not from mongoose !!! :). Since this egg is cut open I guess they called it this way. It tamil the meaning of ' keeri' is to

Mupparuppu vadai/ Fritters made with three different dhals

2010-04-22T15:00:00.019+02:00