Curd vada/ Thayir vadai recipe

                   One of beautiful memories  still I stay in mind is,when I was a kid, me and my family go to Coimbatore for clothing purchases. We don’t forget to have our food in annapoorna restaurant. I used to order one rose milk, 1 parota set and Thayir vadai to share with family. They are very creamy and thick. It melt like ice cream and very tasty. The secret behind this thick creamy curd vada/ Thayir vadai is the coconut mix they add to the curd. Let’s see the recipe.

Ingredients:

Vadai:

Urad dhal - 1 cup

Idli rice - 3 tbsp

Ginger - 2” piece

Green chili - 2

Thayir/ curd preparation:

Curd.                      - 2 cup

Water                       -1 cup

Coconut                   - 1/4 cup

Jeers/cumin seed       - 1 tsp

Green chili.                - 1

Cashew                     -   3 or 4 broken

Oil                             - 3 tbsp

Mustard seed            -1/4 tsp

Urad dhal                 - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves           - few chopped

Hing/ asafoetida    -  pinch

Decoration:

Chili powder            - a pinch

Boondi                      -  2 t so

Coriander leaves      - few finely chopped

Shredded Carrot      -  1 tbsp

Recipe

1️⃣   Wash and soak rice and urad dhal/ulundhu for 5 hour and grind it with green chili, finely chopped ginger with just 2 cup water. 

2️⃣ Grind coconut,jeera,green chili and broken cashew with 1 cup water and set aside.( cashew gives that thick creamy texture to curd)

3️⃣ In a bowl,add 2 cup thick curd,1 cup water and grounded paste. Adjust water measurement according to the thickness of curd you need. 

4️⃣ In a small kadai, heat oil add mustard,urad dhal,hing, curry leaves ( add red chili if u like that flavor). Sauté and add to curd mix.

5️⃣ Heat oil in a big pan and fry the vadas and keep it aside. ( how to get perfect vada shape is explained in my channel video)

6️⃣ To make the vada soft when we eat and also to absorb the curd which is poured on top, immerse the vada in warm water or diluted butter milk. Squeeze all liquid and keep it aside.

7️⃣ While serving, place the vada on a plate, pour prepared curd on top( we can store this curd in fridge if we like cold Thayir vada), sprinkle some chili powder, coriander leaves ,boondi and shredded carrot .

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Lemon pepper chicken in tamil

   This lemon pepper chicken is prepared using very very less ingredients but flavored packed with butter,lemon and grounded pepper. I choosed chicken leg (since my little one love it),this can also be prepared using chicken breast. I also used yogurt in this dish to marinate the chicken which makes the chicken tender. In just 15 minutes,this dish can be prepared when it is pre marinated. It goes well with hot hot chicken biryani or pulao. Since the spiciness is only from pepper and green chili,kids would love them.

Ingredients:

Marination:

Chicken leg - 1/2 kg / 1 lb

Yogurt - 2 tbsp

Peppper - 1 tsp ( use freshly grounded)

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

Lemon juice - 1.5 tsp ( freshly squeezed plz)

Salt- 1 tsp(as per taste)

Turmeric- just a pinch to coat the chicken

Lemon pepper chicken preparation:

Marinated chicken -1/2 kg

Oil - 1 tbsp

Butter -1 tbsp

Cinnamon - 1 piece

Cloves -3

Cardamom -3

Star anise -1

Whole pepper- 1 tsp

Ginger - 2” piece

Garlic - 3

Green chili-5(optional)

Crushed pepper - 1 tsp 

Yogurt/curd- 4 tbsp ( use cornflour slurry instead of yogurt)

Cilantro - chopped

Lemon slices- few

Recipe:

Marination:

1. Clean the chicken two or three tines and slit skin of chicken and apply turmeric .

2. In a bowl, place the cleaned chicken and add yogurt/curd, ginger garlic paste, grounded pepper,salt. Mix well and leave it for 30 minutes. 

Lemon pepper chicken preparation:

1. In a pan,add 1 tbsp oil and 1 tbsp butter. Let butter melt,then add cinnamon,cardamom,cloves,star anise,whole pepper,sliced ginger and garlic.sauté well .

2.  Add the chicken pieces alone(save the marination liquid for later) on pan and cook in slow  flame for 2 minutes till the chicken turn slightly brown skin.

3. After 2 minutes, add the saved marination liquid and add 4 tbsp thin liquid yogurt/curd ( we can add corn flour slurry(cornflour+ water) instead of curd)green chili (optional)and  mix well,cover the pan and cook in slow flame in 10 minutes.

4. After 10 minutes,remove the lid,add 1 tsp freshly grounded pepper and mix well. Cook for another 2 minute in medium flame ,till the liquid get thicken. Once thicken, finally add chopped cilantro and lemon slices. Serve hot with biryani or pulao. 

Important points:

1. Try to use freshly squeezed lemon juice and freshly grounded pepper to get enhanced flavor in chicken.

2.  Choose chicken breast or leg pieces for this dish .

3.  Can totally avoid curd in this dish. For thickness , add corn flour slurry. 

4. This can also be baked in 165 F for 15-20 minutes . Just add all ingredients,mix well and bake it.

5. Green chili and grounded pepper give nice kick to the dish.

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Restaurant style paneer 65 l பன்னீர் 65

      Paneer 65 is like chicken 65 for vegetarians. It can be prepared either with sauce or without. Today I prepared paneer 65 using sauce like prepared in restaurants. The gravy or sauce which coats the paneee will be tangy and spicy. The fried paneer as is,will be yummy when fried only for 5 minute,where you will get soft paneer inside and crispy on outside which can be served with just fried curry leaves or tossed just in tadka. To make it more yummy, I tossed it in masala mixed in curd sauce,which is so yummy to have hot hot. 

Ingredients:

Paneer marination:

Paneer - 300 gms/ 0.6 lb 

Maida- 3 tbsp

Corn flour - 3 tbsp

Kashmiri red chili powder - 1 tbsp

Salt - 1 tsp/ as per taste

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

Curry leaves- few chopped (for flavor)

Crushed black pepper- 1 tsp 

Paneer 65:

Oil- 1 tbsp

Ginger chopped - 2 tbsp

Garlic chopped - 2 tbsp

Big onion-1/2 

Green chili- 3 slit

Red chili- whole 5

Curry leaves- few sprigs 

Coriander powder/தனியா தூள் - 3/4 tsp

Jeera powder/சீரக தூள் - 1/2 tsp

Garam masala/ கரம் மசாலா- 1/2 tsp

Kashmiri red Chili powder/ காஸ்மீர் மிளகாய் தூள்- 1 tsp

Red chili sauce- 1 tsp

Ketchup- 1 tsp

Curd/ yogurt/தயிர் - 1/2 cup

Coriander leaves/cilantro- few chopped

Recipe:

* chopped ginger and garlic into fine pieces

* cut paneer in cubes and add in warm water to make it soft.

Step 1: Paneer marination:

        In a bowl add all the ingredients under marination section and mix first and then sprinkle water little by little. The marination should not like that for manchurian(thick outer coating) or like fritter/bajji( very thin runny coating) ,it needn’t to be fully covered,as we are again going to toss in sauce.(no need to marinate for long)

Step 2:  Paneer frying

         Heat a pan with oil(add less oil ,as the red color from Kashmiri chili powder discolor the oil) once it is warm,add marinated paneer one by one.  Fry just for 5 minutes,else the paneer lose its soft texture inside.

Step 3: Paneer 65 preparation

        In a kadai or skillet,add oil followed by chopped garlic ,ginger,onion and curry leaves. Sauté it till the onion and all cooked well.

        Add the masala powder mentioned under paneer 65 preparation,(note: flame should be low always when adding dry masala powder,else it get burnt easily and it will be infused in the dish),once the masala is mixed,add the sauces and sauté few more minutes.

       Switch off the flame and add curd.( Adding curd/yogurt in hot pan will led to curdle ,so switch of the flame and add.Mix with masala powder and sauce ). Then switch on the flame, cook in low flame for 2 minutes and turn high, add fried paneer and toss in high flame for just 2 minutes to retain the soft paneer and the sauce are all dried and coated on paneer. Finally add chopped cilantro /coriander leaves and serve it with fried rice or serve as starter with hot soup.

Note:

* Can also be served just fried paneer and fried curry leaves or Fried paneer and normal tadka or this way.

*Vegans,can avoid yogurt.

*Can also be fried in airfryer by marinating with oil with other ingredients and fry in airfryer in fries mode.

* Always keep in mind,the longer the paneer in flame,harder they become so fry just for 5 minutes and toss fried paneer in high flame just 2 minutes.

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Dragon chicken (restaurant style dragon chicken)

      Dragon chicken is a Indo-Chinese dish. I think they got the name because of the real dragon chicken whose foot are red and this dish is also rich red color.(today I didn’t add any artificial food color for that red color).They go well as side dish for egg fried rice or chicken noodles. When the chicken is fried and cooked in right temperature ,the chicken dish will be crispy and the chicken inside will be juicy. The chicken can be marinated earlier and fried and sautéed when guest over or party.

Ingredients:

Marination:

Chicken - 1/2 kg( 1.10 lb)

Egg- 1

Black pepper- 1/2 tsp

Salt- as per taste

Vinegar- 1 tsp

Dark soya sauce- 1 tsp

Maida/all purpose flour- 3 tbsp

Corn flour-3 tbsp

Dragon chicken preparation:

Oil- 2 tsp

Ginger- 2 tbsp(2” peice)

Garlic-2 tbsp(3 big cloves)

Red chili- 5

Cashew-10

Capsicum/bell peppers-1 cup sliced(different colors)

Onion-1/2 sliced

White pepper- 1 tsp

Salt-as per taste

Vinegar- 1 tsp

Dark soya sauce- 1 tsp

Chili sauce- 1 tbsp

Water- 1 tbsp & 1/2 cup

Corn flour slurry- 2 tbsp water & 1 tsp corn flour/corn starch

Green onion

Recipe :

1. In a bowl,add thin striped chicken ( breast peice preferred), along to that add 1 egg ,followed by pepper and salt. Followed by vinegar and soya sauce. Mix all the wet ingredients with chicken and then add maida/all purpose flour and corn flour. No need to add any water. Just egg moisture is enough to coat the chicken. Cover and marinate the chicken for 30 minutes( vinegar helps the chicken to be tender ).

2. After 30 minutes, using a fork ,drop the marinated chicken one by one into medium hot oil( very hot oil make chicken turn hard and rubbery inside).cook for 5-6 minutes in medium flame till the outer layer is crispy and inside should be juicy.

3. For dragon chicken preparation, in a skillet add oil and add chopped garlic,ginger, red chili and cashew . Sauté for few minutes and add capsicum/bell pepper and sliced onion. Cook till the capsicum is half cooked.(half cooked capsicum/bell peppers give nice crunch to the dish).

4. Once the capsicum/bell pepper cooked, add white pepper(add black pepper if not available), salt,vinegar,soya sauce and chili sauce. Sprinkle some 1 tbsp water and mix the sauce with vegetables.Finally add fried chicken,1/2 cup water and sauté for just 2 minute in high flame to coat the sauce on chicken and chicken shouldn’t  lose its crunchiness. Garnish with green onion and serve with chicken fried rice,egg fried rice and chicken noodles.

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Vendakkai poriyal / Lady's finger curry

                        This is one of my favorite poriyal which my mom prepares in home. I think ,it is my mom's unique recipe because i haven't tasted this anywhere else except my mom's kitchen. Whenever she prepare it,she will prepare more specially for me.I like to have it mixing with hot rice and also with variety rice. It goes well with chapathi too. After marriage i used to prepare this dish only rarely because my son and my husband like fry one. Recently i prepared this  and enjoyed having it with rice and rasam rice. Heaven..... Those who like tangy food,this is right dish for them.

Ingredients:

Vendakkai / lady's finger - 10 no.
Onion - 1 medium size.
Tomato - 1 big.
Tamarind - small gooseberry size.
Shredded coconut - 3 tbsp
Homemade chilli powder - 2 tbsp.
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp.
Salt - as per taste.

Recipe:
* Chop onion and tomato into very fine pieces.
* Chop vendakkai into thin circular slices.
* Soak tamarind in 1/4 cup water.

                           In a thick bottom pan,add 3 tbsp oil. Once it is warm,add chopped vendakkai. Fry it in slow flame,till it turns crispy. Once it is crispy,add chopped onion. Fry for about 2 minutes. Now add chopped tomato,homemade chilli powder,tumeric powder and salt.Fry till tomato is mushy and cooked. Now add tamarind water and cook for about 5 more minutes. Once the  tamarind water is absorbed,add shredded coconut and fry for 3 more minutes.Once everything is mixed up ,switched off the flame.Serve with hot rice topped with ghee or coconut oil ,or we can serve it as a side dish for variety rice or chapathi. The taste will be tangy spicy one.

Note:
* We can avoid adding coconut,if someone prefer not too.
* Adding chopped small onion gives a extra taste to this dish.

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Spicy potato fry

                      This is my china mamiyar recipe. My husband and his brother’s favorite recipe. Whenever they go to her house, they will pre request her to prepare tomato rice and this potato fry. After marriage ,she also prepared this for me too. It’s so yummy. I can say ,this is my family favorite recipe.  It goes well with tomato rice, curd rice and any variety rice.

Ingredients:
Potato – 3 big
Garlic – 5 cloves
Coriander seed – 2 tbsp
Jeera – 1 tbsp
Chili powder – 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder – 1 1/2 tsp
Red color – a pinch
Salt – as per taste
Oil – 4 tbsp

Recipe:
* Boil potato ,peel it and chop it into small pieces.
* Peel the garlic and Smash it.
* Grind coriander seed and jeera into coarse pieces.
1. Take potato into a bowl and add chili powder,turmeric powder,red color and salt.Mix well and cover the bowl and keep it in fridge.
2.Take a thick bottom pan, add oil. Once it is hot,add smashed garlic. Fry till it is crispy(Don’t burnt it). Now slow down the flame and add grinded powder. Fry for awhile and then add marinated potato.Stir it and spread the potato and reduce the flame to slim. Cook till the potato is crispy and the powder is coated well with potato.
Serve with any variety rice.

Note :
*  If needed, can add some garam masala powder.
*  To get a tangy taste,we can add lemon juice finally.
* Cook potato is slow flame ,so that the potato will be crispy for long time.

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Kadappa recipe

                                      This is a speciality dish around kumbakonam/tanjore  areas. It goes very well with idli,dosa and idiyappam. I came to know about this dish through my friend. When i heard the name, i thought it is andra dish and it will be spicy, but it is totally oppposite. It is mild spicy.When i tasted it,the taste is like the potato masala we used to prepare for poori/chappathi. This is just a combination of dhal,coconut paste and some spices.

Ingredients :

Moong dhal/ pasiparuppu - 1/2 cup
Potato  - 2 medium size
Tomato - 1 big
Onion - 1
Jeera - 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon - 1 inch stick
Cloves -  2
Curry leaves - 1 tbsp
Coriander leaves - 3 tbsp
Salt - as per taste
Turmeric powder - a pinch

To grind :

Coconut - 1/4 cup
Green chilli - 4 small
Fennel seed - 1 tsp
Garlic - 2 pods
Poppy seed - 1/2 tsp

Recipe:

* Chop onion into small pieces.
* Soak poppy seed for 10 minutes and grind it along with other ingredients which are given under "To grind".
* Pressure cook moong dhal and potato for 3 to 4 whistle.
                                 
                                   In a kadai, add oil and once it is warm,add jeera,cinnamon and cloves. Fry for a minute and add onion,curry leaves.Once the onion turn translucent ,add tomato,salt and turmeric powder.Once the tomato is mussy and oil starts to ooze out,add grinded paste.Cook till the raw smell fades away. Now add pressure cooked dhal and potato mixture.(Cook dhal according to the need, slightly mushy or fully mushy). Cook for some more minutes.Add water according to the consistency needed.Finally add coriander leaves and mix well. Serve it with dosa or idli.

Note:

* If you are preparing this dish as a side dish for chappathi, don't cook moong dhal till it is mushy.
* Generally kadappa will colourless or creamy color, to make it attractive i have added turmeric powder.It is purely optional.
* The moong dhal will become thick so soon,so add enough water while cooking ,so that it will be remain semi liquid even after keeping it for long time.
* Smash few pieces of potato in the gravy to give a different taste.
* Since the dhal has a bland taste, adjust green chilli and other spices according to the need.

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Simple potato fry

                           On weekends,when i feel bored of cooking variety dishes I used to prepare just curd rice and Potato fry. Potato fry goes well with curd rice and any variety rice. No one complaint for simple dish if it served with potato fry.This is very easy to make . I can say it is a bachelor recipe.


Ingredients:

Potato - 1 big
Chilli powder - 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Salt - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 1/2 tbsp

Recipe:

*Chop potato with skin in big chunk pieces.
*In bowl ,mix potato and dry ingredients.
              Take a thick bottom pan and add oil, once it is hot ,add marinated potato. Close the lid and cook for 3 minutes. After 3 minute,open the lid and stir the potatoes. Now cook for 3 minutes(Cook in slim-medium flame) without covering the lid. Now stir again and cook again for 5 minutes(slim flame) or till the potatoes turn slightly brown and outer layer is crispy.Switch off the stove and leave the potato in pan uncovered. Once done, serve it with curd rice or any variety rice.

Note:

* Use thick bottom pan,else the potatoes will stick to the pan easily.
*  If needed,can add coriander powder or jeera powder for added flavor .

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Stuffed tomato gravy

                Being south indian, I am not familiar with stuffed vegetables.When I came to know about  dishes where stuffed vegetables are used as a side dish for roti and rice,it sounds intresting. I like to try stuffed tomato but most of the recipe i came to know is dry one. I feel it won't be intresting to have it alone, So i came up with an idea of preparing stuffed tomato and serve along with a gravy.This recipe is my experimental one,but came out really awesome.

Ingredients:

Stuffing:

Tomato - 3
Potato - 1
Green peas - 3 tbsp
Paneer - small piece
Onion - 3 tbsp
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1 tsp
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp

Gravy:

Onion - 1/2
Tomato - 4
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Coriander powder- 1 tbsp
Jeera powder- 1/2 tbsp
Chilli powder- 1 tbsp
Salt - 1 tsp

Recipe:

Tomato stuffing:
 * Chop onion into very fine pieces.
 * Boil potatoes and smash it.
 1.In a pan ,add oil . Once it is hot, add onion and fry for awhile.Once it is slightly brown ,add green peas and panner. Fry and add all the powder.Cover the pan and cook for a minute.Now add potato. Stir well and cook till potato is mixed well with masala. Finally add lemon juice and mix. Transfer it to a bowl.
2.Take a thick tomato and cut it  horizontally at the center.Scoop out the pulp and use it in gravy.Slightly cut the lower part of tomato,so that it can hold in its position in gravy without falling down.
3.Fill the stuffing inside each tomato. Stuff all tomato and keep it in a plate.

Gravy:
 * Chop onion and tomato into very small pieces.
1.In a cooker ,add oil.Once it is hot, add bay leaves and cardamom.
2.Add onion,ginger garlic paste and tomato.Stir for few minutes.
3.Add coriander powder,chilli powder,jeera powder and salt.Close the cooker and cook for 5 minutes without whistle.
4.Open the lid and stir. You can see oil oozes out. Stir well, so that there is no tomato chunks in the gravy.If tomato stuffing is left out,add to the gravy and mix well.
5.Now slowely drop the stuffed tomatoes into the gravy and cover the cooker and cook for few mintues. Reduce the flame to sim and cook.Once the stuffed tomato is cooked and it is tender.Switch off the stove and transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with coriander leaves.
  Serve it with roti or jeera rice.

Note:

* If needed,can grind the gravy in blender before adding stuffed tomato.
* Base gravy can be used for any type of veg gravy.
* Any stuffing can stuffed inside tomato.
* Also can add grated cheese on top of stuffing . When it is cooked in gravy, the cheese melt and give a great taste.

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Channa sundal

  There are different varieties of sundal which are prepared in south india. I love the white channa sundal.


Ingredients :

White channa - 1 cup
Onion - 1 big
Curry leaves - 3
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Red chilli - 4 no
Coconut - 1/4 cup ( shredded)

Recipe :

* Soak channa for 3 hrs and pressure cook adding enough water,salt and turmeric powder.

In a kadai  , add oil followed by mustard seed,broken urad dhal,onion,red chilli and curry leaves.Fry till onion r crispy. Now add shredded coconut and fry for awhile. Finally add cooked channa and stir till the mixture coated well on channa. We can take this as side dish for variety rice or just as a snacks.

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Microwave lady's finger fry

      I read this recipe from some book. It look intresting and simple. Pre preparation time is less but it take more time to prepare. It is worth to take time and prepare this dish. This fry will be crispy like vadagam. Best side dish for curd rice.

Ingredients :

Lady's finger - 15 no
Turmerice powder - 1/4 tsp
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Oil - 1 tsp

Recipe :

* Chop lady's finger lengthwise.

                    Take a bowl, add turmeric powder,chilli powder,salt and oil. Mix it. Now add lady's finger into the mixer and mix well. Wrap the bowl with a foil and keep it in fridge for 1 hour. Take a plate ,place a paper towl and spread this marinated lady's finger and keep it in microwave for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, take out and mix it and again keep it in microwave for 3 minutes.( My microwave dont have low,medium,high settings, so kept it in normal settings) once again mix it and keep it in microwave for 4 more minute. Should be carefull in the last setting in microwave, chances are there to get burnt. I used to keep for 3+3+4 minutes. The final output will be , crispy crunchy lady's finger.

Note:

* Can also some other spicy like amchur powder, garam masala.
* We can marinate this in night and prepare it next day morning.
* Can prepare in big batches and store it in air tight container.
* Should not place lady's finger one above other while keeping it in  microwave.

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