Mahanandi

బీరకాయ మిరియాల పచ్చడి

Shallot, Turai and Black Peppercorn

If there is a turai fan club, I would be a card-carrying member. I would go to farmers markets to demonstrate turai dishes and to dispense turai seeds to the interested. I enjoy this vegetable that much.:) Recently I came across a new chutney recipe with turai, and I tried it today for our meal. Sweet turai and fiery peppercorn, it’s a good combination. A must try for fellow turai fans, I recommend.

Black Pepper ~Turai Chutney:
(makes about a cup and half)

1 Turai (ridge gourd, బీరకాయ)
2 shallots (erra gadda)
½ teaspoon black peppercorn (*Hot*)
1-tablespoon tamarind pulp
½ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon salt
1-teaspoon oil

1. Add tamarind pulp to two tablespoons of water. This will soften the tamarind and helps to blend well. Peel the ridges, wash turai, and cut to big chunks (about two cups). Peel the skin and chop shallots to big pieces (about half cup).

2. Heat a cast iron skillet. Add and heat oil to smoking point. Add black pepper and cumin. Fry for few seconds. Add the shallots and ridge gourd pieces. Sauté to tender for about five minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the contents to reach room temperature.

3. Take them all in a mixer or mortar. Add salt, tamarind pulp and the water it was soaked in. Mix once. Blend to coarse consistency. Remove to a cup and serve. Good to mix with rice, or as a spread on chapati/roti/bread.

Turai Pepper Chutney ~ for Meal Today

Recipe adapted from:
Paajaka. Thanks Mythreyee for this tasty turai recipe idea.
Reduce peppercorn to quarter teaspoon if you prefer mild hot level.

Ragi kudumulu is an old classic from Andhra Pradesh, India. Dumplings like kudumulu are prepared with ragi flour and steam-cooked in flavorful kura (curry). The main ingredient of kura in which ragi kudumulu are steamed changes with the seasons. Sometimes the kura is prepared with vegetables, sometimes with meat or a combination. Depends on the cook’s mood and the market prices. Popular in agricultural community, this protein powerhouse is a build or nourish the muscle-on-the-bone kind of one-pot meal.

For Mathy’s Jihva, I have been thinking about a new recipe using garlic-ghee. Then I thought, why not incorporate garlic-ghee into ragi dough and make kudumulu with it. When people say developing new things or techniques is like constantly rediscovering the wheel, it’s very true, indeed. Years of nutritional strategies and accumulated wisdom among cooks throughout the world before us are right to benefit us all through good times and hard times.

Ragi kudumulu is one such nutritional strategy, and here it is in a new avatar. An acquired taste, but a delight to an adventurous palate. Give it a try.

Ridge Gourd and Ragi Dough (Beerakaya mariyu Raagi Mudda)

Recipe:
(for two adults, for two meals)

Recipe happens in three steps. 1. Prepare Ragi dough for Kudumulu.
2. Prepare kura (curry or kurma) for Kudumulu. 3. Prepare kudumulu and steam-cook.

Step 1:

Take one-cup ragi flour in a bowl. Add a tablespoon of garlic-ghee puree and quarter teaspoon salt. Stir in a tablespoon of garlic infused ghee. Sprinkling few tablespoons of hot water, make soft dough. Cover and keep it aside for about 15 to 30 minutes. The dough firms up on resting.

Step 2:

While the ragi dough is resting, prepare kura for ragi kudumulu. It can be with either vegetables, (traditional choice: Indian broad beans, silk squash and ridge gourd), or meat (chicken or mutton). For my meal today, I have prepared Ridge gourd curry (beerakaya kura) for ragi kudumulu.

- - 2 ridge gourds: peel, rinse and cut into ½ inch, big pieces
- - 2 tomatoes and one onion - finely chop to small pieces

Heat a tablespoon of garlic infused ghee in a wide, deep-bottomed skillet. Add and toast a pinch each - cumin and mustard seeds. When seeds start to pop, add the onion. Sauté to soft. Then tomatoes. Add about a cup of water and cook the tomatoes to mush on high heat.

While tomatoes are cooking, prepare the kura masala:
For kura masala: Two tablespoons of grated coconut, 4 green chillies and an inch of peeled ginger, two cloves, one inch cinnamon, a teaspoon each - coriander seeds and cumin. Take them all in a mixer. Add a pinch of salt. Blend to fine consistency.

Tomatoes will be cooked to soft by now. Mush them by pressing with a sturdy spoon. Add the ridge gourd pieces and the masala paste to the skillet. Also half teaspoon each- turmeric and salt. Stir in another cup of water. Close the lid and simmer on medium-low heat.

Step 3:

While kura is cooking, quickly prepare Ragi kudumulu.

Take the ragi dough out onto a plate. Knead and divide into small, about key lime-sized rounds. The dough came about 16 rounds for me. Take a round on your palm, and close the fingers around the round to make a fist. The shape changes to cylindrical with conical ends. That’s what we call “Kudumu” shape in Telugu. Compared to the round shape, the kudumu shape will have more surface area exposed, and that would facilitates thorough steaming. Prepare all rounds in this way. You have to make them fast in two to three minutes.

Place them one after another neatly in simmering kura. Close the lid tightly, and steam for about 15 to 20 minutes on medium-low heat. Ragi kudumulu have to be cooked properly inside. To test, take one out and cut into half. A well-steamed one has the color of red soil (erra mannu) that you see in moderate rainfall areas like Telengana, Andhra Pradesh. On taste, they should have the comforting texture of a well-chewed bubblegum.:) Sticky with unique ragi flavor. The size/volume also increases on steaming.

Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and lime juice. Serve hot. Until serving time, cover the skillet with tight lid and keep the kura hot on low heat.

How to serve: Place four ragi kudumulu in a wide bowl or plate along with vegetable or meat pieces. Pour the tomato-masala gravy around.

How to eat: With fingers or spoon, take a portion of ragi kudumu with kura. Blow to cool for once or twice. Eat. Ragi flour has gummy properties and it would stick to the mouth roof. So don’t chew on the kudumu, just swallow. The masala gravy and vegetables or meat pieces, together they make a memorable meal experience.

Why: Ragi is rich in Iron, minerals and protein, gluten-free, and is known for it’s health benefits. Ragi is cultivated from ancient times in many parts of India, and in fact the name Ragi is a Sanskrit word. So, Ragi consumption means nourishment to the body and also nourishing the traditional agricultural practices.

Here is the preparation process in photos:

Ragi Kudumulu and Ragi Dough

Steamed Ragi Kudumulu in Ridge Gourd Kura

Ragi Kudumulu Flavored with Garlic Ghee in Ridge Gourd Kura ~
Meal today and My Contribution to Mathy’s Garlic-Jihva Event.

Notes:
Ragi flour is available in most Indian grocery shops.
Kudumu is singular and kudumulu is plural in Telugu language.
Traditional Kudumulu from other parts of Bharath:
Jonna (Corn) Kudumulu from En Ulagam
Jowar-wheat Kudumulu from My Food Court

Do you have this type of tradition where kudumulu or dumplings are steam-cooked in the stew itself?

If you are a follower of my website, then you must be getting a vague sensation of being stalked with toor dal.:) My love for toor dal knows no boundaries and I tend to go little overboard on Mahanandi, when it comes to toor dal.

Looks like I have a company now.

Meet Linda, the fabulous food blogger from Michigan. Like me, Linda finds it impossible to resist the tantric tunes of tuvar.:) She is featuring, of all the ingredients in the world, the “Toor Dal” for Jihva December. And, on her latest post, she has written…

“Day and night, I couldn’t stop thinking about toor dal — ’till one morning I found myself wanting to toss some toor dal into a bowl of cottage cheese and sprinkle some sambhar powder, just to see how that would taste. I may be slightly obsessed.:)”

You are my toor dal dosth, dear Linda.

Here is another one for you. A curry with fresh tuvar and turai. Two fine Indian ingredients and one delightful dish. Perfect for chapatis, and for Jihva.

Fresh Tuvar (pacchi kandulu)

Recipe:

1 tablespoon peanut oil
Pinch each - cumin and mustard seeds, and a sprig of curry leaves
¼ cup - finely sliced onion or shallot (Erra gadda)
1 cup - fresh tuvar (Pacchi Kandulu)
2 cups - finely cut turai (ridge gourd or beerakaya)
2 tablespoons - fresh coconut, grated
1 teaspoon - finely ground green chilli
¼ teaspoon or to taste, - salt and turmeric

In a wide skillet, heat oil until a curry leaf tossed in it sizzles.
Add and toast curry leaves, cumin and mustard seeds.
Wait for the mustard seeds to splutter and then add onions and fresh tuvar.
Frequently stirring, saute them to tender.
Add the turai pieces. Sprinkle the coconut, green chilli, salt and turmeric.
Mix and cook covered for about 5-10 minutes, on medium-high, until the water leaked from turai evaporates. Serve hot with chapatis.

Tuvar and Turai Subji with Chapatis, Gulab Jamun and Coconut Water ~ for Jihva-Toor Dal

Notes:
Fresh Tuvar beans (frozen) are available at Indian grocery shops. 12 oz packets, priced at 2 or 3 dollars. Check the refrigerated section.
Turai or ridge gourd, and fresh coconut are available at Indian and also at Chinese grocery.

Beerakaya (turai or ridge gourd if you prefer) is among my all-time favorite vegetables, so when it is in season I like to incorporate it into all sorts of dishes.

In this traditional bajji recipe, coated with thick besan batter and deep fried, delicate beerakaya slices take on a luscious, sponge-like character. The ajwan (carom seeds) and cumin addition to the besan batter bring a special aroma to the beerakaya bajji, making them absolutely the best.

Beerakaya (Turai, Dodka, Ridge Gourd)

Recipe:
(for two, makes about 20 bajjis)

Prepare the Beerakaya:
Pick an arm-length, young and fresh looking beerakaya (turai, ridge gourd)
Scrape the protruded ridges with a peeler. Wash and slice the beerakaya into thin rounds, using a mandoline.

Prepare the Besan Batter:
In a big bowl, take one-cup besan, quarter-cup rice flour. Add ½ teaspoon each - ajwan, cumin and salt. Also ¼ teaspoon each - chilli powder and baking soda. Mix. Adding half-cup water, whisk together all the ingredients, until well-combined and smooth. (Prepare the batter thick like condensed milk.)

Bajji Time:
In a deep-bottomed kadai or wok, add about 2-cups peanut oil. On medium-high, heat the oil suitable to deep-frying. Once the oil is hot and ready, begin frying. Dip the beerakaya rounds, one by one into besan batter so that they are generously coated. Gently drop in as many pieces as will float freely in the oil. Do not crowd. Fry both sides to gold color and remove the pieces with a slotted spoon and transfer them to a paper-covered plate. Serve hot with chutney or ketchup and with a cup of coffee.

Beerakaya Bajji and Jilebi ~ warming up on a Crisp Autumn Day

Also see:
Monsoon Magic~Turai (Dodka) Bhajji : from Madhuli’s My Food Court

Ridge gourd and Moong Dal :

I see the world around me. There is a deep tantric style worship of all-purpose flour and its endless avatars. All-purpose flour, butter, eggs and sugar: the central content is the same but by just changing the vessel and the decorations, several different avatars are possible. Like the prayers to the Gods, the all-purpose flour mantram resonates like this: cakes… yum, cookies… yum, cupcakes… yum, muffins… yum, bread… yum, biscotti… yum, pizzas, pies, scones… yum … yum … yum … the mantram goes on. The sugar bliss and the atma content follow… yum!

I am amazed by this boundless fascination all-purpose flour attracts. The Maya intensity of all-purpose flour is so great that each of its avatars is perceived as its own creation. I too use the flour mantram, but the avatars are limited to chapati… yum, puri… yum, paratha… yum. I’m just talking out loud.

Anyway, cakes and cookies could be divinely delicious, but vegetables are what inspire me to cook and write. Vegetables keep me happy in a world which is insanely flour-sugar coated. So here it is, another sane vegetable recipe from an all-purpose flour atheist. A hearty, dense, satisfying dal recipe with ridge gourd and moong dal, called Kootu.

Attempt this kootu recipe only when you have asafetida in your kitchen. Because the tiny amount of asafetida is what makes the recipe come alive. Onions and garlic are a big no but potatoes are a must. Ridge gourd, drumsticks and brinjal separately or together in combination are added to cooked, watery moong dal. And the whole thing gets simmered until a thick, honey like consistency is achieved. This is a good dal recipe for people who have low tolerance levels for onions and garlic, and also during early pregnancy times. Mild and soothing, this moong dal Kootu is a favorite for moong fans like me.

Ridge gourd, Red Potato, Lime and Yellow Moong Dal ~ Ingredients for Pesara pappu Kootu

Recipe:

Step 1: 1 cup yellow moong dal - Roast the yellow moong dal to pale red color in an iron skillet. Take the roasted dal in a pressure-cooker, add about 4 cups of water and pressure-cook to soft. Then, lightly mash the dal to smooth consistency.

Meanwhile blend six green chillies, two tablespoons of grated fresh coconut and a pinch of salt to smooth paste.

Step 2: In a saucepan - add a teaspoon of oil. Add and saute two cups of cubed potatoes first. Once the potatoes are half cooked, add 2 cups of finely chopped ridge gourd pieces and saute to tender. (3 potatoes and 1 ridge gourd.)

To the vegetables, add the mashed moong dal, green chilli-coconut paste, ½ tsp each -turmeric and salt, plus a quarter cup of lime/lemon juice, along with two cups of water. Mix, have a taste and adjust the spice, salt to your liking. Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Step 3: In the end, do the popu or tadka. Add and toast few curry leaves, dried red chilli pieces, cumin and mustard seeds and quarter teaspoon of asafetida in an iron skillet in a small amount of oil or ghee. Add the toasted contents to simmering dal. Mix and serve hot with chapatis. A state of bliss will surely follow.

Beerakaya Pesara Pappu Kootu ~ for a Light Meal

I’ve been experimenting different recipes with Rosematta rice (the terracotta colored rice variety from Kerala, India).

In addition to the traditional steam-cooked Rosematta rice, I’ve made Rosematta pongal and Rosematta idly so far. Everything turned out excellent. Rosematta truly brings wholesome and wholegrain rosy goodness to a meal. The Chocolate Lady seems to agree with me. Check out her Rosematta rice and cashew matar meal combination.

One another recipe I wanted to try with Rosematta is vegetarian congee. Congee or ganji is little amount of rice simmered in large quantities of water to a creamy porridge. At its most fundamental, congee is rice water, flavored with buttermilk or coconut milk, chilli and salt. For today’s meal I dressed up the Rosematta congee with vegetables and Yuba (The thick cream that forms on the top of simmering soy milk is removed in layers, sun-dried and rolled into sheets). Add few pieces, the yuba will soak up the saaram, become soft and taste like milk meegada. A neat protein delicacy popularized by Buddhist monks, I gathered.

Sometimes you have to spend hours in the kitchen to make a remarkable meal. Sometimes it becomes effortless, today is one such day. Rosematta and yuba together made a hearty vegetarian congee. We loved our soothing, simple supper.

Coarsely Milled Rosematta Rice Grains and Yuba (Soymilk Meegada, Bean Curd Sticks)

Recipe:

1 cup - coarsely milled (broken) Rosematta rice
½ cup yuba (bean curd sticks, broken to one-inch length pieces)
½ cup each - cut pieces of carrot and ridge gourd (turai, beerakaya)
6 cups water and 1 cup milk.
1 teaspoon peanut oil or ghee
Seasoning:
6 fresh curry leaves
1 tablespoon ginger juice (Grate or crush the ginger & squeeze.)
1 teaspoon - coarsely crushed black pepper
½ teaspoon salt or to taste

In a big pot, heat ghee or oil.
Add and saute curry leaves, black pepper, carrot and ridge gourd pieces 2mts.
Add the yuba, Rosematta rice, water and milk.
Stir in salt and ginger juice.
Bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.
When the congee becomes thick and creamy, turn off the heat.
Serve warm. Tastes great with pickle.

Vegetarian Congee with Rosematta and Yuba ~ Our Meal Today

Notes:
Homemade Yuba ~ Recipe
Rosematta rice ~ Broken variety purchased at Apna Bazar, Bellevue
Yuba (Bean Curd Sticks) at Uwajimaya or also at Chinese grocery.

Ridge Gourd in Poppy Seed Sauce:

Poppy Seeds (Gasa Gasalu, Khus Khus)

The tiny, cream colored poppy seeds are a must have thing in many Indian kitchens. In Andhra, in addition to sesame and peanuts, poppy seeds are also used extensively both in sweets and in savory preparations. When added to sweets like payasam, bhakshalu and to laddus etc, they offer a nice, nutty texture and crunchy contrast.

When it comes to savory - poppy seeds are lightly toasted first and ground to prepare creamy sauces for curries. Nut like, with a subtle, soothing flavor and rich taste, it’s impossible not to like poppy seed sauce. Plus it’s low calorie when compared to nut based sauces.

Both vegetables and meat are cooked in spice flavored poppy seed sauce. The most popular being, ridge gourd (beerakaya), green brinjal (Poluru Vankaya) , potato and chicken. My mother prepares a terrific ridge gourd curry in poppy seed sauce called “Beerakaya Gasala Kura”. Here is my mother’s recipe.

………..Poppy Seed Powder Shaped to Round Ball ………………….Ridge Gourd……………..

Recipe:

2 fresh, firm looking ridge gourds
Peel the outer ridges and the skin lightly. Wash, and remove both ends. Cut ridge gourd to small, bite sized pieces. - about 5 cups.

For Poppy Seed Paste:
¼ cup poppy seeds - in a hot skillet, toast them lightly. Remove to a spice grinder. Grind to smooth without adding water. (It takes at least 5 minutes to grind poppy seeds to fine consistency like shown in the above photo.)

Seasoning:
4 green chillies, one garlic clove and one teaspoon of grated ginger - Grind them to smooth in a mortar or in a blender.
¼ tsp each - salt and turmeric
¼ tsp each - cumin, mustard seeds and few curry leaves.

In a wide skillet, heat a teaspoon of peanut oil. Add and toast curry leaves, cumin and mustard seeds. When they start to splutter, add ridge gourd pieces. Stir in the poppy seed powder along with green chilli-garlic-ginger paste, salt and turmeric. Add about quarter cup of water. Mix thoroughly. Cover the pot and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes on medium-high heat, stirring in-between. Ridge gourd cooks fast and when the sauce starts to thicken, turns off the heat. Serve warm with sorghum roti or with chapati.

Apply same method, but replace ridge gourd with banana pepper/ brinjal /potato/chicken to cook terrific tasting poppy seed based curries.

Beerakaya Gasala Kura with Ragi Roti ~ Our Meal Today and My Entry to RCI~Andhra Event