Amma Magala Kitchen: Onion Pakoda

Although I have been food blogging for over 4 years now, most of my recipes are inspired by friends or internet. Amma is easily my favorite cook and yet I did not know how to make her signature dishes as I hardly entered the kitchen when I was in India :) 

Now that amma is here, and I am on maternity leave, the time is ripe to learn some of her time tested delicious recipes that Nikki and I craved for. 

The next 3 to 4 months, I intend to get amma to make some of my childhood favorites and blog about it in the Amma Magala Kitchen Series :)

Onion pakoda is one of my favorite snacks. Although deep fried, it does not retain as much oil as a bonda would. Also, it stays fresh and crisp for days making it ideal for dinner parties where you are preparing a number of dishes and would like to get started a day or two earlier. 

Ingredients:

1 cup refined flour / maida

1/2 cup chickpea flour / besan

1/4 cup rice flour

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1/2 tsp ajwain powder

Pinch of asafoetida

1 onion: thinly sliced along length

2-3 curry leaves spring - finely chopped

1-2 tsp red chili powder

Salt

Oil 

Water

Method:

1. Mix all of the above ingredients (except oil, water and salt). Heat 2 tbsp oil and add it and mix once cool.

2, Mix ingredients to a thick paste with little water. Check for salt.

3. Heat oil for deep frying. Once hot enough, scoop out a teaspoon of batter and drop it into the oil. Depending on the size of the pan, you can drop in a few more pakodas.

4. Remove once the pakodas start to turn golden brown and place it on a paper towel. Repeat the same for remining batter

DONE!!!

Ragi Rava Dosa

Ingredients:

1 cup fine semolina
1 cup ragi flour
1/2 cup urad dal (black lentil) soaked for 1/2 an hour
Water
Salt
Oil

Method:
1) Grind the urad dal into a fine paste.
2) Add rava, ragi, 2 cups of water and mix. Add more water to thin the batter - consistency should be like butter milk. Check for salt
3) Heat a frying pan on medium heat. Once hot, pour a ladleful of batter at the centre and spread it into a circle. Add a few drops of oil. Fry for a minute.
4) Flip to the other side and fry for 10 seconds.
DONE!!!

Serve with chutney.

Congress kadlekai

Ingredients:

3 cups roasted peanuts (deskinned)
1 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp pepper powder
1/4 tsp amchur powder
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1 tsp salt
3 sprigs of curry leaves - finely chopped
2 tsp oil

Method:
1) Heat oil on low heat. Add curry leaves and fry for a minute.
2) Add all the powders, salt and mix. Add peanuts and mix.
3) Increase heat to medium and fry for a minute.
4) Remove from heat, wait for it to cool. Once cool, store it in an airtight container
DONE!!!

Tip: I used deskinned roasted peanuts to save on time. If you want to do it the traditional way, dry roast the peanuts, allow it to cool and rub it to separate the skin.

Carrot chutney

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

2 carrots - roughly chopped
1/2 onion - roughly chopped
1/2 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 cm ginger
1 green chili
1 tbsp chana dal + urad dal (optional)
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp nigella (kalonji) seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 pepper corns
2 dry red chili
1/4 tsp tamarind concentrate
Salt
Water
Oil

Method:

1. Take a tbsp oil in a pan. Add chana and urad dal and fry until it changes colour. 
2. Add onion, coriander seeds, green chili, ginger, pepper corns and fry for 1 minute.
3. Add carrot and fry for 3 minutes. Take it off the heat. Cover and allow it to cool
4. Once cool, grind to a fine paste with turmeric powder and tamarind concentrate. Check for salt
5. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a skillet. Add mustard seeds and wait for it to splutter. Add dry red chili, nigella seeds. Put the tadka on the chutney and mix

DONE!!!

Peanut Coconut Chutney

Ingredients:

1/2 cup peanuts
1/2 cup coconut
1/4 tsp tamarind concentrate
1 tsp mustard seeds
3 dry red chili
1 green chili
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp of chopped coriander leaves (optional)
Pinch of asafoetida
Oil
Water

Method:
1. Take 1 tbsp of oil and fry peanuts, dry red chili, green chili. Keep aside to cool.
2. Once cool, grind it with coconut, tamarind and 1/4 to 1/2 cup water. Transfer to a bowl, check for salt.
3. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a skillet. Once hot, add mustard seeds and wait for it to splutter. Add cumin seeds, asafoetida. Pour the tadka onto the chutney and mix. Garnish with coriander leaves

DONE!!!

Neer dosa

Ingredients:

2 cups rice (soaked for at least 3 hours)
3/4 to 1 cup grated coconut
Water
Salt

Method:
1. Grind rice, coconut into a smooth thin batter. Consistency should be like butter milk. Check for salt.
2.  Heat a pan on medium. Once hot, take a ladleful of batter and spread in a zigzag motion. Note: You cannot spread this batter like normal dosa batter.
3. Once the top of the dosa looks cooked (15 seconds usually), flip it and cook for 5 seconds.
DONE!!!

Serve with a chutney of your choice. 

Oats Rava Idli

Ingredients (Makes 16 idlis):

1/2 cup rolled oats
1 cup coarse semolina
1 cup yogurt
1 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup finely chopped coriander leaves
1 sprig curry leaves finely chopped
2 green chili - finely chopped
2 tbsp chana dal
2 tbsp urad dal
1 tbsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
Water
Salt
Oil

Method:
1) Dry roast rolled oats until the colour starts to change. Keep aside to cool.
2) Dry roast semolina until an aroma wafts out.
3) Grind oats and yogurt into a fine paste. Add semolina and mix into a thick batter. Add more water if needed. Mix in the yeast. Cover and wait for it to raise for 30 mins.
4) After 30 minutes, heat 3 tbsp oil in a skillet. After a minute, once sufficiently hot add urad dal, chana dal and mustard seeds. Wait for it to splutter. Add cumin seeds, curry leaves and fry for 5-10 seconds. Mix this to the batter with coriander leaves and green chili.
5) Grease idli moulds with oil. Heat 2 cups of water in the steamer. Add baking soda to the batter and spoon the batter into the moulds. Place the moulds in the steamer. Cover and cook on medium heat for 10-15 minutes.
6) Once done, scoop out the idlis using a spoon.
DONE!!!

Serve with coconut chutney

Tip 1: You can make these idlis more healthy by adding 1 grated carrot and more herbs like dill or spinach to the batter.
Tip 2: Pressure cooker can be used to steam as well. Steps remain the same except do not place the weight on top.