Vatral Kuzhambu is an authentic South Indian speciality. Vatrals are nothing but sun dried vegetables, which are added to this spicy, slightly sour lentil gravy. It can be made with either one variety or a combination of different vatrals and fresh vegetables. Most popular ones are Sundakkai, manathakkali, brinjal and bitter gourd. Quite easy when you have ready made sambar powder or vatha kuzhambu powder on hand. If not you need to make one and then proceed. (Vatha Kuzhambu / Vathal Kulambu / Vatra Kuzhambu / Vatha Kulambu / Vatha kolambu / Vatha kolumbu)
Pottukadalai / Split roasted gram / roasted channa / Split roasted Chickpeas can be used in a variety of chutney preparations. Here is a recipe using it with onion, tomato and coconut.
Pakoda kurma is a lentil based sauce which is decadently creamy. Small deep fried lentil dumplings cooked in rich coconut milk gravy. This recipe might sound very unfamiliar to many, as its confined only to certain communities in Tamil Nadu. Quite hard to find online, as it sparingly shows up on searches. There are a couple of ways of making it, here's how we make it in our family. Quite a lengthly process, that's why I guess they make it only during special occassions. Ghee is a must as far as the original recipe goes, but its Ok to substitute with oil. (Padoka Kuzhambu / Pakora Korma / Pakora Kurma )
Crab in spicy coconut tamarind gravy, a great main course, typically served with steaming hot white rice. This delectable curry is very popular in Tamil Nadu. In one way its great fun and adventure, when you make it with live crab, which most of you would have seen back home, where they tend to escape from the cleaning process. I grew up anticipating my family special crab kuzhambu during cold winter days., which is worth a wait for this delicious delight, fun part when you roll up your sleeves , digging with dripping hands, trying hard to extract the flesh and juice from every crevice of the crab shell. Here I share with you my great family Nandu Kuzhambu recipe.
Home style minced meat vadai made with split roasted gram (Pottukadalai / Dalia / Udaicha Kadalai )
If you have diabetes, this is an ideal appetizer for you. When you’re eating too much hot and oily stuff, this soup seems to cool down your body system. It’s a great soup to add to your daily meals or at least twice a week. Wonderful recipe which I happened to learn from my mom. Use your imagination, add in a couple of veggies to reduce the bitterness and to enhance the taste. Notoriously bitter of all vegetables, so, I have added lots of ripe tomatoes (canned) to make it more like tomato soup, but not really necessary.
Great street side fast food, most requested Tamil Nadu famous Muttai Kothu Parotta. (Kothu Parotta/ Chilli Parotta / Muttai Kothu parotta / Egg Parotta)
Indian Broad Beans ( Avarakkai in Tamil / Chikkudukai in Telugu / Sem in hindi / Avarekayi in Kannada / Avara in Malayalam ) curry made in South Indian style, little baby prawns or salad shrimp adds a classic homely touch to this dish. This type of broad beans is termed as Naatu avarakkai in tamil, looks thin and broad with soft seeds inside, but the one which we get in US is called seema avarakkai and looks different, long and thick and might take little longer to cook. Sometimes the closest substitute which can be found is Scarlet runner beans. Haven't explored much about this veggie, will keep an eye and update the exact name. Here are some links from wikipedia, which I found useful while googling…
Mutton cooked in thick coconut gravy, which looks little thicker than stew. This is slightly different from the usual preparation. Green chillies are substituted instead of red chilli and dhania powder, which gives this korma, a pale yellowish look. Moreover sauteing with a couple of fresh mint leaves gives good aroma and adds a slight tinge of mughlai flavour. (Mutton Khorma/ Mutton Kurma / Kari Korma / Kari Kurma)
Very simple mutton dish from my home town.