Semiya payasam

Semiya payasam

A simple and quick milky dessert.

Serves 4
Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

1. Vermicelli or "semiya" - 1 cup
2. Full cream milk - 500ml
3. Sugar - 2 to 3 heaped tablespoons or to taste
4. Butter or "ghee" - 2 tablespoons
5. Green cardamoms (crushed) - 4
6. Cashew nuts (broken)- 1/4 cup
7. Raisins - 1/4 cup

Method

1. Roast the "semiya" in a little "ghee" till it becomes a golden brown.
2. Boil the milk with the roasted semia, sugar and cardamoms.
3. Stir and cook till the semia is done.
4. Heat the remaining "ghee" and fry the cashews and raisins separately.
5. Add these to the payasam. Stir well.
6. Serve hot or cold.

Tips

Half teaspoon of cardamom powder may be used instead of crushed cardamom.

Use good quality semiya like "Bambino". Do not use any very fine variety as this will dissolve and become a thick congealed mass. The strands of vermicelli need to be separate even after cooking.

You can add 1/4 cup of broken bits of white "peda" or any almond or cashew "barfi" to the payasam in step 3, to give it some more interest.

Cashews and/or almonds may be used. Decorate with fresh rose petals if you like.

Some brands like "Bambino" also sell roasted vermicelli, so one can skip step 1.

Simplest Kerala beef fry

A very simple, Kerala restaurant take-away style of beef fry. It goes perfectly with warm Malabar parothas.

Serves 4
Preparation and cooking time : 45 minutes to 1 hour

Ingredients

1. Beef (trimmed and diced) - 250 gms
2. Salt to taste
3. Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
4. Onions or shallots chopped  - 1/2 cup
5. Ginger chopped very fine - 1 teaspoon
6. Garlic chopped very fine - 1 teaspoon
7. Coconut slivers chopped - 1 tablespoon
8. Coriander powder - 1/2 teaspoon
9. Chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon
10. Black pepper powder - 1/2 teaspoon (optional)
11. Curry leaves - 1 sprig
12. Garam masala* - 1/4 teaspoon
13. Oil - 2 tablespoons

Method

1. Wash the beef very well, drain and put in a pressure cooker with some salt and the turmeric powder. Do not add any water. Pressure cook for about 30 minutes or till soft. After opening the cooker, boil off all the remaining water.
2. Heat a wok and add oil. When the oil is hot, add coconut slivers, ginger, garlic, onions and curry leaves. Saute till the onions and coconut turn golden.
3. Add the coriander powder and the chilli powder. Saute for a minute and add the cooked beef. Stir. Check seasoning.
4. Stir and cook till all the pieces are well-coated and dry.
5. Add the garam masala, black pepper(optional) and stir well. Cover the wok and keep the flame on low. After 3 minutes, open and stir again.
6. Serve hot with malabar parothas or "roti"s or rice.

Tips

Beef releases a lot of water while cooking, so I prefer not add any water before cooking.
*To make garam masala: 1 1/2 tablespoons of black peppercorns, 1 tablespoon of green cardamoms, 1 1/2 tablespoons of fennel, 1 tablespoon of broken cinnamon pieces, 1/2 tablespoon of cloves and 3 whole star anise have to be toasted gently for 2 minutes. Cool to room temperature and grind to a fine powder. This garam masala powder may be stored in a bottle in the refrigerator for use.

I like to do step 1 and have a batch of boiled beef ready to be sauteed, in the refrigerator.

"Avial"

Avial

An all time favourite in the family. "Avial" is a wonderful ambrosial mix of very mildly spiced vegetables in a smooth coconut sauce.

Serves 6 to 8
Preparation and cooking time : 45 minutes

Ingredients

1. Elephant foot yam or "chena" - 150 gms
2. Ash gourd - 150 gms
3. Onions - 100 gms
4. Potatoes - 100 gms
5. Pumpkin - 100 gms
6. Drumstick - 1 or 2
7. French beans - 6 or 7 Or Long beans - 3 or 4
8. Carrot - 1
9. Green unripe cooking banana or plantain - 1
10. Brinjal (tiny) - 3
11. Snake gourd - 100 gms
12. Tart green mangoes - 200 to 250 gms
13. Thick yoghurt - 1 cup
14. Coconut grated - 3/4 cup
15. Cumin seeds - 3/4 teaspoon
16. Green chillies - 3 or 4
17. Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
18. Coconut oil - 2 tablespoons
19. Salt to taste
20. Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon
21. Bright red fresh chillies slit - 3 or 4

Method

1. All vegetables are peeled or scraped and washed and then cut in similar shapes and sizes. Shape and size are kept uniform for a pleasing visual. I like the shape being long sticks (around 1 1/2 inches long and 1/4 inch thick). You may cut it in any shape you prefer but all the vegetables should have the same dimensions. Keep each set of vegetable pieces separate.
2. Yam needs to be handled with some care. Some oil may be smeared on your hands before first peeling and washing. Cut in preferred shape.
3. Ash gourd may be peeled and the portion containing the seeds may be cut away. Wash and cut into pieces.
4. Onions are sliced long after peeling and washing.
5. Potatoes too are sliced long like the onions after peeling and washing.
6. Pumpkin may be treated like the ash gourd.
7. Drumstick/s may be peeled and cut in shape after washing. If the pieces are thick, each piece may be split lengthwise.
8. French beans or long beans may be topped and tailed and the string on the sides may be pulled away. Then, after washing, cut into shape.
9. Carrot needs to be peeled or scraped and washed. Then cut.
10. Green raw cooking banana or plantain needs to be peeled and cut. Keep the pieces in water.
11. Brinjals need to be topped and sliced long and put in water.
12. Snake gourd may be topped, tailed, scraped well and split in 2 lengthwise. The white fluff has to be scooped up and discarded and after washing, the 2 pieces may be cut.
13. Green mangoes may be peeled and stoned. Cut the mangoes into strips.
14. The yoghurt has to be whisked lump-free and kept aside.
15. Items 14, 15 and 16 have to be ground with water to get a smooth paste. (Add water little by little only.) The paste should be thick. Set aside.*
16. In a large thick-bottomed cooking pot, add items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 12. Add enough water to just reach the top of the veggies. Add salt, some curry leaves and the turmeric powder. Stir**, taking care that the vegetables are not broken or smashed while doing so. Cover and cook on medium flame for a few minutes.
17. When the yam and the pumpkin pieces are a little soft, add items 6 to 11 and mix either by flipping them or with the stick end of the wooden spoon. Add water if needed to reach the top of the vegetables. Cover and cook on medium flame.
18. When the vegetables are all cooked well, add the coconut paste and mix well. Boil the "avial" till the sauce becomes thick. Adjust the salt.
19. Add the beaten yoghurt, the remaining curry leaves and the slit red chillies. Turn off the flame and mix well. Drizzle the coconut oil on the surface and mix just a little again. Cover the vessel and let the aromas mingle for about 10 minutes.
20. Serve hot with rice or "roti".

Tips

A potato peeler is invaluable when peeling most of the vegetables used here. However, the yams may be pared using a knife, the drumstick peel may be stripped off in parts and the snake gourd may be scraped on the outside.

* Some prefer the coconut mix to be coarse, but I find a smooth coconut paste to be better and makes the "avial" more flavourful.

**If you are good at flipping things in a cooking vessel, flip all these things around so that the turmeric and salt reach everywhere and the vegetables are mixed well. Use this method of moving the ingredients around the vessel throughout cooking this. Or else, use the long stick end of a wooden spoon to stir the ingredients around the vessel. The aim is to keep the vegetables from breaking.

Mackerel "thoran"

A simple and flavourful preparation of mackerel.

Serves 4 to 6
Preparation and cooking time: 30 to 45 minutes

Ingredients

1. "Ayla" or mackerel (or any firm and fleshy fish) - 250 gms
2. Fish tamarind or "kudumpulli" - 1 large piece or 2 medium pieces
3. Turmeric - 1/2 teaspoon
4. Salt to taste
5. Chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon
6. Coconut grated - 1/4 cup
7. Ginger chopped - 2 teaspoons
8. Garlic chopped - 1 teaspoon
9. Curry leaves - 1 sprig
10. Onions or shallots chopped - 1/2 cup
11. Oil - 2 teaspoons

Method

1. Clean and wash the mackerel. To the fish, add items 2, 3, 4 and 5. Add 1 cup of water and boil for 10 minutes.
2. Crush in a mortar or grind without any water the items 6, 7, 8 and 9 to get a coarse mix. Gather into a ball.
3. When the fish has cooled, take each piece and remove all bones. Discard the bones, skin bits and fish tamarind. There is no need to flake the cooked fish in this step.
4. In a wok, heat oil and saute the onions for a few seconds. Add the cooked, boneless fish and the crushed coconut mixture to the onions. Add a tablespoon of water and make a tight heap of the whole thing. Cover with a lid and lower the flame to simmer and steam through.
5. Occasionally, give everything a stir, flaking the fish. Adjust seasoning.
6. When the fish has been heated through and infused with the taste of the coconut mix, take off the flame.
7. Serve hot with rice or "roti".

Tips

If, like my family, you find the taste of mackerel to be chalky or bland usually, then this is a good dish to try out.

Mackerel is called "bangda" in Hindi and "ayla" in Malayalam.

The fish tamarind has to be cleaned under running water to rid it of any grit.

Care should be taken that all big and small bones are removed in step 3.

Good dish for a buffet as there are no bones to handle.

Fish chutney powder

A different sort of dry chutney to have with a nice Kerala meal. Any sort of fleshy fish may be used for this.

Serves 4 to 6
Preparation and cooking : 45 minutes to 1 hour

Ingredients

1. Fish (any fleshy variety) - 250 gms
2. Onions or shallots chopped - 2 tablespoons
3. Ginger chopped finely - 1 teaspoon
4. Curry leaves from one sprig
5. Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
6. Chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon
7. Salt to taste
8. Oil - 2 tablespoons

Method

1. Steam or boil the fish in 1/2 cup of water with the turmeric and salt.
2. After about 5 to 7 minutes of cooking, remove the fish from the water. Skin and bone it carefully. Discard the skin and bones. (Care should be taken that all bones, big or small are removed.)
3. Flake the fish using a fork or your fingers.
4. In a wok, heat the oil. When hot add the ginger, curry leaves and onions. Saute for 2 minutes and add the chilli powder. Saute for a few seconds only.
5. Add the flaked fish and stir.
6. Turn the flame to low. Spread out the fish and do not cover.
7. Stir occasionally and saute on very low flame for about 30 minutes. While stirring, break up any fish lumps and mash it with the spatula itself.
8. After a while, the fish will turn into a brown powdery chutney.
9. Serve as dry chutney with a hot Kerala meal of rice and curry.

Tips

The fish has to fry on very low heat for a long time.

Tinned fleshy fish (like tuna or mackerel) is ready for use in this recipe from step 4.

This is similar in appearance to dry coconut chutney.

Chicken stew for "appam"

Chicken stew

The white stew is the perfect accompaniment to the "appam", the chicken, mutton or egg stews being foremost on everyone's list. There are also mixed vegetable or plain potato stews. This is how I make a white chicken stew.

Serves 4 to 6 persons
Preparation and cooking time: 35 to 40 minutes

Ingredients

1. Chicken - 1/2 kg

2. Potatoes diced  - 1/4 cup

3. Onions or shallots sliced long - 1 cup

4. Ginger sliced thin and long like the onions - 3/4 tablespoon

5. Garlic sliced long - 3/4 tablespoon

6. Fresh green  and red chillies slit  - 4

7. Curry leaves - 2 sprigs

8. Whole green cardamom - 3

9. Cloves - 3

10. Cinnamon sticks - 2 (half inch pieces)

11. Whole black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon

12. Fennel seeds - 1 teaspoon

13. Oil - 2 tablespoons

14. Salt to taste

15. Thin coconut milk - 2 cups

16. Thick coconut milk - 1/2 cup

Method


1. In a pan or wok, heat the oil.


2. To the hot oil, add items numbered 8 to 12. Let the cardamoms pop.


3. Add the ginger, garlic, some chillies and onions in this order. Saute till onions turn pink.


4. Add the chicken, curry leaves from one sprig and potatoes. Saute for a minute.


5. Add salt and the thin coconut milk. There should be enough liquid to cover the chicken and potatoes. (So if needed, add some more water.)


6. When the chicken and the potatoes are cooked, add the thick coconut milk, the rest of the curry leaves and slit chillies. Adjust for seasoning. Give it one boil and take off the heat.


7. Serve hot with "appam"s.


Tips

The recipes for "appam" and vegetable stew are given below.

I prefer using instant coconut milk powder to make the milk.

Mutton or hard-boiled eggs may be substituted for chicken. Mutton needs to be cooked well for a longer time or separately in a pressure cooker. Hard boiled eggs may be halved or left whole and added in step 6.

"Thoran"

The term "thoran" is a standard Malayalam name for any dry vegetable dish flavoured and garnished with grated coconut. It is an integral part of Kerala cuisine and no lunch or dinner will be deemed complete without a "thoran".  There are as many "thoran"s as there are vegetables that can be finely diced or shredded, and that includes leafy vegetables too.( Besides, vegetable "thoran"s, there is fish thoran also.) Only vegetables that are firm textured may be used in a "thoran". They could be french beans, cabbage, beetroot, long beans, carrots, unripe green bananas and the such. Here, I have described the basic method of making "thoran"  and this method can be used with different vegetables.

The vegetables are prepared and washed well before the slicing or chopping is done.  Beans (french or long) have to be topped and tailed and if possible the fibrous string on the sides may be pulled away. Cabbage needs all outer and bruised leaves and the thick stalk removed. This can be done by slicing the cabbage through and cutting deep around the stalk on each half. Beetroots or carrots need to peeled. Unripe green cooking bananas need to peeled and immersed in water to stop discolouration or oxidation.

Once the vegetables are prepared, they are chopped very finely. The method used can be any. In the villages, women would spend a good part of their cooking time chopping veggies for "thoran" by hand. However, I like to do this either using a chopping board or a food processor. The resulting shredded or chopped stuff should be very fine.

The method to make a "thoran" is very simple. There is a tempering done and to this is added the shredded or chopped vegetables and the coconut. It is allowed to steam for a few minutes and voila, it is done!  Of course, this is too simplistic, so here is how I make this nice refreshing dish.  This is how I make beans "thoran".

Serves  4 to 6 persons
Preparation and cooking time 30 to 40 minutes

Ingredients

1. Beans (french or long) - 1/4 kg

2. Onions or shallots finely chopped - 2 tablespoons

3. Green chillies - 3

4. Coconut grated - 1/4 to 1/2 cup

5. Garlic flakes - 3 to 4

6. Curry leaves (washed) from 1 sprig

7. Cumin or jeera - 1/2 teaspoon

8. Oil - 1 tablespoon

9. Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

10. Black gram dal or urad dal - 1/2 teaspoon

11. Dried red chillies - 2 (torn into 4or 5 smaller bits)

12. Uncooked rice - 1 teaspoon

13. Salt to taste

14. Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Method

1. Top and tail the beans. Wash and drain them. Hold a bunch tightly in your hand and slice through the beans on a chopping board to give very fine almost translucent slices.

2. In a mortar or a coffee grinder, place items 3 to 7 and no water. Pound or grind very well to get a coarse and fragrant masala mix. Gather into a lump.

3. Heat a wok. Add the oil. When the oil is getting hot, add items 9 to 12. The mustard seeds will pop and the rice will swell into little white things. As soon as the black gram dal turns a golden brown, add the chopped onions or shallots. Saute for a minute.

4. Add the beans, turmeric powder, salt and the masala lump. Cover the masala with the beans. Press from all sides to make a nice tight little heap. Cover the wok. Set the flame on low.

5. After about 5 minutes, remove the lid and stir the beans and masala well.  Check to see if the beans are cooked. I like to stop the cooking when the beans are just a little wilted but still has a crunch to it. If the beans are not cooked enough, gather in a heap and cover and let cook for a few more minutes. I avoid adding water because the beans have a lot of water in them and this forms adequate steam to cook the "thoran".

6. When the beans are done, serve hot with rice or even with "roti".

Tips

This is the basic method to make this dish and can be used for other firm vegetables also.

I like to shred cabbage, beetroot or carrots in a food processor. 

If the vegetables are not cooking satisfactorily, add some drops of water to create more steam.


It is acceptable to have slightly larger pieces after the slicing or chopping, the only requirement being that the pieces should be easily steam cooked. If the pieces are larger then, some water may have to be added to aid cooking.


There are many combinations of veggies to give a different sort of  "thoran". Like beans and carrots may be combined, green gram and cooking bananas may be combined, so on and so forth.

If I have really fresh coconut at hand, I like to garnish the "thoran" with some nice creamy white shavings just before serving.

Fresh green spinach or red amaranthus ("red cheera") makes for delicious "thoran" too. When making a leafy "thoran",discard  the stems and wash the leaves well. Hold a large bunch of leaves  and chop into fine shreds. Also, add more chopped onions in a leafy "thoran". The rest of the method is the same. Never add any water while cooking this "thoran".

Kerala meat cutlets or minced meat croquettes 

Cutlets, especially the non-vegetarian variety, have a great fan following in our home. Whenever there is "kheema" or minced meat in the house, the first request is always for cutlets. If there are green peas ("mutter") at home, then there is a toss up between "kheema mutter" and the cutlets.  Anyway, my family loves cutlets at any meal, so I make the mix and stock it in the fridge for quick use. I find that having a greater amount of mashed potato in the mix, makes for a smoother cutlet. The covering is crisp, but the inside is not so full of meat or chunky. That is something my family enjoys....a non-stringy, easily eaten patty. This is achieved by increasing the quantity of potato and using mince made with lean meat and no gristle.  Most other recipes have a much greater meat to potato ratio than that I do, but since my recipe meets with my family's continued unstinting approval, I like to make the cutlets this way, and I have found many others prefer them too. This is what I do.

Makes about 8 medium sized cutlets
Preparation and cooking time: 45 minutes to 1 hour

Ingredients

1. Meat mince (raw) - 1 cup
2. Potatoes (boiled and mashed) - 1 1/2 cups

Items 3 to 8 measured after chopping very fine:

3. Onions   -  2  teaspoons
4. Ginger   - 1 teaspoon
5. Garlic   - 1/2 teaspoon
6. Green chillies  - 1/2 teaspoon
7. Fresh coriander leaves - 1 tablespoon
8. Curry leaves - 1 tablespoon


9. Fresh bread crumbs - a little more than 1 cup
10. Pepper powder - 1/2 teaspoon or according to taste
11. Red chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon or according to taste
12. Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
13. Garam masala powder - 1/2 teaspoon
14. Egg white beaten - 1 or 2
15. Salt to taste
16. Oil for tempering and deep frying 

Method

1. Wash the mince in a wire mesh strainer under running water. Let it drain for 5 minutes or so. Transfer to a thick-bottomed vessel and add item no.s 10, 11, 12, 13  and 15. Add 3/4 cup of water, if it is mutton mince. Stir well so that the spices reach all parts of the mince. Cook till the mince is totally dry.  No need to pressure cook. Turn off heat and leave the mince to cool in a large platter.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan and brown item nos. 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8. This need not be crisp. Add this to the mince in the platter.

3. Add the well mashed potatoes and chopped coriander to the above.

4. Adjust the seasoning and knead well.

5. Divide the mix into balls. Roll in beaten egg white and then bread crumbs. Makes about 8 balls.

6. Pour enough oil in a hot wok for deep frying. Let oil become quite hot, but not smoking hot.

7. When the oil is ready, take a mince-potato ball and flatten it a bit and slide it on the inside of the wok into the hot oil. Repeat with more mince-potato balls, making sure the oil is still quite hot and not crowded. The hot oil should reach above the cutlets, otherwise the cutlets could break. Turn over gently,  and remove each cutlet from oil when well browned and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper.

8. Serve hot with tomato sauce or just plain as a side dish. Enjoy!

Tips

The preferred meat used for these cutlets, in Kerala, is beef. Mutton/goat meat mince is a personal preference in our home here. If you are using beef mince, there is no need to add any water before cooking in step 1 as beef releases a lot of water and this needs to be boiled away to make it very dry.

Boneless beef cubes can be used for this recipe. Wash and drain and pressure cook as per step 1, without any added water. When its dry and cooled, mince in batches, in a dry grinder to get fine shreds of cooked beef mince. (You can mince this as fine or as chunky as you wish.) The recipe can be taken forward from step 2 onwards. (For this recipe, take 1 cup of raw beef cubes.)


I like to add one more step to this recipe to improve the flavour. My family loves these cutlets a bit more spicy. So, I take 1/2 tsp of black peppercorns, a 1/2 " piece of raw ginger, a couple of green cardamoms (whole),  1 whole clove, 1/2'' of cinnamon and fresh curry leaves from 3 sprigs and dry grind it with half a slice of bread. You will get a very fragrant bread crumb mix.  Add this at step 3. The added flavour is quite nice.

While flattening the mince-potato balls, make sure cracks are sealed back into shape.

It is important that the cutlets are fairly well immersed in the hot oil while frying. Hot oil seals the cutlets from all sides and there is less chance of them breaking and flooding the oil.

These cutlets can also be shallow fried, but then the sides remain pale. They can also be baked after brushing with oil, in a medium oven till brown. A lot of cutlets can be made ready at the same time without  much oil and standing near a hot stove.

Fresh bread crumbs are made by whizzing a few slices of (any) bread in a dry grinder for a few seconds. The remaining crumbs can be stored in the freezer.

I prepare cutlet mix from at least 6 or 7 cups of meat. All will not be used right away. So, I store the remaining mix in the fridge and use it over the next 2 to 3 days. I like the convenience.

Usually, the ratio between meat and potatoes is 2 cups of meat to about 1/2 cup of mashed potatoes.

This is an excellent recipe for hors d'oeuvres.  The cutlets can be smaller and served with a dipping sauce.

Important - It is imperative to follow some safety precautions while deep frying. I avoid dropping  the cutlets into the hot oil. Instead, these are slid down the sides of the wok into the oil or else placed gently into the oil to avoid a hot oil splash.