Jackfruit Idli (Ponsa Idli)

It's the jackfruit season! People in general have a love-hate relationship with this ripened fruit as it is very aromatic. It's grown in plenty in the southern part of India. We Amchis (Konkani speaking people) love this "Ponosu" (as it is called in konkani for the ripened jackfruit) and a lot of sweet dishes are prepared from this fruit. One such sweet dish is "Ponsa Idli". 

Traditionally this idli is prepared in "Teak Leaf " and is called " Ponsa Muddho". When steamed in teak leaf, the "Muddho" turns reddish in colour.  And if "teak leaf "  is not available, banana leaf can be used instead.  But, as you all know by now, that I always choose the path of least resistance - I just steamed them in our regular idli moulds ! And the end result was good. My spouse will vouch for it. It is best eaten with a dollop of ghee (clarified butter).

I have previously posted about the Jackfruit & its recipes  - Jackfruit Payasam (Gharayi), Jackfruit Fritters (Mullik) & Jackfruit Patholi in my blog. You can check it out by clicking on these names. 

Jackfruit (Ponsa) Idlis to be eaten with a dollop of ghee

                                         

Ingredients:

Jackfruit Plums (deseeded) - about 15
Rice - 1 cup
Powdered jaggery - 1/4 to 1/2 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Ghee (clarified Butter) - for smearing the idli mould & also to be eaten with idli
Salt to taste

Method :

1. Soak rice for about an hour. Then drain water completely.
2. In the meantime, chop the Jack plums and keep them aside.
3. Grind the chopped jack plums, grated coconut & powdered jaggery to a smooth paste without adding any water. When done, remove it in a bowl.
4. In the same mixie jar, add the drained rice and grind it to a coarse powder without adding any water.
5. Add the coarsely powdered rice and salt into the bowl (containing the jackfruit mixture) and mix it thoroughly into a smooth paste without any lumps.
6. Now grease the idli moulds with ghee.
7. Heat the idli steamer with water. If you are using pressure cooker, take care to remove the whistle.
8. Fill the greased idli cups with the prepared batter and steam for 20 mins.
9. When cooled remove the idlis from the mould with the knife/spoon.
10. Serve hot with a dollop of ghee on top.

Jackfruit Plums deseeded

Rice soaked in water

Jackfruit plums being cut into pieces

Jackfruit plums, grated coconut & jaggery added in mixie jar

The above mixture ground to a fine paste

Rice ground coarsely

Rice powder & salt added to the above mixture

Mixed into a smooth paste without lumps

Ready for steaming

Idlis steamed and ready to be removed

                                     

Jackfruit Idlis ready to be served

Preparation time : 20 mins   

Soaking time        : 1 Hour
Cooking time       : 20 mins

Makes                   : 16 Idlis

Note:

• While grinding do not add water at any stage. The batter will be watery and the idlis will not turn out well.
• The quantity of powdered jaggery can be adjusted according to the sweetness you desire and also the sweetness of the jackfruit plums.
• Any type of rice can be used. I have used Idly rice.
• Do not discard the Jack fruit seeds (Bikkand in Konkani) as it can be used in various curries. Will share some recipes of Bikkand in the coming days.

White Dhokla

Recently, I was invited to a cookery demonstration of authentic Gujarati dishes by two wonderful Gujarati ladies. While the demo was in process (i.e. steaming and heating was underway), she enlightened us with some tips and some other recipes of Gujarat.
She spoke of this “white” dhokla which later on I learnt that, it is also called as “Khatta” (meaning “sour” in Hindi) Dhokla. We all made a note of this recipe too. I felt that this could be easily named as “Idli” with a twist ! - Because the main batter used in the recipe is the Idli batter (Udad dal and Rice).

People from the south of India can easily try this out as normally idlis are prepared at least once a week in their homes. Incidentally, I had just prepared idly batter and had kept it for fermentation before leaving for the demo !

The next day, before steaming the idlis, I kept aside one cup of the batter to try out this new recipe. Believe me, it turned out super soft and fluffy and delicious. I also shared this with my neighbour who loved it.

So from one idli batter, you can prepare two different dishes – one from Southern India and one from Western India (Gujarat) ! Isn't that wonderful ?

In the meantime, I shall try out the two recipes which was demonstrated and shall put them up in my blog. So watch out for the recipes in my next posts.

Ingredients:

Idli Batter 1 cup Sour Curd 2 tbsp Green chilies (chopped) 1 or 2 Ginger (chopped) 1inch piece Asafetida A pinch Oil 1 tbsp Soda 1/4 tsp Salt As per taste Crushed pepper 1 tsp
Method: Take a bowl, add all the above ingredients except crushed pepper and mix it well and keep aside. Take a greased “thali” / steel plate and pour the above prepared mixture into it and give the plate a gentle shake so that the mixture is evenly spread. Now sprinkle the crushed pepper on top of the spread mixture. Lastly, place the plate in a pressure cooker (without the whistle) or a steamer and steam the contents for about 12-15 mins. Remove and allow it to cool. When slightly cooled, cut it into squares or diamond shapes and serve as it is or with any chutney of your choice.
Ingredients (except crushed pepper) added After additon of soda (or eno) The mixture poured into a greased plate and crushed pepper sprinkled on top - ready for steaming  Removed from the steamer Dhoklas cut into squares
Preparation time: 10 mins Cooking time: 12-15 mins Makes : about 20 squares (depending upon the size)
Note : Preparation of idli batter : One measure Udad dal (split black gram) and 2 measures raw rice. Wash and soak them separately in water for about 8 -10 hours or keep it overnight. Next day, drain the water. First, grind udad dal to a smooth paste and then rice coarsely. Mix them thoroughly. Add salt and mix again and keep it overnight for fermentation. The idli batter is ready for preparing idlis or white dhoklas. In this recipe, I used eno (1 level tsp) instead of soda. I used a steel plate measuring 8 inches in diameter. While pouring the batter in the plate, ensure that it is only three fourths filled - leaving room for the batter to rise while steaming.

Mixed vegetable Stew

In my last post I had written about Appam. In case, you have missed my earlier post of Appam, you can check it out here.
It is said that one just cannot have Appam without stew! They have to go hand-in-hand just like Idli-Sambhar!  

This stew is very delicious and somewhat similar to our famous “Amchi” dish “Vulvul” / “Yogiratna”.

 

Ingredients:

Mixed Vegetables	About 2 cups
Onion	1 medium
Green chilies	3-4
Ginger	½ inch piece
Coconut milk	About 1 cup
Curry leaves	1 sprig
Coconut oil	1-2 tsp
Salt	As per taste

Method:

1. Cut all the vegetables and onion into medium pieces. Chop ginger into small bits and slit green chilies.
2. In a saucepan, boil with water all the vegetables together with onion, green chilies and ginger bits.
3. When cooked, add salt. Stir well.
4. Then add the diluted coconut milk and let it simmer for a few minutes.
5. Finally add the concentrated coconut milk. Give it a good stir and add the curry leaves and coconut oil. Mix well and remove from flame.
6. Serve hot with Appams.

Preparation time: 15 mins

Cooking time: 20 mins

Serves: 4

Note:

• Stew is generally served with Appam.
• Instead of vegetables, you can also make potato stew using only potatoes. The choice is yours.
• I used packaged coconut milk in the recipe. If you are preparing the coconut milk at home, then use the first and the second extract at No.4 as mentioned and the concentrated one at the end.
• After the addition of the concentrated coconut milk, take care that as soon as it starts to boil, remove from flame as coconut milk may split.

Appam

"Appam" is a delicious breakfast specialty of Kerala. I have always wanted to try this out. In fact, I have in my collection, four different versions of this recipe and hence I was in a dilemma to try out the right one. However, my dilemma was soon resolved when one of my neighbours, Mrs Sulochana Menon obliged to demonstrate it for me. I was extremely delighted. I must mention here that Mrs. Menon, (a very senior resident of our Apartment) is a very good cook and the appams she prepared were soft, fluffy and delicious to taste. I also had the privelage of tasting some authentic Kerala dishes from her kitchen from time to time. Hence, I had no hesitation in noting down this recipe of hers and trying it out. I was pleased with the end result and so here it is.

Appam is a sort of dosa but it is not spread with a ladle on a skillet or fying pan. Instead, a small wok or a non-stick kadai is used to make these “appams”. The trick is in swirling the batter in the kadai in a deft manner so as to spread the batter thinly on the outside while the centre should remain slightly thick and fluffy.

Ingredients:

  

Raw rice	1 cup
Rice flakes	2 tbsps
Coconut gratings	2 tbsps
Coconut water	About 1 cup
Sugar	½ tsp (for fermenting)
Yeast or Eno	1 tsp
Salt	As per taste
Oil	1tsp for smearing wok/kadai

Method:

1. Wash and soak rice for 3-4 hours.
2. Wash and soak rice flakes for 30 mins.
3. Add sugar to the coconut water and keep it overnight for fermenting. (This can be done the previous night).
4. Then grind rice, rice flakes, coconut gratings, salt and fermented coconut water (little at a time) to a fine paste. Remove it in a bowl and add the remaining fermented coconut water and Eno/yeast. Mix the batter well and keep it overnight for fermenting. The batter should be watery.

The batter

Ingredients

How to make the Appams:

Kadai being heated

1. Next morning, heat a wok or a non-stick kadai. Keep the flame, low to medium heat.
2. Put a drop of oil on a kitchen tissue and smear the wok/kadai with it.
3. Place a ladle full of the prepared batter in the centre of the kadai. Hold the handles of the kadai firmly and gently swirl it in such a way that a thin layer of batter is spread all around and the remaining batter collects at the centre. The swirling should be swift in one go; as the batter cooks very fast. (This takes a little practice). Once this is done, cover it with a lid for a minute or two. When the appam is cooked, it leaves the sides of the kadai. Hold it with your fingers (or use a spatula) and gently remove it from the kadai and place it on a plate.
4. Follow the same procedure for the remaining batter.
5. Serve hot with stew.                                                                                      

Appam is getting ready

Appam served with stew

Makes: 14 appams

Note:

• These are generally eaten with stew (potato or mixed vegetable stew).
• Kadais used for preparing appams, should not have a flat bottom.

Watch out for the stew recipe in my next post.

Corn Usli

Monsoon in India is synonymous with “Bhutta” i.e. grilled corn on the cob.  During this season, fresh corn on the cobs are available in plenty. I had my fill of the Bhuttas and the steamed corn and salads. So, this time, I wanted to try out something different – Corn “Usli” – from my collection.

Preparation of the “Usli” is easy. The main issue here is how to remove the corn kernels from the cob. Some years back, I had seen a food show on TV wherein the hostess used a gadget with a sharp edge with which she easily removed the kernels. I tried to find this gadget in various supermarkets but with no luck. Finally, with the help of my potato peeler, - (yes, you read it right) I could manage to do this with ease !  Try this out and see for yourself.

This sweet and spicy “Usli” is a very tasty and a healthy breakfast dish or an evening snack.

 

Ingredients:

Corn cobs	2
Potato	1 medium
Salt	As per taste
Sugar	A pinch
Water	½ a cup
For Seasoning
Oil	1 tbsp
Mustard seeds	1 tsp
Asafetida	¼ tsp
Green chilies (slit)	2-3
Curry leaves	1 sprig
For Garnishing
Freshly grated coconut	1 tbsp
Coriander leaves (chopped)	1 tbsp
Lime juice	1 tsp

How to remove the corn kernels from the cob

• Remove the husks and the silky fibres from the cob.
• Take a large tray and hold the cob firmly with one hand  - the stem end towards you and the other end touching the tray.
• Now take the potato peeler and with its pointed end slowly but steadily push it and run it forward along each row whereby the kernels come out (in rows – as shown in the picture)  easily on to the tray. Once you get the hang of it, this will be easily done.
• Repeat this procedure, till you complete the cob.
• This took me about 15-20 mins for the two cobs.
• Now, you are ready for preparing the “Usli”.

Potato peeler being used to remove the corn kernels from the cob

Potato peeler and corer

Method:

1. Wash, scrub and cut the potato (peeling the skin is not necessary) into cubes.
2. Mince the corn kernels in the mixer or food processor. This should take a few seconds or so. Do not grind it.
3. Then cook the minced corn together with the cubed potatoes in water or you can even pressure cook them together. If cooking in water, it should take about 15-20 mins.
4. Heat a pan or kadai. Add all the seasoning ingredients.
5. When the mustard seeds stop spluttering, add the cooked (potatoes and minced corn kernels) mixture. Add water to it.
6. Next add salt and sugar as per taste. Mix well and let it simmer for a few minutes and remove it from flame.
7. Finally add all the garnishing ingredients.
8. Serve hot.

Corn kernels minced in the food processor

Minced corn kernels and potato cubes boiling in water

Seasoning in process

'Usli" in the making

Preparation time: 20 mins

Cooking time:  30 mins

Serves: 2

Note:

• Frozen corn kernel packets available in the super markets can also be used.
• Ensure that corn kernels are not very tender nor should they be much matured.
• Do not make the final product very dry.