Chatti Pathiri ...... "The Malabar Lasagnia"

Sometimes the best of modern cuisine borrow ideas for the dishes & entrée from traditional cooking.... Chatti Pathiri a.k.a Chatti Pathil a.k.a Adukku Pathiri was just another strange name, that belonged among the rather long list of yummy sounding Malabar dishes, described to me by my friend "Famitha" who hails from the malabar region. Nothing... yes nothing gets my friend excited... not even fashion... and not even our usual gossip talks are good enough to gets her this excited than when talking about malabari food :). You Rock Girl!!! So this time she went ahead and described chatti pathiri as - the malabar lasagnia, similar as to the of layer upon layer of soft chapathi with the deliciously seasoned meat masala, eggs, cashew & raisins between the layers, and baked crispy perfection. I couldn't wait to get into the kitchen and try my hands in making Fami's chatti pathiri.

Traditionally, the baking of chatti pathiri is done in a sealed container with the coconut husk coals at the bottom and more on its lid which also has the added virtue of imparting a very delicate coco-nutty scent of its own to the dish baking crisp in the container. Although the traditional method of preparing them calls for placing them on hot coals, chatti pathiri may be prepared on regular oven or stove-tops.

You don't have to give up good tasting food to eat healthfully. Some smart choices can made in the original chatti pathiri recipe which would not only keep the calories under check but also save you a ton of time too. Rotisserie Chicken : shredded meat from the store bought rotisserie chicken may be used in place of the fried chicken called forth in the recipe. Egg Whites : each whole egg may be replaced with two egg whites. Tortillas/Chappati : the store bought tortillas/chappati makes a good alternative to homemade ones. Furthermore the chatti pathiri can be assembled ahead of time and stored in the fridge and then baked just in time for any feast. Fresh-baked chatti pathil would fill the house with tempting aromas, whetting appetites for any happy feast.

"Happy Holidays!!!"

You'll Need :

For Ottada....
All Purpose Flour(Maida)... 2 cups
Egg, lightly beaten... 1 large
Salt... to taste.

For Erachi Pundam....
Onions, chopped... 1 large
Ginger, grated... 2tbsp
Garlic, grated ... 2 tbsp
Green Chillies, chopped... 4-5 no:s
Chilli Powder.... 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder... 1/2 tsp
Garam Masala... 1 tsp
Chicken, shredded... 1/2 kg
Curry leaves... 1 sprig

Between The Layers....
Eggs, beaten.... 6 no:s
Cardamom Powder... a pinch
Sugar (optional)... 1/2 tsp
Salt.... to taste.
Ghee... 200g
Shallots, sliced... 4 no:s
Cashews... 100g
Raisins... 100g
White Poppy Seeds(Khus-Khus)... 25g

For Ottada:

1. With a electric mixer over medium speed, beat the all purpose flour, egg and salt with required water to blend into a thick batter.

2. Set a flat non-stick pan over medium-high heat & make about 10-12 round thin crepe/dosa of uniform size (approx. about the same diameter as that of the baking dish). This forms the "Ottada" that makes the layers of the chatti pathil. Keep aside.

For Erachi Pundam:

1. Marinate the chicken in chilli powder, turmeric powder & salt for about 30 minutes. Heat oil and shallow fry the marinated chicken pieces till golden brown. Let cool & shred the fried chicken into fine pieces.

2. Set a bottom heavy Saute Pan on medium-low heat, heat oil and saute onions, minced ginger, garlic & green chili with a pinch of salt. Stir and cook till translucent or golden brown.

3. Add curry leaves, turmeric powder, red chili powder and coriander powder stir. Also stir in the shredded chicken. Sprinkle garam masala and roast for 5-10 minute and remove from heat. This forms the "Erachi Pandam" (Chicken Masala) that goes between the layers of the chatti pathil. Keep aside.

For Egg Mixture :

1. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, cardamom powder, sugar and salt.

2. Heat ghee a small omelet pan & saute the thinly sliced shallots till golden brown. Remove from heat & cool and add it to the whisked eggs. This form the "Egg Mixture" that goes between the layers of the chatti pathil. Keep aside.

Assembling The Layers :

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Use about 1 tablespoon butter to grease the side of a round cake pan(8-inch) or any flat-bottomed oven proof dish.

2. Now start assembling the layers of the chatti pathil, starting with an initial layer of "Ottada" at the bottom of the pan... top it with a generous layer of "Erachi Pandam".... pour a layer of beaten "Egg Mixture".... sprinkle a few cashews, raisins & khas-khas.

3. Repeat the process by adding layers of Ottada, Erachi Pandam, Egg Mixture, Cashews, Raisins and Khas-Khas, in the order, till its done. On the top of the final layer, arrange a generous layer of cashews and raisins as garnish.

4. Close the pan with aluminium foil and bake in a 350°F oven for about 35-40 minutes till the sides have turned crispy & golden brown. Remove from the oven and keep aside for a few minutes till cool to handle.

5. With a sharp knife, loosen the sides of the chatti pathiri from the pan and unmold the chatti pathil onto a serving plate. Serve hot either as a starter or as a main course.

Homemade Carrot Wine

"Carrot Wine... a delicious orange coloured wine."

Ican never think about special occasions or celebrations at home without thinking about a special homemade wine. Months before the D-day my grandmother, mom and aunts would gather in the kitchen to celebrate the favorite tradition of creating the homemade wine which is to be serve for the occasion to friends and family. A small wine cup of homemade wine and a piece of fruit cake is served to guests to mark the start of any celebration and this has been a long standing tradition of hospitality among the Kerala Christians. Apart from the tradition part of homemade wines, creating your own wine and sharing it with family and friends is also a great sense of pride for any host. The varieties of homemade wine would range anything from Grape Wine, which is the most common... Beetroot Wine... Carrot Wine... Gooseberry Wine... Banana Wine... and to more rarer varieties like the Cashew-Apple Wine... JambakaChambaka(Water Rose Apple)Wine... Rose Petal Wine... Yes you read it just right; yes Rose Petal Wine which I look forward to making only if I could lay my hands on the much required rose petals which makes up the basic raw material. Just as interesting as this list of the homemade wine varieties get, my Hus T gets amused to be served various unheard varieties of wine as we go visiting our relatives during our much awaited yearly India trips. And so this time after we got back to US, I decided to try making them at home. Well only that I took quiet a while in deciding on the ingredient. Finally it was carrots that made it... Carrot Wine!!! Carrots have a natural sweetness, but lack acid. With the addition of some freshly squeezed juice of lemon and orange , carrots will make an interesting orange coloured wine. Making your own homemade carrot wine is a simple process and the following is the recipe for carrot wine.

You'll Need.....

Carrot, grated... 1 kg
Ginger, grated... 30g
Water.... 3.5 litres
Granulated Sugar.... 1 kg
Warm water.... ½ cup
Instant Yeast.... 1 tsp
Lemon Juice... 1 no:
Orange Juice... 1 no:
Cinnamon Sticks... 3-5 no:s
Cloves... 7 no:s

Here Is How....

1. Wash and peel the skin of the carrots & ginger and finely grate them using a hand grater.

2. Microwave ½ cup of water till lukewarm and dissolve a teaspoon of yeast and ½ teaspoon of sugar. Let it stand to bubble and rise. This process would revive the yeast cells prior to its use in the recipe.

3. Set a large Dutch Oven on medium-high heat and bring the water to a roaring boil. Add the grated carrots & ginger to the boiling water and boil it till its fully cooked.

4. When the carrots are well cooked, turn off the heat and let it cool off. Once the mixture cools to a temperature safe enough to handle, strain the mixture using a double cheesecloth or muslin cloth into a clean, dry and airtight container, preferably a traditional bharani. Discard the grated portion.

5. Into the wine liquid, add the sugar and the lemon and orange juice and stir with a clean and dry wooden spoon until fully dissolved. Once the wine liquid is cooled to body temperature, add the dissolved yeast froth, the cinnamon sticks and cloves.

6. Close the container airtight and allow to ferment. Store in a dry and dark space, during the fermentation period of 2-3 weeks(15 days). On the 5th day, stir the wine liquid using a clean and dry wooden spoon and let the fermentation to continue.

7. After the fermentation period is completed, strain it though a muslin cloth to remove any dead yeast and solid organic residues. Allow the cloudy liquid to clear before bottling. When clear, pour into dry bottles and store them at room temperature. Cheers!!!

Good Job Award

Wowie!!! I cant be more excited than when I'm getting my very first blog award : " GOOD JOB AWARD" for the latest blog entry on Homemade Carrot Wine. It was passed on to me by Ramya of Ramya's Kitchen Corner. And now I would like to pass this award to five of my fellow bloggers :

• Route 79
• Easy Cooking
• Tasty Treats
• Happy Cook
• Salt & Spice

Vegan Month Nov 2008

November is Vegan Month!!! November 1st is the World Vegan Day, and all of November is celebrated as Vegan month. My fellow blogger Suganya of Tasty Pallets is hosting the blogging event : "Vegan Month, Nov 2008." And I'm submitting the entry of Homemade Carrot Wine towards this event.

Read more about Vegan Month at "Go Vegan"

Love Letter.... Madakku San.... Mutta Kuzhalappam.... Thera Ada.... Coconut Crêpe

One Dish, Many Names : Love Letter / Mutta Kuzhalappam... in Ernakulam, Madakku San.... in Kottayam, Pola... in Thrissur, Tehra-ada... in Kasargod & Coconut Crêpe... in English. Hmmm... Isn't that a long enough list of names for this simple and easy-to-make tea time munchie? Ever wondered why this four o’clock snack had this many names to it credit. Hah??? might be people found it so in their favorite list that they gave it a name and made it their own :) Well whatever reason it would hold for the long list of names, the Love Letter (my favorite name) and chai still reigns my heart... On a cold monsoon evening, sitting down for a hot cup of tea & mutta kuzhalappam ummm there is nothing like it. Further more this recipe can be whipped up with unlimited variations of fillings. My favorite variation, however, is the one which uses jaggery to make a sweet sticky filling.

You'll Need:

For The Crêpe:

All Purpose Flour(Maida).... 2 cup

Milk... 1/2 cup

Water... 1/2 cup

Egg... 1 large

Butter, melted... 2 tbsp

Salt... a pinch

For The Filling:
Grated Coconut... 1/2 cup

Jaggery*, melted... 1/2 cup

Cardamom Powder... 1/2 tsp

Cashew Nuts... 6-7 pieces

Raisins... 1 tbsp

Salt... a pinch

Here Is How:

For The Filling : Heat ghee in a saucepan. Roast cashew, raisins, grated coconut and add the melted jaggery, stir continuously. On medium low heat, make it into a thick sticky filling. Remove from heat and stir in the cardamom powder. Keep it aside.

For The Crêpe :

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the all purpose flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine and make a dosa like batter. If seems too thick, thin it out with a little more milk or water. Add the salt and butter; beat until smooth.

2. Heat a lightly oiled non-stick frying pan over medium high heat. Pour the batter into the center of the pan and swirl to spread evenly & form a thin round crepe.

3. Cook the crepe until the bottom is light golden. Loosen the side with a spatula and flip the sides and cook the other side and remove from heat. Lay them out flat so they can cool.

4. Once the crepes are cool enough to handle, scoop out about 1 tbsp of the prepared filling into the center of each crepe and roll it into a pipe. Mutta Kuzhalappam ready!!!

*Jaggery : This dark, coarse, and unrefined sugar is made from the sap of the coconut palm tree. It has a sweet flavor and usually comes in the form of a solid cake with crumbly texture.

Nadan Chemmen Varattiyathu

Calling all seafood lovers!!! If you haven't tried this traditional spicy prawns entrée -"Nadan Chemmen Varattiyathu" which is authentic to Central Kerala yet, then this recipe is a good excuse to do so. The nadan chemmen varattiyathu celebrates age-old recipes used by Christian families in the regions of Central Kerala where high quality fresh seafood are ready available through out the year. The backwaters of Central Kerala can proudly boast that it produces one of the the best fresh water prawns in the world. I have some really fond memories of prawns, whether it be the curious visits as a child to the family paddy fields where a rice-prawn rotation is practised (After the rice is harvested, the paddy fields are leased out to prawn farmers for a certain period) or be it eating the prawns in various spice slathered dishes. Nadan Chemmen Varattiyathu - this slow roasted spicy dish is rich tasting, savory and indulgent. How do they do it??? By slow roasting the prawns in spices to release every bit of their delicate flavor. When they came out cooked, dark brown and slathered in spices, you almost could contain the drool!

It is highly suggestive that you use fresh prawns for this dish -"Nadan Chemmen Varattiyathu" because of its superior taste & texture. But that's no problem if fresh prawns are not available - thanks to the "Peeled & Cleaned" packaged prawns that are widely available in the freezer aisle of the super-market. If you have bought prawns that have already been cooked, then they should be added a few minutes before the end of the cooking time, just to reheat them, as overcooking would make them tough & rubbery.

You'll Need:

Raw Shrimp, cleaned.... 1.5 lb
Shallots, thinly sliced.... 1 cup
Garlic, chopped.... 6 pods
Ginger, chopped..... 2" piece
Green Chili, chopped.... 5 no:s
Curry Leaves.... 2-3 sprigs
Chili Powder.... 2 tsp
Turmeric Powder.... 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder.... 1.5 tbsp
Coconut Slices.... 1/3 cup
Coconut Oil.... 3 tbsp
Kudam Pulli (Gamboge)....1 no:
Varatharacha Paste.... 1 tbsp*
Garam Masala.... 1 tsp
Lime Juice.... half of a lime.
Salt.... to taste.

Here Is How:

1. Wash & soak the kudam pulli in just enough water to make it soft. Keep aside.

2. Peel and devein the shrimp and then rinse them under cold water. Drain well. Marinate the cleaned & deveined prawns with the mixture of garam masala, turmeric, salt & lemon juice and let it stand, for 20 minutes to overnight, in the refrigerator.

3. Set a bottom heavy Saute Pan on medium-low heat, heat coconut oil and saute shallots, minced ginger, garlic & green chili with a pinch of salt. Stir and cook till translucent or golden brown. Now add curry leaves, turmeric powder, red chili powder and coriander powder stir. Also stir in the coconut slices and fry or a minute or two.

4. Add marinated prawns and the soaked pulli without adding any water even to cook the prawns.

5. Once prawns cooked, add Varatharach Paste* and roast them on low flame for about 10-15 minutes, until the prawns are in brown colour & the gravy is fully dried up.

6. Just a few minutes before turning off the heat, make a well at the center of the prawn mixture and add a little coconut oil & to it add curry leaves and then cover the well with prawns. This would give this dish its typical varattiya aroma.

Culinary Tips:

If you have bought prawns that have already been cooked, then they should be added a few minutes before the end of the cooking time, just to reheat them, as overcooking would make them tough & rubbery. I highly suggest that fresh prawns be used for this particular recipe which would better absorb the spices as its gets cooked.

* Varatharach Paste : is made by dry roasting various spice & grated coconut till dark brown, which is then dry grinded to form into a thick smooth paste. This paste can be stored in the refrigerator for upto 6 months. Again the fully prepared & ready-to-use varatharacha paste are now available at your local malayali grocers under the brand name *"Saras Varutharacha Paste".

The Friendly Fungi !!!! ~ Mushroom Thoran Nadan Recipe

Is it a vegetable? a herb? Of all the options it happens to be a “large fleshy fungus” which is yummy too. There is a bit of mystery attached to the mushroom with all its unusual combination of qualities. Mushrooms are a fascinating life forms which seem to appear overnight and disappear just as mysteriously. Their variety of colour and shape is equally as unpredictable as when and where they will appear.

When i think of mushrooms what comes to mind are the "oyster mushroom" which was the only largely available variety in India, atleast till India opened its doors to globalisation in early 90s. My life in US has made me more familiar with various varieties of these friendly fungi where the most commonly found mushroom varieties on the supermarket shelves are the button mushrooms a.k.a white mushrooms. Now it has happened that I simply love mushrooms of all types and really appreciates how much the flavor differ between each variety of mushroom.

Low in calories... No cholesterol.... and are virtually free of fat & sodium. Oh ya, that quiet a bit of reasons to get you searching out for recipes to incorporate more of this healthy ingredient to your daily meals. And I can't tell you how many times I have gone to the supermarket with mushrooms on my mind.

Culinary Tips: Bought fresh, mushrooms should be used within a couple of days, even if stored in a refrigerator. Most fungi are 90 percent moisture so do not soak them in water as they would soak up the water which causes it to be mushy to cook & also lose its delicate flavors. The best way to clean mushrooms is to wipe them free of any obvious dirt with a clean wet cloth or paper towel. And cutting then into uniform pieces will help in the even cooking.

Ingredients:

Button Mushrooms, diced... 1 bunch
Shallots, finely chopped.... ½ cup
Green Chilies, finely chopped.... 4-5 no:s
Turmeric Powder.... ½ tsp
Pepper Powder.... ½ tsp
Grated Coconut.... 1/4 cup
Curry leaves... 2 sprig
Mustard Seeds.. 2 tsp
Oil... as required
Salt... to taste.

Here Is How :

Heat oil in a bottom heavy Sauté Pan on medium heat. Sputter mustard seeds and add diced shallots & green chillies and fry till tender. Now add turmeric powder, grated coconut and stir for a minute. Stir in the diced mushroom pieces. Close the pan with a lid and let it cook, stirring every 3-4 minutes. Mushrooms release a good deal of liquid when heated. The mushroom squares will be fully cooked just as the liquids are finishing off. Now sprinkle pepper powder and the curry leaves and sprinkle salt to taste. Remove from heat and best served with rice.

Recipe Source : Sonya Chechi

Kerala Fish Curry with Raw Mango

Mango Mania: Only a few things can flood your mind with the memories of the hot tropical summer back in Kerala than mangoes. Beyond being delicious mangoes really hold many memories of my childhood! Each time any of my fellow blogger blog about uppumanga & kanimanga it makes me wanna go back home. My best memory relating to mangoes are those of having juicy ripe mango slice with ari-puttu for breakfast, at my grandma's place. Ummmm..... I'm sure there are many a surprised faces reading the combination but believe me once you try it out, you'll know what I'm talking about. :)

In this time of the year mangoes are starting to appear in supermarket shelves in US. But the Mexican varieties available here are incomparable with the Indian counter-parts. After about two decades of trade ban on the Indian mangoes, it was in last summer that the first shipment of Indian mangoes arrived in US ports. To not much of a surprise the Indian mango boxes flew off the shelf even at five times the prices, compared to the Mexican varities, and still remained sold out.

This recipe that I'm blogging is a traditional fish recipe during the hot summer months when mangoes are plenty around. The rich sour taste of the raw mangoes replace the tamarind originally used in this typical Kerala style fish curry.

Ingredients:

Fish (Mackrell/Ayeela), cleaned pieces.... 12 pieces.

Shallots, finely chopped.... ½ cup

Grated Coconut.... 1/2 cup

Red Chillie Powder.... 3 tsp

Turmeric Powder.... 1/2 tsp

Coriander Powder.... 2 tsp

Green Chillies, finely chopped.... 1-2 no:s

Raw Mangoes, diced.... 1 no:

Ginger, smashed..... 1 inch piece

Garlic, crushed.... 2-3 pods

Curry leaves... 2 sprig

Mustard Seeds.. 2 tsp

Fenugreek... 1/4 tsp

Coconut Oil... as required

Salt... to taste.

Prep Works :

1. Grind the grated coconut, green chillies & ginger with a required water to a smooth consistency and keep aside.

2. Also dice the raw mango into small bite size square pieces and keep aside.

3. In a small bowl lightly soak the spices with a about a tablespoon of water and keep aside. This step is completely optional but its the authentic was of making traditional Kerala fish curry.

Here Is How:

On medium heat, heat coconut oil in a bottom heavy Saute Pan and sputter mustard seeds and add fenugreek. Add diced shallots & garlic and fry till golden brown to this add the lightly soaked spice paste and stir of a minute. Add required water & the cleaned fish pieces & salt, bring to a slight boil. Now add grated coconut paste, when it comes to a boil add the mango pieces. Close the pan with a lid and let it cook till the fish is fully cooked. Add curry leaves & remove from heat.

Also check-out: "Maanga Chammanthy/ Mango Chutney".

Nadan Manga Chammanthy / Mango Chutney

Mango Mania: The typical Kerala style "maanga chammanthy" has a unique taste from the simlicity on ingredients which go into making it.

I. Kerala Style: Peel the skin off the unripe mangoes with a vegetable peeler & slice them coarsely and drop in to the blender also pop-in shallots, ginger, green chillies, curry leaves, grated coconut & salt. Now run the blender until its has become a smooth chammanthy consistency. Check salt & its done.

II. North Indian Style: Mix together in a blender into a coarse paste:
Unripe Mangoes, chopped into chunks.... 2 cups
Roasted Peanuts.... 1 tbsp
Brown Sugar... 1 tbsp
Fresh Coriander Leaves.... 1 tbsp
Coriander Seeds.... 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds..... 1 tsp
Salt.... 1 tsp
Chilli Powder.... 1 tsp
Sugar.... to taste.

Heat in a saucepan until the seeds pop:
Vegetable Oil... 1 tbsp
Hing... a pinch
Mustard Seeds.... 1/2 tsp

Stir the oil mixture into the mango mixture.

Kottayam Style - Nadan Chicken Paalu Curry

Strangely enough an impressionable memory of having this very authentic dish was not very long ago. Thanks to my ma-in-law's kitchen i should say that I've been hooked to a whole gamete of kottayam specialities . And after running our telephone meter with many an isd calls... here is my effort to recreate this central kerala speciality.

Ingredients:

Chicken....1 lb

Pepper Corns... 1 tsp

Onions, finely chopped... ½ cup
Ginger, minced fine.... ½ inch

Garlic, minced fine.... 4 pods
Turmeric powder..... 3/4 tsp

Pepper powder.... 1 ½ tsp
Dried Red chili ...... 1 no:s
Coriander powder..... 2 tbsp
Garam Masala..... 1 ½ tsp

Curry Leaves... 2 sprigs

Coconut Milk... ½ cup
Salt.... to taste
Oil..... as required

Green Chillies, finely chopped..... 5-6 no:s

Here is How:

Heat oil in a large Dutch Ovenover medium heat. Add onions & pinch of salt. Now stir in ginger, garlic & green chillies and saute for a couple of minute till onions are deep golden brown. Add all the spices and add diced tomatoes & cook till oil separates from tomatoes. Add the chicken to the pan and mix well to coat in gravy. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Reduce the heat to low, add coconut milk & curry leaves. Bring this to a simmering boil & remove from flame. Sprinkle garam masala & stir in.

Happy Onam - Pulli Inji

Wish You All Very Happy Onam!!!
This recipe is dedicated to my dear friend "Emi of Truly Gods Own" who has been asking me get back to blogging. I don't think if it hadn't been for her i wud have ever collected myself to get back at my deserted blog. Cheers to her for her inspiration :) I made this for our pot-luck ona sadhya that our friends had organised.

Ingredients:

Ginger... 150 g
Green Chillies.... 6-7 no:s
Curry Leaves...2-3 sprigs
Fenugreek...1 tsp
Tamarind... 3 lemon size
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
Chili powder... 2 tsp
Jagree... 150g
Mustard Seeds.. 2tsp
Oil... as required
Salt... to taste.

Here Is How :

Heat oil in a bottom heavy pan and sputter mustard seeds. Add diced ginger & Green chillies and fry till golden brown. Now add curry leaves & fennugreek & stir for a minute. To this add thick tamarind paste and bring this to a boil. Add turmeric & chili powders and also Jagree which is made into a liquid. Adjust the sweetness so as to get the taste of heat, sour & sweetness which distinguish this condiment. Add salt to taste and remove from stove.

This can be store in fridge in air tight containers. If not for its unique taste alone you are sure to love it for it health benefits.

Enjoy your Thiru Onam !!!