My love for cooking comes from my mother, who never ceases to amaze me. At her age when most people are ready to give up the responsibility of cooking and house maintenance to the next generation, my mother is always geared up to cook a feast any time. All it needs is a phone call saying one of her sons-in-law is visiting her, on comes her cooker, starting with her famous “akkara vadisal” and maybe poori/potato or full fledged sambhar/kootu/curry according to her visitors taste.
I used to grudge this luxury when I was with her and my sisters came to visit us, coz it meant more cooking and cleaning for her and for me, but she kept going and taught me a valuable lesson in hospitality, which is why she never ceases to have visitors even now. I enjoy this luxury now when I go with my family, for instead of titbits, I get the pick of the lot.
I will never forget the times like “avani avittam”, or”18 perukku”, traditional south-Indian festival days, my uncle, aunt and their brood of children will land up in time for lunch while my mother would have made 5 different types of rice-tamarind (my favourite), lemon, ellu(Sesame), coconut and to end with yoghurt rice with seasonings, vada, aviyal, appalam and payasam. All this served in a huge banana leaf, was the ultimate treat. I used to love those days, sitting in a circle, with my sisters, brothers, extended families, eating the food and pulling each other’s legs. I think if I am asked to cook a feast now I will fast and protest, not because of the labour involved in making this elaborate south-Indian food, to cook everything and serve with a smile I still have not learnt. I will be too tired and cranky!
I have here three recipes which I love, and learnt from her. Give it a go; I would if possible like to keep my mother’s flag flying high.
Akkara Adisal (Rice pudding)
Rice – ½ cup
Milk-6cups
Sugar – 1 ¾ cups
Ghee – 4 Tablespoons
Cashews, Badam, Raisins and elaichi powder
Cook rice in the cooker directly, with 1 cup water and 2 cups milk. Once the cooker can be opened, add more milk and keep cooking, till it becomes creamy and thick. Add sugar and cook for a few more minutes. Finally add the fried cashews, raisins and badam and all the ghee and sprinkle elaichi.
Adhai
Everybody has their own proportions for adhai. This is my mothers and always a hit. Good way to serve proteins to vegetarian children, as my mother would say.
Rice - 1 1/2 cup
Urad dal
Toor dal
Channa dal
Whole green moong
Red chillies
Green chillies
Hing
Salt
Take ½ cup each of the dal and soak for a few hours. Grind coarsely with the chillies, add salt and chopped curry leaves. Add hing finally and mix well. Finally, spread on tawa like dosa and serve with chutney or yoghurt.
Vazhakkai kootu (Raw-banana stew)
Raw bananas – 3-4
Coconut – ¼ lid
Channa dal – 1 tablespoon
Tamarind – A small ball
Sambhar powder – 2 spoons
Curry leaves
Cook the dal in a bit of water and when half-done, add chopped raw-bananas (my 4 year old was shocked I am cooking bananas-he can only associate to it as a fruit). Add hing, turmeric powder, sambhar powder and the tamarind paste. Fry the coconuts in a little oil and when the bananas are cooked add the coconut to it. Finally temper with mustard seeds and curry leaves.
This makes a nice side dish for more-kuzhambu, especially if the more kuzhambu is made with ripe mangoes (my older one calls it a waste of a nice mango)! Heavenly combination.
Hope my recipes tempted some palates, and I look forward to some positive feed-backs (after trying the dishes ofcourse!!!)
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SLUUUUUURP! I am hungry!
Cheers
Meera
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your mother's flag is definitely flying high.. the pic looks so tempting
at our house, we have adai with melted jaggery..yummmm..i haven't tried the last one, we usually make it with green moong.. will try this variety..
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