With three birthdays and so many festivals in the month of aadi, There were too many heavy lunches. So last sunday I prepared a pathiya sappadu (saatvik khana – read healthy food that’s nice to your digestive system).It took just 15 minutes. So I am sending to Shaheens Express cooking event. I prepared Milagu kuzhambu (Black Peppercorns and Tamarind Gravy), Paruppu thogayal (a paste made of Lentils), Plain rice, pappad, Varutha Manathakali and Veepampoo (Roasted Black Nightshade and Neem flowers).
Ingredients
For Milagu Kuzhambu (Black Peppercorns and Tamarind Gravy)
- Tamarind – lemon sized
- Coriander seeds – 2 teaspoon
- Black peppercorns – 2 teaspoons
- Red chilli – 1 no
- Channa dal – 2 teaspoons
- Urad dal – 2 teaspoons
- Hing – a small piece
- Oil- 2 teaspoons
- Curry leaves 2 twigs
For Paruppu thogayal (Lentils Paste)
- Toor dal – 1 cup
- Red chillii – 1 no
- Oil 1 table spoon
- Hing – a small piece
- Salt to taste
For plain rice
- Rice – 1 cup
- Water 2 and 1/2 cups
For the varuvals (roasted items)
- Manathakali vathal (Black Nightshade)- 2 table spoons
- Veepampoo (Neem flowers) – 2 table spoons
- Ghee 2 table spoons
- Salt to taste
Method
- Heat 2 and 1/2 cups water in a small Hawkins Ventura cooker.
- Wash the rice, drain well and add to the boiling water, close the cooker.Takes around 5 minutes to cook
- Soak tamarind in hot water.
- In a kadai heat 2 teaspoon oil and fry coriander seeds, channa dal, urad dal, peppercorns, redchilli and hing till golden.
- Add curry leaves and fry for a moment and transfer to a plate.
- Heat 1 table spoon oil and fry toor dal, red chilli and hing till golden, stirring continously.
- Transfer to a container and leave to cool.
- Extract juice from tamarind adding 1 and 1/2 cup water, add salt and bring to boil in medium flame.
- Grind the fried items for milagu kuzhambu in to a powder and add to the boiling tamarind water and mix well.
- Let it boil for a minute and transfer to a serving bowl.
- Add salt and grind the toordal to a powder and add 1 cup water and grind furtherto a smooth paste.
- Add more water if required and transfer to a serving bowl.
- Heat 1/2 tablespoon ghee in a small kadai and fry the manathakali vathal (black nightshade) till it puffs. Add salt and transfer to a small cup.
- Heat 1/2 table spoon ghee in the same kadai and fry the veepampoo (neem flowers) till slightly black.Add salt and transfer to a cup.
- By now the rice will be ready with pressure released.
- Serve all these items with papads made in the microwave.
Oh! I love this combo. This is what my parents used to have on weekends, when they were kids, after taking castor oil… If you know what I mean 😉
Yes suganya! they had a balanced diet that combined medicines effortlessly! latha.
lovely thohayal. have to try. looks yummy.
Thanks sharmi!
Lovely combo. My mom prepares this often. Thanks for reminding me.
You too can make it SeeC! latha.
Simple and nice recipes. I dont make milagu kuzhambu but instead make vathal kuzhambu…
have noted ur kuzhambu recipe… thanks
Read abt the info of varalakshmi pooja. it sure will be useful for me. thanks.
Thanks prema!
Laxshmi, only if it is not too much trouble would you be so kind to explain the names of some of the dishes? That way, I (and hopefully other readers) can make connections to familiar items and dishes? Only if it is not too much trouble.
I particularly want to know more about that flat bread that’s on the left side of the pic.
Hi cynthiya,
The flat bread on left is called papad or appalam.
There are a variety of papads, vethals etc included in our menu. These are dried food items stored along with groceries. They are either deep fried in oil or cooked in direct fire or these days in the microwave.Manathakali vathal is dried black night shade. veepampoo is dried neem flowers. I have a glossary where you can check the meanings of some of the ingredients.
Menu looks simple and nice though totally new to me especially Kuzhambu and varuvals:) Neem flowers are medicinal. Is it consumed to cleanse our body ?
Archana, neem is good even for diabetic! latha.
It only took 15 minutes to make all that yummy stuff? Nice.
Welcome to my blog! very simple menu. latha.
They are made for each other Latha. Nice post. Viji
Yes viji! nice combination. latha.
I love this combination… I am going to try making paruppu thogayal soon 🙂
Thanks raaga!
Super mami! This is just what we need after stuffing ourself with goodies that we keep trying out from all the great food blogs- have never made milagu kuzhambu before, will try out
Thanks nandita! do try . good for health. latha.
Nice recipes.
Looks yum,specially sitting at the hotel!;D
I had posted your event at the sidebar as Festival food , now changed the name a bit:)
Thanks asha!
Hi thanks for visiting my blog, iam Indonesian but enjoying all indian food. Too bad am not able too see all ur lovely picture since they have banned flick here :((
No problem lia. you can cook and look at them. Welcome to my blog! latha.
This is such an awesome combination. Lovely photo too.
Thanks laavanya!
You must be superefficient to whip up that delicious meal in 15 minutes. I have referred to you in my post.
This reminds me of my mom , she would make the same combo!
the pics look so awesome i can actually feel the aromo of it !!!
Kudos to you for sharing these recipes with us !
Yes, for me too it reminds me my mother as i ate this pathiya kuzhambu for more than 2 months after my delivery of my son!! Thankyou for the recipe!!
And in thuvaiyal we add a little flake of garlic too.. other than that the same:))
Dear Latha,
You seem to be a super fast cook!!! Very inspiring indeed!!! My mom in-law is also known to cook extremely fast. I hope to increase my speed overtime although at present i am a slow coach, i guess i should time myself and be more focussed whilte cooking to achive half the speed of you guys!
Cheers
Neeraja
My patti adds a tablespoon of graated coconut to the paruppu thogayal mix before grinding which gives a different but nice taste.
She also makes a variant with black pepper corns, omitting the red chilli.
You have a great site. Your recipes are yummm. Glad to find a traditional south Indian home cooking site.Thank you so much.
Many years after my mom and grand-mom ascended to the heavens above, I sat down in the kitchen to connect back with my roots and demonstrate to my guju wife the wealth of items in the iyengar cuisine…I could only do this with your help!! Many thanks!!!
Please continue to feel inspired to populate more recipes…I am using them at one per day!!
Cheers,
Rishi
hi
dis blog is too useful for me as i make all iyengar dishes for my hubby and he loves them!! thanx latha keep rocking!!!
mercy manikandan
Hi nice recipe and thanks for posting this .Can u tell me how many servings can be made with this quantity?
hi this blog is too useful so thanks.
please give me benefits of this pepper kuzhambu. i am eager to know about that medicinal values.
Hi
I tried out milagu kuzambhu n it came out so nice..Thank u so much .. n u r doing a great job n the blog is Super cool!!
hello
I am reading your blog for the first time..This is such a wonderful combo..you just reminded me of the fun times I had when I grew up in India..eating this pathiya sapadu 🙂
Rukmani
please anyone give full details about paththiyakuzhambu. it will be help for my project work please help me. my id datchamani@yahoo.com OR datcha88@gmail.com
please eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
I tried your milagu Kuzhambu recipe today and came out really well. We liked it very much. Thanks.
very good item -really good one
I belong to tanjore and as said your pathiya sappadu has made my thoughts go back to my paatis samayal.
Great but simple recipe. Milagu Kuzhambu is my all time favorite. One thing to note if it is not mentioned here is to use ‘Nalla Ennai’ or Gingelly oil. A popular brand is Idhayam Nalla Ennai. Any other oil will not taste as authentic as this oil.
[…] prepared this once BD had throat pain and it was very soothing. I referred the recipe from here. Have it with hot rice topped with nallennai (gingelly oil). […]