Pooran poli (Sweet stuffed pancakes)

Pooran Poli (Sweet pooranam stuffed poli) - Preparation time 2 hrs

                          Wish you happy and joyful new year 2014

I thought my 250th recipe should be a traditional sweet dish. I am publishing my favorite dish. Thanks for visiting, following and recommending this blog to your friends. Blogging is not possible without your support.

The process of making this dish is time consuming but will be worth making it. Mom used to make this dish during diwali that too on late night after we go to bed because we will eat all the sweet she is preparing for the festival :-).

The jaggery, coconut and the bengal gram which we add to prepare the pooram will bring the richness to this sweet dish. People prepare in different methods but I have shared the method that mom used to prepare this recipe. You can try this traditional recipe this deepawali.

Ingredients:-
Bengal gram (Kadalai paruppu) - 1 cup (100 to 150 gms)
Jaggery - 1 ball (when crushed will come to 1 heap cup)
Half coconut - grated
Cardamom - 4 (powdered)
Water - 1/2 cup to melt the jaggery
Maida - 250 gms 
Water - to mix maida and make a stretchable dough
Sesame oil - 2 tbsp
Saffron colour - a pinch
Sugar - 1 tbsp
Ghee - 1 tbsp

Preparation method:-

Making of pooranam.
In a heavy bottom pan boil water (3 cups). Add washed bengal gram till it becomes soft when crushed with hand. One tip to know whether the kadalai paruppu (bengal gram) is cooked well is to check whether the centre portion of the dhal is not white.
When cooked remove the excess water and cool it.
Add water to crushed jaggery and melt. Filter and remove the dirt from the jaggery syrup.
Boil the syrup till it is thick. Add grated coconut, boiled channa dhal, cardamom and cook for few mins.
Cool the above mixture and grind to soft paste. Add this to heavy bottomed pan along with ghee and sugar. Cook till the mixture is thick. Take care because when we cool it will become more thick.

Make small size balls from pooranam and keep.

Making of dough for poli.
Mix half flour with 1 tsp of oil and other with water . When mixed separately add both the dough and make a sticky and stretchable dough.

Add 1 tbsp of sesame oil and coat the dough with the oil. Close and keep the dough for 3 hrs.
Making of poli
Take a pooranam ball.
I used to make poli using plantain leaf. If it is not available you can use thick silver foil sheet because while putting in tawa it should not melt.
Spread 1 tsp of oil on the inner side of plantain leaf (bring glossy side of the leaf). Take little maida dough and spread with hand (it will be difficult only).

Now add one pooranam ball in the middle of the stretched dough and cover the pooranam fully with the dough.
While covering make sure the pooranam is fully covered else pooranam will come out when you start flattening the pooranam.

Gently press the covered pooranam using hand and make to thin pan cakes or circle.

Heat a tawa. Spread 1/4 tsp of ghee and in a very low heat cook the poli. Put the poli over the tawa and remove the plantain leaf slowly. It will come out nicely as we spread sesame oil on the leaf before we make poli.

When one side is cooked turn the poli very carefully and cook the other side also. It will become slightly brown.

Cook only in very low flame else the poli will be burnt.
Slightly apply ghee over the poli and remove from tawa.

If you want to store cool the poli and store. It will remain for 3 or 4 days if the pooranam is prepared well and poli is cooked properly or you can refrigerate and use for 1 week or 10 days.
Make sure to bring to room temperature if you refrigerate poli, then slightly heat and serve with ghee.
This is an yummy traditional recipe.

Semiya kesari (Sweet prepared using semiya)

Semiya kesari - Preparation time 15 mins
My dad told that my grandmom used to convert semiya payasam to kesari because he used to like very much. I tried making semiya kesari which came out well. I am sharing this to you. Try out surely will like this recipe.

Ingredients :-
Semiya - 1 cup (keep the same cup for all (sugar, water) measurements)
Sugar - 1.25 cup (one-nay kaal cup)
Water - 2 cup
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Finely chopped cashew - 1 tbspn
Kesari color powder - Little (usually 2 to 3 pinch)

Preparation method:-
Roast the semiya with 1/2 tspn of ghee till it changes colour to light brown. Take care and don't burn it. Try to do in low flame.
When nice aroma comes and semiya is roasted, add the measured water and boil. Semiya will absorb all the water and become thick.
Add measured sugar, 1 tspn of ghee, kesari powder and cook.
The kesari will become thick and starts getting shiny look from sugar. Slowly keep adding the ghee and mix. 
Roast cashew in ghee and garnish. Turn of the flame when it becomes thick. It will become dry when it starts cooling. Try this one surely you love it. 

Mudakathan keerai dosai (Cardiosperum halicacabum/ballon vine leaves)

Mudakathan keerai dosai (Cardiosperum halicacabum/ballon vine leaves) - Preparation time 15 mins

This keerai is full of health benefits. Good for bone and joints. Removes body pain.

Whenever mom get fresh mudakathan keerai she used to make this dosa for us. The green color itself will be attractive but, when she serves along with dark red vengaya kara chutney hmmmmm it will be very delicious to us. I don't know whether you people like this taste because when i love this dosai my husband doesn't like it much. Sometimes i used to force him to take atleast one.

Mom used to do this dosai different that is soak rice , urad dhal grind it and finally add the fresh mudakathan leaves and grind along with the flour as she will make it large quantity and everyone will eat. But now only for me i used to make this dosa so i used this shortcut method. Easy preparation of mudakathan dosai

Ingredients:-
Mudakathan keerai - 2 handful (clean and keep the leaf alone)
Dosai batter or idli batter - 2 cup

Preparation method:-
In a mixer grind the mudakathan keerai to fine paste along with required amount of salt (take care because the dosai or idli batter will also contain salt in it).
In a bowl mix the mudakathan keerai paste and dosai batter well (i like it very green so will add more keerai paste. If you want you can add little paste while starting and adjust according to your taste).
Adjust to pouring consistency using water.

Heat iron tawa and pour the mudakathan keerai dosa mavu in the tawa and make thin dosa. You have be careful while doing this process else it won't come in good shape.

It will be crisp and tasty. Serve this hot with kara chutney.
Or 

Regular method of preparing mudakathan dosai

Ingredients:-
Boiled rice - 1 cup 
Urad dal - 1/4 cup
Mudakathan leaf - 1 cup
Salt - to taste
Soak rice and dal for 4 hrs. 
Grinding method:-
Grind along with mudakathan leaf mix required amount of salt and leave to ferment for 5 hrs to 6hrs.

Note :- First try in small quantity i.e take a small measuring cup and use.

Mulai keerai poriyal (Green leaf dry curry)

Mulai keerai poriyal - Preparation time 15 mins
One of the health recipe that mom used to make. If you want to consume more amount of keerai then making keerai poriyal is the best and only option. 

Ingredients:-
Mulai keerai - 1 bunch (Remove the root, infected leaves, wash and chop finely)
Split moong dhal - 2 tbsp
Salt - to taste
Red chili - 2
Mustard - 1/4 tsp
Urad dhal - 1 tbsp
Sesame oil - 1/4 tsp
Water - to cook keerai.
Small onion - 6 (finely chopped)
Grated coconut - 1 tbsp

Preparation method:-
Boil required amount of water (i.e when chopped mulai keerai is added it should not immersed fully or 1/2 cup) along with salt and washed split moong dhal.
When water starts boiling add chopped greens and boil till the stems are cooked softly because it will take more time than leaves.
While cooking any keerai (greens) don't cover the vessel with lid else the greens will loose the fresh green colour and because brownish green.
If more water is remaining drain it and use for making soup/rasam/sambar.
In a kadai heat oil, add mustard to splutter, urad dhal to golden brown colour and red chili. Sortae for few seconds and add chopped small onion and cook. Add the boiled keerai and grated coconut to kadai.
When the keerai's little water is absorbed switch of the flame and transfer immediately to serving bowl to preserve the colour.
You can mix this with white rice and take. Also goes well with rasam or curd rice.

Making of curd

Making of curd
We used less fat milk for drinking purpose. Everyday we use same milk to prepare curd. Usually in every house we will have curd with which we used to ferment curd for days/months/years. But really it will be fresh daily. 

Curd is a must in our daily dishes i.e for Rice, Idli, Dosa, Adai,Idiyappam,etc. My mom's friend told that if you don't have curd to ferment you can try with red chili seed which i haven't tried yet. As we will have curd in home, people will come to me to get curd for fermentation.

Coming to curd preparation. Boil the milk, cool it and bring to medium temperature i.e. temperature is bearable by your finger (wash your hand before checking the temperature).

Add 1/2 tsp of buttermilk to the milk and mix well. Leave the milk undisturbed for 6 to 7 hrs (differs according to the season). Milk will be fermented and fresh curd is ready to consume.  Refrigerate to avoid further fermentation.

Dal powder (Paruppu podi)

Dal powder (Paruppu podi) :- Preparation time 20 mins
Mom used to make this podi and store for long time. It will be spicy and tasty.

Ingredients:-
Toor dal - 1 cup
Pepper - 10
Red chili - 6 to 8 (to your spice level)
Salt - to taste

Preparation method:-
Roast red chili to crisp and keep aside. 
Roast toor dhal along with pepper in a low flame. When the dal turns golden brown and smells pleasant switch of the flame and cool it.
Add salt to the roasted ingredients (it removes water content in salt) and grind in a mixer to fine powder.
This go very well with white rice, ghee and roasted pappad.