I vividly remember my Grandmother laddling crispy meatballs out from the sizzling oil in her kitchen. Meatballs – we call it ‘Kola Urundai’. The ‘Kola Urundai’ prepared by my Grandmother used to be perfect with crispy outer shell and well cooked meaty content inside. As a child I used to enjoy the outer crispy shell and leave the meaty content in the plate. Same thing happens when I eat her Paniyarams too. My mom’s a big fan of her ‘Kola Urundai Kuzhambu’ (Meatball gravy). ‘Unga Appatha pandra kola urunda taste varavae varathu’* – this is the usual sigh of my mother whenever she makes Kola Orundai. I will need to create a separate ‘Kola Urundai’ hub to talk about my Grandma’s Minced Meat Kola Urundai Recipe. Stocking that idea for another day. The recipe today is about making Veggie Meatballs – Vegetable balls using Raw Bananas. Vazhakkai… Continue reading »
South-Indian Best Chutney Recipes | Onion Tomato Chutney Recipe
When it comes to giving a name/title for the Chutney posts in my blog , I do a lousy job. Take this ‘Thakkali Vengayam Chutney’ (Tomato Onion Chutney) for instance. When all the Madurai citizens call it that way, I do not call it by that name. Instead I say, ‘Orange-oo Chutney’ or ‘Orange-u color chattunee’. Not that Orange zest is added to make the chutney (idea! Will experiment with orange zest to make chutneys soon), but it’s because the chutney has a brilliant orange color. Though the body of this ‘Onion-Tomato chutney’ is built with onions and tomatoes, two more ingredients play a major role (in fact, lead roles) adding flavor, color and taste to this ‘Vengaayam Thakkali Chutney’. One being Turmeric and the other being – Devil’s Dung [he he.. I know! Some will have this steaming mad expression now in your face] For those… Continue reading »
Indian Chicken Soup Recipe –Tamilnadu Kozhi Soup
Though there will be elaborate plans in my kitchen like preparing Chicken pepper fry and Chicken Biriyani with the chicken bought from the market, the first thing that’ll go on the stove to get ready is this Simple Chicken Soup recipe. Since this Chicken Soup can be made quickly and easily, I set it first thing on the stove while I do the preparation work for the pepper chicken fry or the Biryani. This way I need not keep the family waiting until the curry and the rice is done. Once the chicken soup gets ready everybody enjoys a bowl of hot-o-hot chicken soup. A bowlful of this hot and warming Chicken Soup gives me strength to execute my elaborate meal plan. Like most of my recipes, this Kozhi Soup (Chicken Soup) is also a family-taught recipe, very authentic! Best Chicken Soup can be prepared only with freshly cut… Continue reading »
Chicken Keema Kulambu | Indian Style Ground Chicken Sauce
Many readers of Cooking Jingalala requested for Non-Vegetarian recipes. Whenever the husband sees such request messages from our fans in GoJingalala’s Facebook page, it makes him happy. It gives enough reasons for him to demand a variety of non-veg gravies, non-veg kurmas, non-veg biryani, non-vegetarian curries etc. from my kitchen. Have you seen an owl sitting high on top of thick branches of a tree? The owl won’t care about anything around it. It just sleeps sitting tight and warming itself with its feathers. If a group of children spot this owl and shout in excitement, the owl just opens one of its eyes and dismisses them by closing the eye immeditely. If a chirpy little bird flies around its head, the owl just eye-corners the bird briefly and returns back to its monk mode. The owl postures itself as though he’s angry and pondering deeply about an… Continue reading »
Banana Loaf Cake Recipe | Banana Bread Recipe
Make any dessert using OVER ripe bananas and the dessert will turn out to be absolutely yummy: just like how my Banana Halwa tasted! That holds the same too if you use OVER ripe bananas for baking cakes. Check yourself by baking this banana loaf cake with normal bananas and bake another batch of this banana loaf cake with over ripe bananas. After baking, you will sure spot huge difference in these cakes’ flavor and taste. The natural banana essence from over ripe bananas is strong than the essence that is in normal ripe bananas. You’ll nod your head agreeing to my point even while you mash the bananas for making this banana loaf cake recipe. Another good thing about using over ripe bananas for making such desserts is: they are easy to mash, just with a spoon! My neighbors Meg and Sham loved this banana cake… Continue reading »
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Recipe
This Pineapple Upside-Down Cake is a recipe for curing a depressed heart. Got flunked in your exams? Make this Pineapple Upside-Down Cake and forget about your failure. Got no hikes for your job this quarter? Bake this Pineapple Upside-Down Cake and burry your sadness. Did somebody upset you or did you upset somebody? Make peace by baking and slicing a piece of this Pineapple Upside-down Cake for them . We both, I mean the Pineapple Upside-Down cake and myself met when my neighbor Meg baked it for a special occasion and shared it with us. Her lovely Pineapple Upside-Down Cake had me at Hello! Hers was an eggless version of Pineapple Upside-Down Cake. The cake was so sooo… yummy for it had the fresh juice of pineapple and brown sugar soaked over it. The very first time I made the Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, I did not have… Continue reading »
Fermenting Idli-Dosa batter without using oven/baking soda
My experiments with Idli-Dosa batter will continue as long as I stay in these snowy parts of the US. Yes, it’s end of March and it is still snowing. This snow season (December-March), I experimented on how to ferment idly-dosai batter without using baking soda/powder. I also experimented how to aid the fermentation of iddli-dosa batter without using oven during severe snow season. I took this experiment so serious that I even created a folder named ‘Idli-Dosai batter fermentation experiments – USA’ in my laptop. I already armed you with sack full of information to deal with the idli-dosa batter if they had attitude problems. Yet few of my readers contacted me to know how to ferment idly-dosai batter without using an oven or if they do not wish to use baking soda/powder for fermentation. This is a special post for them. I used my electric rice cooker’s… Continue reading »
Best Kitchen products for US newbies from India
Times fly very fast. It’s a year and a month since I came to the US. I think nobody forgets their first flying experience, especially if you are a bride travelling alone with heavy duty baggage. Haa… how I wished I travelled light! Since I travelled alone I had to trolley two mammoth check-in suitcases, a tightly zipped hand luggage (which would tear itself out if somebody lifts it fast), handbags, a hand purse and jerkins, all by myself. I felt like I did not have strength to push the trolley even until the check-in counter. It was like pushing two overgrown, utterly adamant boys on a small unfitting trolley. When my turn came to check-in the luggage, the lady in the counter sweetly said ‘Ma’am both your check-in luggage are overweight. Please make changes, and then I will help you’. I gasped. I was requested to move to… Continue reading »
How to make Khoya (Mawa) – Fresh Khoa (Kova) Recipe
In my childhood days, during the evening time, whenever dad and I are to some restaurants, the first thing we order is ‘Paal Halwa’ (Milk fudge). I’m talking about Milk Halwa, especially from Madurai ‘DelhiWala’ Sweets. When it comes to the quantity and cost of this paal halwa, they’re totally contrary. So we’ll order just a few grams of this milk sweet and enjoy it in the restaurant. When our family is to some restaurants for lunch, after the meal, dad and I order for ‘Paal Pasandhi’ (Layers of thick milk-solids soaked in sweetened condensed milk). Whenever my aunt visits us, she gets ‘Milk Cakes’ from this shop in Trichy – ‘Archana Sweets’. When this box of milk-cake is opened, we pick the cakes like hungry crows emptying the whole box. Whenever Jeevs visits Srivilliputtur he gets a big parcel of fresh Paal kowa (Sweetened milk khoya). Okay, what… Continue reading »
Mushroom Biryani Recipe – Kalaan Biriyani
Kalaan/Mushrooms were not a regular thing in our kitchen-chart at least until 10 years back. No wait, I should say, mushrooms were not at all a picture in our kitchen-chart at least until ten years back. Those days there were no super markets in Madurai so we had to rely on street vendors, especially for special produce like mushrooms. Also the costs of mushrooms tend to vary everyday with an alarming 2-digit price tag. When I was younger I remember how we were woken up by the loud hawking of this mushroom vendor, especially during the weekends. Pressing the pedals of his bicycle hard and fast, he yells out …“kaalaan…kaalaan….” We had to run from our kitchen to the main door to stop his bicycle. The running will be mostly done by me to inquire the cost of mushroom packets. Then running back to kitchen to report the cost… Continue reading »
