Kadalai Paruppu/Payatham Paruppu Payasam

This is called as 'kadale Bele, Heserbele payasa in kannada.  That is Channa Dal and Moong Dal Kheer.
Ingredients:
Kadalai Paruppu/ kadale Bele/ Channa Dal    1/4 cup
Payatham paruppu/ Heser bele/ Moong Dal  1/2 cup
Vellam/ Bella/ Gud/Jaggery  1 and 1/2 cup
Rice 1 t spoon
Grated Coconut 1/2 cup
Ellakkai/ Elachi/ elakki /Cardamom  5 or 6
Milk  1/2 litre to 3/4 litre

Method:
Dry roast Channa Dal and Moong Dal.  wash it  and add water and pressure cook it  and keep aside.
boil milk well  and keep aside.
soak the rice in water for one hour and grind the soaked rice with grated coconut and Cardamom into a fine paste.
Add little water to jaggery and boil it in a thick bottomed vessel. Once it melts use a wired filter/strainer to remove any impurities. keep aside.

Take the Rice /coconut paste add some water and keep it on the stove  and stir it.
 once it starts boiling add the cooked dals (smash it well with a thick spoon before adding).
Simultaneously add the clean jaggery (liquid) .  Keep stirring.
 Add the boiled milk to this mixture and once it comes to boil switch off the stove.  The 'Payasam/Kheer' is ready 

Chutney Podi

This is a powder which can be eaten with cooked rice.
Ingredients:

1. Channa  Dal/ Kadalai Paruppu. 1 cup
2. Urad Dal / Ulautham Paruopu  1 cup
3. Dry/Red  Chillies 🌶 about 10 to 12  (few byadagi chillies in this will give colour to the powder)
4. Copra/ Kopparai/ Dry Coconut. Half or one side of the whole Copra 
5. Salt to taste. Around 2 t spoons 
6. Gud/ Vellam/ Jaggery a small piece
7. Tamarind a small bit {optional ( paste can not be used)}
8. Mustard seeds for garnishing 
9. Oil for garnishing 
10. Coriander leaves cleaned,  and finely chopped for garnishing 

Method
Dry Roast Channa Dal and Urad Dal separately till golden/light brown.
Grate the Copra and roast till golden brown.
Roast Red chillies in half t spoon of oil. Switch off stove and add salt and tamarind piece.
Powder the roasted dals  in a mixer.  Keep aside. Powder Roasted Chillies, Roasted Copra, salt, tamarind and Gud/ Jaggery together.
Mix all the powdered ingredients.
Keep 2 t spoon of oil in a strong bottomed vessel/Kadai on stove. Add half t spoon of mustard seeds and once it splutters add the finely chopped coriander leaves ( it should not be wet, so once washed dry it with a towel or paper towel) . Turn the coriander leaves thoroughly and switch off the stove. Add garnishing into the powder and mix well and Chutney powder is ready to use.
It will be tasty if eaten with ghee on hot cooked rice.  Alternately Sesame ( NallaEnnai) oil can be used.

Thakkali Vengayam (Onions/Tomatoes side dish)

This is a simple side dish  for chapathis, which can be made quickly.

Ingredients:

•  Onions 2 small or one big
• Tomatoes 3 or 4 medium size. 
• Green chillies one or two 
• Ginger small bit
• Turmeric powder little 
• Oil 1 t spoon 
• Mustard seeds 1/2 t spoon
• Chennai dal 1 to 2 taprooms.
• Coriander leaves to garnish (optional)

Method.
Cut the onions and tomatoes into small bits keep separately. Cut the chillies ( I cut it into big piece instead of mincing it so that it is visible after the dish is made or while eating and can be discarded). Cut the ginger into small bits. Chop the coriander leaves.

Take a kadai or a thick bottom vessel. Add the oil and put the mustard seeds.  Once it splutters, add the channa dal. When it turns brown add the ginger and chillies fry for a few seconds and add the cut onions.  Keep stirring off and on and once it turns light brown( need not be very brown) add the tomatoes , turmeric powder and salt to taste.  Keep the kadai covered.  After a few minutes add a little water. Once it boils if you feel the dish is very watery you can thicken it with rice powder added in water or wheat powder added in water. Once it boils add coriander leaves and switch off the stove. To enhance the taste 1/4 t spoon of sugar can added just before switching off.

Ready to eat Vettrilai (Paan)

I really don't know what to call this.  To eat Vettrilai /Pakku (Villedale in kannada, Paan in Hindi) is good for digestion.
One need not have to make the home made Vettilai Pakku everyday. This can be made and kept in Fridge  and  a spoon of this mixture can be eaten every day after food.

 If not every day this will be really good on the stomach if  eaten after a heavy meal.

This is how the end product will look.

This is a dry version of the end product.

The Vettrilai and pakku, (Villedele Adike, Paan leaves with Arcanuts.)

                                                            Chuna 

Cardmoms(Elachi),Cloves (krambu/lavanga), Palm Sugarcandy (Panam Kalkandu, Kallu Sakkare)

                                              Pachai Karpuram /edible camphor

Ingredients:

1. Vettrilai/villedele/Paan leaves  40 to 50 in number
2. Arcanuts/pakku/ adike  2 or 3 small packets if it is sachets or 3 or 4 if it is full pakku.
3. Chuna/Chunanbu    This is a edible variety  very little quantity. 
4.  Cardmom/Elakkai /elachi/elakki    10 to15
5. Cloves/krambu /lavanga  10 to 20
6. Pachai Karpuram/edible camphor   A pinch 
7. Palm Sugarcandy/ Panam Kalkandu/Kallu Sakkarai(ordinary sugarcandy can be used. If not available sugar can be used.     few chunks. 

Method:
Clean the leaves nicely with water. Wipe with a clean cloth.    Remove the centre stem from the
 leaves and dry it in shade.  {it can be dried in Hot sun if you need it in dry powder form (in the picture 2)  Alternately it can be dried in Micro wave also.}
Once it is dry, add all the ingredients and put it in the mixer and grind it .  It will be  semi paste if the leaves are  dried in shade and will be  dry powder if the leaves or dried in Hot sun.
Store it in a clean bottle in the Fridge.
A little Gulkand (  which is made from Rose petal and available in stores) can be added to this, as it will enhance the taste.

Ragi Huri Hittu

This is called as Kali or Pori Maavu in Tamil.  This title I have used is a Kannada word.

Ingredients.

1. Ragi Powder  1 cup
2. Jaggery/Vellam/Gud  1/2 cup
3. Ghee  2 Tspoons.
4. Milk  1 Cup or a little less
5. Honey 1 t spoon  (optional)
6. Elachi / elakkai powder (optional) a pinch

Method.
Take a thick bottomed Vessel.  Put the powdered jaggery and Milk.  When it starts boiling add the Ghee and  add the Ragi Powder gradually.  Stir well.  When the whole thing is mixed well add Honey and the Elachi powder and stir a bit and switch off the stove. This can be eaten as a snack.

This is very good for health.
The Ragi powder can be made into a 'Muddhe' and eaten with any  side dish. (instead of cooked rice Ragi Muddhe can be eaten at meal time)  Just boil a cup of water and add the ragi powder and make it into  a 'muddhe' or 'Kali' consistency.  (The consistency is what you see in the picture.)

Ragi powder can be bought directly from shop.  Ragi can be made into a powder at home.  Soak Ragi for a day.  allow it to sprout.(even if it does not sprout it is alright)   then drain water and Roast it in a 'kadai' without oil.  Powder this in Mixer and use it for the Huri Hittu.

My mother used to make a powder out of Ragi for small babies.

She used to sprout the Ragi and then grind it nicely and take the milk out of it ( just like taking coconut milk out of coconut) and then used to sun dry this thick ragi milk.   This will form soft blocks and powder it and keep it in a tight container.

Make Kanji or porridge out of this powder and mix it with milk add little sugar and give  it to the babies.  Small quantity of Ragi powder  is used when the baby is 4 months old and slowly the quantity increased as the baby grows.  This can be given to babies for more than one feed.  This is very good for the growing children.
To Make Kanji  Mix one table spoon of powder with half a cup of water and boil the mixture while stirring.  This is Kanji.  More quantity can be made  in the morning and kept  aside and used at other times of the day.

Gooseberry Pickle (Nellikkai oorugai)

Ingredients:

1. Gooseberries  25 numbers.
2. Oil (Any Vegetable oil) 1 table spoon.
3. Salt 1 Table spoon
4. Chili Powder  2 Table spoons
5. Turmeric powder 1 t spoon
6. Mustard seeds 1 t spoon.
7. Asafotida powder little (hing or perungayam)
8. Methi seeds/Vendhayam  1 t spoon.

Wash the berries, and boil them in water in a big vessel till they are cooked.  Add little salt while boiling.
Drain the berries. Keep the  drained water aside.
Take a thick bottomed vessel/kadai/iluppachatti and put the oil in it. Add the mustard seeds.  once it splutters, add the drained berries.  Now add salt, chili powder and turmeric powder.  Pour little water which you have kept aside to this. ( not everything just one or two table spoons).  Keep the kadai covered.  Keep stirring the berries once in a while.
once the raw smell of the chili powder is not there, the pickle is done.  If it becomes very dry add little  drained water.
add asafotida powder ( can be powdered from solid asafotida by frying a piece of that in little oil and then powdering it. or use ready made powder.  the methi seeds are to be fried dry till golden brown and then powdered.)  and methi seeds powder.
Switch off the  stove and store in clean dry jars.
This pickle will not last long as it has been boiled in water.   Store the pickle in Fridge.

Mango Pickle or Mango Thokku

 Ingredients:

1. One Medium Size  Raw Mango (mankkai).
2. Oil 1 Table Spoon.
3. Turmeric Powder 1 t spoon.
4. Chili Powder.  2,to 3 Table spoons.
5. Asafotida  little. (Hing or Perungayam)
6. Salt  1 to 2 Table spoon.
7. One Red Chili
8.  A small bit of Jaggery
9. Mustard seeds 1 t spoon.
10. Methi seeds Vendhiayam  1 t spoon.

Method.

Wash and Wipe the raw  mango with a Clean Towel. Remove the Skin with a Peeler and Grate the Mango in a Carrot Grater.

Take a thick bottomed Vessel ( A kadai or a iluppchatti).  Put the Oil and add the mustard seeds and the Red chili. when mustard seeds splutter , add the grated mango and reduce the flame of the stove to Sim.  (the Pickle needs slow cooking) turn it over with a flat ladle .  Add turmeric powder,Salt,  and Chili powder and the jaggery piece. 

{If the Mango   is very sour more Salt and Chili Powder will be needed.   Add the above quantity of ingredients  and mix well and taste and if the mixture is very sour add more salt and chili powder depending on what is needed.  (The asafotida can be added as powder, or if you have a bar of Asafotida, make it into pieces and  take a small piece and fry it in  very little oil and then powder it )

Fry the Methi seeds without oil  in a kadai till Golden Brown and powder it. }

 Let the Mango cook in the slow fire. Keep turning the mixture on and off .  Once it is done,  the Oil in the pickle will start separating from the sides. Add asafotida powder and fried methi powder and switch off the stove.   Store it in a clean dry jar.