VIRUNDHOMBAL

Whenever I think of Kerala food, I personally like theeyal kuzhambu which is similar to our vathakuzhambu. There are many varieties of theeyal kuzhambu. Today we are going to see an interesting theeyal recipe with turkey berry (sundaikkai). It includes authentic ingredients which combine all the flavours in perfect balance.  Nowadays you can find Turkey berries everywhere in the vegetable market and also in departmental stores. Often, we prepare dried vathal during summertime but there are many interesting recipes with this healthy vegetable. Making a good Turkey berry dish requires some patience and time. You have to remove the berries from their stem and then we have to crush them slightly with a stone.  Turkey berries are highly nutritious due to their various nutritional components. They are a good source of proteins, carbohydrates, fats and minerals like potassium, sodium, iron, magnesium and copper. It protects against cancer. It is considered as one of the healthy fruit...

Vegetable Salna - another interesting gravy recipe with mixed vegetables. Salna can be made with any combination of vegetables. The common choices are carrots, beans, potatoes, cauliflower and green peas etc. You can also skip any one of the mentioned vegetables to make the salna. For kurma or salna I believe that using the right techniques and fresh ingredients can bring the ultimate taste. Enjoy this vegetable salna with parotta, chapathi, dosa and brinji. If you like a thin gravy with masalas, then you will surely enjoy this vegetable salna. It is definitely easy to make but you have to plan ahead for the chopping and grinding works. Now let us see how to prepare this vegetable salna.  Check out my other Gravy Recipes Green Peas and Paneer Gravy  Paneer Butter Masala   Paneer Methi Masala Shahi Gobi Masala Broccoli Masala Rajma Masala   Mushroom Butter Masala Easy Chana Masala  Easy Moth Dal Sabji   Green Peas Masala Quick Paneer Masala Malai M...

Make this delicious lemon rice with fresh lemon and freshly ground masala powder for your lunch box this week. Lemon rice is one of the favourite lunch box dishes for my husband and I tried this new recipe with puliyodarai flavour. Here comes the lemon rice recipe with the flavours of puliyodarai but without any tamarind.  All you need for this rice - lemons, rice, chana dal, coriander seeds, red chillies, white sesame seeds, peanuts and the regular tempering ingredients. I learned this recipe from my Grandmother and this is one of my favourite rice varieties these days.  How to prepare the masala powder You can prepare the masala powder well ahead of time. Just roast fenugreek, chana dal, coriander seeds, red chillies and white sesame seeds without any oil. Grind it to a fine powder. That's it. Your masala powder is ready. When needed, do the tempering procedures and add the lemon juice. Then mix the cooked rice and the masala powder. I have used white sesame seeds in this re...

Today we are going to see an interesting street style vegetable fried rice with simple cooking techniques. For the past twenty years, vegetable fried rice and pani puri have been a favourite food for many of us. Everywhere we can see, these two dishes are the stars of the street food. One day during our trip to Tirumala, I learnt this street style vegetable fried rice from a street food vendor. He prepared varieties of fried rice within a few minutes, very casually. As he was preparing, I saw exactly how it was done. There's something magical about eating hot fried rice on the streets.The sound of the street vendors tossing the tang tang with their wok is always enjoyable to me. How to make street style vegetable fried rice in your home kitchen  You can use basmati rice or long grain rice. Always prefer the open pot method to cook the rice for fried rice. The texture will be perfect with less stickiness. Brands such as Unity and India Gate are perfect for fried rice.  You can ...

It's a simple and healthy poriyal made with green papaya.Green papaya is unripened papaya, with a crunchy texture and neutral flavour. Green papaya poriyal is traditionally prepared in a heavy-bottomed mud pot, which is ideal for cooking to get the soft texture. For everyday busy people, I've modified the steps in this recipe a bit. The following recipe has simple ingredients with a quick preparation, so that you can enjoy a healthy side dish for your lunch without much effort. For the best poriyal, be sure to select the green papaya that are fresh and firm with dark green colour without any yellow spots and should be heavy in size. Peel the skin completely and then discard the white seeds. Cut them into small medium sized cubes. Once the chopping work is done, the rest of the process is very easy to make. I start by cooking the chopped papaya in my small pressure cooker just for 1 whistle. This method saves a lot of time and it also gives the perfect texture. Take care not to...

Drumstick Leaves Adai - packed with everything you need to start your day with healthy ingredients. This healthy tiffin will give you the energy for the full day. This adai is a balanced meal with a good portion of carbohydrate and protein. I would recommend trying this healthy adai for your weekend breakfast to enjoy it leisurely.  Drumstick Leaves Adai Recipe Details  Prep time : 15 minutes Soaking time : 2 hours Cooking time : 20 minutes Yields : 10 medium adai Category : tiffin Ingredients 1 cup idli rice 1/2 cup chana dal 1/4 cup urid dal 2 green chilly 10 red chilly 1 cup drumstick leaves 1/2 tsp asafoetida powder few curry leaves 1 onion, finely chopped coconut oil salt to taste Cooking Directions  Take a wide bowl or vessel and add the rice, chana dal and urid dal. Wash them well and pour 2 cups of water. Soak them well for 2 hours. After 2 hours drain the water completely. Add the soaked dals, dried red chillies, green chillies to a big mixer jar.  Grind the...

This palm jaggery kaju katli is the best, quick and easy sweet prepared with just three ingredients. After starting my Virundhombal Foods , I make kaju katli with sugar regularly for my customers' orders. So, while doing it regularly, I learnt many tips and tricks in Kaju katli. If you are planning for small family occasions or parties, try this kaju katli. This is also perfect for kids' birthday gifts.  This kaju katli stays good for more than a week without refrigeration. You will come across several different ways in which you can prepare katlis. But I follow the same method every time, using my favourite hard anodised kadai. All you need to make kaju katli are three basic ingredients. Cashew nuts, palm jaggery and ghee. Make sure you use fresh whole cashew nuts. Add enough cashew nuts that the blade of your mixer jar is well covered. Because if you don't add enough, then it won't grind properly. Using the big mixer jar for 1 cup cashew nuts will grind perfectly. Gri...