Tamil Varusha Pirappu Recipes – Tamil New Year Recipes
Wish you all a Happy Tamil New Year!! Tamil New Year is celebrated on the first month of the Tamil solar calendar, Chithirai. It is celebrated by the Tamil population in Indian and around the world. From wikipedia: The Tamil New Year follows the Nirayanam vernal equinox and generally falls on 14 April of the Gregorian year. 14 April marks the first day of the traditional Tamil calendar. The Tropical vernal equinox falls around 22 March, and adding 23 degrees of trepidation or oscillation to it, we get the Hindu sidereal transition or Nirayana Mesha Sankranti (the Sun’s transition into Nirayana Aries). Hence, the Tamil calendar begins on the same date observed by most traditional calendars in India as in Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Manipur, Mithila, Odisha, Punjab, Tripura etc. not to mention Nepal, Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Sri Lanka and...
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Easy Wheat Halwa
Wish you all a Happy Diwali!!!! Wheat Halwa is a popular Asian dessert made with wheat milk or wheat flour. Traditionally it is made using wheat milk obtained from wheat grains. Today I have made this halwa using wheat flour which is an easy version. I will soon be posting the recipe for the traditional Halwa. Ingredients: Wheat flour – 3 cup Javvarisi (tapioca pearls) – 1/2 cup Corn flour – 1/4 cup Sugar – 4.5 cups Ghee – 1 cup Powdered cardamom – 3/4 tbsp Nutmeg powder – 2 pinches Broken cashew nut – 1/4 cup (roasted in ghee) Slivered almonds – 2 tbsp Red food color – 1/4 tsp (mix with 2 tbsp water) Method of Preparation: Soak javvarisi (tapioca pearls) overnight. Grind it to a smooth paste. Grease a tray with ghee and keep it ready....
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Kai Murukku
Kai Murukku is a traditional South Indian snack made for festivals and special occasions. It is made with freshly ground wet rice flour and deep fried in oil. Kai means hand in Tamil. It is a tradition in Hindu Brahmin weddings to make this murukku in jumbo sizes and various shapes. For snacking we generally make murukku with two circles. For special occasions like wedding bigger murukku is made with 7 or 9 circles and we call it “Seer Murukku”. My mom is a pro in making these Seer Muruku and she always takes care of these in our family weddings. I will be posting a video of this making very soon. Preparation time: 90 minutes Yield: 15 to 20 two circle murukku Ingredients: Rice flour – 3 cups Urad flour – 2 tbsp Butter – 2 tbsp (room temperature)...
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Rava Laddu – Sooji Laddu (version 2)
Rava Laddu or Sooji Laddu is a popular Indian sweet made specially for Diwali festival and also on special occasions. It is easy to make and takes only a few minutes. There are different versions of this laddu but this is my favorite and my mom’s recipe. It has a smooth texture and it just melts in your mouth. Sooji and sugar are finely ground and mixed together and made into laddus with ghee. It is generally tough to fine grind sooji (rava) at home. So my mom gives it to the flour mill for grinding. But for people who live abroad, you can bring finely ground sooji from India or just use your dry grinder (or mixie) for grinding sooji. See recipe for details. Preparation time: 60 minutes Yield: 50 Laddus Ingredients: Rava (sooji) – 500...
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Kadalai Urundai – Peanut Candy Balls
Kadalai Urundai is an Indian version of peanut candy. You can make this with both jaggery or sugar. This one is with sugar which is my personal favorite. It is very easy to make with the readily available ingredients from your pantry. All it requires is some patience and attention while preparing. We prepare this sweet for festivals such as Karthigai Deepam and other special occasions. You can either make it as balls or as square shape burfis (chikki). You can find this peanut candy in almost all the Indian grocery stores. If you like the fresh ones like me then get ready to make some tasty peanut chikkis. I followed the steps from mykitchenstove (my sister’s blog) and it came out perfectly. Preparation time: 45 minutes Yield: 20 balls Ingredients: Roasted peanuts – 2 cups (without skin) Sugar – 1 cup...
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Semiya Kesari – Vermicelli Kesari
Kesari also known as Sheera or Sooji Halwa is a delicious Indian dessert made with semolina or vermicelli and sugar. We generally make it is as an offering (prasad) to God or for special occasions. This Kesari is made with vermecelli and it will be a nice variation if you always use sooji. Kids will also love it. Since it takes only a few minutes to make this you don’t have to plan ahead. You can make it for an unexpected guest or surprise your kids when they come back from school. It reminds me of my childhood days when my mom surprises with different kind of sweets and snacks…:) Also check out our recipe for Rava Kesari. Preparation time: 30 minutes No. of servings: 5 to 6 Ingredients: Semiya (vermicelli) – 1.5 cups Water – 2 1/4 cups Sugar...
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Karthigai Deepam Recipes
Happy Karthigai Deepam to all our readers!!! Karthikai Deepam is a traditional Hindu festival observed in South India.It falls in the month of Karthikai (mid-November to mid-December) as per Tamil calendar. This occurs on the day when the moon is in conjunction with the constellation Karthigai (Pleiades) and purnimai. This constellation appears as a group of six stars in the firmament in the shape of a pendant from the ear. Many legends and lyrical poetry have grown round this star. The six stars are considered in Indian mythology as the six celestial nymphs who reared the six babies in the saravana tank which later were joined together to form the six faced Muruga. He is therefore called Karthikeya, the one brought up by the Karthigai nymphs. Houses and streets are lit up with rows of oil lamps (Deepam) in...
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Paneer Jalebi – Chanar Jalebi
Paneer Jalebi or Chanar Jalebi is a delicious cheese dessert made with fresh cottage cheese or paneer. It will be a nice variation from the regular jalebi. It is airy, soft and juicy. My fried told me about this dish and she asked me give it a try. I am glad I did. It turned out so good and I loved it. Try this dish for any special occasions or festivals and enjoy with your family. Preparation time: 90 minutes Yield: 18 to 20 Ingredients: Fresh Paneer – 1 cup Corn flour – 1 tbsp Maida (all purpose flour) – 1 tbsp Baking powder – 1/2 tsp Milk – 2 to 3 tbsp Cardamom – 4 (powdered) Rose essence – 1 tsp Saffron – a few strands Orange food color – a pinch (dissolved in 1 tbsp of water)...
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Moti Pak
Wish you all a Happy Diwali!! Moti Pak is a delicious sweet burfi made with chickpea flour (besan) and sugar. It tastes more like laddu but it has khoya in it which makes it rich and special. You can make this at home which tastes amazing like the ones from sweet shops. Follow the step by step procedure and prepare this wonderful sweet for Diwali. Preparation time: 90 minutes Yield: 16 pieces Ingredients: Besan flour – 2 cups Sugar – 2 cups Milk – 4 tbsp Khoya – 1/4 cup Ghee – 2 tsp Rose essence – 1 tsp Saffron – a pinch Powdered cardamom – 1/2 tsp Nutmeg powder – a pinch (optional) Yellow and red food color Method of Preparation: Sift besan flour to remove any lumps. Mix the yellow and red food color in a tbsp...
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Corn flakes Mixture
This Corn flakes mixture is one of the easiest snacks which everyone will like. We can make in large quantity very easily. This sweet and spicy mixture is my all time favorite. Time of Preparation : 20 minutes Spice level : 2 Ingredients: Corn flakes / Corn poha – 14 oz pack (approximately 5 cups) Cashew nuts (broken) – 1/2 cup Raisins – 1/3 cup Peanuts – 1/3 cup Curry leaves – 4 strings Red chilli powder – 2 tsp Salt – 1/2 tsp (adjust according to taste Sugar – 1 tsp Oil – for frying Method of Preparation: Heat oil in a small kadai and fry the cashew nuts, peanuts, raisins and curry leaves one by one and transfer them to a tight storage box. Add the red chilli powder, salt and sugar. Fry the corn flakes (I...
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Kasi Halwa – Poosanikkai Halwa
Kasi Halwa is a traditional South Indian dessert made with ash gourd or poosanikkai. This halwa is served in weddings and special occasions. It is one of the most delicious halwa I have eaten and definitely made it to my favorites list. You need very less ghee to make this dish and the ingredients are pretty simple. Only thing is the yield is less compared to the amount of vegetable you use. Try this delicious Halwa for this Diwali and enjoy with your family and friends. Preparation time: 75 minutes No. of servings: 7 to 8 Ingredients: White pumpkin or ash gourd – 4 lb (around 2 kg) Sugar – 2 1/2 cups (500 grams) Cardamom – 4 Cashew nut – 2 tbsp Ghee or clarified butter – 3 tbsp Orange food color – a big pinch Method...
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Vegetable Bonda
Vegetable Bonda is a popular snack made with mixed vegetables which is then dipped in a gram flour (besan) batter and fried in oil. It is more like Aloo Bonda but with a lot of other vegetables in it. You can serve it as an evening snack with a cup of tea or as an appetizer. Serve it with coconut chutney. Preparation time: 75 minutes Yield: 16 Spice level: 2.5 out of 5 Ingredients: Potatoes – 2 or 3 (big) Mixed vegetables – 2 cups (peas, carrots, beetroot, beans, cauliflower) Medium size onion – 1 Green chilies – 3 Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp Finely chopped ginger – 1 tbsp Chili powder – 1/2 tsp Oil – 1 tbsp Chopped coriander leaves (cilantro) – 1/4 cup Salt to taste Oil for frying For Batter: Besan (gram...
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Panagam
Panagam or Panakam is a drink made with jaggery and spices. It is one of the best natural drink to beat the heat apart from Neer More (spiced buttermilk). Jaggery is unrefined natural sugar which contains iron and traces of other minerals. It is by far the most natural sweetener and it has the ability to cleanse your body, helps indigestion, relieves fatigue, etc. SInce it is unrefined it may contain some impurities but you can removed them by dissolving it in water and filtering it. Jaggery is used in many Indian sweets considering its health benefits. Panagam is one of the best way to add jaggery to your diet. This drink is generally made as a neivedhyam (offering to God) for any pooja at home and temples. Specially on the occasion of Rama Navami, it is one of...
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Neer More – Spiced Buttermilk
Neer More, that is what Spiced Buttermilk is called in tamil. It is a refreshing drink and the best drink to beat the summer heat. It is very easy to prepare in a short time. Back in India, during summer time there would be “More Pandhal”, places where “Neer More” is served on the road side under a temporary shed set up by well wishers. It is just to serve people a refreshing drink which gives them a temporary relief from the scorching summer heat. Some people have a big pot full of this beverage outside their houses for the passers by as a token of good will. There is nothing better than serving people around us without expecting anything in return. Have a glass full of buttermilk and get refreshed!! Preparation time: 15 minutes Servings: 4 Ingredients: Yogurt...
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Onam Festival Recipes
Wish you all a very Happy Onam!! Onam is one of the most important festivals celebrated by the people from Kerala (located in South India). This festival is celebrated every year for 10 days in the Malayalam month of “Chingam” which falls between August and September. These 10 days are celebrated as a harvest festival and also as a homecoming for King Mahabali, who was banished by Lord Vishnu in Vamana avatar. For more details please refer here. All the 10 days are part of Onam celebrations and each and every day is celebrated with various traditional rituals starting from making “Pookalam” (rangoli with flowers) on the front yard of houses everyday for the 10 days which marks the beginning of Onam and set the tone for the celebrations. The celebration continues with conducting Vallam Kali – Snake boat races...
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Paruppu Payasam
Paruppu Payasam is a delicious Indian dessert made with lentils, coconut milk, milk and jaggery. It is made during festivals and special occasions. I usually make it just with milk but this time as per my sister’s advice I also added some coconut milk which made this a lot of more richer and delicious. Try to use the thick or the first milk extracted from the coconut. For more details about how to extract coconut milk, read “How to extract coconut milk“. Preparation time: 40 minutes No of servings: 5 Ingredients: Moong Dal – 1/2 cup Chana dal – 2 tbsp Jaggery – 1/4 cup Milk – 3/4 cup Fresh coconut milk – 1 cup Ghee or clarified butter – 1 and 1/2 tsp Cashew nut – 1 tbsp Cardamom – 2 pods A few saffron strands Method of Preparation:...
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Unniyappam / Unni appam ( Onam Special )
Unniyappam is a famous festival snack in Kerala which is made for all special occasions. I made this Unniyappam for Krishna Jayanthi and I am planning to make this for Onam too. I got this recipe from my sis-in-law and I just loved it :). Time of Preparation : 3 hours (including resting time) No of pieces : around 40 Ingredients: Raw Rice – 3/4 cup Jaggery – 1 cup (crushed) Banana – 1/2 (big one) Cardamom powder – 1/4 tsp Wheat flour – 3 tbsp Sugar 1 tbsp (optional) Cashews – 2 tbsp (broken) Ghee – as required Baking soda – a pinch (optional) Method of Preparation: Soak the raw rice for 2 to 3 hours. Grind it smoothly without adding water. Add the Jaggery and grind it. Finally add the banana and grind it smoothly. Add 3...
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Paal Payasam (Version 2) / Milk and Rice Kheer
Rice Kheer is an Indian dessert which will be very tasty and is generally made for special occasions. For making Rice Kheer, we have to stand and near the cooking range for a long time to reduce the milk. But for this version of Rice Kheer we need not stand and wait. Only thing is the gas consumption will be more but definitely no strain :). Time of Preparation : 5 minutes Cooking Time : 3 hours No of Servings : 4 to 5 Ingredients: Milk (Full fat or 2%) – 5 cups Basmathi rice (washed) – small handful (around 3 tbsp) Saffron – a pinch Sweetened Condensed Milk – 1/2 can (7 oz) Ghee – 1 tsp Method of Preparation: Take a pressure cooker and add a tsp of ghee. Slightly toss the Basmathi rice and add the...
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