Mahanandi

A food parade without candy, no way!

Here is my contribution to Independence Day Food Parade – a candy from my childhood. The main ingredients are jaggery, tamarind and cumin and the candy tastes sweet, tangy and fragrant. It’s one of those super good, can’t get enough types of candies and often prepared in our homes by loving parents.

This humble village candy is now flying high. You would see this candy often served on domestic flights in India as part of welcome kit at the beginning of the flight. The Hajmola candy they serve in flights is just like this candy and tastes similarly. Main purpose of course is to prevent nausea and jet sickness associated with air travel. Those three natural ingredients have some good ayurvedic properties that are healthy to us, that’s what my grandma says.

The recipe is simple. Jaggery, tamarind pieces, cumin and a pinch of salt – all pounded together in a mortar to smooth paste and then made into small balls. A stick is inserted for a lollipop style candy or wrapped in paper for a stylish presentation. Either way these sweet tangy candies are irresistible and lip smacking good.

Ingredients for the Candy ~ Jaggery, Tamarind and Cumin

Making the Candy ~ Pounding the ingredients together in a stone mortar with a pestle

Sweet, Tangy and Fragrant Candy from India
For the Independence Day Food Parade & For Indian Sweets 101

Our School Update ~ New Library

One thing we always wanted to do for our school is build a decent, dedicated library. We were able to get it materialized this year and the opening ceremony will be on August 15th. About 20,000 rupees worth of books are purchased for the library, most of them are from this list. All sorts of books that would interest children are purchased in Telugu, Hindi and English languages.

The largest room in the school building is dedicated for library and what you see in this photo is a part of the library with bookshelves and seating arrangement. Other side of the library (not in the photo) is for smaller kids styled in small scale. The room and the furniture are designed keeping children’s needs in mind, with comfortable seating and good lighting.

Everyone in our family worked whole heartedly to complete this project. We have to say major thanks to our dear friends Lakshmi and Prasad Anandaraman for their interest and generous contributions for this cause.

This Independence Day on August 15th is going to be very special in our school because of this new addition and the school children voted for jangri to celebrate this sweet occasion after flag hoisting.

Kittaya ~ The Keen Listener

Chillies are a religion in India! And in my home state Andhra Pradesh, the leading producer of chillies in the world, the chilli religion has a cult like following. The almighty, all-powerful chillies dictate and dominate almost every food item we consume. Our tongues are trained to accept and enjoy the fiery ruchi(flavor) of chillies from early on and the non-believers in chilli power and taste are considered wimps and babies by the believers. I tried to break away from this chilli cult, but it’s tough to do and the cravings haunted me. My taste buds cried saliva for a decent flavorful meal. They couldn’t tolerate the bland, tasteless food I was consuming in the name of suave and sophistication. “We are not babies, we are not wimps. Have mercy and have a chilli”, they salivated. I bowed and accepted the chilli power with my whole heart and now at my home, there won?t be a meal without having at least one dish where chilli – dry or fresh is added. Needless to say my taste buds are now one happy bunch.

Like us, humans, chillies also have a variety. There are lean, short, tall and stout chillies. There is mildly hot variety and there is super hot variety. Names of chillies vary from state to state and from country to country, with growers making up new names all the time. For that reason, I usually write either green chillies for fresh ones and dried red chillies for dried chillies. Using fancy, foreign sounding names for chillies is not my thing.

There are also preserved chillies – Dried chilli powder is the best-known method of preserving chillis. There is one more popular way of preserving chillies, from my home state, called “majjiga mirapa? in Telugu and ‘dahi mirchi’ in Hindi. Here fresh green chillies are slit vertically keeping the ends intact and soaked in salty, sour yogurt for about 4 to 6 days, giving time for the acid in both yogurt and chillies to work its magic of preservation. As a result, the color of chillies changes from green to light-green to creamy yellow with green tinge. At this stage, they are removed and sun dried until completely moisture free. The end result is creamy-white chillies that taste mildly hot, tangy (because of soaking in yogurt) and delicious. Usually we deep-fry these mirchis and have them as ‘middle of the meal’ kind of snack along with rice and dal. Combine rice and dal and have a small round, while eating it, in-between take a bite of majjiga mirapa. That’s how we enjoy this version of chilli.

I always hear people saying how much they would like to prepare the real deal, the ultra-authentic, home-style cuisine. Well, this is your chance to do just that. If you like chillies and if you live in an area of at least one week of super hot temperatures, then this recipe is for you.

Recipe:

Chillies:
20 fresh chillies
(Long, firm body with medium-thick skin ones are perfect for this recipe)
Yogurt:
4 cups of day-old Indian homemade yogurt, add
4 teaspoons of salt and mix
Weather:
Hot weather suitable for sun-drying the chillies

Day1: Green chillies washed and slit in the middle (keep the ends intact)

Day 1: Slit green chillies are soaked in yogurt-salt mixture. Keep them like that open(without lid cover) for at least 4 days.

Day 2: Closeup of slit green chillis soaking in yogurt-salt mixture

Day 5: Remove the chillies from yogurt and arrange them neatly in rows with space in-between on a big sheet/plate/pan suitable for sun-drying. (Notice the change in green chilli color.)

Day 8: Sun-dried Majjiga Mirapa. It took 3 days here in Ohio, for them to get completely moisture free and dry. When stored in tight lid box, they can stay fresh from 6 months to a year. To cook – deepfry them in oil until they turn to golden and serve immediately.

Golden colored Majjiga Mirapa (deep-fried) with Rice and Dal – Traditional Andhra Meal for Independence Day Food Parade

Dahi Mirchi is avialable in small packets at Indian grocery shops here in US.

For Independence Day Food Parade on August 15th, I’ve decided to write three recipes which are near and dear to my heart. One each from – my hometown, my state and my country. Today’s one is from my hometown. Some recipes are truly local, like a needlepoint, known and popular only in few homes in a town and surrounding villages. Peanut pachhi pulusu (pachhi =raw/unboiled, pulusu=rasam/soup) is one such recipe from “land of Nandis” – Nandyala, Rayalaseema region.

Peanuts are roasted to golden color, skins removed and then made into smooth paste along with salt, chilli powder, tamarind and jaggery. By adding water, the paste is made into rasam like consistency. Finely sliced onions are added and seasoning is done by popu/tadka. That’s it. This is sort of cold, no-boil rasam and perfect during hot summer days. Often prepared and served with pongal and potato curry, the whole combination tastes awesome and comforting.

Peanuts – Roasted and Golden (Skins Removed)

Recipe:

Roast Peanuts:
Take 2 cups of peanuts in a large skillet and on medium-high heat, roast them to golden color (see photo above) mixing and turning often to prevent scorching. Allow to cool. Rub them with hands to loosen the skins and remove the skins. (Roasting peanuts to golden color is important. Spend few minutes & pay attention to roasting process. Taste of this recipe depends on this step.)

Make a paste:
2 cups of Peanuts – roasted and skins removed (from above)
½ teaspoon of chilli powder
1 teaspoon of salt or to taste
1 tablespoon tamarind juice
2 tablespoons of powdered jaggery
Take all the above in a blender or in a mortar, crush them to smooth paste by adding 1 cup of water in between.

Finely Slice:
1 big onion – lengthwise, slice thinly and wash them in water to separate the onions pieces and to remove that raw onion smell.

Do the popu/tadka:
Heat 1 tsp of oil in a big vessel. Add and toast – few pieces of curry leaves, dried chillies and half teaspoon of mustard seeds and cumin. To this popu/tadka:
Add the smooth peanut paste.
Add the onions.
Stir in about 1 to 2 cups of cold water. Mix and serve.
Make the rasam like thick buttermilk consistency. Have a taste and adjust salt, sweet and sour levels to your taste.

Serve with pongal. This pachhi pulusu (cold rasam) has all 5 essential ruchulu (flavors) and is guaranteed to make one feel cool as a cucumber on a hot day.

Peanut Pachhi Pulusu with Pongal and Potato Kurma ~ Our Fabulous Meal:) Today

I have two authentic ingredients from coastal Maharashtra – kokum and goda masala.

Native to western coastal region of India, Kokum is a dried fruit of dark purple color and prized for its piquant taste, often used as substitute for tamarind. Goda (Kala) masala is a special spice mixture, has well over 15 Indian spices in it including some unique spices like dagad phool, naag keshar, badal phool etc. Adding even a pinch of it gives dals and curries an unforgettable taste. When I wanted to cook something Maharashtrian using both these ingredients, my good friend Veena Parrikar kindly sent me an authentic Maharashtrian lentil recipe called aamti with moong dal where both goda masala and kokum are used for seasoning.

I am one of those people who think that everything tastes delicious, as long as it has lentils in it and this recipe is no exception. It was easy to prepare and has an exceptional taste. We had it like thick soup without rice, along with mixed berry smoothie – light lunch on a hot summer day.

Kokum, Goda Masala, Whole Moong Dal

Recipe:

Whole moong dal – 2 cups (soaked in water overnight)
Goda masala – 1 teaspoon
Kokum – 5 pieces of 2 inch length
(Soaked in half cup of warm water for about 15 minutes and juice squeezed)
Garlic – 4 cloves, finely chopped
Dry grated coconut – 1 tablespoon
Cumin seeds – 1 teaspoon, powder coarsely
Red chilli powder & turmeric – ½ teaspoon each
Salt and jaggery – To taste
For popu/tadka:
Oil – 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds, hing – ¼ teaspoon of each and few curry leaves
Chopped coriander leaves – A handful

Take soaked moong dal in a big pot. Add about 2 glasses of water and 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook covered until they are soft and falling apart. This is the prep part.

Just before mealtime, heat oil in a vessel. Do the popu/tadka – add and toast garlic pieces in oil first and then add mustard seeds, hing and curry leaves. Add the cooked moong dal along with the water it was cooked in.

Stir in the seasoning – goda masala, kokum water, coconut powder, crushed cumin, red chilli powder and turmeric. Also add salt and jaggery to taste. Stir in some water if you feel the mixture is too thick.

Bring the whole mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes covered. Add water as necessary (the aamti should not be too thick or too thin). Just before turning off the heat, stir in fresh coriander leaves and remove from heat.

Kad-Dhaanyaachi Aamti (Moongdal Aamti) and Berry Smoothie ~ Our Afternoon Meal

Recipe Source: Veena Parrikar
(Adapted from Smt. Jayashree Deshpande’s Hamkhaas Paaksiddhi’s)
Goda Masala Recipe – Page Link
Kokum is available at Indian grocery shops here in US.

Jeanne of EoMEoTE fame invited me to participate in this month’s egg extravaganza, event dedicated to celebrate the goodness of eggs every month with colorful themes. This month theme is weaving a tabloid story around egg recipes. Celebrity gossip, na… but politics…oh boy, they are like hot popcorn to me. I can’t get enough of that gossip and can spend hours and hours reading all sorts of political tedious minutia. They fascinate me, its like following street theater, but with real people (?) who got the power to make decisions that would affect us all. The noise machine, money changing hands and hidden agendas, bad guys and good guys to root for, what’s not to love?:)

Well, this article is written in a political tabloid (=mainstream) story style. I know the saying out there, that people don’t like to spoil their beautiful brains with unpleasantries of politics. So I am cautioning you my gentle reader, what’s ahead of you is a pure political piece – US style.

A one powerful chicken egg whose campaign slogan is ‘incredible edible egg’ coming out of a relaxing sauna vacation. Very popular already and 50 percent of people like him left and right.

Journalists taking pictures and throwing out questions:

Sir, Mr. Egg, your slogan “incredible edible egg” is very catchy.
Thank you, thank you.

But sir, people are saying edible is alright but the incredible part, that is a tad over hyped? What is your response?
Egg: aahh… oohh…

(The Egg is a puppet of course. The powerful puppet masters who have a stake in Egg success, the Egg council members come forward and answer.)
It’s no hype! Egg is not only edible but it is 100 percent incredible! You don’t believe it? Well, we are going to bombard you with advertisements until the slogan is ingrained in your brain. Got it? Ha…ha…

A journalist who can speak Indian languages:
Sir, I have tasted some eggs in India, precisely in Nandyala. They didn’t smell or tasted like you. Are you sure you are a real egg? Not a product of artificial hormones?
The Egg, huffing and puffing: Ya, we know you can speak foreign languages. What a showoff (snickers). I have fans that traveled all over the US. Well they say, I am the real thaa…ng.

Is it safe to eat you regularly?
That’s it folks, I have to go…

There are reports that your yellow is not good for health?
No comment… runs off.

Few hours later, the breaking news at a political scandal website:

Puffy P. Egg?
The Incredible Edible Egg Caught with Indian Paratha:

Hard-boiled and shelled egg is wrapped in store-bought frozen paratha and baked at 350 F for about 20 minutes.

Golden and Flaky ‘Puffy P Egg’ (Egg Puff Prepared with Paratha) and Ketchup ~ My Entry to EoMEoTE

One of the places we visit whenever life overwhelms us here in US is the New Vrindaban Holy Dham. Located in beautiful and peaceful Appalachian mountain range in the rural West Virginia panhandle, in almost 500 acres, the place is serene and ideal for meditation and contemplation.

The main attraction for us is Radha Krishna temple, and then there is Palace of Gold – Sri Prabupada’s place. There are also small lakes, ponds, swans, peacocks and cows on the ground. To volunteer there is a cow-protection program, community organic vegetable garden and a fragrant rose garden. The temple also has decent cottages and rooms to rent, and they book up fast during summer times. Families with children and with old parents from India often come to this place to escape the everyday hustle and bustle. Though the drive to the place is like a thrill ride with sharp curves and 25 mph speed limit, the place is spectacular and spiritual. Even with all the difficulties of money shortage etc. for the temple, I am glad to see such a beautiful place existing in America for us to visit and to rejuvenate.

Here are some photos that I have taken during our recent trip to this temple as part of my bhakti~bhukti (divine and dine) series. Photos include temple and temple grounds along with Krishna prasadam (temple tradition – After the afternoon puja everyday, a full satvik meal is served in generous portions to the visitors, free of charge.)

New Vrindaban – Wheeling, West Virginia

Temple Entrance

Simha – Guarding the entrance

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Temple Grounds

Appalachian Mountain Range

Permanent Residents of the Temple – Swan Couple with a Baby

Dancing Peacock

Temple Gift Shop

Serving Krishna Prasadam after the afternoon puja

Krishna Prasadam
Bajji, Spinach-Potato Curry, Chole, Lemon Rice, Coconut Chutney (Not shown in this photograph but they also served sambar, grape juice and payasam in small cups)

New Vrindaban – Homepage
Bhakti ~ Bhukti (Divine and Dine) – Sri Venkateswara Temple, Pittsburgh

The Hindu, one of the premier newspapers from India has mentioned about ‘Mahanandi’ in one of its weekend articles.

Article Link – Here

The article is well written and interesting and is about how food blogs are filling an appetite for nostalgia and are catering to the cravings on the web with regional variety.

I greatly appreciate Vijaysree Venkataraman, the author of this article for saying good words about ‘Mahanandi’. It is truly an honor to be published in such an esteemed newspaper.

Congratulations also to The Green Jackfruit, Chai Pani, Gluttony is no sin and Aspiring Annapoorna, who are also equally featured in the article.

Vijaysree blogs at “Apropos of Nothing”.
Comment forum is closed at this moment. Thank you!

Intense Kittaya

Cooling Off Summer Days

Paramannam Prasadam for Indian Sweets 101

Recipe:

6 cups of milk
2 cups of cooked rice
1 cup of sugar/powdered jaggery or to taste
¼ cup of – golden raisins and cashews together, roasted in ghee
4 cardamom pods – seeds powdered
1 tablespoon of ghee

In a large, thick-bottomed saucepan, combine milk and sugar (or jaggery). Cook until sugar melts and milk thickens (just a little bit). Add cooked rice, cashews, golden raisins, cardamom powder and ghee. Mix thoroughly and cook on medium-low heat for about 15 minutes, stirring in-between, until the whole thing comes together. Turn off the heat. Keep it covered for few minutes. Paramannam further thickens on cooling. Serve warm or for a cool refreshing taste, refrigerate for about one hour.

Tomatoes from My Container Garden

The past week before going on a weeklong working vacation to DC with Vijay, one thing I did was picking the cherry tomatoes from my container garden. There were almost two pounds of tomatoes from 4 plants. I picked even the unripe ones, thinking the plants were not going to survive this hot weather without getting water daily. By the time we returned, we were like fried puris all red and puffed up, whereas our plants were all shriveled up and looking tired because of extremely hot weather. I think there is one more crop in them, that’s all.

Cherry tomatoes have thin skin, filled with juice without lot of thick flesh, just like the tomatoes that I would find in India. That’s why I prefer them for planting for my container garden every year. They are perfect for curries, rasams, salads and for rice. And one of the best recipes that truly do justice to the incredible flavor of summer tomatoes is tomato pulao. I often prepare it during this season. Quite easy, a one-pot meal and always a crowd favorite, if you haven’t tried tomato pulao yet, trust me and give it a try. Juicy tomatoes and fragrant basmati rice cooked together is a taste that would make you whistle summer tunes.:)

Summer’s Tomato Bounty

Recipe:

Tomatoes and Veggies:
15 to 20 cherry tomatoes or 1 pound ripe tomatoes of any variety – chopped
1 onion and 6 green chillies – finely chopped lengthwise
½ cup of finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup of frozen fresh chickpeas
(available as ‘Choleye’ in Indian grocery shops-frozen section. Green peas fresh or dried, or roasted cashews – they all taste good with this rice. Your choice.)

Basmati Rice:
1 cup of basmati rice and 2½ cups of water

For Masala:
2 each – cardamom pods and cloves
1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
½ teaspoon of black peppercorn
Coarsely grind these together.
Salt, bay leaf and ghee or oil to taste

1 In a large saucepan, heat ghee/oil. Add and saute the onions until soft and red.

2 Add the green chillies, masala powder, bay leaf and chickpeas, saute for few minutes.

3 Stir in the cut tomatoes, juice, seeds everything. Increase the heat to high, cook them covered until the tomatoes when pressed with a spatula turn to soft, concentrated mush.

4 Stir in the basmati rice and salt. Add water and mix. On high heat, bring the water to boil. Reduce the heat to medium. Cover and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Mix only once and resist the temptation to stir frequently (frequent stirring breaks the rice and makes a soggy mess.) Turn off the heat and leave it to rest for about 5 minutes. Just before serving, sprinkle fresh cilantro, gently mix taking care not to brake the basmati rice.

Serve with kurma and/or raita (yogurt is mixed with salt, finely chopped onions, green chillies and grated carrot, cucumber).

From Pot to Plate ~ Tomato : Basmati Pulao with Raita ~ For “Green Blog Project”

I have seen cookbooks on lentils, rice and on vegetables but never a cookbook dedicated to flours. I am glad that Santhi of Me and My Kitchen, the host of Jihva for Ingredients for August chose a topic covering all types of grain flours to feature for Jihva.

Like Linda, I also had several ideas for JFI, but decided to go with old classic crunchy snack – Janthikalu (murukulu). For us, the best snack foods are made at home, so for our vacation trip last week and to munch during our travel, I had prepared janthikalu (murukulu), using rice flour, gram flour (besan) and moong dal flour. For seasoning I have added salt, chilli powder, cumin, ajwan (carom seeds), sesame seeds and mashed potato. Deep-fried in peanut oil (I find that peanut oil works best for deep-frying and tastes delicious) in batches, janthikalu are our favorite snack item and my entry to JFI~Flour.

Thanks Santhi for hosting JFI and looking forward to reading the recap.

Recipe in detail – Here.

Ingredients for janthikalu and cookie press with different discs to prepare janthikalu

Dough is ready for placing in cookie press and for deep frying

Deep frying janthikalu in peanut oil

Janthikalu – for JFI~Flour

Tiranga

August is the month in 1947 when leeches left our country in search of fresh blood. If you ever suffer from blood loss, you would know how difficult and slow process it is to recover from anemia. Constant fatigue, weakness, listlessness are the norm. Our country has been going through this recovery process, still remained strong and united without going into a chaotic, oppressive dictatorship. By keeping a peaceful, nourishing atmosphere, mother India has provided us a safe shelter to grow and thrive without placing restrictions on us. Needless to say food has an important role in recovery process. In this month of India’s Independence, let’s whip up our culinary skills to salute mother India. Join and let’s do a food parade from all states. I want classic recipes, colorful photos and charging words that would look like rose petals sprinkled on a parade route. In this time of war and destruction unleashed by mutant evil leeches, we need hope and a reason to celebrate. Lets make this Independence Day food parade fun and grand.

Parade Submission Guidelines:

1 Write about traditional(proper) meal of your region or an entry(recipe)/essay/poem/drawing related to food from India, between now and August 14th. Publish it on your blog.

2 Email me (mailmahanandi@gmail.com) your entry by August 14th, with these details.

Entry name – both in English and in Regional Indian language and URL
Recipe Origin – Region, State and the title of that state
(Ex: from Nandyala, the land of Nandis or/and from Andhra Pradesh, the Rice Bowl of India)
Your name and your blog’s name and URL
Colorful, beautiful photo of your recipe in 455:280 pixel size.

Parade procession of all the entries in gorgeous food colors of India will be on Independence Day ~ August 15th.

Some foods I cook for healthy body and some for mental health. Mirchi bajji belongs to later category for me. Cravings and nostalgia motivate me to cook this deliciously hot recipe. Hyderabad, the capital city of my home state Andhra Pradesh has a unique recipe for stuffed bajjis. I have already blogged about mirchi bajjis with different stuffing’s from different regions in India but thought this famous Hyderabadi style mirchi bajji deserves one more post dedicated to it.

Chilli bajjis, the popular street food are incredibly easy to prepare at home and make an excellent way to begin almost any special meal or they can be served as a light meal/snack on busy days. Because we remove the middle thick white vein that carries the seeds, these chilli bajjis are surprisingly mild and not that hot at all.

Reducing the spice kick of chillies by removing the white vein with seeds.

Recipe:
(for 20 chillies)

Preparing the filling to stuff the chillies:
Sesame seeds – 3 tablespoons
Dried coconut powder – 3 tablespoons
Coriander seeds (dhania) – 1 teaspoon (dry roast these 3 to pale gold color)
Salt – ¼ teaspoon
Tamarind juice – 1 tablespoon
Take them all in a blender or spice mill – make a smooth paste without adding water. Remove to a cup.

Mirchi (Chillies) Preparation:
Pick 20 straight, plump, healthy looking chillies. Wash and dry them in a kitchen towel. With a sharp knife make a vertical slit in the middle of chilli on one side. Keep the ends intact (see the photo above). Insert the knife tip and pluck the thick white vein in the middle along with the seeds. Usually it will come off nicely with a sharp knife. After preparing all chillies in this way, start stuffing. Fill the gap with the sesame filling nice and evenly one by one and keep them aside on a plate.

Preparing the batter to dip stuffed chillies:
Besan (gram flour) – 2 cups, sieved
Rice flour – ¼ cup, sieved
Salt, cumin and ajwan (vaamu) – ½ tsp each
Take them all in a vessel, mix to combine. Adding water, prepare medium thick batter of thick buttermilk consistency.

Deep-frying:
Take about 3 to 4 cups of peanut oil in a deep bottomed skillet or kadai. Heat the oil on medium-high. One by one dip the bajjis in batter and gently drop from the sides of kadai into hot oil and deep fry until golden. Remove to a paper towel covered plate and let cool a minute or two. Serve with some limejuice sprinkled and finely sliced onions and tomatoes on the side.
(I’ve dipped the bajjis in batter again and double fried them for that true taste.)

Mirchi Bajjis with Chickpea Guggullu and Watermelon Granita (Ice) with Cherries
Our Comforting Meal and My Entries to
Santhi’s JFI~Flour and also to Revathi’s FMR~Comfort Foods

Watermelon juice, limejuice mixed and frozen for about 4 hours. The ice is crushed (gently with a hammer) and cut cherries are added before serving