Vazhayila.com

Kerala Beef Pickle - Erachi Achar ( Dry version)

2014-06-03T09:52:00.000-04:00

Its almost the middle of the winter and all I got to see was just a thin coat of snow that too yesterday in the moonless night! Guess the Snotober totally disrupted the winters rhythm. I boarded the "Polar express" and went as far as "Eight below" and climbed up the stairs of many winter castles ; yet my mind aches for a snow fall at home.

The flurries which drizzled for a couple of minutes last week wasn't strong enough to stir up some spirits. I really need the stormy one at least for once! Only the whistling wind and the mean cold seems to have made its late arrival..! Where are you my pretty lil snow flakes?Come you here and cover the naked trees with your white blanket....

...........................

I have an ever lasting love for Pickles - veg and non-veg. Erachi Achar is a traditional Syrian Christian favorite in central kerala, which occupied a regular spot in my family's pantry, along with other veg, meat and fish pickles. Ammachi sees this as a prized possession always and gives us only a spoon or two at any meal , making us crave for it and wait for the next turn :-).

This is not entirely her recipe ; she sun dries the meat with spices for a couple of days and then make it. This is more of my version,with less vinegar , incorporating ammachi's recipe with another one I referred to from the Cook book - The Kerala Kitchen( Moori Erachi Achar pg 203). The recipe from this book has a very interesting ingredient -mustard paste - which I haven't used (& coriander powder ) since I prefer to stick to the traditional one.

We love the dry versions of all the pickles, so that's what I have here for you today ! Black , dry and spicy , just the way I grew up eating . Trust me , this is excellent with drinks( a Red wine for me and my signature Cherry Mojito for N and my dear cousin J )! I am not sure about the shelf life of "this" pickle , since i haven't had to keep it for more than 4-5 days.

Recipe for Nadan Erachi/ Irachi Achar - Kerala Style Beef Pickle

Serves - 8-10 or just 2 people like us

Total cooking time - less than 1 hour

Yields :- These two jars in the picture

Recipe Source :- Partly from my Mom and grandma +partly from The Kerala Kitchen by Lathika George)

Ingredients:-

Bowl 1

Beef - 1/2 kg ( I prefer stew meat )

Meat Masala - 1/2 tea spoon

Turmeric - a generous pinch

Ginger - Garlic paste - 1/2 to 1 tea spoon

Vinegar - 1/2 tea spoon

Salt to taste

To fry meat

Oil - 2 tablespoon

To make masala

Gingelly oil / Sesame oil - 2-3 tablespoon

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tea spoon

Fenugreek seeds - a large pinch

Curry leaves - lots

Garlic chopped - 10 cloves

Ginger sliced - a thumb sized piece ( adjust ginger and garlic as per ur likes)

Green chili chopped - 3-4

Kashmiri Red chili powder - 1.5 tablespoon( if using hot chili powder 1 or 2 tea spoons would be enough)

Vinegar - 1 -2 tablespoons ( add more if you like more, I prefer 2 tablespoons of the normal white distilled one or red wine vinegar)

Whole Black peppercorns - 1 tea spoon

Garam masala - a pinch

Salt to taste

Method :-

Clean and cut the beef into bite sized pieces. Marinate with all in Bowl 1 and keep aside for 20-30 minutes. Pressure cook in a medium flame with 2 tablespoons of water , for 2-3 whistles or until done.

Drain in a colander and reserve the stock( 1/2 cup maximum)

Heat 2 tablespoons of any cooking oil in a non-stick pan and fry the beef pieces till brown.

Meanwhile , heat 2-3 tablespoons of gingelly oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. When they pop up add fenugreek seeds , fry for 10 seconds , followed by curry leaves, garlic, ginger and green chilies. Fry till the raw smell is gone. I love them to be a bit crunchy.

Make a paste with 1 tablespoon of reserved stock , vinegar and red chili powder and add to the pan and fry till the oil separates. Add the remaining stock , bring to boil and add the fried beef pieces along with any oil in the pan . Crush the whole black peppercorns in a mortar and pestle and add to the pan , along with a pinch of garam masala. Simmer for a couple of minutes , stirring often , till it is thick or dry as you like it . Let cool , transfer to clean glass jars and keep in cool dark place or in the fridge.

Notes:-

For more shelf life add more vinegar ( i say not more than 1/4 cup ), & 2 more tbsp of sesame oil.

I don't add coriander powder or shallots to any of the pickles ; it tastes different the next day.

In hot and humid area , better keep this dry version in fridge.

To make gravy , increase the vinegar and stock qty .

Instead pf pressure cooking and frying the meat, you can bake it @ 375 degree for an hour or more and proceed with the process

Happy Cooking

Sarah

Grandma's Nadan Beef - Potato Curry + Oven and Stove top cooking methods

2014-06-02T10:21:00.000-04:00

There is nothing like creating memories with traditional recipes , like the special dishes that mom and grandma makes ; especially when you miss home and your parents the most !

Yeah I miss my mom , my dad and you my dooda!

You know what I do when I wanna recharge my batteries and give an emotional break? I try to recreate the smell and flavor of Ammachi's and Amma's kitchen ; this time Amamchi's special slow cooked naadan beef curry won the toss. Its been so long since we made beef , cos of the healthy diet regime I was blah blah-ing about in last two posts . So the making of this curry was exciting to my taste buds and emotionally enticing !

What's special about Grandma's Beef curry , you might think! Well , she makes it in the old fashioned "Aduppu" , in a wide mouthed Manchatti - Clay pot , and slow cook it for 1.5 to 2 hours.

The smoke , the uniform heat and the clay pot imparts a unique flavor to the dishes , making it the best est ever and the hardest one to replicate.

The making of Uppumanga- Salted (Tender) Mangoes in Brine

2014-04-30T10:35:00.000-04:00

Was it the dearth of topics that kept me away from this dear space of mine for so long ? Or was it the laziness to use the creative part of my brain? I don't know may be everything piled up to a "very tall" blogger's block which almost blinded my vision, and never did I try to push it away and clear the path...until now...

Why now ??mm mm..I was pondering over the same and I guess the changing seasons makes a huge impact on me ....The longer days, with light warm sun, the temperature hitting 60's, the signs of new life - the spring ...Ah I m rejuvenated ! That's it !

February-March is the time we get fresh fresh tender mangoes( kannimanga) in our local Indian store. This is the time I make batches and batches of Uppumanga for summer and fall and save some for winter. I love recreating those traditions the generations before used to do..I take pride and joy in bringing back those good old memories..and those sprinkles of memories makes it all worthy of re-creation.!

My mom loves it so much and so do we and never had to make it , since grandma always packs an extra jar -"bharani" , to my mom knowing her love for this. They make it in early summer , and save it for the monsoon, when the entire Kuttanad would be flooded and no means to get vegetables else where!...Uppumanga Chammanthi with coconut ,pairing it with shallots ( kunjulli ) to make a chammanthy for kanji , uppukari and charukari and ammachi even makes an uppumanga meen curry.......ah ! I add a little brine from this jar in everything I make , just like my mom and the salty chili flavored brine has a very distinctive smell which screams yummy!

Recipe for Uppumanga - Salted tender mangoes in brine

Yields :- 2 medium glass jars

Total time - 3-4 weeks

Tender mangoes ( kannimanga) - 15-20( or use 2 raw mangoes sliced )

Green chiles -10-12 slitted

A glass jar which can hold the entire mangoes or take two jars

Salt to taste ( I added 1.5 to 2 tablespoons )

Water - a little more than what 2 jars can hold

Clean , wash and wipe the tender mangoes with a clean cloth.

Bring to boil the required qty of water , add salt and let boil. Switch off the flame and let come to room temperature.

Add the mangoes and slitted green chili to the jar , add enough water to cover it .

Take a clean white cloth , cover the mouth of the jar and secure it tightly with a kitchen twine and then secure it with lid.

Keep in a cool dark corner for 3-4 weeks and then you can start using it . I keep it outside not more than 5 weeks , and then refrigerate it . But the time depends a lot on the qty of mangoes too. Some will be done even before this time .and if the skin is really hard it will take some more..

Always use clean cloth , jar and pot , else you can see fungus.

See My recipe for Uppumanga Chammanthi

LIfe Lately....In Instagram

2013-09-23T10:40:00.003-04:00

#Iphonography #mylife - For more pics from my mundane everyday life see @ sarah_naveen (Instagram )

Puerto Rico .... Away we went to the Caribbean

2013-08-23T16:16:00.000-04:00

Away we went to the Island of Puerto Rico

To relax, drink, eat, read and shop

But we did see "a few many" places

Which made in our mind their own spaces

Thought will share some pictures

With some old San Juan strictures

Ponce, Vieques, Bio luminescent Bay

El Yunque , Luquillo ...... we may

Come again some day .

All pictures taken during our vacation to the Island of Puerto Rico , in May 2012.

Chundum Parippum Thoran - Lentil + Banana Blossom Stir fry

2013-07-23T08:15:00.000-04:00

How many of you have waddled through your own or neighbor's backyard , looking for the fallen snugly bracts of the red banana blossoms , in search of the tiny drops of honey left ? I have many times like a little squirrel ........

I know I haven't been around here much last couple of months, hope I will be back to my normal routine soon. Thanks to all of you for coming here every single day !

Was reminiscing about the "Pothichoru"( Meals) my brother T used to get for us , when we were left alone at house , from a tiny tea shack ( chayakada) near our home.

An all-in-one pack of choru , thenga aracha meen curry , chundum parippum , vanpayar olathiyathu, naranga achar and pappadam ; in a pliable vazhayila covered with an old newspaper , glued together with pasted "choru".

I craved for it ; tried to imitate it ; foil for vazhayila sans newspaper and rest the same !

Ate with so much joy ! Satisfied ! Recreated a good old memory !

"Pothichoru , "meals ready - Oonnu thayar " triggering some childhood memory ? Write to me just like you did with this post about Kakka Erachi Ammachi , without me asking you .. I promise this will be our lil secret :-)..I enjoyed each and every e-mail you sent me about fish mongers and it feels so good to know I took you for a walk down the memory lane

Recipe for nadan vazhachundu - thovara parippu thoran

Serves - 4

Total cooking time - 30 minutes

Ingredients:-

Vazha Chundu / Banana Blossoms - 1 medium

Oil - 1 tea spoon

Yellow Lentils - 1/2 cup

Oil - 1 tablespoon

Salt to taste

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tea spoon

Curry leaves

Shallots chopped - 4

Green chili chopped - 4-5

Garlic chopped - 2 cloves (optional)

Ginger chopped - a small piece (optional)
Turmeric - a pinch

Salt to taste

Bowl - 1

Grated coconut - 1 cup

a pinch of cumin

a pinch of turmeric

Directions :-
Clean, rinse and soak yellow lentils for at least 2 hours , drain and cook with a pinch of salt and just enough water and keep aside.

Clean and remove the outer layers of the banana flower until you get the heart . I smear a lil oil on my hand, knife and the flower and remove the thread kind of thing as I mince it . Put it in a bowl of water and wash well.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan and add mustard seeds , when it splutters add curry leaves , chopped shallots , green chili , ginger and garlic and saute till the raw smell disappears. Add a pinch of turmeric the minced blossoms , salt to taste and saute for a minute.Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of water , keep everything to the center of the pan and cook covered for 3-5 minutes in a medium flame.
Crush all in Bowl - 1 lightly in a food processor or mixie and add to the pan along with the cooked lentils. Combine everything well , simmer for 4-5 minutes , stirring often until it is done and dry.

Happy Cooking

Sarah

Coorg Style Chicken curry with Homemade Spice Powder

2013-05-08T21:53:00.000-04:00

Spring - a time of resurrection and renewal.- everything feels new, everything's up for a change and me too..~~the trees with new lea.....~~
Oh C'mon I have been trying to concentrate and write this post for the past 30 minutes,and all I am doing is typing and deleting ..

"Coffee hun"

"Oh Yes" .....hastily walking to the counter oblivious of the people around

"Thanks Kim" and the usual chit chat about weather, family, my new coral shoes, and the handsome guy -N who is yet to set foot here, after his new year oath to read more ! Yeah well, Tablets are a good excuse too.

I am in my regular near -by- home cafe / book shop, where people know my name, where I don't have to build a coffee ; its "the usual today hun"? - a grande white chocolate mocha for the last couple of years.

Slowly walking back to my corner spot, browsing through the beautiful display of coffee mugs,I suddenly felt a lot of eyes falling on my new coral colored shoes - so much for the loud laughter and friendly banter with Kim. That's when our eyes met . The beautiful skinny B@#$@# and the almost Ben Affleck look alike - the reason behind my poor concentration. "I wish I had never seen your face"- Its written all over my face!
Like N says I m so bad at "concealing" my "thoughts" on my" face "! If I dont like anything , you can see it right on my face . U know ur face is the mirror to your mind kind of thing.

I slide into my corner table, the screen staring at me with thoughts on Spring ..blah .blah ..blah..I have to make a spring-summer reading list, dozen books overcrowding my tiny table,waiting for their fate..and a big fat Federal Legislation book, which I have to read and learn within a couple of weeks.
...."I wish I had never seen your face"...thoughts thoughts go away and never ever come again..Why the hell did I eavesdrop ?

I have met a lot of writers and writers-to-be in this cafe/bookshop. I am so comfortable here that I have shared my theoretical knowledge of writing a novel to total strangers and I listen to their experience of writing it ! This is where the golden advice from creative writing class was reinforced "scan your surroundings for your characters " I have tried to do that ever since by eavesdropping and eaves-reading, and sometimes simply by observing. Though I am not an aspiring writer like the lot I see here, I love scribbling my thoughts and memories and creating plots . But the people -no I should call them characters - I see around me ,are so diversified, funny and witty, rude and stubborn, calm and cool, and all the more complex than my pen could ever put into words. But those tiny strokes of characters are the building blocks to one's creation ! The whole experience is like reading some short stories with abrupt endings, where readers are left to guess the rest , just like I am about to do ...nope.... doing here now !

The recipe today is something I adapted from sinfulcurry . I made this last year for the first time and fell in love . The original recipe calls for pork and a coorgi special kanchampuli -the thin black extract of our won Kudampuli , which I was lucky enough to get hold of from a friend's friend. Though I ran out of the tamarind pretty soon, I substituted it with red wine vinegar and it almost tastes as good.
The preparation is same as our kerala style chicken curry and the spice blend with the addition of cumin and mustard seeds,and the puli is the only thing that makes it different. An easy-to-make mild tangy curry,which goes perfect with ghee rice pulao.

Recipe for Coorgi Style Simple Chicken curry +Homemade Meat masala powder, served with spiced yellow rice

Serves - 4

Total cooking time :-1- 2 hours for marination + 40 minutes cooking time

Recipe Adapted from Sinfulcurry

Recipe for Homemade Spice Powder- Coorgi Meat masala powder

Coriander seeds - 3 tablespoons

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tea spoon

Black mustard seeds - 1/4 tea spoon

Black pepper - 1 tea spoon

Cloves -4

Cinnamon an inch piece

Green cardamom - 1 or 2

Heat these spices in a pan without oil until nice aroma comes and its brown, and let cool.Grind in a coffee/Spice grinder or in the small jar of your blender . I prefer a coarse powder rather than the super fine one. Keep in a small airtight jar.

Recipe for Coorgi Chicken curry

Ingredients:-

To marinate chicken:-

Chicken - 3/4 kg ( I prefer boneless skinless chicken thighs)

Homemade Spice powder - 1.5 tablespoon

Red chili powder - 1.5 tea spoon

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tea spoon

Red Wine Vinegar - 2 tablespoon( Use Kanchampuli - the thin black extract of kudampuli, if u can get hold of it ..see notes )

Salt to taste

To saute

Coconut oil or any cooking oil - 2 tablespoon

Mustard seeds - 1/2 - 3/4 tea spoon

Curry leaves - a handful

Onion finely chopped - 1 big
Shallots - 5 sliced or use a small onion

Ginger-garlic paste - 1.5 to 2 tablespoon

Homemade spice powder - 1/2 tea spoon

Red chili powder - 1/2 tea spoon( add more if you want it to be more spicy)

Cilantro chopped - 2 tablespoons

Method :-
Cut the chicken into small cubes , clean well and pat dry.Marinate it with all the ingredients under the to marinate section and keep aside for an hour or two in the refrigerator.
Cook this covered with 1/4 cup water for like 20 minutes.
Meanwhile heat 2 tablespoon of coconut oil or any other cooking oil in a wide mouthed non stick pan. When it is hot add mustard seeds . When they splutter add curry leaves and fry for 30 seconds. Slide in chopped shallots and onions and saute till brown.
Add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell is gone and the oil separates.
Add chili powder and homemade spice powder and fry for a minute or two.
Add the cooked chicken pieces and simmer until everything is mixed well and the gravy is thick. or you can let it fry like we make chicken olathiyathu.
Sprinkle chopped cilantro and switch off the heat. let stand covered for 15-20 minutes before serving...

Notes :-
The Kanchampuli I mentioned is the extract from our won kudampuli , but I feel the one I have from back home is a bit more tart than the one I got from my friends'. So I use red wine vinegar now :-)

Happy Cooking
Sarah

Green Rules - Pictures from Kerala

2013-02-25T15:30:00.000-05:00

Hello reader (s),

To say Time was the reason I stayed away from here, would be an understatement, since I know we squeeze things to fit into Time and its not the other way round. From being gone from a happy and contend home maker to a career woman was a big leap, but anyways I took it. Now its up to me to handle efficiently the different roles I adorn during the course of the day.The truth is I struggled; Big time !

Seasons changed, the once dormant multi-tasker in me was reborn, and now I flirt with satisfaction; for life in general and appetite in particular.

Now its to you reader(s) that I have to extend my thanks , for never ceasing to come here !

To my great surprise,my readership shoot up after my disappearance, emails continue to fill my inbox and people started checking on me. Though it felt good I was completely out of blogging mojo, and did not have a clue how to squeeze this into my routine. Then came holiday celebrations and parties and we drowned in laughter and happiness.

This new fresh year we travelled to Kerala, soaked in its beauty, found warmth in love from parents and dear ones, filled our souls living the homeland nostalgia. We feel we have become a lil matured about calling Kerala home, and realized this has become our "Home, where you live, setting up your life, and where you grew up has become "home away from Home"........

Though I love to be a regular writing to you , I never promise anything, since I hate to break it!

Some pictures from our vacation, including some Kuttanadan Kallushap specials(Toddy shop) to brighten up this space.

Canned Tuna Cutlets - Revisiting Kerala style Fish Cutlet

2012-10-09T14:26:00.000-04:00

Just to keep this space alive , an excerpt from my journal - a reflection on myself - for those who wish to read and later........... revisiting one of my favorite recipe for tuna cutlets..

I am a dreamer , I live with memories and try to make each day memorable...but mine is a curious case of a complete topsy turvy gal. My choices are strange , so are my habits ..I crave coke on a bone - chilling cold day and spicy soup on a hot humid day..I read history and politics somedays, switch to Dalai Lama and his teachings on some other , knowing and understanding - compassion, love and death..but hardly miss the daily Rosary. Though I love my job , I can't help myself read a little in the afternoons at office..its kind of power nap for me ;-)...

I live with Anne in Green Gables , but attend the Fairacare school in Miss Read's class ( Prince Edward Island to an English Village ; how convenient )...I totally adore the era of Dickens and Brontes ; though always dream of living or being one among the March sisters, but appreciate the present and curious about the future..Yes I am a curious gal...

I have come across a lot of amazing people in my life , whom I can call friends, and couple of bad seeds , who I was able to pinch and throw at the right time..I am such a person who sees a simple act of joy as a blessing and each blessing a reason to be thankful.

When I see a magazine with my name and picture published on it , I call it nothing but luck..
When I see my recipe being pinned more than 1000 times , I say " really??mmmm" ( if in case you wanna see which that recipe is , here is the link to pinterest )
Its not that I am humble , its just that my Business School thesis on self efficacy didn't prove much :-).... ..............to be continued ....someday I guess !

Recipe for Kerala Style Fish cutlets with Canned Tuna
Serves - 3-4 ; Makes around 20 cutlets
Total cooking time - 30 minutes

Ingredients:-

Canned Tuna - 15 oz

Potato - 2

Onion finely chopped - 1
Curry leaves chopped - 6-7
Meat masala - 1 tea spoon or use a mix of Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp, Chili powder - 1/4 tea spoon + Turmeric powder 1/4 tea spoon.

Egg - 1 or 2

Bread Crumbs

Salt to taste

Oil for frying
Bowl 1

Ginger -an inch piece

Garlic - 6-7 small cloves

Green chillies - 4-5 nos
Fennel seeds - 1/2 - 1 tea spoon (optional)

Black pepper- 1/2 to 1 tsp

Method:-

Open the lid of the canned Tuna around and leave the lid on,push it down with ur thumb and drain the water from the can as mush as possible.(If using regular fish :-Clean and cut the fish.Cook it with 1/2 tsp of pepper powder and salt and a lil turmeric . Shred the fish using a fork or your hands Drain the excess water.)

Cook the potatoes until they are tender,mash it and keep it aside.

Crush all in Bowl 1 in a coffee grinder or small jar of mixie.

Heat oil in a pan and add chopped curry leaves and onions,saute it till they are soft.

Add the crushed Bowl 1 mix and fry for till the raw smell disappears.
Add the spice powders and fry it for a minute or two

Add fish/tuna and salt ; sauté well for 8-10 minutes, or until it is dry, remove from fire and let it cool

Then add mashed potatoes and mix it well with your hand to make a dough

Make small balls in round,oval or in the shape you want, with your hand.
Dip this balls in beaten egg and roll it in bread crumbs

Deep fry these in boiling hot oil and drain on paper towels.
Serve Warm with Onion salad or ketchup( Maggie's masala chili is awesome if u r that spice loving )

To make Onion Salad thinly slice Onions,and green chiles . Mix it well with salt and a tsp of vinegar!!!

Kerala Key Lime Pickle - Naranga Achar

2012-07-10T12:13:00.000-04:00

Life is good….Life is busy.. Life is full of happiness.... Thank God and Let it be the same.. Hope you are all making use of the best days of summer yet with long sunny days.

We are having the best of the times playing tourists with parents visiting, revisiting popular spots, BBQ-ing at cousins’ , meeting near and far relatives and friends. Since I have been away from this space for almost a month, doesn’t in any way imply I wasn’t cooking or we weren’t eating :-) The lbs I put on speaks for it and I admit I haven’t had time to click all the sumptuous meals mom has been cooking...

A post from draft without much pics, for now…and I promise I will be back

Recipe for Kerala Key lime pickle –Cheru Naranga Achar

Makes – a medium jar ( the one like a pasta sauce jar)

Ingredients:-

Key Lime / pacha naranga – 10 big

Salt - to taste + a pinch of sugar

Gingelly oil / Nallenna / Sesame oil - 2 table spoon + 2 table spoon

Mustard seeds - 1 tea spoon

Fenugreek seeds – ¼ tea spoon

Garlic chopped - 10 cloves or 1 wholepod ( you can add more if you love the bite of it in your pickle)

Ginger chopped – a thumb sized piece

Green chilli – 5-6 slitted

Curry Leaves - a handful

Turmeric powder – ¼ tea spoon

Kashmiri Red chili powder – 2- 2.5 table spoon ( use as per your spice level , 2 tbsp is really spicy)

Kaayam ( asafoetida) – ¼ tea spoon

Vinegar - 2 tea spoon

Salt to taste

Method:-

Clean, wash and pat dry limes .
Cut into 8 pieces and steam in an appachembu or steamer for 10-12 minutes

Let it cool. Or You can steam the limes as whole and then cut it.

Take an air tight glass jar, add limes, 2 tea spoons to a tablespoon of salt and a pinch of sugar and mix well.

Keep it for a week or two , shaking the bottle every day or stir it with a clean spoon.

On the day you are making the pickle , take it out and drain the water if any ( this helps to reduce the bitterness).

Heat 2 table spoons of gingelly oil/ nallenna in a pan and add mustard seeds.

When they pop up add fenugreek seeds and fry for 30 seconds.

Add garlic, ginger, green chilly and curry leaves and sauté for a couple of minutes.

Make a paste with chili powder, turmeric powder and lil water , and mix well. Add ¼ cup water more.

Simmer for a couple of minutes or till the water is reduced or it is thick.

Add Lemon pieces , salt to taste, mix well , let stand covered for 3-4minutes.

Add asafetida ( kaayam) and fenugreek powder (if using),remove from fire and let it cool. Add vinegar( if u r using) mix well.

My mom and grandma usually leave it in the pan for 4-6 hours , but you can omit this step if you want.

Transfer that to a glass jar and add 2 table spoon of gingelly oil.

Make sure the glass jar has a tight lid :).

Serve with Kanji, Rice ….

Also see other Pickle Recipes

Happy Cooking

Sarah

Life Lately ..In Instagram !!!

2012-07-09T11:24:00.000-04:00

GWB on a misty morning

Through roads often travelled

The beautiful tip of Long Island.....drenched in the blue waters of Atlantic

Strolling through the Hamptons amongst the richest with a cuppa joe !

Always good to be back to Green and Red goodness

Chakkakuru Manga Avial - A guest post for Namitha

2012-06-16T09:07:00.005-04:00

Rarely do I come across such people who leaves a profound impact on me ; who is so much fun to talk to ; who spreads joy and comfort around , and at times who acts like a sister . Namitha is one such person. I don't know exactly when I started talking to her, creating a new bond, an "unseen" friendship from miles away. Unseen - I am yet to see her in person; Unseen - I never saw myself crafting a friendship with a person, I have known only through blogging. We don't talk everyday or every week,but never less than an hour :-)

I am always amazed by her passion for food, how efficiently she manages her lovely family and Collaborative curry - a blog she co- authors with Sunitha - full of love and sweet things . I am so delighted to be here, a space which I admire the most in blogging world, both for recipes and brilliant pictures. In fact, it came as a wake up call for me, when Namitha asked me to do a guest post here, as I was slowly drifting away from the food blogging scene; I m glad you asked me :-)

The recipe I have here, is something from my grandma's collection, which she shared with me on my last visit.I really miss everything about monsoon back home-especially "kuttanad" - along with the monsoon rain, the monsoon tides and the amazing food. In the olden days,( not like centuries old , but u know the old India nostalgia) after feasting on the various preparations from jack fruit the entire summer, the seeds are stashed away in a " vallikkotta" "for the rainy days". They use it when the monsoon hit the village hard for it's impossible to get out and grab other vegetables.

A couple of weeks ago, I got hold of a bag of chakkakuru from N's cousin's place and have been cooking up a lot of dishes with it ever since. Since I wanted to make something authentic, something true to my roots for my post here, I couldn't think of anything better than this recipe. It's more or less similar to the curry with the same name, except its a gravy-less prep. You can use either "Uppumanga or pacha manga ", I use fresh green mango, for it's widely available here regardless of the season.

For this recipe and an amazing collection of cakes and cookies head over to Collaborative curry
Happy Cooking
Sarah

Lately....

2012-02-22T16:50:00.000-05:00

I am still searching for some inspiration to cook , click and post !! But when I paused the search and gave a quick glance around I was amazed by nature's creative senses!

Lately ........ This and that.....

2012-01-10T13:23:00.000-05:00

Yes I know ! Its been quite some time.

Hope you are having the best of this new year yet ! Just dropping in here with no purpose described, but the post may serve its own .

I have this new found addiction to my life like never before , to enjoy each and every moment and hold it with love in a loving cup , like grains of golden sand. While I am at it , I even forgot the day that marked vazhayila's existence , until a reader reminded me ! Its been 3 years( Jan-6th) ..Thanks much to all the readers for making this a popular space ....I am humbled !

Kerala Fish Molee - Christmas Special( Salmon in coconut-cashew curry)

2011-12-22T09:10:00.000-05:00

With Christmas closing in so fast , I am excited and overjoyed like y'all , that I may go mad with delight.A drive through my neighborhood makes me feel like I am living in the magical town of "Whoville" , with houses and stores gaily decorated and decked up to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.
There is happiness where ever you look,whoever you see,forgetting all the troubles they may have.There is hope within the sparkle of their eyes , and radiance on their face ; World indeed looks like a good place to live.

Sambar Rice - Quick dinner for cold winter nights

2011-12-16T15:50:00.000-05:00

Apart from the darkness that creeps in the late afternoon with the early sunset , I love everything about december ; even the same darkness in the mornings that allows me to wallow in my bed for an extra hour or two. Its such a special time for people around the world right ; with festive colors , lights and music , everywhere you go! There's something magical about this holiday season , that lifts my spirits sky high ...
I still believe in Santa Claus , do you ? I believed him, and was singing like Marilyn Monroe - "Santa baby"- a hundred times with my own lines , and he came down the chimney a lil early for me this year !

In the comfort of simple food .1

2011-12-09T10:00:00.000-05:00

At times , I am humbled by the simple yet satisfyingly rich flavors of natural things !
Hard Boiled Egg + .. I don't mind if it is a tad low on salt , but really appreciate a generous pinch of freshly crushed black pepper

Research comes and goes , but eggs are always good for you , so I've been told !

Kakka irachi / erachi ularthiyathu - Kerala Clams Roast

2011-11-29T10:33:00.000-05:00

Hope all in US had a scrumptious Thanksgiving dinner , enjoyed and indulged in the mad shopping frenzy of Black Friday and relaxed on the weekend ! We had a blissful thanksgiving ... Oh boy , I am a happy successful host ...

The only thing that worries me after this long weekend is the guilt of eating too much , feeling heavy and total crap! I am trying to reset the button with meditation.....Thank god , the lent starts within days , wink ...

Unakkameen Podichathu/ Chammanthy - Crushed Salted 'N' Dried Fish

2011-11-21T10:03:00.000-05:00

What are you thankful for this year?

On the Sunday before thanksgiving , I have this habit of jotting down all those things that I am thankful to God almighty , for the past year. I go through each blessing again n again , living those moments one more time , telling him , how grateful I am . I know perfectly , whatever I achieve its 5 % me and 95 % the One above .. How about you guys?

Squash Blossoms (Thoran) Stir Fry with Coconut

2011-11-13T17:15:00.000-05:00

Hope you all are doing good . No soliloquy , no laments or celebration in this post ! I am just spring cleaning my space .

I have definitely lost my blogging mojo, with a zillion other things taking away my time and thought will clear out some from drafts until I get back the time and motivation for the new !

Stir Fried Soba Noodles With Chicken and Ginger

2011-11-03T10:21:00.000-04:00

It started as a dreamy snow , touching the red leaves with its powdery white. It was a magnificent sight, and a rarity in my part of the world.

I was as excited as the leaves you see in the pictures here , to be touched by the gentle flakes.

Later, it poured down in a kind of frenzy ; inches by inches it rose , the colors and the earth sunk deep in its frozen blanket .

Thenga Varutharacha Meen ( Mathi ) curry - Canned Sardines in roasted coconut curry

2011-10-27T10:19:00.000-04:00

Looking at the gray-sky outside, with a cup of joe, I can see the yellow , the crimson red and brown all over the trees and ground , creating a bed of colors . What a delightful sight , though the sky warns me its the death of the season baby! Why Mr. Sky do you think that will pull me back from njoying this beauty? Not a bit!

What do you love " the most" about this season?

Continue reading.....

Mutta Chikkiyathu - Scrambled (Breakfast) Eggs + Lil Proud moments

2011-10-20T09:42:00.000-04:00

I smiled , I felt elated ; I smiled again.
Little or Big,moments of appreciation of my pastime's honest efforts - a line of praise , an email from a reader or accolades from popular websites - makes me smile,makes me jittery for a few seconds and then I am back to my composed self .

That being said, I take pride and joy in letting you all know that this humble space of mine received some accolades recently.

A couple of weeks back , Vazhayila has been voted the Top 70 foodie blog on the web by e-college finder . Its only after , people have started asking me about the new logo in the side bar that I really thought of announcing it.

By then Shelley of Yummly , send me a mail , saying my recipe of Nadan chicken and potato curry is featured in their "Spice up your evenings with delicious curries".

Oh boy , I am a certified Yummly blogger now :) . I am so happy that all this came when I was taking my baby steps of freelancing ;).

Back to business , do you think posting such a simple recipe is so silly? Who doesn't know to make this right ? But trust me when I say , it took me weeks of practicing to finally get my first perfect scrambled eggs ;). I wanted the way they make for egg fried rice in restaurants . I just heart it! only after trying several different non stick pans , that it struck me , its the wok that made all the difference. Thus born my perfect - not-so-dry , not-so-moist -small lumps of scrambled eggs.

Recipe for Mutta/Motta Chikkiyathu - Kerala Style Scrambled Eggs

Serves - 2

Total cooking time - 15 minutes

( its just a mix of things that i love , throw in whatever you like)

Ingredients:-

Eggs - 5 large

Salt to taste

Pepper crushed - a large pinch

Oil or ghee - 1- 2 spoons

Mustard seeds - a large pinch

Cumin or fennel seeds - a pinch ( optional)

Onion finely chopped - 1/2 or full of a small one

Ginger chopped/ minced - a small piece

Green chili chopped - 2 small

Curry leaves - 5-6

Tomato finely chopped - 1 small

Turmeric - a large pinch

Red chili powder - a pinch (optional)

Method:-

Heat oil in a wok or nonstick pan and add mustard seeds .

When it splutter add onion , ginger , green chili and curry leaves.Saute until it is soft,for like 3-5 minutes.

Add tomatoes and stir fry 2-3 minutes.Add turmeric and red chili powder and mix well.

Beat eggs with salt and pepper.

Pour in eggs and gently cook stirring( using edges of a wooden spoon) until it is dry and cooked.

Have a good day all :)

Sarah

Apples and Pears ; Finding Colors in Manhattan Greenmarkets

2011-10-17T09:40:00.000-04:00

This year the autumn isn't really an autumn , with most of the trees with still green leaves resisting to turn yellow and red .

On our gals day out in Manhattan , me and my friend P , we took a stroll through 47th street's Dag Hammarskjold Green market ,ogling at the yet to arrive fall colors , in the fruits and veggies there. The sky was pregnant with thick clouds and the mood mellow, creating a perfect milieu to enjoy all the hues of the rainbow there in the market .

We brought home some amazing purple eggplants , made a stir fry exactly the way they demonstrated and it was oh so good! The blood red cayenne , the simply delicious empanadas , and the awesome squash blossoms were all as good as it can get! Here are some colors for you!

Good day

Sarah

Broccoli Rabe (Thoran) Stir fry with Garlic and Cumin

2011-10-06T09:36:00.000-04:00

This is one of those posts , where I write a sentence and hit delete .....Where should I start ? What should I write about ?

mmmm that I am sad my house is so silent when friends went back to India after two weeks of traveling shopping and gossiping ??

that I am sad , "the greatest innovator of our times" has embraced in his own words" the single best invention of life"? Well now you know what I wanted to shout out !Who knew that man could influence billions and make it a way of living with his cool sleek devices!

Isn't it last week we fought over Apple and Jobs S,S and N? Isn't last week we laughed over the pompous gal and her i-phone 4 (G) ?

Vazhayila has lots of thoran in its( or his or hers? I wonder?) archives which I have added in the course of last 2 years. As many of you know N loves thoran , and its a regular in most of our meals no matter its Indian or not! I have been trying to eat seasonal fresh produce lately ; comes autumn the farm stand is brimming with lots of green goodness which I haven't even heard of .
I grew curious over this particular green bunch; the vendor said its really good but a bit bitter and asked me to add some lemon juice in whatever I make ; I brought it home , made a stir fry with coconut, flavored with cumin , ginger and garlic and a dash of lemon juice at the end ! Nothing can satisfy me better , than the pure knowledge of the goodness of something that I eat..

A Kerala Stir fry Recipe With Broccoli Rabe (Rapini)
Serves - 4
Preparation time - 10 minutes
Cooking time - 10 minutes
Ingredients:-

Broccoli Rabe - a bunch
Oil - 1 table spoon
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tea spoon
Cumin - a large pinch
Juice of 1/2 to 1 lemon
Curry leaves - 6-7
Salt to taste
Bowl 1
Shallots chopped - 3 or 4 or half of a medium sized onion
Garlic - 2 cloves
Ginger - a small piece ( optional , I add it cos i like the bite of ginger in all my dishes)
Green chili - 2 small
Black peppercorns - 4 -5 (optional)
Bowl 2
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Grated coconut

Method:-
Rinse the broccoli rabe well in hot water and chop it .
Lightly crush all the ingredients in Bowl 1 in a mortar and pestle or coffee grinder.
Add it with the ingredients in Bowl 2 and mix well with your hands. If you want you can pulse it all in a food processor for 2-3 times, without adding water.
Heat oil in a wide mouthed pan , and add mustard seeds. When it splutter add cumin and fry for 30 seconds and curry leaves and chopped broccoli rabe and saute for 4-5 minutes.
Add the coconut mix and saute for another 4-5 minutes or until it is dry. (Do not add water.).
Sprinkle juice of lemon , mix well and remove from heat.
Serve warm.

Good day all!
☁Sarah