Pongal

Ingredients

Rice - 1 allaku
Moong dal - 1/2 allaku
Water - 5-6 cups
Salt - 2-4 spoons of table salt
Curry leaves - 1 strand
Ghee - 1 full spoon
Pepper powder - 1/2 spoon
Ginger grated - 1/2 inch

To temper

Ghee - 3 spoons
Jeera - 1/2 spoon
Hing - 1/2 spoon
Cashew - 10 nos
Curry leaves - 1 strand

Procedure

In a pressure cooker add rice, dal and water with some ghee and cook for 5 whistles. Once cool down again keep in sim. Add 1 spoon ghee, salt, curry leaves, pepper and hing and mix well. Once right consistency add grated ginger. On top of grated ginger add the tempered mix. Switch off, close and rest for 10 minutes.

Tips

- Serves 4
- Thickens after switched off

- Adjust the water to change the consistency
- Adding ginger and on top of it tadka helps to reduce the heat of the ginger
- More the ghee better the taste
- Always used table salt don't use kallu uppu

Bombay Chutney (Athama)

Ingredients

To temper

Oil - 2 spoons
Patta - 1 big
Lavangam - 3 peices
Sombu - 1/2 spoon
Curry leaves - 1 strand
Mustard seeds - 1 spoon
Green chilly - 2

Onion - 1 no if big else 2
Carrot/Beans/Cabbage - 1 cup or 2 handful
Tomato - 1 big
Coriander leaves
Besan flour - 4-5 spoons
Sour curd -3 spoon to mix the besan flour
Turmeric - 1/2 spoon
Sugar - one pinch
Salt to taste

Procedure

Pour oil in a kadai, once hot add temper ingredients and once done add onion and cook till translucent. Add veggies and cook for sometime. Add tomato and cook until tomatoes are mushy. Mix besan flour turmeric and curd with some water, ensure no lumps. Add the mixture to the kadai. Add 2 tumblers of water and allow to cook for 15-20 mins. Adjust consistency by adding water. Add coriander and switch off the flame once the besan flour is cooked.

Tips

- Ensure no lumps in besan flour and curd mixture
- add sugar to the veggies to retain colour
- can add one or two garlic pieces for flavour

- serves 4

Rava Kesari (Athama)

Ingredients

Sugar - 1 cup
Rava - 1 cup
Water - 2.5 to 3 cups
Tadka
Ghee - 4 spoons
Nuts - as per preference

Essence for colour - 1 pinch

Procedure

Add ghee and nuts. Once cooked add water and sugar and essence. Let it come to boil. Add rava and keep the flame in sim and cover and cook until done.

Tips

- Let the water come to boil and add rava slowly and stir continuously

Sweet Pongal (Athama)

Ingredients

Rice - 1/2 allaku
Moong Dal - 1 full spoon
Jaggery - 1/2 allaku
Water - 5-6 allaku (same cup that is used to measure rice)
Ghee - 2 -3 spoons Thiragabathu
Nuts - Cashew and Dry grapes for thiragabathu

Procedure

Take a bowl and bring water to boil. Wash and add rice and dal. Keep it in sim and half covered with a plate and allow to cook. When rice can be pressed with hand and it is soft add jaggery and 1 spoon ghee. Allow to melt and let it all come to a semi solid consistency. Finally add tadka of cashew and dry grapes.

Tips

- Ensure water is boiling before rice and dal is added
- Dont cover the bowl fully keep it half covered only with a plate

- Rice should be eating soft not too soft before we add jaggery
 

Tomato Chutney (Athama)

Ingredients

1 big onion
2 tomatoes
1/2 spoon salt
1/2 spoon hing 
1/2 turmeric 
1/2 spoon sugar
1/2 to 3/4 spoon chilly powder

Procedure

Add oil and mustard seeds and curry leaves. Grind onion and add the paste. Once colour changes add all the masala items and saute. Grind tomato and add the paste. Saute until oil separates and it comes together as a muddha.

Tips

- Can substitute some chilly powder with red chilly

- Saute until oil separates and moisture is absorbed

Thavidibillalu (athama)

Ingredients

Rice nukka - 21/2 allaku
Senibedalu - 2 spoons (make nuka)
Kandipappu - 2 handful (make nuka)
Coconut - half chippa
Oil 2 spoons
Salt - 1/2 spoon
Water - 4 cups

Procedure

Pour water, oil and salt in a bowl. Once it boils add coconut and other ingredients. Boil for 5 mins in sim and mix well. Shape into patties.

Tips and Tricks

- Mix the nuka of rice and dal well before pouring it into the boiling water

Udhi vada (athama)

Ingredients

1/2 allaku plus one pidi
pachi rice 1 spoon
1 green chilly
1/2 inch ginger
Kothamali

Procedure

Soak the dal overnight or for 3 hours. Grind with very little water into  a paste. Mix green chilly. grated ginger and finely chopped kothamali and salt. Allow to rest for 10 mins. Then made vada.

Tips

- dough should be ground well with little water.
- should sink and float before adding the masala