Tomato gravy with fried bengal gram dhal flour/ thakkali gravy with pottukadalai maavu

 

If you are searching for a tasty alternative to potato curry for pooris here it is. My mom taught me this and my periyamma taught my mom :). This gravy is very good for diabetic people and people who would love to avoid potato because of its high carb content. Whenever I tell mom that I am making pooris she will start appreciating this gravy and her sisters cooking. So after few such episodes I decided to taste this tomato gravy which my mom is in all praise for. I should accept that what she told is very correct. Definitely it is better than the usual potato curry. Because of the addition of pottukadalai maavu, it is also high in protein content and has very low carb content. You will definitely gulp in a few more pooris or chappathis if you make this side-dish, so be careful :). It is very, very simple and easy to prepare.

Ingredients :

Tomato- 2 nos (big, firm, ripe ones)

Onion- 1 no

Fried bengal gram dhal (potukadalai)- 1 cup ( fry this and ground them to a powder)

Fried bengal gram dhal powder (pottukadalai maavu)- 4 tbspns 

Red chilli powder- 1 1/2 tspn

Turmeric powder- a pinch

Green chillies- 3 nos (mince them) 

Curry leaves- 10 leaflets

Mustard, jeera and urid dhal- 1/2 tspn (for tempering) 

Salt to taste

Oil- 3 tbspns

Method :

First fry the pottukadalai until it acquires a light brown colour and gring them to a smooth powder. Heat oil in a pan.  Add urid dhal, when it turns brown add mustard and jeera seeds. When it splutters add the cut onions, minced green chillies, curry leaves and turmeric powder. Add enough salt to taste. Saute the mixture until onions turn translucent. Then add the cut tomatoes. Saute well until they turn soft. Now add pottukadalai maavu  (fried bengal gram dhal flour, which you have ground already) and chilli powder. Mix well and add 1 cup of water. Let it boil. Since you have added the fired bengal gram dhal flour the mixture thickens very fast. Simmer for 2 or 3 minutes and remove from fire. Very tasty side-dish for poori or chappathi will be ready. 

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe :  Adjust the fried gram dhal flour (pottu kadalai maavu) according to the amount of gravy you need. Store the remaining pottukadalai maavu in an air-tight container. If you  like you can also add a teaspoon of garam masala at the end of preparation. Happy cooking !!! and have a beautiful week ahead!!!

Pakoda / pakora / pakodi

Pakoda, a perfect companion for a cup of hot tea. When it is cold or raining outside a cup of hot tea and a crispy snack like pakoda will be a heavenly treat. It is a snack item prepared with gram flour or besan. It is a very famous bakery item in south India. But home made pakodas are  much tastier and healthier when prepared in the right way. Pakoda and bajis are made with the same variety of flour, yet they taste very different. Pakodas are hard and crispier while bajis have a much smoother texture.

I would always think of avoiding  deep fried items but my cravings usually take an upper hand. So as usual I ended up preparing pakoda on a lazy evening. We both watched IPL with a cup of hot tea and garam, garam pakodis. Hope you too will prepare and enjoy this snack.

Ingredients :

Gram flour (besan)- 1 1/2 cups

Rice flour- 1/4 cup

Onion- 1 no (big variety)

Curry leaves- 10 leaflets

Green chillies- 4 nos

Chilli powder- 1/2 tspn (depending on your taste buds increase or decrease)

Fennel seeds- 1 tspn

Ginger- a small piece (minced well)

Asafoetida- a pinch

Salt to taste and oil for deep frying

Method :

Mix together besan, rice flour. chilli powder, minced ginger, enough salt and asafoetida. In a pan heat 3 tbspns of oil. When the oil becomes hot, add it slowly to the besan mixture and stir it well with a metal spatula. Now add the cut onions, green chillies, fennel seeds and minced curry leaves to the besan mixture. Mix together all the ingredients. Onion has some water content in it. When you squeeze the onions with your hand the moisture in onion pieces will help in binding the flour together. Then sprinkle water little by little and mix the flour to form a thick, paste like batter. Be careful when adding water. Do it slowly and carefully. Take care not to make the batter watery. Then the preparation will turn into a baji. Now heat oil in a pan for deep frying. When the oil becomes hot enough add the batter slowly in batches. Fry till the pakodas turn golden, brown colour. Serve with a cup of hot chai.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe : The texture of the batter is very important. It must be thick and paste like. Addig hot oil to the besan flour helps in making the pakodas crispier and they also imbibe less oil during the frying process. Try adding spinach leaves or any other greens for a healthier version. Happy cooking!!!