Theeyal

It was a myth widely circulated in the 80s that coconuts are the main sources of cholesterol-causing artery blocks. So my mother preferred to reduce the use of coconut meat greatly, used coconut milk sparingly, and stopped using coconut oil once for all. But my grandmothers continued to use coconuts profusely, and they found a dish insipid if coconut meat is scantily added into it. In those days, coconut meat was used in almost every vegetable preparation, coconut milk was used for making scrumptious payasam, and coconut oil for frying crunchy snacks like thattai, murukku, banana chips, etc. We relished theeyal mostly in our grandmother’s house as this recipe calls for good lashings of coconut meat fried in coconut oil.

Channa Kulambu

Channa kulambu prepared using small black chickpeas was one of the few curries I liked to relish during my childhood days. In those days my mother never used large white chickpeas, perhaps it was available only in specific places. Nowadays I switch to large white chickpeas for their soft, melt-in-mouth texture and prepare even more delicious channa kulambu. I like to prepare chettinad style aromatic channa kulambu using white chickpeas, drumstick pods & eggplants (brinjal) to savour the beautiful aroma of drumsticks & the delicious flavor of channa.

Murungakkai Masala (Moringa mash)

Moringa trees are the most common trees grown in almost every house here in South India. Despite the facts that moringa trees attract pests and they are so fragile that they can not withstand strong winds, we grow this tree mainly to enjoy the benefits of nutritious leaves, flowers & pods. Normally, we don’t allow the children to go near this tree as woolly caterpillars found on it may cause itchy skin hives when contact with their strands. Also it is a common phenomenon that branches of drumstick trees break apart and falling down during windy or rainy season.

Drumstick pods soup

Nowadays drumstick (moringa) pods are grown abundantly in my mother’s garden, and she used to keep sending me a batch of these pods every now & then. But it has been boring to see these drumsticks (murungakkai) in our sambar, kuzhambu, kootu & poriyal on our plates every day. Nevertheless I don’t have the heart to waste these amazing fruits of a “miracle” tree considering their nutritive values and health benefits. So I find the drumstick pods soup as a distinctive alternate recipe to use the large quantity of drumsticks in one go.

Sodhi with Inji Pachadi

Sodhi is an exotic Sri Lankan curry prepared with lentils and vegetables stewed in coconut milk. Although sodhi is not a spicy curry, it has grown popular among the people living in & around Tirunelveli who usually enjoy spicy curries. The banana leaf platter served at our family wedding feasts is a lavish spread of creamy sodhi, pungent inji pachadi, spicy potato fries, crunchy appalam, scrumptious coconut milk dessert (payasam), sweet boondhi and fresh curd as shown below. Wedding in our family is usually hosted by bride’s family. However bride’s family is treated with a sumptuous meal (maruveetu sappadu) with sodhi the day after marriage, and it is a unique custom prevalent here to signify the confluence of both the families.

Omam Kuzhambu

Omam kuzhambu is a traditional kuzhambu prepared using aromatic spices with medicinal properties. Omam is beneficial to treat indigestion or flatulence. Hence I like to prepare omam kuzhambu when we return home from a vacation, or after attending a wedding ceremony for few days. I usually serve it with hot steaming rice & roasted papad (sutta appalam), when we crave for a home-cooked food that soothes our stomach. Now I have prepared a meal with omam Kuzhambu, dal (paruppu), stir-fried ladies finger (vendakai poriyal), spicy veg gravy (chettinad masala kootu) & sutta appalam and served for lunch.

Chitrannam

We serve Chitrannam, a platter of rice dishes, as a lunch meal for the Aadi Perukku festival that we celebrate on the 18th day of the Aadi month of the Tamil calendar. Traditionally, we prepare tamarind rice (puliyodharai), lemon rice (elumichai sadam), coconut rice (thengai sadam), and sweet Pongal (Sarkarai Pongal). You can also check out my traditional chitrannam recipes here. Nevertheless, I prefer my chitrannam platter to be colorful and flavorful. So I have prepared spicy red tomato rice, aromatic green mint rice, nutty brown sesame rice, sweet yellow candied rice, and creamy white curd rice. Besides, they are easy to prepare with commonly available ingredients and we can even pack these rice dishes for children’s lunch boxes.

Mor kuzhambu (Yogurt Curry)

Mor kuzhambu is a traditional South Indian yogurt curry. We prepare this curry using sour curd (yogurt), thus enriched with probiotic organisms. Hence, yogurt curry is not only a delicious curry but also a nutritious curry, and we can serve this to everyone young or old. Usually, we serve mor kuzhambu with plain rice or keerai sadam (rice with mashed greens). It is also a perfect side dish for paruppu adai.

Red Lentils Sambar

Traditionally sambar (for rice) is prepared using thuvaram paruppu (red gram/ toor…