9 ATHALAKKAI VATHAL / VADAGAM

Athalakkai in Tamil(Momordica cymbalaria- botanical name) / Kaasara Kaaya in Telugu, Karsikayi in Kannada, Kattupaval in
Malayalam and in Marathi it is known asKadavanchi, Kuduhunchi.
 

Athalakkai looks very similar as small bittergourd but, both are very different in shape and taste. South Indian recipes like Poriyal(stir fry), fry, pulikulambu( tamarind gravy) and vadagam can be prepared with this vegetable. Check this wikipedia link to know more about this vegetable http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Momordica_cymbalaria

This vegetable is very much common in our native. When we were kids my grandparents and few other close relatives used to send the fresh ones to us or bring it to us if they are visiting and some parts were cooked in salt water and sun dried and later used as a vathal/vadagam and had with rice and gravy or these sun dried vadagams itself were used in gravies or stir fry's.
So next time you see this fresh veggies, try to cook it fresh or sun dry them as vadagams and use it in your favourite fry's or gravies.

I will update this post with some picture of the fresh vegetable later but you can have a look at how the fresh vegetable will look like from this link https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Momordica_cymbalaria_fruits.jpg



Athalakkai - 1 kg
Water - enough for immersing
Salt - a handful

Clean and wash the fresh athalakkai. If needed can also trim the edges though not necessary.

Take a wide pan/vessel with lots of water and salt. Bring it to a boil. Add this veggie and half cook till they are soft.

Drain water and spread on a cloth or steel plate. Place under direct sun and sun dry for 1 - 2 days or check if they are crispy and fully dry or keep again for another day. Remove and store in a air tight container for late use.

Usually for sun dry items salt is added more than needed so that it does not get spoilt and can be used for many days. So when preparing any dish with it adjust salt accordingly.

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26 SUN DRIED CHILLIES / MOR MILAGAI

Mor Milagai / Sun Dried Chillies / Majjiga(Oorina,Uppu) Mirapakaaya / Majjige(Uppu) Menasu / Dahi Mirchi / Green chillies soaked in Butter milk and sun dried.


Next in the series of my preserves and powders comes this Sun dried chillies- green chillies soaked in buttermilk and sun dried. This is a hot favourite among many and a great accompaniment with rice for lunch served with any curry and veggie and few fried chillies. Preparation is done in summer and stored for over a year.

Since few days could not login to blogger, that is the reason of not posting anything new and commenting in any blogs. As well some content in the post too disappeared and also most of the comments in the last post went missing.

Now moving on to the recipe:-

Option 1:-

Green Chillies - Around 30
Thick Sour Buttermilk - 3 cups(or just enough for fully immersing all the chillies)
Salt - 1 tbsp

Option 2:-

Green Chillies- Around 30
Thick Butter Milk - around 3 cups
salt - 1 tbsp
Asafoetida/ Inguva/ Perungayam- 1 tsp
Fenugreek Seeds/Methi/Menthya/Vendhayam - 3/4 tbsp

Option 3:-

Recently one of my told me about this way of making sun dried chillies which needs just salt and water and no curd or yogurt/Thayir.

Green Chillies - as required
Water to immerse fully
Salt - as required (usually a bit salty)


You can use thin and long chillies, thin and short chillies, short and fat chillies. Each chillies have their own taste and the best part are their stems. So do not discard their stem throughout the process as well as frying. Just hold the stem after frying and enjoy eating the whole and then in the end the stem part. You will just love it.


Wash and pat dry the chillies. Using a knife make a small/medium slit in each chillie.( This is done for the butter milk to enter inside while soaking). Mix the chillies in the buttermilk milk and soak in the open bowl for 3 - 4 days. Each day just give a toss with a spoon or fork to turn and mix well. After the fourth day remove the chillies and spread in a wide plate. Carefully spread so each chillies are little distant apart and dry in sunlight for another 3- 4 days until all the moisture has left. During the day keep under direct sun and in the night get it indoors and keep them back under sun the next day morning. The color also would have changed to brown by this time.

Option 1:-

Just mix butter milk and salt and dip the chillies.

Option 2: -
Dry roast methi seeds till nice brown. Cool and powder. Mix with salt, butter milk and asafoetida powder and dip the slit green chillies.

option 3:-

Wash and take green chillies in a deep vessel. Add water and salt and boil for 8 - 10 minutes. There is no need to slit. The chillies stay intact the boiling salt water will enter when it is being boiled. Remove and dry under hot sun for 3 - 4 days.


To Use:- Heat oil and add few at a time and deep fry till nice brown. See that the oil is not too hot so the color does not change quickly and also burn. The result in taste salty, soury, spicy and crispy/crunchy fried chillies.

This can also be fried, crushed and added in curd rice.

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26 SAGO / JAVVARASI VADAGAM

Sago/Sabudhana/ Javvarasi/ Sabbakki - Vadagam/Vadams/Vadiyalu/Sandige/Fryums


Among all the vadagams love this vadagams made with sago Pearls. They just melt in your mouth once they are fried and even the taste is too good.

Recipe as given by my mother that she makes every summer for us at home. She makes few varieties of this vadagam. One is paper thin and crystal clear, the other where the whole granules are still intact and formed as round disk, but this once is the most common and for us to get it here is very easy as the paper thin ones tend to break while handling/packing


Javvarasi/Sago Pearls - 1 KG
Green Chillies - 200 Gms(Grind to paste)
Cumin Seeds - 3 - 4 tbsp
Asafoetida - 1 tbsp
Salt as needed


Wash the Javvarasi/Sago Pearls in water once or twice very carefully and add enough water to soak them overnight. Add water till the sago pearls and immersed fully and little above them. Next Day morning bring around 3 litres of water in a heavy pan/kadai/vessl and allow it to boil. Once boiled remove 1 litre of water and keep aside. Next add the sago pearls/ Javvarasi and cook till they soft and almost completely melts in the water. If the batter/mix gets thickened very much, then add the saved water as needed and cook till done. The batter/mix should be of a pouring consistency in spoon not very thick nor very thin.Can do thin as they come out paper thin vadagams. But handling and packing is difficult so she makes this way. Switch off flame and add the green chilli paste, cumin seeds, Asafoetida/Hing and salt and mix well and evenly.


Cool completely and spread a plastic sheet( thick variety) on a open place on a terrace preferably. This is best when prepared in a plastic sheet, as cloth makes them stick and very difficult to remove once dried. Next start taking some mix and poruing with a spoon. Repeat until done. If the batter becomes too thick in the middle of pouring, then can add some saved hot water or additional hot water and mix as needed and complete until. Dry under hot sun completely. Check in the evening, if completely dry then peel and remove carefully and again next day dry for one or two days more by spreading in a cloth or mat. Store and fry as and when needed.

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26 ONION (VENGAYA) VADAGAM

Onion(Vengaya) Vadams/Vadagams/Vadiyalu/Vathal/Sandige/Fryums


Summer time is the right and best time to prepare all the sun dried vadagams at home and store it for almost a year. My mom and grandma used to wake up very early in the morning and start preparing the dough/ mix for making the vadagams and with some help from a maid start pouring/ dropping the mix to sun dry on top of our terrace before the sun comes out or else it will be very difficult to stay out and work.

At my house like many other houses vadagams are fully home made and prepared and stored for a year. Now my mom does make vadagams for all her 3 children and sends it every year without fail. So she tries to do each of vadagams at a time so that she can pass it all 3 of us that includes my sister, me and brother who all live in US. Though our lunch consists of rice, veggie and some dhal and curries, a small fried portion of some vadagams goes best with all and nothing tastes more good than home made ones. All types of vadagams prepared at home are a great hit at my home among relatives and friends. This recipe is direct from my mom. This summer want to post some preserves/powders and fryums one by one as much possible.


Starting with my first post on vadagams, I want to post our family favourite Onion Vadagam. This vadagam is so tasty that you feel like having with any type of dhal or curries daily.
Though this vadagam is made with urad dhal, it is called as Vengaya( onion) Vadagam.

Urad dhal/Uddi pappu/Uddina bele/ Ulundhu - 1 tumbler(glass or apporx 1 1/2 cups)
Onion(sambar/pearl/small onions) - 1/2 KG ( Peeled and chopped fine)
Green Chillie - 50 Gms( chopped fine)
Curry Leaves - Few sprigs chopped fine
Asafoetida/Hing/Perungayam - 1 tbsp
Methi/Fenugreek Seeds/ Menthya/Menthi/Vendhayam - 1 tsp
Salt as needed

Wash and soaK Urad dhal along with methi seeds for 2 hours. Later drain the water and grind to a thick paste. Note the paste has to be very thick. Remove and transfer to a big mixing bowl. To it add chopped onion, curry leaves, green chillies, asafoetida and salt. Mix well.

Spread a cloth preferably a saree( grandma says synthetic works best). Have an other bowl with water.


Start taking some mix in hands between your palm and fingers and drop a small portion in the saree and repeat the same leaving a small gap between each. If the mix sticks to your hand, then dip your hands in the water and wet and start preparing the vadagams until you are done with the mix. Sun dry for at least 2 days. At the end of the second day remove the dried vadagams one by one carefully. Third day spread it in a big plate or cloth and sun dry until it is completely dry or dry it again for another day. Remove and store it in a air tight container.


For frying:-
Heat oil for deep frying. The oil should be hot and not piping hot like frying other vadagams. Once hot reduce flame and start adding in small batches that has to be fried as and when required. Carefuly fry till nice brown and again make sure the oil is not very hot or it will make the onion vadagams to turn black in few seconds and turn bitter. The slower the heat and the nice color tastes good.

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