Chippi Appam or Kalmakka Nirachathu or Stuffed Mussels

Here Iam sharing a very traditional mussel recipe called Chippi appam in Southern Tamil Nadu or Kallumakka Nirachathu in Northern regions of kerala. It basically involves very few ingredients that are stuffed and steamed to a soft and mushy kind of sea food meal. The beauty is you can have this as a main dish or even as an evening snack. The part which i love the most is scooping out the stuffings with its outer shell while eating it. Hope you would also enjoy it..!!!

Ingredients:

Mussels - 25 to 30
Rice flour - 1/2 kg
Chilli Powder - 2 Teaspoon
Turmeric powder -a pinch
Ginger Garlic Paste -2 Tablespoon
Fennel - 2- 3 teaspoon
Cinnamon - a small piece
Cardamom - around 4
Cloves - 2
Grated Coconut - 1
salt - To taste

Method:

• Open, Wash and Clean the Mussels thoroughly and keep it aside.

• Powder the following in a mixer - Fennel,Cinnamon,Cardamom and Cloves.

• In a large bowl add chilli powder, turmeric powder, ginger garlic paste, ground powder, salt, shredded coconut and mix it together.

• Now put in rice flour and knead it into a soft dough.

• Take out small balls of dough and stuff it inside the opened mussels.

• Now Place them inside  a Steamer and allow it to cook for around 20 minutes or until they cook well inside.

• Once they are cooked and ready, serve them on a plate as it is.

• Later on you can even demould the shells and fry the stuffed mussels by applying a little of masala like chicken on oil for a different crispy taste.

• It could be served as a main dish or for an evening bite with the family.

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Easy Vegetable Kurma

Kurma or Khorma is a well known South Asian food for its mild blend of spices. Kurma's are of number of varieties consisting of meat and vegetables. Even though its preparation style differs, here Iam presenting a very simple and quick way of preparing vegetable kurma with no compromise in its authentic taste. 

Ingredients:

Onion - 1 (large one)
Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 Teaspoon
Green Chilly - 3-4
Capsicum - 1
Tomato - 1
Carrot - 1
Potato - 1
Garam Masala -  1 Tablespoon
Thick Coconut Milk - 1 cup
Water -1 cup
Salt - To Taste
Oil - 2 Teaspoon
Coriander leaves - For Garnish

Method:

• Heat Oil in a hot wok and saute ginger garlic paste and green chilly till you get to smell their flavour.

• Now add in Onion and Capsicum to it and saute for few minutes followed by tomato.

• Its time for the other vegetables to be added.(here carrot and potato).

• Add in garam masala at this stage and mix well.

• Pour in water and salt and cook the vegetables well.

• Finally add in the thick coconut milk and allow it to cook for just few more minutes.

• Garnish it with coriander leaves and serve it hot.

Note:

• Vegetable kurma goes well with Indian Flat breads like Chapati and also Appam.
• You can add any kind of vegetables as per your taste but normally prefer hard vegetables for making kurmas. 
• If you find it difficult to strain milk from coconut, you can very well use coconut milk powder mixed in water to simplify the process.  

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Kothu Parota

Kothu parota is a very well known dish thats more popular in the street side stalls of southern India. Its an absolute blend of left over ingredients citing us an example of complete reuse.So dont worry about the left over parotas you have got , just toss them into flavorful kothu parotas in a fatafat way.

Ingredients:

Parota - 5 (Shredded in a blender)
Onion - 2(medium sized- cut into cubes)
Tomato - 4(cut into cubes)
Egg - 2
Ginger - 2 tspn(chopped)
Garlic - 2 tspn(chopped)
Green chilly - 1(chopped)
Mutton - 10-12 pieces(already cooked and shallow fried)
Gravy - 2 tblspn (chicken, Mutton, or Beef)
Garam Masala - 1 tspn
Chilly powder - 1/2 tspn
Fennel powder- 1/2 tspn
Pepper- 2tspn
Coriander Leaves- 1/2 cup
Oil - 3-4 tblspn

Method:

• Heat Oil in pan and Saute green chilly, and chopped ginger garlic.

• When they slightly get sauteed add in the onion and salt. When onion gets transparent and starts changing its color, scramble the eggs gently in it.

• Now throw in the previously cooked and shallow fried mutton pieces and mix them well with ingredients.
• Once they start to turn dry, pour in the gravy, tomatoes and the Masalas( Garam masala,Chilli powder, Fennel powder, Pepper) and cook them under high flame for 2 minutes.

• Finally its time to add those shredded Parotas. Just add 2 teaspoon oil at this stage to make it more tastier.
• Now throw in the coriander leaves and stir fry for few minutes before serving the very flavorful Kothu parota.

Notes:

• Prefer Mutton gravy for more taste and flavour.
• Using the mutton fried oil for kothu parota adds to its taste.
• Shred the parotas in a simple way using the mixer.
• Using Tomato Sauce along with tomatoes gives it an added punch.
• It can be prepared using mutton, chicken or beef gravy.
• Be cautious while adding salt as there is salt in many of the ingredients already.

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Spicy and Creamy Egg Masala

This recipe has a unique combination of egg with roasted gram which makes it creamy and rich in its texture. It doesn't involve much ingredients but still tastes full bodied and flavorful. Even though I have prepared it spicy you could adjust the spice level as per your taste buds. So now lets get into the creamy rich recipe...  

Ingredients:

Egg - 6
Onion - 3 large ones(sliced)
Garam Masala - 1/2 tspn
Chilli Powder - 1 tspn
Curry Leaves - 2 sprigs
Vinegar - 1 tspn
Roasted Gram (Chutney dal or Pottu kadalai) - 2 tbspn ( Soaked in water for 10 minutes)
Oil - 3 tspn.
Water - 1 to 2 cups

Method:

• Initially boil the eggs in water, remove the shell and keep it aside.
• Pour oil in a sauce pan and saute the onions for around 3 minutes till they turn transparent.
• Then add in the roasted gram(pottu kadalai) and saute for a minute.
• Then add in the garam masala, chilli powder, vinegar and salt and saute to get rid off  the raw smell for 2-3 minutes.
• Put off the flame and leave it aside for cooling.
• Grind it in a blender to a fine paste.
• Now cook this paste by adding water in a pan till they boil. Now add in the boiled eggs and wait for another few minutes so that they boil well together.
• Turn off the flame and add in coriander leaves for flavor and taste.
• Serve it hot with Indian flat breads like chapati, naan or even with other main course like ghee rice , idiyapam etc.,

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Parota

Parota or Porata or Porota is a well known layered flat bread in southern India owing to its taste and aroma when its served hot. Even though its a tedious process, people love making it for their loved ones on special occasions. It does not involve much ingredients and with practice you can easily master this Tempting Parotas.

Ingredients:

All Purpose Flour (Maida) - 1 kg
Egg - 1
Baking soda - 1/4 tspn
Curd or Milk -1/4 cup
Water - 3/4 litre
Sugar - 1 tspn
Salt - As Per Taste
Oil - As needed

Method:

• Mix the flour, egg, baking soda, sugar and salt together.

• Then add in water and milk/curd to knead a dough thats neither too soft nor too hard.

• Leave the dough undisturbed for 10-15 minutes.

• Now pull out round shaped balls from the prepared dough and coat each of the balls with oil to keep it moist.

• Now Cover these balls with a wet muslin cloth and leave it undisturbed for another 30-40 minutes.

• When you remove the cloth later, you will find the balls to be expanded in size somewhat.
• Now take out a ball,pour a tspn of oil and with the help of your palm spread it out evenly like that of a chapati.

• With the help of both your hands gently hold it and beat it softly on a even flat surface to make it more thinner and elastic.

• Once you feel it elastic enough, hold one end together and circle the other end layer by layer. You will get a structure similar to that of a rose as shown below.

• Leave it aside for 5 minutes. Once you finish this process with all the balls, the first one would by ready to be prepared.
• Now take,pour a tspn oil and spread it out evenly(not bigger than your palm size).
• Finally put them on a hot pan or tawa and cook it in low-medium flame so that the inner part gets cooked enough.

• Pour in oil both sides while cooking to enhance its flavor and taste.
• When both sides of Parota turn golden in color take them out. 
• If needed you can pile three or four hot parotas together and beat with both your hands from the sides to get the layers out of them.Its not very necessary but it does give a fluffy feathery look.

• And there you have the tempting soft layered flat bread to be tasted with any vegetarian or non vegetarian gravy.

Note:

• Adding curd/milk helps soften the Parotas.
• Adding sugar gives it a golden brown tinch after cooking.
• Kneading is a very important step and make sure its done with care. If the dough is either too soft or hard, it would be very difficult to make it elastic and would tear off into pieces.
• Do not panic if you find small hole like tears here and there while making it elastic.

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Crispy Sweet Cutlet

Cutlets are undoubtedly one of the most sort after evening snack by people of all age groups. Now try this sweet cutlets for a change which is much more easier, equally tasty and crispy like the spicy ones.

Ingredients:

Banana - 2
Sugar - 4 tbspn
Grated Coconut - 1 cup
Cardamom powder - 1 tspn
Ghee - 1 tspn
All Purpose flour (Maida) - 2 tbspn
Water - 1 and 1/2 tbspn
Oil - To deep fry
Bread Crumbs - To dip and coat

Method:

• Begin the process by steaming bananas in a steamer until the skin colour changes and it becomes softer.
• After removing the bananas from steamer and allowing it to cool slightly, Mash them well manually and leave it aside.
• Now take a fry pan and Saute Coconut and Sugar together till it gets crispy in low flame.(Make sure the coconut doesn't turn brown due to over sauteing or high flame).
• Now add in Ghee, Cardamom and the mashed bananas and mix it well.
• After turning the flame off, knead the mixture like that of a chapati dough and make small round shaped balls from it.
• Mix Maida and Water together to form a dipping batter. 
• Now dip the shaped balls in the maida batter and coat it well with the bread crumbs.
• Finally deep fry them in oil until they turn golden brown in colour.

Note:

• Make sure the coconut doesn't turn brown due to over sauteing or high flame.
• For well shaped and crispy cutlets, place them in fridge for 10 minutes before frying.

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Sauteed Coconut Chicken Curry

As the name suggests the highlighted ingredient of this dish is Coconut itself. Coconut not only adds flavor and rich taste to your dish , but is also well known for its amazing health benefits. If you are looking out to give a twist to your traditional chicken curry, then this dish would surely make in to your to do list.

Ingredients:

Chicken - 10 pieces
Onion -  2 medium sized(sliced)
Tomato - 1 big sized
Ginger - 1 and 1/2 tspn(crushed)
Garlic -  1 and 1/2 tspn(crushed)
Green Chilly - 1
Red Chilly Powder - 1 tbspn
Coriander Powder - 2 tbspn
Fennel Powder - 1 tbspn
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tbspn
Curry Leaves - 1 fig
Oil - 2 tbspn
Salt to Taste

Ingredients for Sauteing:
Coconut - 1/2 cup
Onion - 1 small sized
Cinnamon - 1/2
Cardamom - 3
Cloves - 3
Curry Leaves -  2 sprigs

Method:

• In a fry pan, put the ingredients for sauteing given above and saute under low flame. Continue till it emits a flavorful smell and turn it off. Keep it aside for cooling.

• Now blend this coconut mixture into a fine paste.

• Take a sauce pan and heat oil. Add Onion, Ginger garlic, tomato and green chilly one by one respectively.

• Once the raw smell fades off, add the Chicken pieces with salt and allow it to cook keeping it closed.

• Once the chicken is 3/4th ready, add the masala powder( red chilly, coriander, fennel and turmeric).

• Finally pour the coconut paste and required amount of water for cooking.

• Allow it to cook for nearly 7 minutes and garnish it with curry leaves when ready to serve.

• It can be served hot with chapathi , naan , rotis, idiyappam or any others as per your choice.

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