Puran Poli / Pooran Poli (4th recipe , made of less oil)

Puran Poli / Pooran Poli / Boli (made less oil ) – A very popular sweet in Indian cuisine. Recipe from my Amma !!

Makes: 5 – 6 (5 medium thick puran polis or 6 thin puran polis)

Please use same measuring cup measure chana dal , sugar, maida (all pupose flour) and water.

Ingredinets

For the  covering:

1 cup (200 ml ) maida ( plain flour ) (Indian standard measuring  cup of  200 ml / 8 oz capacity)

3 pinches turmeric powder )or ¼ level teaspoon)

1/2 cup (100 ml / 4 oz) water

1 tablespoon  oil ( for making dough ) or sunflower oil

1/4  cup maida ( for dusting ) or 4 tablespoons

3 – 4 teaspoons ghee  (final preparation)

For the dough:

In a wide bowl, combine maida, turmeric powder and 1 tablespoon oil.

Knead maida mix with and enough water ( approximately 100 ml / 1/2 cup ) to make a smooth chapatti dough. Sprinkle extra 1 or 2 teaspoon water if required to make very soft dough.  Keep aside for half an hour to one hour  in an airtight container. Dough is ready now.

For puran (dal mixture):

1 cup / 200 ml  (Indian standard measuring cup of 200 ml / 8 oz capacity) chana dal (Bengal gram dal / chone daali)

2 1/4 cups water

Method

Wash and soak chana dal in 2 1/4 cups water in a pressure cooker for one hour and  pressure cook for 20 minutes (pressure cook along with soaked water) (reduce heat to medium after 3rd whistle  (3 quick whistles) and cook for 15 minutes or until done and soft). Do not open the cooker immediately. Allow the cooker to cool naturally.  Open the cooker.  It should be a thick and soft mixture or drain out dal water if any (may be ¼ cup ).

Other ingredients

1 tablespoon ghee

1 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder

Method

1^st stage:

Transfer the thick  cooked  dal into a  bowl. Keep aside for 15 – 20 minutes until it reaches room temperature. Then  mix with  1 cup sugar. Make a smooth and thick paste in a mixer bowl in 2 batches.

2^nd stage:

Heat 1 tablespoon ghee in  a kadai / frying pan on a medium heat.  Add thick chana dal  - sugar paste and stir it on a low to medium heat till the mixture thickens / water dries up / leaves from the sides of the pan (approximate time  15 - 20 minutes on a low heat). Puran is ready now.

Sprinkle cardamom powder and mix well.

Remove from the heat and cool. Make 5 - 6 medium size lemon sized balls.

Final preparation of Pooran Poli:

Roll  out each maida dough into  4 – inch width puri with the help of a rolling pin. Sprinkle little dry maida when making the shape of a puri.

Place a lime-sized ball (1 tablespoon) of dal paste in the centre. Gather up the edges of the puri, enclose the dal paste completely and pinch the seams well together (like aloo paratha).

Dust this ball generously with maida  flour mix. Place the dusted ball on a chapatti board and carefully roll it out into a  chapatti  (slightly thicker than chapatti) and place each puran poli carefully.

Heat a  frying pan / tawa. Reduce heat to medium, place the rolled puran poli carefully on the frying pan and fry till golden color on both the sides - like chapati ( turning it over once or twice carefully; smear little ghee  (1/2 teaspoon) on both the sides while frying). Carefully remove it from the frying pan with a flat spatula. Serve as a sweet dish. It's a very tasty after school snack.

Bengali Style Dal

Bengali Style Dal – A tasty dal, goes well with rice  / rotis !!

Serves:  4

For the  dal:

1 cup / 200 ml tur dal (or 1 cup / 200 ml masoor dal (pink color dal) Indian standard measuring cup of 200 ml / 8 oz capacity )

3 cups / 600 ml water

1/2 teaspoon oil

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 medium size tomato, chopped

3 green chillies, slit lengthwise

¾ teaspoon salt (or to taste)

Method

For the  dal:

Wash and soak dal  in a pressure cooker for thirty minutes. Add  oil, turmeric powder, chopped tomato, slit green chillies, salt  and pressure cook for 20 minutes or until done / soft (reduce the heat to medium after 2nd whistle and cook for 15 minute). Switch off the heat. Allow the cooker to cool naturally. Open the lid. Gently mash dal with the base of a ladle.

For the tadka (seasoning):

2 teaspoon ghee / oil

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

2 bay leaves

Method

In a pan, heat oil or ghee. Add cumin seeds and bay leaves. Fry on a low heat for 1 -  2  minutes until  crisp and fragrant. Pour the seasoning over cooked dal and boil again for 3 minutes. Serve with rice or rotis.

Sattur Sevu

Sattur Sevu / Kara sev – A deep fried crispy snack in Tamil Nadu. Recipe from The Hindu, Sunday Magazine (In search of Sattur Sevu, 23^rd June, 2013)

Ingredients for 2 kg sevu

 1 1/2 kg besan (kadala maavu / gram flour)

½ kg rice flour

25 g chilli powder

20 g cumin seeds (make a powder)

30 g garlic pods (make a paste)

1 tablespoon asafoetida (hing)

Salt to taste

¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

My version

Please use same measuring cup to measure besan, rice flour and water (3: 1: 1)

3 cups rice flour (here I used indian standard measuring cup of 80 ml / 1/3 cup)

1 cup besan

½ teaspoon chilli powder

½ teaspoon cumin seed powder

2 teaspoon garlic paste

¼ teaspoon asafoetida (hing)

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

1 cup water

Method

In a big vessel, add besan, rice flour, crushed cumin seeds, asafoetida along with garlic paste, required amount of salt and water.

Mix everything well and  form a soft dough like it is made for murukku. Knead it gently.

Take the dough and scrape it on a large perforated ladle.

Deep fry the strands that fall into boiling oil in a kadai.

Strain out the kara sev and keep it aside for 15 minutes before serving. Store in an air tight container.

My version

Put this dough in a murukku / chakali machine.  Use sev plate / (with 3 - 4 medium holes) to make sev.

Heat oil in a wide kadai / frying pan and reduce heat to medium. Please keep safe distance from gas stove.  Fry directly in hot oil (give circular rotations with chakali machine) on a medium heat until light golden color and crisp in 4 batches (depending upon the size of the kadai / frying pan, maintain medium heat. Otherwise it will turn into brown color immediately). Drain and place on kitchen towel to absorb extra oil. Break into small pieces and store in an airtight container.

Vazhakkai Chops

Vazhakkai Chops / Shallow fried  spicy raw banana – A delicious shallow fried side dish. Best with rice. Recipe from Dakshin Delights by Sanjeev Kapoor !!

Makes: 6 – 8 thin slices

Ingredients

Raw bananas -   1 big size

Salt – ½ teaspoon  (or to taste)

Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Curry leaves, chopped - 4 nos (optional)

Red chilli powder - 1 teaspoon

Coriander powder - 1 teaspoon

Rice flour – 2 teaspoons

Hing (asafoetida) - 2 pinches

Tamarind pulp / thick paste – ½  teaspoon

Water – 1 tablespoon

Oil - 2 tablespoons (to shallow fry)

Method

Peel and slice the bananas lengthwise into three to four pieces. Cut each into two if too long. Boil in salted water with the turmeric powder for five minutes and cool.

 Mix together the curry leaves, red chilli powder, coriander powder, rice flour with tamarind pulp and water. Make a thick paste. Apply this paste evenly on the bananas slices (both the sides). Cover and keep aside for fifteen minutes.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan (flat frying pan / tawa). Arrange these marinated banana slices carefully and fry until golden brown on both the sliced. Sprinkle remaining 1 tablespoon when turning other side. Serve hot with rice.

Chef's Tip:

Try this recipe with potatoes, yam etc