Tag Archives: Sri Lankan cooking

Passion fruit cake

Today is Vijayathasami. The tenth day after the nine days of the Navarathri festival. It is considered auspicious to start new learning on this morning. Children who will be starting school in the coming year will have their ‘eadu thodakkal’ ceremony. The ‘eadu thodakkal’ is a ceremony where toddlers trace their first alphabets on a tray of grain and is usually held at the temple with the priest conducting the ceremony. One of my friend’s twins will be starting their ‘eadu thodakkal’ today and I feel sorry for her as they are two energetic boys who can’t keep still for a minute and I hope that she manages to keep them engaged at least for the alphabet tracing part.

For Vijayathasami, we have never really done anything at home other than visit the temple. At the start of the Navarathri, both at the temple and in the home, people plant the seeds of nine varieties of grain (nava thaniam) such as moong dal, chickpeas, urad dhal, kurakkan etc. and on the tenth day, the sprouts are collected and placed before the shrine in the home. The sprouts are supposed to symbolize growth, luck and prosperity. As a child, I used to keep a few of the sprouts in the school book of the subject that I wanted better grades on.

Today’s recipe for Vijayathasami is a non-traditional one – the recipe for my mother’s passion fruit cake as we enjoy baking at home.

DSC00110Passion fruit cake

Time taken: 55 mins

Serves 6 to 8

Passion fruit cakeIngredients

  • Low fat margarine (Sunflower or Canola) – ¾ cup + 2 tbsp
  • White sugar – ¾ cup
  • Passion fruit – ½ cup
  • Yoghurt – ½ cup
  • Water – ½ cup
  • Wheat flour – 1 cup
  • Semolina – ½ cup
  • Baking soda – ½ tsp
  • Baking powder – 1 tsp
  • Rose essence – few drops
  • Icing sugar – 6 tbsp
  • Lemon juice – 1 tsp
  • Vanilla essence – few drops

Method:

  1. Whisk the sugar and margarine till creamy.
  2. Add ½ cup of water, passion fruit, yoghurt to the creamed sugar and margarine and blend for about 2 mins.
  3. Add ½ tsp baking soda and 1 tsp baking powder.
  4. Stir in the flour and semolina gradually.
  5. Add a few drops of rose essence.
  6. Transfer to baking tray and bake for 45 mins at 170⁰C/340⁰F.
  7. Remove from oven and let the cake cool while you prepare the icing.
  8. Whisk 2 tbsp margarine, 6 tbsp icing sugar, 1 tsp lemon juice until creamy. Add a few drops of vanilla essence.
  9. Spread the icing over the cake evenly.
  10. Serve immediately or chilled.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Sundal

Today is the last day of the Navarathri, the third day of the Saraswathie poosai. Dedicated to Goddess Saraswathie, the goddess of learning, wisdom and the creative arts, it is a special day.

SaraswathieThis day is when a special ‘poosai’ is held in my home. Besides the ‘poosai’ itself and the food, we also used to keep a symbol of an area of learning that we wished to strengthen during the coming year on the ‘poosai’ table. I remember as a child that I used to be excited about this aspect of the ‘poosai’ and particularly selecting the area of education I wished to strengthen. I always used to be the one bringing several school books plus my creative writing notepads to the table. It used to be my hope that my school grades for that year would improve astronomically along with writing and turning out globally acclaimed fictional masterpieces, by having been blessed during the ‘poosai.’ I have retained a fondness for this ritual.

DSC00671After the ‘poosai’ and after the musically inclined in the family had sung a few devotional songs and played a couple of pieces on their flute or violin,  we would quietly read our respective chosen book for the hour. As a kid, I used to be quite impatient towards the end of the book reading hour anticipating the ‘prasadam’ that would finally be served.

For today’s Navarathri recipe, I would like to share my mother’s recipe for sundal, the quintessential ‘poosai’ food that is always made in Hindu homes and temples during festival or special ‘poosai’ days.

Sundal

Time taken: 35 mins + 6 hours (for soaking)

Serves 4 or 5

SundalIngredients

  • Chickpeas – 1 cup
  • Onion – 1 tbsp, chopped
  • Dried red chillies – 2
  • Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
  • Coconut chips – 1 tbsp
  • Curry leaves – 1 sprig
  • Low fat oil – 1 tbsp

Method

  1. Soak the chickpeas for 6 hours.
  2. Boil the soaked chickpeas for ½ hour. Add salt a minute or two before removing from stove and stir.
  3. Drain the chickpeas after removing from stove.
  4. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and fry all ingredients, except the boiled and drained chickpeas, for 5 mins.
  5. Add the chickpeas to the pan. Mix well before removing from stove.
  6. Serve hot.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Laddu

While the semolina laddu is more commonly made in homes in Sri Lanka, particularly in the north, I prefer the chickpeas flour laddu. I generally refer to that laddu as the ‘Thirupathi laddu’ as the best chickpeas flour laddu I have tasted to-date is the ‘prasadam’ from Andhra Pradesh’s famed Thirupathi temple.

We rarely make it at home as it is not easy to come by high quality chickpeas flour in most stores. As an amateur cook who only started taking an interest in cooking six months ago, it was not surprising that I burnt my laddu during my first attempt. I learnt that one has to be really quick during the roasting and mixing other ingredients part.

So, for today’s Navarathri festival recipe, I would like to share my mother’s recipe for the chickpea laddu. The accompanying photo is temporarily that of the photo I took of the Vajira Pillaiyar koyil ‘laddu’ and will be replaced when I take a photo of the laddu my mother makes later this week.

Laddu

Time taken: 15 – 20 mins

Makes 8 – 10

LadduIngredients:

  • Chickpeas flour – 1 cup
  • Sugar – ½ cup
  • Low fat vegetable oil margarine or ghee – ½ cup
  • Cardamoms – 4, crushed
  • Cashew nuts – 2 tbsp
  • Raisins – 2 tbsp
  • Sugar candy – 1 tbsp (optional)

Method:

  1. Roast the chickpeas flour over low heat, without allowing it to burn, for about 5 – 10 mins.
  2. Add crushed cardamom to the pan. Mix and remove pan from stove.
  3. Heat the sugar and margarine in another pan, over low heat, for around 5 mins.
  4. Stir in the chickpeas flour.
  5. Add the chopped cashew nut, raisins and the optional sugar candy quickly. Do not allow flour to burn.
  6. Add 4 tbsp of hot water. Mix well and remove pan from stove.
  7. Using hand, quickly divide mixture into 8 – 10 smaller balls.
  8. Allow ‘laddu’ to cool and firm, before serving.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Aval

A Navarathri festival favourite from childhood is ‘aval’, a simple, quick to prepare delicious snack. So, for the first day of the Saraswathie poosai, I would like to share this simple recipe for ‘Aval’.

I have always thought of ‘aval’ as a sweet snack, generally prepared during ‘home poosai’ (prayer ceremony) as a ‘prasadam’ (blessed offering), but I came across the Indore Kanda Poha a few months back and was happily surprised it was a savoury, breakfast food. Here though, I am sharing the traditional way it is prepared in north Sri Lanka.

Aval

Time taken: 10 – 15 mins

Serves 2

AvalIngredients

  • Aval (flattened rice or puffed rice) – ½ cup
  • Coconut – ¼ cup, scraped
  • Sugar – 3 tbsp or Jaggery – 2 tbsp, chopped
  • Crushed cardamom – 1 tsp
  • Cashew nuts – 1 tsp, chopped
  • Raisins – 2 tsp

Method:

  1. Rinse the ‘aval’ in a bowl of water and drain it.
  2. Add ¼ cup of hot water to the cleaned ‘aval’ and let it soak for 5 mins. Drain.
  3. Heat a pan on low heat and dry roast the coconut for about 2 mins.
  4. Add the jaggery or sugar to the pan and continue cooking for another 2 – 3 mins.
  5. Add the crushed cardamom to the pan and stir before adding the ‘aval’ to the pan. Mix well before removing from heat.
  6. Garnish with chopped cashew nuts and raisins.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Kadalaiparuppu Vadai

Today’s Navarathri recipe for the third day of the Lakshmi ‘poosai’ is kadalaiparuppu vadai.

Vadai

Time taken: 15 mins + 3 hours (soaking time)

Makes 6

K vadaiIngredients:

  • Chickpea/ kadalaiparuppu – ½ cup, split
  • Crushed chillies – 1 tsp
  • Onion – 1, medium, ground or grated
  • Curry leaves – sprig, finely chopped
  • Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
  • Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
  • Salt – ½ tsp
  • Low fat oil, for deep frying

Method:

  1. Soak the de-skinned and split chickpea for about three hours. Drain.
  2. Keep aside 3 tbsp and then coarsely grind the remaining chickpea.
  3. Mix the coarsely ground chickpea and the 3 tbsp chickpea that had been kept aside.
  4. Add the remaining ingredients to the chickpea mixture and mix well.
  5. Divide the seasoned chickpea mixture into 6 balls.
  6. Heat the oil in a round-bottomed frying pan or wok.
  7. When the oil is ready, drop the chickpea balls into the sizzling oil.
  8. Fry for about two minutes each side, ensuring that each ‘vadai’ is lightly browned on all sides.
  9. Remove the ‘vadai’ from the pan and transfer to a plate lined with grease absorbing paper.
  10. Serve hot.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Boondi

Today’s Navarathri recipe is Boondi, a fried chickpea flour sweet that is quite popular in Sri Lanka and available in Indian sweet shops. As I like it and I do not like the too sugary consistency of shop-bought boondi, my mother occasionally makes it at home. This is my mother’s recipe for boondi.

Boondi

Time taken: 25 mins

Serves 2

BoondiIngredients:

  • Chickpea flour – 2 tbsp
  • Wheat flour – 2 tbsp
  • Salt, to taste
  • Vanilla essence – few drops
  • Kesari powder – pinch
  • Sugar – 4 tbsp
  • Cardamom – 2 or 3, crushed
  • Rose essence – few drops
  • Cashewnuts – 2 or 3, chopped
  • Raisins – 1 tsp
  • Chickpea – 1 tsp, fried and split
  • Low fat vegetable oil, for deep frying

Method

  1. Mix the chickpea flour, wheat flour, salt, few drops of vanilla essence, pinch of kesari powder with a little water in bowl to make a batter. The consistency of the batter should not be watery nor too thick but fluid enough to be scooped easily with a spoon.
  2. Heat the oil in a pan.
  3. When the oil is heated and ready for frying, scoop the batter with a spoon and push it through a slotted spoon over the pan so that the batter falls through in little pieces into the oil.
  4. Ensure that the boondi pieces are golden brown all over before transferring them out of a pan onto a plate lined with grease absorbing paper. Repeat until all the batter is transformed to fried boondi.
  5. Make the syrup for the boondi by stirring the sugar with ¼ cup of water in a saucepan on medium heat. Add the crushed cardamom, kesari powder.
  6. When the syrup starts thickening slightly, add a few drops of rose essence and remove from heat.
  7. Add the chopped cashewnuts, fried and split chickpeas and raisins to the syrup.
  8. Transfer the fried boondi to the syrup. Let it soak for some time before serving.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Ravai laddu

Today’s recipe for Navarathri is ravai laddu (semolina laddu).  The semolina laddu is the type of laddu that is commonly made in homes in northern Sri Lanka. The boondi or chickpea gram flour laddu is rarely made in homes and is usually available only in Indian sweet shops.

Ravai laddu

Time taken: 25 mins

Makes 5

Ravai ladduIngredients

  • Semolina/ ravai – ½ cup, slightly roasted
  • Sugar – ¼ cup
  • Vegetable oil margarine (preferably sunflower or canola) – 3 tbsp
  • Chickpea – 2 tbsp, fried and split (store-bought or overnight soaked and fried at home)
  • Cashew nuts – 2
  • Cardamom – 3, crushed
  • Raisin – 1 tbsp
  • Hot water – 2 tbsp

Method

  1. Heat the sugar and margarine in a pan for 2 mins on low heat.
  2. Add the fried, split chickpea to the pan as well as the chopped cashew nuts, raisins and crushed cardamom.
  3. Stir and cook for another 2 – 3 minutes until they have combined well.
  4. Add the semolina and stir for around 3 minutes.
  5. Increase the heat to medium and add 2 tbsp of hot water to the pan and mix well. Remove pan from stove.
  6. Scoop the mixture into a little mold and overturn to a plate. Let the laddu cool before serving.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Coconut paayaasam

Today’s Navarathri recipe is my grandmother’s recipe for coconut paayaasam, as remembered and replicated by my mother. Many people generally use dairy milk for the ‘paal paayasam’ but my grandmother preferred using coconut milk for sago pudding and now, that’s the way it is made in our family.

Paayaasam

Time taken: 15 mins

Serves 2

PaayasamIngredients:

  • Pearl sago/ Savvarasi – ¼ cup
  • Cardamom – 2, crushed
  • Chickpea – 1 tbsp, fried and split
  • Cashewnuts – 2 or 3, chopped
  • Coconut milk – ½ cup
  • Sugar – 1 tbsp or adjust per taste
  • Raisins – 1 tbsp
  • Kesari powder – pinch

Method:

  1. Heat 1 cup of water in a pan, adding 2 crushed cardamoms, for about 5 mins.
  2. Add the pearl sago and let the boiling continue for a couple of minutes.
  3. When the sago is half-cooked, add the split, fried chickpea and cashewnuts and continue cooking for another couple of minutes.
  4. Once the sago is well cooked and the mixture thickens, add the coconut milk and the kesari powder.
  5. In a few minutes, add the sugar and mix well and let the ‘paayaasam’ simmer for another couple of minutes.
  6. Add the raisins just before removing the pan from the stove.
  7. Stir and serve either hot or chilled.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Murukku

Today’s Navarathri food festival recipe is my mother’s recipe for crispy and crunchy murukku. This is a delicious snack and it is usually difficult to stop eating the entire bowl, after tasting one or two pieces.

Murukku

Time taken: 30 – 40 mins

Serves 10

MurukkuIngredients:

  • Chickpea flour – ¼ cup
  • Steamed wheat flour – ¾ cup
  • Coconut – 2 tbsp, freshly scraped
  • Pepper – ¼ tsp
  • Salt – ¼ tsp
  • Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
  • Sesame seeds – 1 tsp
  • Water – 1 cup
  • Low fat oil, for deep-frying

Method:

  1. Blend 2 tbsp freshly scraped coconut with 1 cup water and extract a cup of coconut milk.
  2. In a saucepan, heat the coconut milk, adding the salt, pepper and turmeric powder to the pan.
  3. When the milk boils, remove from heat and briefly cool the milk for a few seconds.
  4. In a bowl, mix the chickpea flour and the steamed wheat flour.
  5. Stir in the boiled, spiced coconut milk into the bowl of flour mix and make the ‘murukku’ dough.
  6. Fold in the sesame seeds into the dough mix.
  7. Heat some low-fat oil in a pan.
  8. Scoop some of the dough into the murukku mold and squeeze out the dough through the mold over the pan with the oil. Once the noodle-like ‘murukku’ is cooked and golden brown on all sides, remove from pan and transfer to a tray lined with grease absorbing paper.
  9. Repeat the process until all the dough is squeezed out of the mold and fried.
  10. Serve immediately or store in air-tight container to prevent the ‘murukku’ from becoming mushy and to retain its crispiness.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Kolukkattai

With the start of Navarathri today, I thought of posting nine of my mother’s recipes of some food that she typically makes during this nine-day festival. I have always been fond of Navarathri, since my childhood, and I think of all the religious festivals that my family has observed, this has been the favourite and better observed.

The nine days of the festival are dedicated to Goddesses starting with the first three days for Goddess Durga, symbolizing courage and strength, the next three days for Goddess Lakshmi, symbolizing wealth and beauty, the last three days for Goddess Saraswathi, symbolizing knowledge and wisdom. The last three days are the most special of the nine days.

To start off the Navarathri food fest, I will first share one of my favourites – Kolukkattai. This is a steamed half-moon shaped dumpling made especially during the Aadi pirappu (July 15th, which is the first of the month of Aadi in the Tamil calendar) and during the ceremony that marks the arrival of a baby’s first teeth. It is actually ‘Mothaham’, a round shaped version of the kolukkattai, that is made during Navarathri but at my home, my mother prefers to make kolukkattai generally.

Mothaham

Mothaham

Kolukkattai

Time taken: 40 – 45 mins

Makes 10

Kolukkattai

Kolukkattai

Ingredients:

  • Green gram – ½ cup, roasted and split
  • Water
  • Wheat flour – ¾ cup
  • Rice flour – ¼ cup
  • Salt – pinch
  • Low fat oil, as required
  • Coconut –½ cup, freshly scraped
  • Jaggery – ¼ cup
  • Cardamom – 4, crushed

Method

  1. Boil the green gram in about 1 ½ cups of water, for about 20 mins, until it is well-cooked. Add water if the liquid dries up before the gram is cooked. Drain and keep aside.
  2. Meanwhile, mix the wheat flour, rice flour and a pinch of salt. Add hot water slowly while stirring the flour mix with a spoon.
  3. Add a little oil and bring together the mixture into a ball of dough.
  4. Divide the dough into 10 small balls, adding a little oil, to have a smooth dough mix.
  5. In a pan, cook the jaggery on low heat and stir as it melts.
  6. Add the scraped coconut and quickly stir for a couple of minutes, not allowing the coconut-jaggery mixture to burn.
  7. Add the boiled and drained green gram and the crushed cardamom to the coconut-jaggery mixture. Mix and remove from heat. Let the mixture cool.
  8. Roll out each of the ten small balls of dough and spoon 1 tbsp filling in the center of the rolled out dough. Close the dough wrap over the filling in a half-moon shape, by hand or using a pre-fabricated mold shell, or into a round dumpling shape. For the ceremony that marks the arrival of the baby’s first teeth, tiny coconut chips are embedded into the dents pressed by the mold or finger along one half of the half-moon shaped dumpling.
  9. Steam the ‘kolukattai’ (the half-moon shaped) or ‘mothaham’ (the round shaped dumpling) for about 10 mins.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.