Laddu and lasagna

 

Photo credit: unsplash.com by PrchiPalwe

The spherical sweet is spelt as Laddoo or Laddu as it is just a phonetics based conversion of the Indian word. When it comes to Indian food, what really needs sufficient prior cooking experience before the attempt is the sweet section. The process is definitely not a piece of our cake for beginners.

Laddu is one of the common Indian sweets that is popular in both northern and southern parts of the country.

The way the sweet is made is an interesting sight. A batter is prepared with chickpea flour  and this is swirled in circles on a perforated ladel above hot oil. The batter drips from the pores in the ladel into the oil and become fried small drops which we call as boondhi. Once done, these are scooped out and placed in sugar syrup and mixed with raisins and nuts.  While still hot they are rolled into spheres to become the final laddu. It is a bit of a laborious process but totally worth it.

The laddus have to be rolled while the mixture is still hot or else they would be crumbly and not stay in shape. Hence we apply some flour or oil on the palms before rolling to tolerate the heat. Not meant for tender hands for sure!

One of the top pilgrimage centres for the Hindus in India is the temple in the hill town of Tirupathi in Andhra Pradesh. It  draws a record 40,000 visitors per day and there are long queues and the process for crowd management keeps changing. At Tirupathi , the devotees are given laddus as prasadam. ( food that was offered to the deity and is considered blessed ) .  These laddus have a very unique taste and are much bigger. They apparently bear a Geographical Indication Tag - meaning  that only the TTD ( the temple board) can make or sell them. The laddu has its own Tirupathi laddu Wikipedia page.

There are other types of ladoos made with semolina, roasted chick pea flour etc. 

Food from other lands:

Lasagna !  During the pandemic, with restrictions in place , we explored a new eat out place every week and found one that has amazing lasagna, that too vegetarian ! We ate like we had been starving on a stranded island that day, the lasagna was that good !  Lasagna reminds me of the cartoon cat Garfield. My son used to enjoy the 'yellow cat' videos as he called it on TV as a two year old. Lasagna and TV ! Two items essential for existence in Garfield's view! 

Food for thought: 

The quote for today is

NooL PaLa KaL

Tamil is believed by many to be the oldest language in the world with very rich literary compositions.

 This is a quote from a very ancient Tamil poetic work called Aathichoodi written by poetess Avvayar. It comprises of single line quotes in alphabetical order promoting good habits, discipline and righteousness of actions. 

Nool - book

Pala - many

Kal - (verb) learn 

Four syllables here stress the importance of learning and reading. Read many books and that learning will mould you , is what Avvai is emphasizing ! 

Kuzhambu and kimchi

 Before i proceed i must halt to throw some light on the letters 'zh' that i have mentioned in the word 'Kuzhambu'. It is not pronounced like the zee in zoo or zebra. This phonetic sound is unique to the South Indian languages Tamil and Malayalam. In fact my language is called Tamizh and not Tamil as its widely known. Its close to Rrr and la but unique. Found a video(short one, about 1.5 to 2 mins) on youtube describing it, check it out and tell me if you got it right :D 

Coming to kuzhambu , it basically means curry. The word curry is kind of looked at as a single item or flavour in Asian cuisines but these sauces that we have with our rice is of umpteen varieties in each country.

In South Indian food , the base ingredient used to make our curry is something sour like tamarind. The base is usually tamarind extract which when mixed with the right spices  we get a variety of curries.  We have a few variations where instead of tamarind we use sour buttermilk. 

Our typical lunch would be some rice served with a kuzhambu, some vegetable and curd. By altering the vegetables and spices and the lentils that go in we alter the menu everyday.

Sambar is the most famous of them all which is gotten by cooking vegetables in tamarind extract and then adding toor dal (lentils) and a blend of spices to it. A plate of steaming hot rice with some onion sambar and potato fry would immediately spring nostalgia of  relaxed family Sunday afternoons to so many of us.

Then we have Venthiya kuzhambu made with fenugreek seeds, mor kuzhambu made with buttermilk, garlic kuzhambu and so on and so forth.

Food from other lands :  

I sometimes watch korean drama series . Being a vegetatarian, a lot of food items that are shown are off my palatable list. But one thing i have wanted to taste in its authenticity is the Kimchi which to my knowledge is a sort of pickled radish/cabbage. 

Nowadays with kpop and kdrama gaining never before popularity we do get bottled versions in stores but i would like to taste the authentic home made version some day. 

Food for thought : 

Today I will include two quotes as I could not pick one.

1) Keezhorainum Thaazha Urai.

Keezhor - someone lower than oneself - may refer to a subordinate or someone in a lower financial position or social status 

Aayinum - even if

Thaazha(same pronounciation :) ) - softly or low voice

Urai - speak 

It basically means that no matter who it is , even those who are placed lower than you in society, they deserve to be spoken to respectfully . Speak softly and politely to everyone, to even those who serve you . 

2) Katrathu kaimannalavu kallaathathu ulagalavu

This is a quote that stresses both on learning and humility. 

Kai - hand; mann - sand/mud ; alavu - quantity

Ulagu - world 

Katrathu - what we have learnt

What we have learnt or already know is only like a fistful of mud , compared to what we dont know or have not learnt which is as vast as the whole world.

So keep learning, but be polite! :) 

Jangiri and Jalapeno

 White lentils called urad dal in Hindi and uluthamparuppu in Tamil play a huge role in South Indian cooking . They are used to make sweets too.

One such sweet is the Jangiri. It looks like a thick string woven into a flowery pattern and typically made with a touch of orange food color .

Soaked lentils are ground into a fine batter. This is placed in some equipment like an icing funnel to pipe the semisolid batter into flowery shapes. This is done directly into hot oil on the stove. The jangiris are deep fried at a medium heat and then dunked into sugar syrup flavoured with rose.

Wedding feasts are a good time to enjoy jangiris because they would always be part of the menu and are sometimes distributed to the guests too.

 Food from other lands:

Jalapeno was a new term I learnt in my twenties when I visited the US.  It took me a while to learn the pronounciation. For spice loving Indians, chillies are an integral part of our daily diet. We use green chillies or dried red ones too.

Food for thought: 

No quotes. Just two words that came to my mind . 

Just chill ! 

Idly and Icecream

When I say Indian food, what most of the globe picturises is what we typically get in Indian Tandoori restaurants. Naan, kulcha, Paneer tikka and so on. But i feel that not many know, especially non-Indians , that these are more related to Tandoori style of cooking which is a method of cooking food in an oven like "Tandoor".

Every state in India has a unique cuisine and the menu is influenced by the key agricultural produce and the weather too.  Typically the southern coastal states are rice eaters and the ones falling above the Tropic Of Cancer are more wheat eaters.

A very common food item in South India is the humble Idly, a steamed dish made using a batter thats 80% rice and 20% lentils(urad dal).

Idly made in the right way is incredibly soft and is very healthy, gentle on the stomach and easy to prepare .  Its typically served with coconut chutney and steaming lentil curry called sambar. The technique and equipment used in the making  of the batter determines the perfection of the outcome. Most Tamil speaking folks to whom cooking at home is serious business will have this kitchen equipment called wet grinder. Two rolling stones run by an inbuilt motor are used to fine grind soaked lentils and rice to make the batter.

This equipment has replaced the manually operated grinding stone that was mostly used in homes earlier.  I have seen in some of the old movies that if one ate at a restaurant and could not settle the bill, one had to make up for it by grinding the idly batter for the subsequent day. 

In fact some people in recent days even set up an idly batter making business that was a blessing to people who had no time for the preparation. The thing is , the same batter can be used to make the crepe-like dosa , thicker oothappam etc.  These days, are commercially available dosa batter in tetra packs too.

Food from other lands:

Ice Cream of course ! It is available every where on the planet today and I have no clue about its origins. I don't recall my first icecream. Like most others, it was when I was a very young child, beyond the reach of my memory. I do have memories of us cousins enjoying icecream during the summer holidays, one of the innumerable treats from our grandfather. Earlier the icecream stores sold them in a packed cup or a popsicle format. Chocobar was our favorite though the outer chocolate layer would slide off within a minute once the icecream started to loosen. Later softy icecream stores became popular with a wide array of toppings. 

Whats your favourite flavour ? 

Food for thought:

The quote today is from a Tamil movie called Mozhi (language) which is about a girl who is deaf and mute but still leads a very independant life. If you get a chance do watch it. 

"Iyarkkayin mozhigal purindhuvidil,

Manitharin mozhigal thevai illai

Idhayathin mozhigal purindhuvidil

Manitharukku mozhiye thevai illai"

Iyarkkai - Nature

Puruindhuvidil - if its understood

Idhayam - heart

Idhayathin - of the heart 

Manithar - man (humans) 

I dont think i can do justice to the beauty of the lines in my translation but will try !

If the language of nature is understood,

We dont need the languages of humans!

If the language of the heart is understood

Humans do not need a language at all!

Halwa and Hummus

 Food from home:

There is a city called Thirunelveli in TamilNadu. Ask any Tamilian what comes to mind when we say Thirunelveli and the immediate reply would be halwa.

The city is renowned for its sweet dessert otherwise called "Thirunelveli Halwa". 

Halwa is a basically semi solid glossy dessert made with ghee and sugar and some basic ingredient like carrot, wheat flour or semolina.  The aforementioned one from Thirunelveli is made using wheat flour.

In Tamil weddings a commonly served sweet is the Ashoka halwa which is basically made using mashed yellow lentils(moong dal).

We even make halwa with vegetables like carrots or white pumpkin. 

The basic ingredient plus the sugar and ghee are cooked on a flame till the right consistency is reached. I recently saw a youtube video where someone transformed left over rice into yummy looking halwa! 

I recall a funny story that i read somewhere or saw on TV. There is some situation which warrants a guy to be silent or not give away some secret and so they  make halwa using glue and offer it him. He greedily gobbles it up and his mouth gets stuck. Ha ha!

 Image credit: Wikimedia commons

Food from other lands :

Hummus! I am yet to figure out the correct pronounciation for this lovely food item from the middle east. In one of my previous workplaces there was this coffee shop where I would often grab a quick breakfast. My favorite used to be whole meal bread sandwich with a hummus and kale filling. I have not tried making it at home as it needs some additional flavourings like tahini but its on my would-love-to-try list!

Food for thought:

For H its not a quote but a single word.

"HELLO" 

This has been incorporated into many a language in the world as its the standard greeting uttered at the beginning of a phone conversation. 

There would always be someone on our minds we wanted to get in touch with or reconnect or just talk to as its been a while.

Sometimes we keep pushing it to a corner of our minds dealing with daily mundane runs. We just click the button and make that call. They would be happy and so would we. 

A little care can bring about a lot of happiness!!

Ghee and green curry

One of the definite items in the monthly order I send to my grocer is a bottle of ghee, (nei in Tamil) or what is called clarified butter . 

Most Indian sweets are made with ghee and like sweets , ghee is more of a reflection of love. The more the affection, bigger is the size of the serving accessory used! Grandmothers are adept at picking the biggest size of spoons with a "To hell with your weight loss regime" outlook! Ha ha ...The more the ghee, the richer is the food.

My mother used to collect cream formed on the top layer of curd in a vessel in the fridge. Once a good amount was collected, she would whip it up to extract the butter and then melt it on a stove to extract the ghee. During this process, the kind of aroma that would fill the home - i have no words to describe - The one that would make you close your eyes, take in the smell and let out a delighted sigh with a gleam in your eyes. 

Every day we would add a bit of ghee to our rice before mixing it with the curry or the vegetable. A small serving of rice , a spoon of ghee and boiled yellow lentils is absolute comfort food. This one in a mashed version is the first solid food for the babies in most of our households.

Ghee is mainly added for flavour and is also said to have some health benefits like building strength in bones and providing the required calcium. In today's sedentary lifestyle , it can lead to build up of cholesterol though, if taken without moderation of quantity.

 

My dad had this habit while eating chapathis(flat bread made of wheat) . No matter how many tasty side dishes emerged from my mother's kitchen, he would reserve one last chapathi for his favorite accompaniment - sugar mixed with ghee! 

Food from other lands:

As a family we love Thai food and our favorite is Thai Green Curry  . My daughter especially is a big fan like me! With the coconut and spices it has a good amount of similarity with our traditional food. Staying in South Asia , we do get to taste the authentic versions. I have attempted making things like tom yum soup and green curry at home too and the results were not bad. I have read articles that pounding the spices in a mortar and pestle yields the best taste. A mix of shallots and vegetables cooked with coconut 

milk and blended with lemon grass and kafir lime leaves and lemon rind and other spices - woah!! I am typing this after a heavy dinner but the thought itself is mouth watering ! 

Food for thought:

What I have for G is more of a phrase than a quote in Tamil

Gundu chattiyil guthirai ottuvathu

Gundu chatti - fat  pot 

Guthirai - horse 

Ottuvathu - ride 

It literally translates to riding a horse inside a fat round pot - tough to visualize and does not make complete sense, i know! 

What it means is doing the same repetitive things in a restrictive or comfort space with no real progress or scope for growth . 

It can be applied to one s career or growth in a particular field. 

Falooda and Falafel

 Food from home:

The phonetic sound "fa" is very rare or technically non-existent in Tamil to my knowledge, especially at the beginning of a word. Hence its tough to find a  food item from traditional recipes at home that begin with 'fa'. 

Falooda is a dessert supposed to have entered India from Persian side of the world through the Mughal rulers. 

Its basically like a sundae. It has some noodle or vermicelli and some soaked basil seeds. Then there is thickened and sweetened milk, some rose syrup, some jelly bits, fruits of our choice and topped with icecream. 

It can be pretty filling though and so if its part of our meal plans we need to be vary of our pre-dessert servings.

Till my early teens we were in a place called Kozhikode in Kerala and I remember there was a Falooda place in the main shopping area. Compared to the typical single flavor monochrome icecream that we were used to, this was much more appealing.

These days I make falooda at home whenever we are in the mood for some , and the results are not bad, I must say. Its one of those food items where its not the cooking method but what goes into the mix that really matters. Also there is no hard and fast rule. You could be creative on additions and deletions.

Food from other lands:

Falafel is what comes to mind with not one but two 'F' s. I have had Falafel in wraps and I enjoyed them though i would not put falafel on top of my favorite snacks list. What is the best way to eat falafel? Any recommendations ?

Food for thought:

As I mentioned earlier its difficult finding words in my mother tongue with F leave alone quotes.

For a change today would be an English quote , one of my all time favourites from forwards. I have seen it in newspapers, email forwards, sms forwards,orkut, facebook, twitter and whatsapp! As we moved forwards from one medium to another. 

The quote is 

I cried because I have no shoes till I met a man with no feet

I am not aware of its origins but its one line that says it all. Look at the bright side of things! When you google it, and look at the images there is a myriad of sources mentioned from ancient Persia to Helen Keller. I don't know who said it but I love it !