Kitchen Corner-Try It

Ethapazham Paal Curry Ethapazham paal curry or pazham curry is a simple breakfast stew made with ripe plantains and coconut milk. It is mildly spicy and sweet curry and goes well with appam or idiyappam. Ingredients Ripe plantain/ethapazham- 2 large Shallots chopped- 1/4 cup Green chilly- 3 Ginger chopped- 1/2 tsp Curry leaves-a few Coconut milk thin- 1 cup Coconut milk thick- 3/4 cup  Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp Cardamom powder- a pinch Cumin powder- a pinch Powdered jaggery- 1/2 tsp (optional) salt to taste oil Heat oil in a pan and saute shallots, curry leaves, green chilly and chopped ginger till translucent. Add turmeric powder and salt and then the chopped plantains. Mix well and add thin coconut milk.Cover and cook till the plantain are cooked and soft. Remove the lid and mix cardamom powder, cumin powder and powdered jaggery. Mix well. Add thick coconut milk and simmer for a minute and remove from the stove. Serve with appam or idiyappam. Try th...

Pazham Boli Pazham boli/ethapazham boli is a mildly sweet and delicious snack. It is a quick fix snack that you can serve with tea. I felt like it tastes somewhat like unniappam. This recipe is inspired from Das Shreedharans cookbook which I read some time ago,even though I don't remember the exact recipe. Pazham boli is delicious with great aroma of plantains, ghee and cardamom powder. Ingredients Plantains- medium-2 Cherupazham/small banana-1 Maida-2 tbs Rice flour- 2 tsp Baking powder- a pinch Turmeric powder- a pinch Sugar- 3 tbs (adjust according to taste) Black sesame seeds- 1 tbs Grated coconut- 1 tbs Dry ginger powder- a pinch Clove powder- a pinch Cardamom powder- a pinch Ghee- 1 tbs Oil- 1 tsp In a bowl add chopped plantain and small banana/cherupazham. Gently mash it with your fingers. Into this add maida, sugar, grated coconut, roasted sesame seeds,baking powder, turmeric powder, ginger powder, clove powder and cardamom powder. Mix ...

Unni Madhuram/ Sweet Banana Balls Unni madhuram is a sweet snack made with left over bread and ripe plantains. There are several recipes for deep fried banana balls and my personal favorite is undan pori, a popular tea stall snack.I am  loving unni mathuram because of its simplicity and taste .Both these snack are crispy and sweet and made with bananas. Unni mathuram is a Malabar snack. It is extra crunchy in the outside with a sweet spongy center.It is a quick fix snack and kids will love this tea time snack. Ingredients Ripe plantains-2 Banana/cheru pazham-2 (optional) Bread sliced- 6 Cardamom powder-  1/2 tsp Sugar- 3-4 tbs Salt- a pinch Cashew nuts -5-6 Ghee- 1 tsp Oil for frying Use dry left over bread for this recipe. You can sun dry it or lightly toast it in the oven. Cut bread into bits and add to a food processor. Pulse a few times. You will get course crumbs. Reserve two to three tbs of bread crumbs and use the rest for the recipe. Ch...

 Ethakka Beef Ularthiyathu/ Beef and Plantain Ularthu  Ethakka beef ularthiyathu is a spicy beef and plantain stir fry. It can be served as a side dish for rice. Ingredients Beef - 1/2 Kg Raw plantain- 2 medium Shallots- 1 cup Chopped onions-1 medium Crushed ginger and garlic- 2 tbs Vinegar- 1 tbs Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp Chilly powder-1/2 tsp Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp Coriander powder 1 tsp Pepper powder- 1 1/4  tsp Fennel powder- 1 tsp Cloves -3-4 Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp Curry leaves- a few Coconut oil- 3 tsp Clean and cut  beef into small pieces. Marinate with crushed ginger, garlic, pepper powder,turmeric powder, vinegar and salt. Set this aside for half an hour. Cook beef in pressure cooker. Add the marinated beef, crushed shallots and 1/2 cup of water. Cook in medium flame till 3 whistles, reduce the flame and continue cooking  for another 5-6 minutes and switch off the flame. Allow it to cool down a bit.Remove lid...

Sharkara Upperi/Ethakka Upperi/ Plantain Chips Kaya varuthathu/upperi/plantain chips is a popular snack in Kerala. Plantain chips are available all year round in bakeries and it served as a snack along with tea. It is also a quintessential part of the Kerala Sadhya or traditional feast. Sharkara varatti (upperi)  and ethakka upperi is made with unripe plantain. Both these chips are addictive snacks that you cannot stop munching.During Onam festival in Kerala, bakeries are stacked up with plantain chips and sharkara upperi. My mom makes this at home all the time and it is super yummy. The real flavor of plantain chips comes from coconut oil.So try making it in coconut oil to get the authentic Kerala chips flavor and taste. Sharkara upperi or Varatti is a sweet chip version made with plantain and jaggery and Ethakka upperi is thinly sliced crispy and salty plantain chips.Chips are easier to make. But Sharkara upperi needs a little practice to get it right. The pieces are...

Pazham Nirachathu Pazham Nirachathu is a yummy snack from North Kerala. It is whole plantains stuffed with a sweet coconut filling, dipped in batter and fried. It is similar to pazham pori and kids will surely love this. Ingredients Whole plantains-2 All purpose flour/maida- 1/2 cup Rice flour- 2 tbs salt- a pinch Sugar- 1 tbs For the filling Coconut- 1/3 cup Sugar- 3 tbs Ghee- 1 tsp Cardamon- 1/3 tsp Raisins- a few Chopped cashew nuts- 4-5 ( I also used 1 tsp dates and 1 tsp candied pineapple) Heat ghee in a pan and roast cashew nuts and raisins till golden brown. Add coconut and sugar and stir for a minute and set aside. Allow this mixture to cool. Make a medium consistency batter with maida,rice flour, salt and sugar and water. Keep aside. Peel plantains and making a long shallow slit lengthwise ,leaving one inch towards both edges.  The slit should reach the center and carefully remove the black seeds. Stuff in the filling mixture. Heat oil i...

Ethapazham Erisseri  Wishing all my friends and readers a very happy and prosperous Onam! Erisseri is an important dish in Kerala Sadhya . Since it is Onam I thought of sharing this recipe. Erisseri is  mildly spicy curry with one or a combination of  vegetables and lentils. It is  seasoned with roasted coconut, fried curry leaves which adds to its unique flavor and taste to the curry.  This one is made with ripe and slightly sweet plantain. I brought a batch to make banana chips but the skin turned yellow. So I had to abandon the idea of making chips and made this erisseri instead. It has a slight sweetness like the pumpkin erisseri  is a flavorful and quick dish. Try this for Sadhya ,you will surely love it. Ingredients Plantains/Ethakka- 3 medium Black eye beans- 3/4 cup (or you can use red beans/vanpayar) Shredded Coconut- 3/4 cup+ 1/2 cup Turmeric- a pinch Chilly powder- 3/4 tsp Jeera/cumin -1/3 tsp Curry leaves Coconut ...

Ethapazham Halwa/Banana Halwa Do you love plantains? This tropical fruit is sweet and starchy. Whether you love or hate them, this sweet plantain halwa is a delicious treat that you should try. And I guarantee it will quickly become your favorite plantain sweet treats! This halwa smells amazing, with an intense caramelized fruity, plantain flavor, and is a die for! Halwa is a popular,  sweet in India known for its gel-like candy texture and is so addictive. Halwas of different shades and colors are beautifully arranged,  in glass shelves in Indian bakeries. Halwa is adored by young and old in Kerala, and there is an indispensable part of festivals and celebrations. Ethapazham/ Nenthra Pazham/banana halwa is best when made with overripe plantains. If you have some black-spotted overripe plantains sitting on the kitchen counter, don't be tempted to throw then away. It is best for this recipe. Plantain halwa is very popular in Kerala, and you get the best banana halwa is Kozhik...

Ethakka Vilayichathu An evening sweet snack served with tea.It is simple and can be made in a jiffy. Ripe plantains are slightly toasted in ghee and sugar and flavored with cardamon.The plantains should retain shape but at the same time will be soft caramelized slightly sticky. Serve it warm or cold with a dollop of whipped cream. Ingredients Plantain Ripe-3 medium Sugar- 3 tbs Ghee- 1 1/2 tbs Cardamon pods crushed- 4 Raisins and cashew nuts- a few Cut plantains into round slices. Heat ghee in a pan and fry cashew nuts and raisins till golden and keep aside.Add the plantains and fry slightly, saute and turn to the other sides and fry. Add sugar and allow to caramelize for about 3-4 minutes till the caramelized sugar gets well coated. Mix in the cashew nuts and raisins and cardamon powder. Serve with tea. Try this Hope you will all enjoy!

Ethapazham Kozhukatta Today's recipe is a tasty and guilt free snack.It is kozhakatta with the different filling. It is caramelized ripe plantain and coconut filling.Usually we use plantain to make ada or puttu for breakfast.But this time I used it as a filling for kozhukatta instead of the usual jaggery coconut filling. It had an inviting flavors of ghee, plantain and cardamon.Serve this with a cup of tea as a snack or as breakfast. Ingredients Rice flour- 2 cups Hot boiling water-1 1/4 cup Salt to taste Sugar- 1 tsp Coconut oil- 2 tsp For the filling Ripe plantain- 2 Coconut 1/2 cup Sugar- 3 tbs (or according to sweetness you like) Cardamon  powder- 1/2 tsp Ghee- 2  tsp To make the filling cut plantains into small pieces. Heat ghee in a pan and add chopped plantain and stir fry for about 2-3 minutes or till it becomes soft. Add sugar and mix and allow the sugar to melt and caramelize. Mix in coconut and cardamon powder. Allow the mixture...

Kalan is a versatile vegetarian dish and is truly the pride of Kerala. It is one of the most important dish in the sadhya menu and if you are a sadhya lover,you can never say no to this dish. It is made with common ingredients-vegetables,yogurt and coconut, but it has a unique taste and flavor and can be kept in room temperature for at least two weeks. It is a delicate cooking technique and the vegetables are slowly simmered and cooked in yogurt and the gravy is thick. Kalan is a specialty in Central Kerala. It is also popular in South Kerala where it is a thinner gravy and is served over rice. I have already posted a  Kurukku kalan which is a more thicker version with chembu/taro. Traditionally the vegetables used in sadhya is plantains and yam/chena. Ingredients Plantain Raw- 1 medium Yam/chena cut in cubes- 1 cup Pepper powder- 1 tsp Chilly powder-1/2 tsp Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Ghee-  2tsp Curry leaves- a few Salt to taste Yogurt- 1/2 liter To make...

Pazham Pori-Ethapazham pori Pazham Pori or Ethapazham pori is a popular tea time snack of Kerala. It can be easily found in thattukadas/chayakadas in Kerala. Have you ever been to a chayakada before? They are tea stalls found in the nook and corner of Kerala. In the olden days these stalls were the hub of the village or small communities and people used to gather morning and evening for tea, newspaper or radio news discussions. My grandmother always used to complain that my grandfather never used to drink morning tea at home. He always used to walk to the corner tea stall to drink tea, listen to the news and chat with friends..mostly discuss politics :) Chayakadas serve tea, morning breakfast, and fitters. Pazham pori made with ripe sweet plantain is a favorite among the visitors or customers. Gone are the days of glory for these humble tea stalls but not the delicious and colorful fitters that adored their glass shelf containers. They still look mouth-watering. It is so yum...