Traditional Recipes

Pepper Jeera Saaru

Ingredients:
  • Tamarind Lime size
  • Pepper 1/2-3/4 Tablespoon
  • Cumin Seeds 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Ghee 1 Tablespoon
  • Coriander leaves 1 Tablespoon
  • Turmeric Powder 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Salt 1/34 Teaspoon
  • Jaggery 1 Teaspoon
  • Mustard 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Asafoetida Powder 1/4 Teaspoon
  • Garlic Flakes 8 small flakes
  • Curry leaves 10-12
  • Method:
    Make fine powder of pepper and cumin seeds. Soak tamarind in a cup of warm water for 10 minutes. Squeeze and strain out the juice into a 4 quart vessel. mash garlic and add it to the tamarind juice along with turmeric powder, jaggery, and salt. Boil till raw smell of tamarind disappears. Then add four cups of water, the pepper and cumin powder and curry leaves. Boil till the sasru reduces a little bit. Remove from heat and strain it through a stainless steel sieve.

    Heat the ghee in a pan, and add mustard. When the mustard splutters, add asafoetida powder and pour it over the Saaru. Garnish it with finely chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

    Pickle Masala

    Ingredients:
  • Red Chilli Powder 1 1/4 cup
  • Mustard Seeds 3/4 cup
  • Cumin Seeds 1/4 cup
  • Method:
    1. Dry roast mustard seeds and Cumin seeds seperately.
    2. Once they cool down blend mustard seeds and cumin seeds to make smooth powder.
    3. Mix red chilli powder and mustard and cumin powder.
    4. Store in a dry air-tight container.

    Thumbli

    Thumbli is one of the traditional dishes of Havyakas. Thumbli is used with white rice, usually at the end of the meal. This simple but versatile dish is very delicious especially on a hot day.

    It is basically a seasoned mixture of ground fresh coconut and buttermilk. Different kinds of thumblis are made by blending ginger or garlic or cilantra(coriander leaves) or raw mango or cumin seeds or fenugreek etc. with coconut. Red chillis, mustard seeds and asafoetida(optional) are used for seasoning.

    Shunthi Thumbli (Gingery buttermilk)

    Ingredients:
  • Ginger(finely chopped) 3 tablespoon
  • Fresh Coconut(grated) 1/3 cup
  • Buttermilk 1 1/2 cup
  • water 1 cup
  • salt 1/2 teaspoon
    For Seasoning:
  • Oil 3/4 teaspoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1/2 teaspoon
  • Red Chilli 1
  • Asafoetida 1/8 teaspoon
    Method: Blend ginger and coconut with 1/2 cup of water into a smooth mixture. Pour it into a medium size bowl and add remaining water, buttermilk and salt . Then season it and mix well.
  • Mavin Midi(Vadu Mango) Thumbli

    Ingredients:
  • Maavin Midi from the pickle(medium sized) 1
  • Grated Coconut 1/2 Cup
  • Water 1 Cup
  • Buttermilk 1 cup
  • Salt 1/4 Teaspoon
  • For Seasoning:

  • Mustard Seeds 1/4 Teaspoon
  • Urad Dal 1/4 Teaspoon
  • Red Chilli 1
  • Curry Leaves 4-6
  • Asafoetida 1 pinch
  • Oil 1 Teaspoon
  • Method:
    Take a medium sized Maavina Midi from the pickle and Chop it. If the seed is hard, remove and discard it, otherwise it can also be chopped. Put the chopped midi, grated coconut, and 1/2 cup water in a blender and blend to make a smooth paste. Pour the paste into a medium size bowl, add rest of the water, buttermilk and salt and stir well to mix.
    Heat the oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds,urad dal, curry leaves and red chilli. When the mustard seeds splutter, add asafoetida powder and pour it over the Thumbli. Serve the Thumbli with plain rice.

    Heerekai Thumbli

    Ingredients:
  • Peeled and chopped Heerekai 2 1/2 cups
  • Fresh Grated Coconut 1/2 cup
  • Buttermilk 1 cup
  • Water 2 cups
  • Salt to taste
  • For Seasoning:

  • Oil 3/4 teaspoon
  • Urad Daal 1/4 teaspoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1/2 teaspoon
  • Red Chilli 1
  • Asafoetida 1/8 teaspoon

    Method:
    1. Put the chopped heerekai and one cup of water in a medium sized pan and cook until the heerakai is well cooked and becomes soft.
    2. Once the cooked heerekai cools down, add the grated coconut and blend to make a smooth paste.
    3. Pour the blended mixture into a medium sized bowl, add buttermilk and salt. Mix well.
    4. Heat the oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds,urad dal, curry leaves and red chilli. When the mustard seeds splutter, add asafoetida powder and pour it over the Thumbli. Serve the Thumbli with plain rice.

  • Polodya

    Ingredients:
  • Raw Banana/Plantain(peeled and chopped into medium sized chunks) 2 1/2 cups
  • Water 3 Cups
  • Salt 3 teaspoons
  • Hulipudi/Tamarind Paste 1/2 teaspoon
  • Turmeric Powder 1/4 teaspoon
  • Jaggery/Brown Sugar(optional) 1/2 teaspoon
  • Buttermilk 1 1/2 cups

  • For Paste:
  • Channa Dal 1 teaspoon
  • Uncooked Rice 1/2 teaspoon
  • Coriander Seeds 2 teaspoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1 teaspoon
  • Oil 1 1/2 teaspoon
  • Green Chilli 2
  • Fresh Grated Coconut 1/2 cup
  • Water 1/2 cup

  • For Seasoning:
  • Urad Dal 1 teaspoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1/2 teaspoon
  • Red Chilli 1
  • Oil 1 1/2 teaspoon
  • Asafoedita 1/8 teaspoon
  • Method:
    Put banana chunks and water in a medium sized pan. Add salt, hulipudi,and jaggery/brown sugar.Then bring it to boil on medium high flame. Cover the pan and cook on low flame until the plantain chunks are well cooked.

    In the meantime soak channa dal and uncooked rice in water for at least 15-20 minutes. Put coriander seeds, mustard seeds and oil in a small pan and heat it until the mustard seeds start spluttering. Then grind channa dal, uncooked rice, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, green chillis,and coconut along with water.

    Once the plantain chunks are cooked, add the ground masala paste and let the mixture boil once. Then remove it from the heat and season it. When it cools down add buttermilkand mix well.

    Note:You can use okra(ladies finger)or raw jackfruit or cucumber instead of raw plantain.

    Mavina Kai Sasive(Raw Mango Spicy Raita)

    Ingredients:
  • Medium Size Raw Mango 1
  • Fresh Grated Coconut 1/3 cup
  • Yogurt or Curds 1 cup
  • Water 1 cup
  • Salt 1/2 teaspoon
  • Brown Sugar or Jaggery 2-3 teaspoons
  • Mustard Seeds 1 teaspoon
  • Coriander Seeds 1/2 teaspoon
  • Red Chillis 2-3
  • Green Chilli 1
  • Turmeric Powder 1/2 teaspoon
  • Method:
    Peel the mango and coook in one cup of water and brown sugar until it is soft. Blend grated coconut, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, red chillies, green chille, and turmeric powder together(Use 1/2 cup water taken to cook the mango to blend). In a small vessel squeeze the pulp and juice of the cooked mango and roughly mash the pulp, so that there are no big pieces of pulp. Then add the blended mixture,yogurt,salt, and rest of the water used to cook and mix well. Serve with warm plain rice.

    Yellina Chatne (Sesame Chutney)

    Ingredients:
  • Sesame Seeds 1 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Red Chillies 4-6
  • Marbel sized Tamarind
  • oil 1 Teaspoon
  • Grated Coconut 2 Cups
  • Brown Sugar 1 1/2 Tablespoon(optional)
  • Salt 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Water 1 Cup
  • Method:
    Put the sesame seeds, red chillies and oil in a small pan and heat it until the sesame seeds turn slightly brown. Then mix all the ingredients and blend until the mixture is smooth. Serve with hot dosa.

    Hagalakai Gojju(Bittermelon Chutney)

    Contributed by Ramakrishna and Chandramati Bhat, Bangalore

    Ingredients:
  • Bittermelon(Bittergourd) 2
  • Salt 1 teaspoon
  • Turmeric Powder 1/2 teaspoon
  • Grated Coconut 3 tablespoons
  • Putani(Hurikadale) 2 tablespoons
  • Tamarind paste 2 teaspoons
  • Vegetable Oil 1 teaspoon
  • Brown Sugar or Jaggery 2 teaspoons
  • Cilantra( finely chopped) 2 tablespoons

  • For Masala Powder:
  • Vegetable oil 2 teaspoons
  • Coriander Seeds 2 teaspoons
  • Cumin Seeds 1 teaspoon
  • Fenugreek 1/2 teaspoon
  • Sesame Seeds 1 teaspoon
  • Black Pepper 1 1/2 teaspoon
  • Urad dal 2 teaspoons
  • Channa Dal 2 teaspoons
  • Moong dal 2 teaspoons

  • For seasoning:
  • Mustard Seeds 1/2 teaspoon
  • Asafoetida 1/4 teaspoon
  • Vegetable Oil 1 teaspoon


  • Chop the bittermelons into small pieces and add salt and turmeric powder and mix well. Keep the mixture aside for atleast 1 hour. Then squeeze out the liquid from the mixture.

    Fry the masala powder ingredients in the oil until they turn slilghtly brown and grind them into powder.

    Fry the grated coconut and Hurikadale in oil until the mixture gives out its aroma. Then add 1/4 cup of water to the mixture and blend it into a coarse paste.

    Add jaggery or brown sugar and tamarind paster to the bittermelon mixture and cook it in a heavy saucepan on a medium heat. When the bittermelon is fully cooked, add the masala powder and coconut paste and mix well.add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water if needed.(it should not be too thin) Boil the mixture and remove from heat. Then season it and garnish it with finely chopped cilantra leaves.

    Marige Gojju (Spicy Green Chutney)

    Ingredients:
  • Urad Dal 2 teaspoons
  • Sesame Seeds 2 teaspoons
  • Green Chilli 1
  • Garlic 6 small flakes
  • Vegetable Oil 1 1/2 teaspoon
  • Grated Coconut 3 tablespoons
  • Yogurt or Curds 1 cup
  • Water 1/4 cup
  • Cilantra(chopped) 1/4 cup
  • Salt 1/2 teaspoon


  • First fry the first four ingredients in oil until they turn slilghtly brown. Then blend the fried mixture with grated coconut, cilantra, water and 1/2 cup of yogurt/curds into a coarse paste. Then pour the mixture into a bowl and add the remaining yogurt/curds and salt and mix well.
    Although traditionally this is used with white rice, this can also be used as a dip for the vegetables or chips.

    Nimbehannin Gojju(Lemon Chutney)

    Contributed by Suma Tejaswi

    Ingredients:
  • Chopped Lemon(with skin) 1 cup
  • Salt 1 tablespoon
  • Jaggery or Brown Sugar 7 tablespoons
  • Tamarind small lemon size
  • Turmeric Powder 1/4 teaspoon
  • Red Chilli Powder 2 teaspoons
  • Black Pepper Powder 1 teaspoon
  • Sesame Seeds 2 teaspoons
  • Cumin Seeds 1 teaspoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1/4 teaspoon
  • Oil 2 teaspoons
  • Water 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons
  • Dried grated coconut 1/4 cup
  • Method:
    Mix the finely chopped lemons,salt,turmeric powder, jaggery/brown sugar, tamarind, chilli poder and black pepper powder in a bowl and keep it aside for 30-60 minutes. Put the oil in a small pan and roast sesame seeds, cumin seeds, and mustard seeds. Then mix these with the lemon mixture and blend. When the mixture turns into smooth paste add grated coconut and water and blend to mix well. Remove the gojju from the blender and serve along with curd rice or plain white rice.

    Mangar Saiyya or mavinakai Gojju(Mango Chutney)

    Contributed by Madhavi A Hegde

    Ingredients:
  • Large Raw Mango(peeled and chopped) 1
  • Green Chilli 2
  • Salt 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Brown Sugar or jaggery 3 Teaspoons
    For Seasoning:
  • Curry Leaves 6-8
  • Oil 1 Teaspoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Asafoetida 1/4 Teaspoon

    Method: Pressure cook the mago pieces with salt and green chillies. Then mash the cooked mango, add brown sugar/jaggery. Put the mixture in a heavy saucepan and heat it on medium flame until it starts to boil. Heat the oil in a pan, add mustardand curry leaves. When the mustard splutters, add asafoetida powder and pour it over the Gojju.

  • Ambode

    Ingredients:
  • Vegetable Oil 2 cups
  • Channa Dal 1 cup
  • Urad Dal 1/2 cup
  • Water 1 cup
  • Grated Coconut 1/4 cup
  • Finely Chopped Green Chillis(medium hot) 2
  • Finely Chopped Ginger 1 tablespoon
  • Finely Chopped Coriander leaves 1/4 cup
  • Salt 3/4 teaspoon
  • Asafoetida Powder 1 pinch
  • Method:
    First soak Channa dal and Urad dal seperately in water for 4-6 hours. Then drain the water and mix urad dal with 1/2 cup water and grind to make a smooth paste. Grind the channa dal with 1/2 cup water to make a coarse paste. Put the urad dal paste and channa dal paste in a medium sized bowl. Add rest of the ingredients and mix well.
    Heat the oil in a pan. When the oil is sufficiently hot, drop seperately about 1 1/2 tablespoon mixture. Fry on medium heat turning them over, until ambodes turns golden brown. Serve the hot ambodes with you favourite chutney.

    Note: If you have a stone grinder, you can use less water to grind the dals. As a result your mixture will be thick and you can make balls of about 1 1/2 tablespoon mixture and flaten them and fry.

    Hesaru Bele Kosambari(Moong Dal Salad)

    Ingredients:
  • Channa Dal 1 cup
  • Peeled and Chopped Cucumber 1 Cup
  • Salt 1/2 teaspoon
  • Fresh Grated Coconut 1/3 cup
  • Finely Chopped Green Chilli 1 1/2 teaspoon
  • Finely Chopped Cilantro 2 tablespoons
  • Lemon Juice 3 tablespoons
  • For Seasoning:
  • Oil 1 tablespoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1/4 teaspoon
  • Urad Dal 1/4 teaspoon
  • Red Chilli 1
  • Asafoetida 1/8 teaspoon
  • Method:
    Soak the moong dal overnight in three cups of water. Remove the water and wash the moong dal with fresh water. Then put the dal in a medium sized bowl and add rest of the ingredients, mix well. Heat the oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds, urad dal and red chilli. When the mustard splutters, add asafoetida powder and pour it over the Kosambari and mix well.

    Kadale Bele Kosambari(Channa Dal Salad)

    Ingredients:
  • Channa Dal 1 cup
  • Salt 3/4 teaspoon
  • Fresh Grated Coconut 1/3 to 1/2 cup
  • Finely Chopped Green Chilli 1/2 teaspoon
  • Finely Chopped Cilantro 2 tablespoons
  • Lemon Juice 3 tablespoons
  • For Seasoning:
  • Oil 1 tablespoon
  • Mustard Seeds 1/4 teaspoon
  • Urad Dal 1/4 teaspoon
  • Red Chilli 1
  • Asafoetida 1/8 teaspoon
  • Method:
    Soak the channa dal overnight in three cups of water. Remove the water and wash the channa dal with fresh water. Then put the channa dal in a medium sized bowl and add rest of the ingredients, mix well. Heat the oil in a small pan, add mustardand seeds,urad dal and red chilli. When the mustard splutters, add asafoetida powder and pour it over the Kosambari.

    Haagalakai Palya(Stir-Fried Bittermelon)

    Contributed by Vasanti G Hegde, Sirsi

    Ingredients:
  • Seeded and Grated Bittermelon 1 1/4 Cup
  • Salt 1 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Huli Pudi or Amchoor Powder 1 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Chopped Green Chilli 1 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Vegetable Oil 3 Tablespoons
  • Mustard Seeds 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Urad Dal 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Baaji Masala 2 Tablespoons
  • Brown Sugar 1 Teaspoon
  • Turmeric Powder 1/8 Teaspoon
  • Method:
    Mix salt and Huli Pudi/Amchoor Powder with the grated Bittermelon. After 20-30 minutes, wring out the watery liquid from the mixture. Heat the oil in a medium sized thick vessel. Add mustard seeds and urad dal. When the mustard seeds splutter, add the chopped green chilles and stir. Fry the green chillies for about 2 minutes, add turmeric powder and the wrung out bittermelon mixture. Add brown sugar, mix well and cover the vessel. Let the bittermelon cook on medium low heat for about 10 minutes, while stirring it once in every few minutes.Once the bittermelon is cooked, remove the cover, add the grated coconut and the baaji masala. Continue to stir and cook it for about 15-20 minutes until the bitermelon loses all the moisture. Serve with plain rice.

    Shira

    Ingredients:
  • Cream of Wheat(Sooji) 3/4 cup
  • Butter 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon or Ghee 3/4 cup
  • Milk or Water 3/4 cup
  • Sugar 3/4 cup
  • Banana(mashed) 1/2 cup(optional)
  • saffron 1/8 teaspoon
  • Cardamom powder 1/2 teaspoon
  • Method:
    Melt the butter/ghee in a medium size thick vessel. Add cream of wheat, mix well. Stir and roast for about 3 to 5 minutes on medium heat. In the mean time add saffron to milk/water and heat. Add the hot milk/water to the roasted sooji, mix well and cover.Let it cook for 5 minutes on medium heat. Then add sugar and mashed banana, stir to mix well. Cover and cook for 5 to 7 minutes. Then mix the caramom powder and remove the vessel from the stove.
    Variations: Crushed pineapple(1/2 cup) can be used instead of mashed banana.

    Payasa

    Contributed by Asha Balakrishna Bhat

    Ingredients:
  • Mung Dal 1 Cup
  • Peeled and sliced(1" wide pieces)Cucumber 2 Cups
  • Sugar or Brown Sugar or Jaggery 3 Cups
  • Grated Coconut 1/2 Cup
  • Cardamom Powder 1/2 teaspoon
  • Milk 1 Cup
  • Salt 1 pinch
  • Method:
    Roast the dal in a thick vessel on low heat until it turns golden brown (for about 15 minutes). Then wash it and add 2 1/2 cups of water and cook in the pressure cooker. Put the cucumber pieces in another medium size vesssel, add 1 cup water and cook for about 15 minutes on low heat or until cucumber pieces are cooked. Blend the grated coconut with 1/2 cup water until the mixture becomes smooth. Put the cooked dal, cooked cucumber, and blended coconut in a large, thick bottomed vessel. Add brown sugar, salt, and 1 cup water. Mix well and cook on low heat until payasa starts to boil(keep on stirring, as moong dal tends to stick to the bottom). Then add milk and Cardamom powder. Once the mixture starts to boil, remove from the heat.

    Note: Pumpkin can be used as a substitute for the cucumber.
    Water can be used instead of milk.
    You can increase or decrease the amount of water and brown sugar to suit your taste.

    Pumpkin Kadabu

    Contributed by Asha Balakrishna Bhat

    Ingredients:
  • Raw Rice 2 cups
  • Peeled and chopped Pumpkin 5-7 cups
  • Jaggery or Brown Sugar 4 cups
  • Grated Fresh Coconut 1/2 cup
  • Salt 1/2 teaspoon
  • Powdered Cardamom 2 teaspoons
  • Method:
    Soak the raw rice in water for 2-3 hours. Mix the chopped pumpkin and jaggery/brown sugar and keep it aside for 15- 20 minutes. Drain the water from the soaked rice and put the rice in the blender. Then remove the liquid from the pumpkin-jaggery mixture and use it to blend the soaked rice into a coarse paste. Then add the rice paste, coconut, salt and cardamom to the pumpkin, jaggery mixture. If the mixture is too thin, pour it in to a thick vessel and cook it on medium heat(stirring constantly) untill the mixture becomes little thick. Then take plaintain leaves or aluminium foils(around 15" long and 10" wide). Put 3-4 tablespoons of the mixture on both the ends of the leaf/foil, spread it into two 4 1/2" x 5" rectangles and first fold the leaf/foil on all the four sides and then in the middle. Then put all the folded pockets in a vessel. Put 1 1/2 -2 cups of water in a vessel and put inside the vessel with the pockets. Cover and cook for 30 minutes.
    Remove the leaf/foil and serve with ghee on top.

    GHEE (clarified butter)

    Contributed by Krishna Upadhya

    Ghee is used in Indian cooking and religious rituals. It adds a unique taste and aroma to the food. Being a saturated fat, Ghee can be cooked at higher temperature, without getting oxidized. Ghee is sold commercially as ‘clarified butter’. This is prepared from unsalted butter by removing any remaining water and fatty acid salts by heating. Ghee can be preserved for long time at room temperature.

    Ingredients:
    Butter 1 lb

    Method:
    Place the unsalted butter (can be purchased from the grocery stores) preferably in a non-stick pot and melt it over a medium heat. Butter melts and slowly temperature rises to a point when water starts to boil out with a crackling sound. Heat about 10 minutes during which water vaporizes out and brownish solids separate out and stick to the bottom. Turn off the heat. Keep it aside to cool. Still warm, pour the Ghee into a dry jar (If there is any foam, then filter the Ghee through a strainer). Slowly Ghee turns to into a creamy solid.

    Note: Ghee is a 100 % saturated fat and excessive, prolonged usage may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.

    Kadale Bele Holige

    Contributed by Chaya Kumble

    Ingredients for Filling:
  • Channa Dal 1 Cup
  • Water 1 Cup
  • Cardamom Powder 1 Teaspoon
  • Brown Sugar 1 1/2 Cup
  • Salt 1/4 Teaspoon
  • Ingredients for the Covering Dough :

  • Water 1/4 Cup + 1 Tablespoon
  • Oil 2 Tablespoon + 1 Teaspoon
  • Salt 1 Pinch
  • Turmeric Powder 1/8 Teaspoon
  • All Purpose Flour(Maida) 1 Cup
  • Method:
    To prepare the dough:
    Mix the first four ingredients. Then add this mixture to maida and knead well for 10 to 15 minutes to make the dough. Cover the dough in plastic wrap and keep it aside, at least for 2 hours before making Holige.

    To prepare the Filling:
    Soak the channa dal overnight in enough water. Remove the water and add 1 cup water and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook in the Pressure-cooker(1 whistle).As soon as you can open the lid, remove the cooked channa dal from the cooker. Add brown sugar, cardamom powder and blend to make a smooth mixture. Then put the mixture in a microwavable bowl or plate and cook for 12 minutes in the microwave at high power while stirring the mixture every 2-3 minutes(You can also cook the mixture on stove top in a thick bottomed vessel. Let it cool.

    Putting the filling inside the dough ball:
    Make balls (of ping pong ball size) from the filling mixture and (of marble size) the dough. Put the dough ball on your left palm and flatten it by pressing it with your right finger tips or by the heel of the right hand. When you have a circle of around 1 1/2" radius, put the bigger ball made of filling mixture in the middle of the circle. Pull the edge of the circle together. Now the circle should be fully covering the filling ball. If it has not covered fully, pull the dough slowly to cover. Then press together the edge.

    Rolling and Cooking:
    Put a teaspoon of rice flour on the working surface. Put the flattened, filled ball and start rolling evenly on all sides to make a circle of 2 1/2 " radius(You can use more flour while rolling if it starts sticking to the rolling pin). Then roast both the side of the rolled holige on a frying pan or skillet at medium heat. Let it cool on a plate before storing in an air-tight container.
    Holige is traditionally served with couple of teaspoons of melted ghee drizzled on it. In some places, sugar syrup is a must with the holige.

    Kesari Baath

    Contributed by Chaya Kumble

    Ingredients:
  • Basumati Rice 3 Cups
  • Sugar 5 Cups
  • Ghee (Clarified Butter) 1 3/4 - 2 Cups
  • Salt 3/4 Teaspoon
  • Lemon Juice 1 Tabespoon
  • Saffron 1 Tablespoon
  • Halved Cashews 1/4 cup
  • Raisins 1/4 cup
  • Method:
    1.Rinse the rice in water and wash it. Then add 5 cups of water and cook the rice on medium heat. Once the rice is well cooked(cooked rice should neither be hard, nor be too soft), drain the remaining water. If the liquid is too thick to drain, add couple of cups of water and drain.
    2. Put the cooked rice, sugar,salt, lemon juice,crushed saffron, and one cup of ghee in a thick bottomed or nonstick big vessel. Gently stir to mix. Cook on medium heat while stirring gently for about 10 minutes, then continue to cook on low medium heat. Add rest of the ghee, cashews, and washed raisins and stir gently to mix. Cook on low heat until the ghee starts to emnate from the side. Remove from heat and serve!

    Note:Traditionally the fragrant rice- "Sannakki" is used to make Kesari Baath. It is very important to cook the rice with excess water, because when you drain the excess water, you are seperating some of the starch from the rice. If you don't remove the starch from the rice, the kesari baath won't get the right texture, it will be too gluey. And if your rice is hard, the kesari baath will become too chewy. If you don't stir gently, the cooked rice will get smashed, and you won't have the seperate rice grains in the kesari baath. As the rice is saturated with sugar, kesari baath will not get spoiled for 3-4 days, even if it is kept at room temperature.

    Chiroti

    Ingredients for the dough:
  • Maida(All Purpose Flour) or Sooji(Fine cream of wheat) 4 Cups
  • Ghee(Clarified Butter) 2 Tablespoons
  • Sugar 4 Tablespoons
  • Salt 1 1/2 Teaspoon
  • Lukewarm Water 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 Cup
  • Ingredients for the paste:

  • Soft Butter 6 Tablespoons
  • Rice Flour 4 Tablespoons
  • Ingredients for the Topping:

  • Powdered Sugar 1 1/2 Cups
  • Finely Powdered Cloves or Cardamoms 1 1/4 Teaspoon
  • Method:

    To prepare the dough:
    Put maida or sooji in a big pan, dig up the middle of the pile to make a well. Add lukewarm water,salt, sugar, and melted ghee into this well. Slowly mix and knead well to make a smooth dough without any lumps. (If you are using sooji, make the dough at least one hour in advance and pound the dough a few times to knead it very well.)

    To prepare the paste:
    Make the butter soft by bringing it to room temperature. Then add the rice flour and mix well with a spoon. Knead well with the spoon to get rid of all the lumps.

    To prepare the topping:
    Mix well the powdered sugar and powdered cloves/cardamoms. (You can decrease or increase the amount of cloves/cardamoms according to your taste.)

    Roll the dough with your hands to make a 12" rope. Then divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and roll them into smooth balls. With a rolling pin, roll each ball into 6" circle. Place 3/4 tb of the paste on one circle and spread it evenly and top it with another circle. Repeat one more time, this process of spreading the paste and putting another circle on top of it. On this third circle, just spread the paste. This makes a stack of three circles. Now roll this stack circles to make a cylinder. Cut this cylinder into 10 equal pieces. Make flattened balls of these pieces in such a way that the cut sides will be the top and bottom sides of the flattened balls. Roll these into 4" thin circles. Heat the oil and deep fry these rolled circles one by one, untill both the sides turn to golden brown colour. Drain the oil fully from the fried circle, if there is excess oil, you can try to pat it out with paper towels. Then sprinkle the topping on both the sides of the Chiroti. When the Chirotis cool down store them in an air- tight container. They stay good for about a week, if stored in an air-tight container.

    Kadlemaddi(Hayagreeva)

    Ingredients:
  • Channa Dal 2 cups
  • water 3 cups
  • Brown Sugar/Jaggery or Sugar 2 1/2 cups
  • Salt 1/8 teaspoon
  • Cardamom Powder 1 teaspoon
  • Fresh Grated Coconut 1/2 cup (optional)
  • Method:
    Soak the Channa Dal in 4 cups of water for 1-2 hours. Remove the water and rinse the channa dal couple of more times. Then add 3 cups of water and cook and high to bring it to boil. Once it starts to boil, reduce the heat and cover and cook until the channa dal is well cooked (for about 20- 25 minutes). Add salt, brown sugar, grated coconut to the cooked channa dal, stir to mix well and continue to cook on medium heat until all the sugar melts and mixs well with the dal. Then add the cardamom powder, stir to mix well, remove from heat and serve warm with ghee on top.

    Haalbai (Rice and Milk Pudding)

    Ingredients:
  • Milk 5 cups
  • Raw Rice 2 cups
  • Fresh Grated Coconut 1 cup
  • Water 1 cup
  • Sugar 3 cups
  • Ghee 1 teaspoon
  • Salt 1/8 teaspoon
  • Method:
    1. Soak the rice in water about 3-4 hours.
    2. Drain the water and grind the soaked rice, salt and grated coconut (using 1 cup of water) to make smooth paste.(You can use the milk, if you need more liquid to grind.)
    3. Heat the milk in a thick bottomed large size vessel at medium heat. Keep on stirring the milk while it warms up.
    4. When the milk is hot, add the sugar and ghee and mix well.
    5. Then slowly add the rice and coconut paste while you are continuously stirring the mixture. (The rice and coconut paste should be of pouring consistency. If it is too thick add some milk to make it thin.)
    6. Keep on stirring until the mixture gets thick and is not glued to the sides of the vessel any more. Remove the vessel from the heat.
    7. Dump the thickend mixture on a greased 9"x9" pan, spread evenly(Use ghee to grase the pan). Once it cools down, cut the haalbai into 1" sqare pieces.
    8. Serve the haalbai with ghee.

    Panchakajjaya

    Ingredients:
  • Kala Channa 2 Cups
  • Sesame Seeds 1/2 Cup
  • Grated Coconut(dry) 1/2 Cup
  • Powdered Cardamom 1 Tsp
  • Jaggery 2 1/2 Cups
  • Method:
    Roast the first three ingredients seperately and let them cool. Grind the kala channa to make smooth powder and sesame seeds should be coarse powder. Add 1/3 cup of water to the jaggery in a thick bottomed vessel and warm the mixture at medium heat while stirring to mix well until the mixture becomes a little thick and starts to boil. (you can put a drop of the syrup in a cup of water to test the consistency. If the syrup doesn't dissolve, you have the right consistency, otherwise you need to continue to heat the mixture) Then remove the mixture from the stove and add the first four ingredients and keep on stirring and mixing until the mixture cools. Serve the Panchakajjaya with a teaspoon of melted ghee on top.
    Note: You can use powdered sugar instead of jaggery. When you use sugar, you simply mix all the powdered ingredients.