Lemon Rice | Ellumchapazha Saadham | Nimbehannu Chitranna - How to make lemon rice at home (Vegan / GF)

Lemon Rice is a very flavorful and refreshing flavored rice also called as chitrannam in Tamil and Kannada . Works best on days when we want to make a quick lunch at home or even for office and school lunch box option as well .Makes it perfect for potluck or picnic hampers too .

The juice from fresh lime gives a refreshing and a tangy flavor to the rice making it absolutely appetizing for the taste buds making it apt during the convalescence period after a brief illness of flu or viral fever.  

Lemon Rice is also offered as prasad during Navaratri and also an essential preparation during Aadi Perukku and Kannu Pongal - the 2 most important festivals of Tamil Nadu. 

Lemon Rice/Lemon saadham / Ellumcha pazha saadham pairs well with thick Avial or Morkootu and some fried papads  . When packing it for picnic or lunch box pair it with some pickle or chips . 

Hubby loves lemon rice with paruppu vadai and coconut chutney, this is a popular combo at the street side food carts in Tamil Nadu .

You may also like to try a variant of Lemon Rice with Capsicum which is equally delicious and tasty .

Preparation Time : 10-15 mins
Cooking Time : 10 mins
Serves : 2-3

Ingredients

1 cup rice
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp channa dal / bengal gram dhal
1 tsp udad dal
handful of peanuts or cashews 
few no curry leaves
3-4 green chillies
1-2 dry red chillies
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
corriander leaves chopped
pinch of asafoetida  (skip for GF) 
pinch of turmeric
salt
oil for tempering

Method

• Wash the rice properly and pressure cook with 1.5 cups of water and a few drops of oil.
• Wait until the pressure is released and fluff the rice using a fork.Do it gently to avoid breaking of the rice grains. Spread this rice on a wide plate or tray for cooling . This step ensures the rice doesn't get mushy and stick to one another in the heat.
• In a kadai,heat about 2 tbsp oil and fry the peanuts over medium flame until they turn crisp.Keep aside.
• In the same oil,splutter the mustard seeds,after crackling,add the udad dal,channa dal and fry until golden brown.
• Next ,add the green chillies,curry leaves,red chillies,asafoetida,lightly fry and turn off the stove.
• Lastly,add in the turmeric powder and required amount of salt. This is done at the end to prevent the turmeric powder from burning.
• Spread this tempering,fried peanuts and lime juice over the fluffed rice and mix gently.
• Adjust salt and lime juice as per your taste.
• Sprinkle corriander over the rice and serve hot with curd,pickle and appalam/papad.

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Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambu / Lentil Dumplings in spicy tamarind gravy

Paruppu Urundai means Lentil balls.Paruppu Urundai Kuzhumbu simply translates to Lentil Balls in Tamarind Gravy. A typical signature dish of South India. Every household has its own recipe of making this.This recipe what I write below is inherited from my mom.

These balls /urundai are prepared by grinding the soaked dhall/lentils and later steaming them. This steamed balls are slowly dropped into the tamarind gravy prepared using various spices and tamarind extract.

When running short of vegetables to be used in sambar/kuzhambu ,this definitely comes to our rescue.

Preparation Time : 45 mins to 1 hr
Cooking  Time : 45 mins
Serves : 2-3

Jain version : Skip the ginger and follow the recipe as it is

Images updated on 23 June 2019

Palak Keerai Sambar /( Spinach) Greens Sambar

Keerai / Greens are very rich in nutrients and a very good source of iron and potassium.Inclusion in daily diet is recommended. There are different varieties of greens available in the market depending on your region . In Northern India Palak(spinach), Sarson (mustard leaves) and Methi (fenugreek) are in abundance and used widely  while in Western and Southern parts of India greens like Dill , Moringa , Red and Green Amaranth along with methi and palak are used. 

Care must be taken to wash and clean the greens very well. Make sure you wash and drain the greens before you cut them. Run them under running water and wash well until the leaves look clean and green. Here is a quick video on how to clean and wash the greens posted on my YouTube Channel..If you still haven't subscribed to my channel, pls do it right away . 

How to clean and wash  Green Leafy Vegetables? 

Palak Sambar or Keerai Sambar has been my favorite since childhood ..I love to eat keerai sambar with rice, roti, dosas and even idlis .The best combination with palak Sambar is Raagi Mudde . Ragi mudde is a delicacy in Karnataka made from finger Millet/Nachni.  Popularly known as mudde and soppu saaru/huli. Soppu means Green Leafy vegetables in Kannada .

Keerai Sambar can be made with or without onions .If you are making during some special days like Amavasya , Pithru Paksh , Ekadashi then skip the onions and follow the rest of the recipe as is.  I make this sambar both ways depending on the mood,time and the occasion.

 

This recipe of keerai sambar uses palak /spinach as the main ingredient.  Alternatively, one can use moringa leaves,  Amaranth leaves and also methi leaves to make Sambar.  I shall upload those recipes too as and when I make them . Until then you may try Keerai Masiyal and Keerai Kootu ,both traditional recipes from Tamil Nadu which are simple to make at the same time you will literally be licking your fingers wanting for some more .

The entire post and write up except the recipe has been updated with new  and better pictures which will help in better SEO . This recipe was one of my earliest posts way  back in 2012 - 2013 .I hope you all like this recipe and enjoy making it for your family .

Preparation Time : 20 mins
Cooking Time : 30 mins
Serves : 2-3

Ingredients

1 bunch Palak  (roughly 300 gms).
1/2 cup thoor dhall / pigeon peas /thuvaram paruppu
small sized tamarind ball
1 medium sized onion chopped (optional)

1 medium tomato chopped 
2-3 tbsp Sambar Powder
2-3 tsp fresh grated coconut
1 tsp grated jaggery
pinch of turmeric
Tempering
Mustard seeds.
pinch of asafoetida
1 tsp ghee/clarified butter (skip for vegan)
Or 

2 tsp cooking oil 

Method

• Pressure cook the thoor dhall with a pinch of turmeric until soft and mushy.
• Wash and chop the greens finely.
• Soak the tamarind in warm water and extract the juice.
• Grind the sambar powder and coconut into a fine paste with a little water.
• Heat a  little oil in a kadai,and saute the onions until light pink. (Skip this step if not using onions and jump to next step)
• Put the greens ,chopped tomatoes and saute.
• Pour the tamarind water,add a cup of water,salt,jaggery and bring to a boil until the raw flavor of spinach and tamarind is lost .
• Slowly,add the masala paste and boil till the  raw smell of the coconut is gone .Takes hardly 1 minute.Donot boil the coconut mixture more as it may start to disintegrate and will spoil the texture of Sambar. 
• Finally,add the boiled thoor dhall ,lower the flame and bring to a rolling boil.
• Prepare the seasoning using ghee or oil and mustard seeds and pour it all over.
• Serve hot with steamed rice and a little ghee and some fried/roasted fritters /papad. I normally pair this with Potato Stir fry . It is a super hit combination. 

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Milagu Kuzhambu / Pepper Kuzhambu - Vegan Recipe

Pepper Kuzhambu / Milagu Kuzhambu is an authentic South Indian recipe that is very popular  in Tamil Brahmin households.

Milagu Kuzhambu is a very comforting food for winter and monsoon days to pep our moods due to the nip in temperature and we begin to feel under the weather. Pepper helps cure cold,cough and throat irritation . 

Paired with hot steamed rice with a slight drizzle of ghee and some poriyal /kariamudhu ( coconut based vegetable stir fry )  is the classic way to enjoy milagu kozhambu.

Today's recipe is dedicated to my Mom. I have very very vivid memories of seeing her prepare this kuzhambu but never had any authentic recipe. The best part of falling sick in childhood especially the seasonal flu would be ,I used to get to enjoy this yummy milagu Kuzhambu and milagu jeera Rasam which amma would feed me with her own hands . Indeed a luxury those days.

With those vivid memories in my mind I started the preparation this morning and Viola !! it was just the same taste and texture that was lingering on my taste buds for which I was craving...

 

The recipe as such is vegan since we use gingelly oil/Sesame oil to prepare the Kuzhambu.  Alternatively we can also use any non flavored cooking oil if you don't like the taste of sesame oil. Can be gluten free if you skip the use of asafoetida. 

Milagu Kuzhambu also works best when you want to have some light yet tasty meal after heavy binge eating at functions or vacations .

This recipe was initially published in 2017 and today (26th March 2023) I have updated the post with better pictures which has been a long over due . Republishing the post as part of our Redo activity week 97.

Preparation Time : 10 min
Cooking Time : 45 min
Cooking level : medium
Serves : 3-4

Ingredients

1 tsp pepper corns / milagu/ kalimirch
1 tsp dhaniya / corriander seeds
3-4 dry red chilly
1/2 tsp thoor dhall /thuvaram paruppu
1/2 tsp Channa dhall/kadalai paruppu
10 - 12 curry leaves/karvepillai/kadipatha
2 tsp grated coconut (optional)
pinch of asafoetida/hing/perungayam
2-3 tsp gingelly oil/til oil/ nallennai
Tamarind - a small ball
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp jaggery

Method

• Soak the tamarind in hot water and let it rest until you roast and grind the ingredients.
• In a kadai heat about 1 tsp oil and add the channa dhall and thoor dhall along with the pepper corns and saute until you feel the aroma of roasted dhalls and pepper.
• Add in the dhaniya,red chillies,curry leaves and saute till the curry leaves becomes crisp.
• Finally add the coconut and asafoetida,saute well and turn off the stove.
• Let it cool and then grind all the ingredients with a little water to a fine paste.
• By now,the tamarind would have soaked well,squeeze a thick paste of tamarind juice from the soaked tamarind and nicely filter it. Add about 1 cup water to this thick paste of tamarind juice.

• Heat a kadai and add one teaspoon of gingelly oil and temper mustard seeds and curry leaves.
• Add the tamarind juice,haldi,salt and jaggery and bring to a nice rolling boil till the raw smell of tamarind is lost.
• Add the ground paste and quickly mix it to avoid formation of lumps due to presence of dhall.
• Now adjust the salt and boil it until you see the oil oozing out from the center.
• Turn off the stove at this point and transfer into a bowl and serve with steamed rice and roasted papads

Notes:

1. Those who like garlic ,can also add one or two pods of garlic while roasting other ingredients.
2. Not much oil will ooze out in this recipe as I have used very little oil.
3. The jaggery part is optional,but it will enhance the flavor of tamarind and give a very good taste.

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Doodhi ka halwa / Lauki halwa

Doodhi ka halwa is another favorite at home with us after Gajar ka halwa. Always use fresh and tender bottle gourds so that there will not be many seeds and the bottle gourd will have a mild sweetness adding to the taste of the halwa.  I also add some home made fresh badam powder while making the halwa,it gives so much creaminess and beautiful color due to saffron and turmeric. That is why you see it is on the greener side .No added colors used to get the green color ,it is purely  natural. 

At times ,bottle gourd may turn bitter,so remember to taste a small bit of the doodhi before making halwa.If it feels bitter,then discard it immediately. 

After grating the bottle gourd ,don't leave it for a long time as it will turn brown due to oxidation and the halwa may not look very appealing.

Sharing an easy way to grate the veggies without making the working area messy. Hope you all like this tip . Ofcourse, the food choppers and food processors makes life easy, but this tip is ,if we are using the traditional hand grater for grating .

 The best way to celebrate the come back of my blog is to share a sweet recipe with all of you.

After a long break of almost 4 years due to some personal set backs, I am restarting in 2017 with support of my hubby and dad and lot of nudging and coaxing from my cousin too . So this sweet is for you all for making me move out of my inertia.

With the mild chillnes still lingering in the atmosphere,fresh winter vegetables are a feast to the eyes in the market and make me want to cook something interesting  .

I picked up the bottle gourds which were very inviting and prepared this Halwa instantly.

Every year I unfailingly make Doodhi ka halwa ,but it is only in Nov 2024 I made some changes to the write up and added a few new pictures but leaving the below picture unchanged as it is my fond memory of come back into the world of blogging . The recipe remains unchanged as it is very close to my heart being my mom's recipe .

Cooking time : 45 mins

Cooking level : Medium

Serves : 2-3 people

Ingredients

2 medium sized bottle gourd

100 gms khoa (unsweetened)

1 cup milk

1/2 cup sugar

2 -3 tsp ghee/clarified butter

2-3 cardamoms/elaichi powdered

8-10 Cashews finely chopped

10-12 raisins/kishmish

Chopped pistas and badam 

Method

• Wash and peel the bottle gourds and remove the seeds if there any
• Grate them well using a grater or food processor.
• Grate or crumble the khoa as well and set aside.
• Heat a thick bottomed kadai with 1tsp ghee and fry the grated bottle gourd in it for about a minute.
• Add the cup of milk and mix well and allow the bottle gourd to cook nicely. The doodhi will become soft and loose its crunch.
• Keep stirring in between to avoid sticking and burning.
• This takes about 10 to 15 mins on medium flame.
• Add the khoa,sugar and elaichi powder and stir well and keep the flame low now.
• Allow the mixture to cook well until you see all the milk,khoa and sugar being incorporated well into the bottle gourd and feel and amazing aroma wafting in your kitchen.
• Turn off at this stage and add the chopped cashews to it and mix well.
• You can roast the cashews in ghee or add it just like that.
• You can also add lots of chopped dryfruits too before serving. 
• Transfer in a bowl and keep it refrigerated for an hour or serve it warm .

Notes

1. Squeeze the grated bottle gourd well with both your hands before frying them in ghee. This step ensures that there is no extra water content and prevents the halwa from getting soggy.
2. If using sweet khoa instead of unsweetened adjust the sugar level accordingly.

Hello !!!

Sorry for staying away from the blog for a very very long time.Too much involvement with lot of activities at the personal front that kept me away from posting.
Now at last,I have decided to come back with a lot of new posts.Looking forward to all your support and encouragement as always.
Stay tuned my friends...see you soon !