Vara Milagai Chutney - Red Chilli Chutney - Chettinad Chutney

Chettinad Chutney

Ingredients
Small onion / Shallots - 20 nos or Big onion - 1 no
Tomato small - 1 no
Red chilli - 3 nos
Garlic - 2 nos
Tamarind - less than gooseberry size
Salt to taste
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Oil - 3 tbsp

Method
1. Soak tamarind in 1/4 cup water and extract pulp.
2. Grind onion, red chilli, tomato and garlic coarsely.
3. Heat oil in a pan, temper mustard seeds and urad dal in hot oil, transfer coarsely ground paste to pan.
4. Saute for 3 to 5 mins on medium heat, add tamarind extract and required salt.
5. Simmer and stir occasionally  chutney until raw smell of tamarind leaves, oil oozes on sides of pan and chutney thickens.
Serve with Kuzhipaniyaram, Idli and Dosa.

Chef's note
Vara milagai chutney is usually prepared as accompaniment for Kara Kuzhi Paniyaram.

Chettinad Kuzhi Paniyaram Recipe - Kara Kuzhi Paniyaram

Chettinad Kuzhi Paniyaram

Ingredients
Raw Ponni rice - 250 gms
Par boiled rice - 250 gms
Urad dal - 150 gms
Thick Coconut milk - 1 cup
Cooking soda - few pinch
Salt to taste
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Whole dry chillies - 6 nos
Curry leaves chopped - few

Kuzhi Paniyaram

Method
1. Soak both rice and dal together in enough water for 3 hours.
2. Grind it to coarse and thick  batter, add required salt to batter mix well and let it stand covered overnight like Idli batter.
3. On the next day prepare tempering by frying mustard seeds, red chilli and curry leaves in 2 tsp oil.
4. Add coconut milk, cooking soda and prepared tempering to the fermented batter and mix well.
5. Make kuzhi paniyaram with paniyaram pan ( called paniyaram satti in Tamil) using paniyaram batter.
Serve hot paniyaram with varamilagai chutney / red chilli chutney.

Kara Kuzhi Paniyaram

Beans Masala Curry - Beans Kuzhambu

Chettinad Beans Masala

Ingredients
Green beans chopped - 1 cup
Onion small chopped - 1 no
Garlic cloves sliced - 2 nos
Tomato small chopped - 1 no
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 and 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Oil - 3 tbsp
Water - 1 cup
Curry and coriander leaves to garnish

Coconut Masala paste
Grind both coconut and fennel seeds to smooth paste.
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
Fennel seeds ( Sombu) - 1 tsp

Beans Kuzhambu

Method
1. Heat oil in a pan, add chopped onion, garlic and tomatoes, saute for a minute.
2. Add the chopped beans to pan and stir fruit for a minute.
3. Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder ,salt and cup of water to the beans.
4. Bring the gravy to boil, cover pan with lid and simmer for 5 mins.
5. After 5 mins add ground coconut paste to beans gravy and simmer for another 2 mins until gravy slightly thickens.
6. Garnish beans kuzhambu with curry and coriander leaves.
Serve hot with steamed rice and poriyal.

Chettinad Fish Curry / Vanjaram Meen Kuzhambu

In chettinad fish curry is mostly prepared with Vanjaram Fish its also known as Seer fish, King fish, Spanish Mackerel etc. Another important way prepare chettinad fish curry is cooking curry in mud pot or vessel. The mud vessel maintains the temperature through cooking process.

Vanjaram Meen Kuzhambu Chettinad

Ingredients
Vanjaram Fish - 500 gms
Shallots / Small onions - 100 gms
Garlic cloves small variety - 100 gms
Tomato ( soar or country variety) - 250 gms
Tamarind - gooseberry sized
Chilli powder - 3 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Gingelly oil - 4 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Curry leaves and coriander leaves to garnish

Chettinad Fish Curry

Method
1. Clean fish and set aside
2. Chop onion, garlic, tomatoes and set aside
3. Soak tamarind in 2 cups water and extract the pulp
4. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds and allow to crackle.
5. Add onion, garlic, tomatoes and saute for few mins.
6. Add red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, required salt to the pan, saute for few more mins and add tamarind water
7. Bring the curry to boil, when curry starts boiling add the cleaned fish.
8. Let the fish curry boil for 2 mins, next reduce the heat and cook the fish curry on low heat for 15 mins.
9. Stir gently the curry occasionaly so it doesnt burn in the bottom of the pan.
10. Finally garnish curry with curry leaves and corinader leaves and serve hot.

Chef's Tip
1. Always make a big batch of fish curry, the fish curry tastes much better on the next day as the tanginess and spiciness soaks well into the fish.
2. Fish head is best for making fish curry.
3. Fish curry not only goes well with steamed rice, it also tastes great with idli and dosa.

Chettinad Fish Kuzhmabu

Cauliflower Milagu Peratu / Cauliflower Pepper Fry

Cauliflower Milagu Peratu aka Cauliflower Milagu Pirattal is an authentic chettinad recipe using few ingredients and easy to prepare.

Cauliflower Milagu Pirattal

Ingredients
Cauliflower small - 1 no
Onion small chopped - 1 no
Garlic cloves minced - 2 nos
Bay leaf - 2 nos (optional)
Star anise- 1 no (optional)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Oil - 4 tbsp

Pepper masala powder
Roast and grind below ingredients coarsely.
Whole red chilly - 4 nos
Black pepper corns - 1 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Sombu / Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon stick - 1"
Dried coconut / Kopparai thengai chopped - few tbsp (optional)

Cauliflower Melagu Peratu Recipe 

Method
1. Separate cauliflower into tiny florets, boil in salted water until tender, drain and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and allow to crackle.
3. Add chopped onion, bay leaf, star anise and garlic cloves, saute for few minutes.
4. Add the drained cauliflower florets to the pan.
5. Add the coarsely ground pepper Masala powder, turmeric powder and salt to the cauliflower and toss well.
6. When the cauliflower is dry and well coated with masala powder remove from heat and garnish with curry leaves.
Serve cauliflower milagu peratu with steamed rice, sambar and rasam.

Cauliflower pepper fry recipe

Beetroot Vadai - Beetroot Vada Recipe

Beetroot Vadai Recipe

Ingredients
Grated beetroot - 1 cup
Channa dal / Kadalai paruppu - 1/2 cup
Rice flour - 1/2 cup
Onion small sliced - 1/2 no
Sombu / fennel seeds - 1 tsp
Whole red chilli - 4 to 5 nos
Minced ginger - 1/2 tsp
Minced garlic - 1/2 tsp
Chopped curry leaves - few tbsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil to deep fry

Beetroot Vada

Method
1. Soak Bengal gram dal in hot water for 30 mins and grind to coarse batter.
2. Coarsely crush sombu, red chillies, ginger, garlic and curry leaves in a mixi.
3. In a bowl mix ground channa dal with rice flour, grated beet root,  sliced onion, crushed chilli masala, turmeric powder and required salt. 4. Mix well until tight vada batter is formed, the batter should not be watery add more rice flour if required.
5. Meanwhile heat oil in a pan or kadai to deep fry the vadas.
6. Shape the beetroot batter into vadas and drop it in hot oil.
7. Fry the vadas on medium heat until the beetroot vadai are cooked inside and golden brown and crisp outside.
8. Drain vadas on to paper towel.
Serve hot beetroot vadai as a appetizer or sidedish with steamed rice, sambar and rasam.

Chettinad Chicken Chops / Deep Fried Chicken Lollipops Chettinad Style

Chettinad Chicken Chops

Ingredients
Chicken wings or lollipops - 8 nos
Ginger and garlic paste - 2 tsp + 1 tsp
Chilli powder - 2 tsp + 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Sombu / Fennel powder - 1 tsp
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp + 1/4 tsp
Maida - 2 tbsp
Rice flour - 2 tbsp
Egg - 1 no
Food color - pinch
Oil to deep fry

Chicken Chops Chettinad Style

Method
1. Clean and wash chicken lollipops.
2. Marinate chicken lollipops with ginger garlic paste, 2 tsp red chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, sombu powder, lemon juice and 1 tsp salt.
3. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan, add the marinated chicken pieces along with masala to the pan, stir fry for few minutes on high heat.
4. Sprinkle few tbsp water to the chicken pieces, cover pan with lid and cook chicken pieces on medium heat for 5 mins.
5. Increase the heat and stir fry chicken pieces until dry.
6. Allow chicken pieces to cool at room temperature for 10 mins.
7. Meanwhile in a bowl whisk maida, rice flour, egg, 1 tsp ginger garlic paste, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, 1/4 tsp salt, few pinch of food color and 1 tsp water, until smooth batter is formed.
8. Heat oil in a pan to deep fry, dip the cooled chicken lollipops in the egg batter and deep fry in hot oil till golden brown.
9. Drain fried chicken chops on to a paper towel and garnish with fried curry leaves.
Serve as an appetizer or sidedish to steamed rice, sambar and rasam.

Avarakkai Poriyal / Stir fry Broad beans with coconut

Avarakkai Poriyal

Ingredients
Avarakkai / Broad beans chopped - 250 gms
Onion small sliced - 1/2 no
Green chilli slit - 3 to 4 nos
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
Moongdal - 1 tsp ( optional)
Channa dal - 1 tsp ( optional)
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Urad dal - 1 tsp
Hing - pinch
Oil - 2 tbsp
Curry leaves few

Chettinad Poriyal recipe

Method
1. Soak both Moongdal and Channa dal in a cup of hot water for 30 mins, drain the dals and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, urad dal, hing and curry leaves, allow to crackle.
3. Add sliced onion, green chilli and chopped broad beans, stir fry for few minutes.
4. Add drained dals, turmeric powder, salt and little water to the pan.
5. Cover pan with lid and cook broad beans on medium heat for 5 mins.
6. When the water has been absorbed and broad beans are cooked and dry, add the grated coconut to broad beans and stir fry for few seconds.
Serve hot Avarakai poriyal with steamed rice, Vatha Kuzhambu and Rasam

Broad Beans Stir fry

Chettinad Vegetable Biryani / Kaikari Biryani

Chettinad Vegetable Biryani Recipe

Ingredients
Mixed Vegetables- 2 cups
Jeera Samba Rice- 3 cups
Small onions / shallots- 300 gms
Tomatoes large- 2 nos
Green chillies- 4 nos
Ginger and Garlic paste- 3 tbsp
Red chilli powder- 2 tsp
Coriander powder- 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Pudina leaves- 1 bunch
Coriander leaves- 1/4 bunch
Cashewnuts- 20 nos
Ghee- 2 tbsp
Salt to taste
Water- 4 and 1/2 cups

Masala tempering
Bay leaves- 2 nos
Cinnamon stick 1" piece- 2 nos
Cardamom- 4 nos
Cloves- 6 nos
Marati moggu- 1 no
Annachi poo- little
Star Anise- 1 no
Oil- 1/4 cup

Kaikari Biryani

Method
Wash and dice the vegetables like potato, carrot into medium cubes, cauliflower into medium florets, slice green beans into 1" lengthwise and some green peas.
Peel and chop the shallots. Chop the tomatoes. Fry the cashewnuts in ghee until golden brown. Clean and chop both pudina and coriander leaves. Break the green chillies into half. Wash the rice and soak in 4 cups of water for 30 mins. Heat oil in a pressure cooker, add the whole spices tempering to the hot oil and saute for 1 minute. Add onions and green chillies to the pan, saute until onion turns pale. Add the ginger and garlic paste and saute until raw smell of ginger and garlic leaves. Add chopped pudina and coriander leaves( reserve some to garnish) to the pan and saute for 1 minute. Add the mixed vegetables to the pan and fry for 3 minutes. At this stage add chopped tomatoes, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder to the vegetables and mix well until tomatoes are tender. Add a 1/4 cup water to the pan, cover with lid and bring veg mixture to boil. Once starts boiling, add soaked rice along with water and required salt to the pan. Stir well until 1/2 of the water is absorbed by the rice, reduce heat, cover pan with lid and pressure cook for about 7 to 8 mins on low heat or for 3 whistles. Once rice is cooked and tender, add fried cashew nuts along with ghee and add remaining pudina coriander leaves and mix well. Serve hot chettinad vegetable biryani with onion raita.

Vegetable Biryani Chettinad Style

Ragi Drumstick leaves Adai / Kezhvaragu Murungai Keerai Adai

Ragi Adai Recipe

Ingredients
Ragi flour / Finger millet flour - 2 cups
Murungai keerai / drumstick leaves- 2 cups
Salt to taste
Water required
Dry red chilli - 5 nos (broken)
Coconut pieces( finely chopped) - 1/4 cup
Curry leaves
Asafetida / hing- few pinch
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Urad dal- 1/2 tsp
Oil required

Ragi Drumstick Leaves Adai

Method
Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan, when oil is hot add mustard seeds, when it crackles add urad dal, chana dal, asafetida, curry leaves, red chillies and drumstick leaves. Saute for few mins until drumstick leaves reduces in size. Remove pan from heat and allow the mixture to cool at room temperature. In a bowl add ragi flour, sauted drumstick leaves along with other ingredients, chopped coconut pieces and salt. Mix well the flour and other ingredients with fingers, slowly add water in little quantines to the flour until the dough resembles very soft chapati dough( the dough should not be hard). Heat a griddle or tawa, when hot add 1 tsp oil in the center of tawa. Grease a plastic sheet with 1/4 tsp oil, take a large lemon sized dough, place it in the center of sheet and start pressing dough with fingers until a circular and slightly thin adai is formed. Carefully remove adai dough to your palm and place it in the center of tawa. Cook ragi adai on both sides until slightly browned and crisp( if required you can smear some more oil around adai). Remove ragi drumstick leaves adai on to plate and serve hot with Vengaya Sambar
Coconut Chutney
Varamilagai Chutney

Kezhvaragu Kara Adai

Paruppu Rasam / Chettinad Rasam Lentil Soup

Chettinad Paruppu Rasam

Ingredients
Cooked toordal / thuvaram paruppu- 1/2 cup
Tamarind extract- 1/4 cup
Country tomato large crushed- 1 no
Curry leaves- few
Coriander leaves- 1/4 bunch
Water- 2 cups
Salt to taste

Masala ingredients to grind
Shallots- 4 nos
Whole red chilli- 3 nos
Garlic cloves- 3 nos
Coriander seeds- 1 tbsp
Pepper corns- 1 tsp
Cumin seeds- 2 tsp
Sombu- 1 tsp
Oil- 1 tsp

Ingredients for tempering
Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
Oil- 1 tsp
Asafetida- pinch

Paruppu Rasam

Method
Roast the ingredients given under masala to grind in 1 tsp oil, allow to cool and grind the ingredients to  paste without adding water.
In a deep vessel add tamarind extract, crushed tomato, curry leaves, ground Masala, required salt and water. Place the vessel on heat and bring rasam to boil. Meanwhile heat oil in a small kadai for tempering when oil is hot add mustard seeds and allow to crackle, add asafetida to the oil, remove the temepering from heat and add it to boiling rasam. Finally add cooked toordal and chopped coriander leaves, boil for 2 mins, stir well and serve hot paruppu rasam as an soup or with
Steamed Rice
Vendakkai Masala
Beetroot Vadai

Chettinad Rasam Recipe

Tips
If preferred once the rasam starts boiling strain the boiling rasam through fine colander. Add the tempering, cooked toordal and chopped coriander leaves to the strained rasam and boil for 2 mins.