Palak Keerai Masiyal / Puréed spiced-up Spinach

As we know, 'Palak' is the Hindi name for spinach, the common healthy greens, and 'Pasalai Keerai', the Tamil.
Having this on my mind, I requested my vegetable lady to bring 'pasalai keerai'. She confronted me with real fresh bunch of greens with oval shaped fleshy leaves that bore tiny pink flowers. The bunch looked cute. I cooked and mashed the leaves, but found this one totally slimy and non-edible! Strange but true.

Lately, I learnt the exact greens I was searching for was called 'Palak Keerai'! This one had longer and broader leaves which were thinner.'Pasalai', I was told, was a different variety: the one with oval leaves and pink flowers.Strange again. I still get confused!

I tried this dish while in Namakkal. The town sells fresh greens, no matter where you live, you can grab the freshest bunch every morning from the vegetable ladies or the nearby shops. I got the bunch from the market.
Those were the times when I was the guardian for my school going son who was in high pressure preparing for the public exams. I saw to it, he received healthy and tasty diet.
'Palak Keerai Masiyal' was thus born, a recipe I tweaked from my other mashed spinach recipes combined with the tips given by my neighbour. Neither my mom or ma-in-law had cooked the same and I had not tasted too. To my excitement, my son really loved this one and I included in his lunch menu, twice a week. The intake of spinach in this form will be greater by one who eats it and the mashed form is better assimilable. This 'Masiyal' or 'Kadasal'( meaning mashed) is thus one of the tastiest greens I prepare!

Palak Keerai Masiyal/Kadasal
To serve a family of 4
Time taken - 40 minutes

A small bunch of Spinach/ Palak
2 tsps of oil
1 medium sized big onion, chopped
Half of a green chilly  or one small, slit lengthwise to two pcs
1/4 tsp cumin/jeera powder
A fat pinch or turmeric powder
1 medium sized tomato
5-6 cloves garlic
2 tbsps of cooked thuvar dal
Salt- 1/2 tsp or as needed

Seasoning (optional, I didn't do as my son dislikes. The taste was still good!)
2 tsps of oil
1/4 tsp of mustard seeds and urad dal
A red chilly, broken into 3 bits
Pinch of hing




Wash well enough and retain the leaves and tender stem. I retained just an inch of stem from the leaf. Discard the fibrous parts of the stem completely. Chop the greens. You may not need to chop fine since we are going to cook them. Rough chopping will do. Heat 2 tsps oil in a kadai. Sauté the onions adding salt until translucent and then the garlic and chilly. Add in cumin and turmeric powders...




..followed by the tomato pieces and sauté until they turn mushy. Top up with chopped spinach. Sprinkle 1/4-1/2 cup of water and close the pan with a lid.Turn the flame to low-medium and let it cook for 4-5 minutes. Open and check whether the palak is cooked soft. Fresh greens let out water while cooking so check the amount of water you sprinkle earlier.




Now that it's cooked, stir in cooked dal. Switch off fire and let it cool. The whole mass should be moist may be with 2-3tsps and water in it as you see in the picture. Too much of water will spoil the consistency of the 'kadasal'. If you feel it's too dry, add 2-3 tsps of hot water.Purée or blend in a mixie. Check salt. Serve with steamed rice or phulkas.

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Mullangi Keerai (Radish Greens) Poriyal / Thoran

Radishes in the plant bed




The fully grown root veggie pops up the ground and is ready to be pulled out!




I wet the soil well and Yay!  I harvested my own radish (radishes, but pictured only one) in the kitchen garden!
I never knew the greens are edible and badly wanted to make good use of the healthy organic greens. I decided to make poriyal / thoran, which is gonna be my first attempt!


Here we go..




 So, to start with, slice away the radishes underneath and wash the greens well in running water.




Remove the hard stem (if you feel rough while chopping.The stems here were tender) and chop the greens. Mine were a little spiny and I noticed them getting soft while getting cooked!




Top it with green chillies, onions, turmeric powder, salt and coconut.




and mix gently with your fingers well to combine.




Heat oil in a kadai, splutter the mustard seeds, brown the urad dal and dump the green mixture.




Sprinkle some water, say, a tbsp and close with a lid once it starts steaming. Open the lid once every 3-4 mins now and then sprinkling a tbsp of water to keep it hydrated and not letting it turn too dry.




Radish greens need a longer time to get cooked; for about 15-20 minutes.




 They do wilt and change colour as any greens while getting cooked but still stay a bit crunchy!
 Yummy and healthy as well :)




Serve warm with steamed rice or Indian breads.
The leaves taste a li'l bitter, but flavorful!


Now, for the recipe all in one place..


You need:

A  bunch of radish greens (3 large cups +/- ,  loosely filled)
Green chillies- 3-4, slit  lengthwise and halved (you can susbstitute red chillies, which go better)
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Shallots- 10-15, sliced ( I used 1/2 big onion)
Salt- to taste
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup

To Season,

Oil-  a tbsp
Mustard seeds- 1/4 tsp
Urad dal- 1/2 tsp

Method:

Slice away the radishes and wash the greens well in running water.
Remove the hard stem (if you feel it rough while chopping.The stems here were tender) and chop the greens.Mine were a little spiny and I noticed them getting soft while getting cooked!
Top it with green chillies, onions, turmeric powder, salt and coconut and mix gently with your fingers well to combine.
Heat oil in a kadai, splutter the mustard seeds, brown the urad dal and dump the green mixture.

Sprinkle some water, say, a tbsp and close with a lid once it starts steaming.
Open the lid once every 3-4 mins now and then sprinkling a tbsp of water to keep it hydrated and not letting it turn too dry.

Radish greens need a longer time to get cooked; for about 15-20 minutes. They do wilt and change colour as any greens while getting cooked but still stay a bit crunchy!

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Valliyoor Kooraku Pulusu

The comfort curry I learnt from Amma. Apparently this dish is a mix of Andhra and Tamil, our ancestors, who belonged to Andhra, later got settled in the Southern towns of Tamil Nadu (in and around Valliyoor) would have possibly included the curry in their regular diet.

A request to my blogger pals who hail from Andhra….

Have you heard of this ‘Pulusu’ in your state, as such?..as I still wonder how this Pulusu acquired this strange name. May be Valliyoor, the town in Southern Tamil Nadu, Kooraku- the spinach and Pulusu- the curry, put together would explain the same.

An aromatic, healthy curry which goes well with rice, a meal by itself..

Ingredients:

• Spinach-any variety-use the leaves only- a medium bunch which yields 3 cups more or less when chopped fine.
  

• Shallots/ pearl onions-assort smallest ones to use 'em as such-10-15 nos or a handful
  

• Tamarind- a gooseberry sized ball- Soak and extract pulp
  

• Salt-to taste

To grind to a smooth paste

• Grated Coconut- ¾ cup

• Garlic cloves-1-2

• Red chillies-10 (I use 20 ;)-according to your spice level.. you can also use chilly powder)

• Turmeric powder-1/4 tsp

• Jeera powder-1/2tsp

To Season

• Oil-Preferably sesame seed oil :)-a tbsp

• Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp

• Urad dal-1/4 tsp

• Uluva/venthaiyam/methi seeds-1/4 tsp

• Shallots/ pearl onions-2-3 sliced round

• Red chillies-2 nos-broken to 3 pcs.

• Curry leaves- a sprig

Method:

• Cook the chopped spinach in a cup of water along with the handful of onions.

• While 3/4th done, add the ground paste, salt and tamarind extract.

• Bring to a boil and simmer until the raw smell of the curry disappears; say for 15-20 mins.

• Add water if needed to get the right consistency.

• Remove from fire, season the curry with the listed ingredients.

• Serve warm with steamed rice.

I've been tagged by Lena and Priya.

The rules :

1. Link the person who tagged you.

2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share the ABCs of you.
4. Tag 4 people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let the 4 tagged people know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
6. Do not tag the same person repeatedly but try to tag different people, so that there is a big network of bloggers doing this tag.

The Tag:

1. A – Available/Single? Sorry- No!!(sigh) ;)
2. B – Best friend? Amma, Sis, Swapna, Seba n Raju (5 Best please) :)
3. C – Cake or Pie? Cake
4. D – Drink of choice? Apple nectar
5. E – Essential item you use every day? My Mobile phone
6. F – Favorite color? Peach shade
7.G–Gummy Bears Or Worms? Like both.The flavour matters rather than the shape.Still not choosy.
8. H – Hometown? Kottayam
9. I – Indulgence?-For food, non-veg any time any day ;)
10. J – January or February? Jan- My Birthmonth
11. K – Kids & their names? Kavya and Akshay
12. L – Life is incomplete without? ..a warm family.
13. M – Marriage date? 26th Jan
14. N – Number of siblings? Two
15. O – Oranges or Apples? Apples
16. P – Phobias/Fears? Ophidio and Hydrophobias.
17. Q – Quote for today? Never take life seriously.Nobody gets out alive anyway.
18. R – Reason to smile? Friends
19. S – Season? Spring
20. T – Tag 3 People? Suma, Sharmilee and Kitchen Queen
21. U – Unknown fact about me? Impatience!!
22. V – Vegetable you don't like? Love all..
23. W – Worst habit? Browsing with no clue of time.. :)
24. X – X-rays you've had? The back bone X-ray for lower back pain, a few years ago.
25. Y – Your favorite food? 'Edibly' Non-veg ;)
26. Z – Zodiac sign? Aquarius

I'm supposed to tag 4 more.. Please leave a message in the comment box, those you are willing to take up the tag or else the first 4 buddies who leave comments here are tagged ;).

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Palak Paneer

Palak paneer,a famous North Indian Side Dish,is said to be a well balanced,nutritious and a tongue tingling one.Unlike the other dishes of North India,this particular dish has a delicate flavour of the fresh green palak,paneer and lighter masalas.
Generally our little ones make a big fuss to take green leafy vegetables,but if your kid is a paneer lover,he would surely attempt to try this.I make this dish occasionally,when my kids are in a mood to taste paneer as well.

This is my entry to JFI-WBB hosted by Indira.

So,here goes the recipe folks...

Serves-4, Cooking time-40mins.

Get ready with:
Palak-a fresh bunch
Paneer/cottage cheese-200gms cut into cubes. Click here ,to make home made paneer.
A big onion-cut finely
A tomato
4 green chillies-split lengthwise
A tsp chopped ginger
A tsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
1/2 cup oil-to fry paneer pieces
4 tsps oil-to temper (divided into 2 parts)
2 tsps of fresh whipped cream- for topping
Salt-to taste.

Palak,paneer and the veggies..

Method:

• Wash Palak well and cut into large pieces.
  
  
• Heat 2 tsps of oil(the first part to temper) in a wide-kadai-with-lid and lightly sauté the green chillies.Add the palak,close with lid and let it cook in a medium flame.Sprinkle a little water if only necessary as Palak when getting cooked,lets out water and gets done in its own water content.Cook till the leaves are reduced and tender.Cool and blend well in a mixer.Keep aside.
• Blanch the tomato by immersing it in HOT water for 10mins and peeling off the skin.Blend well in a mixer.Keep aside.
  
  
• Fry the paneer pieces using 1/2 cup oil,in a separate kadai,lightly till golden.Keep aside.
  
  
• Now use the kadai taken to cook palak.Heat 2 tsps of oil(the second part to temper), sauté onions till translucent and add the ginger- garlic mixture.Sauté in reduced flame until the aroma fills the air.Add the tomato puree and cook in a low flame till the oil separates and the raw smell disappears.
  
  
• Add cumin,coriander and garam masala powders and sauté for a few seconds, keeping the flame still low to avoid charring.
  
  
• Add the cooked and mashed palak-green chilly mixture.When it is about to boil add the fried paneer pieces and simmer for 3 minutes.Add water if necessary.The gravy should not be watery and must be semi thick.
  
  
• Swirl top with whipped cream.Goes well with chapathi,nan&paratha.

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