KARUVEPPILLAI PODI/ CURRY LEAVES POWDER

☺Hi everyone..

I am back with an interesting recipe.. I am sure this will be a useful and healthy recipe..because most of us don't like to eat curry leaf in the vegetable or gravy..yet curry leaf/ karuveppillai  is a really nutritious leaf..Most kids( even a lots of adults) have the habit of removing the curry leaf from the gravy..dry vegetable..mixed rice etc.. but it has a lots of medicinal values..kadi patta /curry leaf is used in almost in all indian dishes..but there is more to the humble curry leaf..its packed with carbohydrates,calcium,Vitamin A,Vitamin B, Vitamin C,Vitamin E and Iron.. Curry leaves can enliven  your hair and skin..I am sure you can google more on curry leaf and find more health benefits..

So back to the recipe... since a long time I was thinking of making curry leaf powder..so this recipe is a version of mine..which I prefer less spicy..so even kids can have it..
A spoon of this curry leaf powder and a spoon of ghee on plain white rice will be really yummy..also have this fistful of rice before your main course, that will helps in digestion also..
So now no need to worry about kids throwing the curry leaf..

I also try a trick with my kids.. I add half a teaspoon of it alone with my normal idly podi .. so the kids simply wont find any difference..

since all the ingredients are dry roasted , this powder can stay easily for a month in room temperature.Store the powder in an airtight container.. also use fresh green curry leaf/ kadi patta for best flavor..
ok lets jump directly to the recipe...

INGREDIENTS:

Curry leaf/kadi patta/karuveppilai leaf             -   2 cups ( tightly packed)
Toor dhall/thuvaram paruppu                           -   3 TBSP
Urid dhall/ ulundham paruppu                         -    3 TBSP
Chenna dhall / kadalai paruppu                        -   3  TBSP
red chilli                                                           -    4-5 nos.
jeera ( optional)                                                -   1 TBSP
Black pepper( optional)                                    -   1 TBSP
Salt                                                                    - as required
Hing                                                                  - as required



Method:

1. wash and pat dry the curry leaves nicely. until there is no moisture. I usually wash the leaves nicely then dry them in shade for 5-6 hours. make sure there is no water in them.
keep all the ingredients ready.

2. Dry roast the chenna dhall, thur dhall and urid dhall.( since the quantity is less I am dry roasting together, you can dry roast separately also.)

roast until the colour changes and a nice aroma comes from the dhall

3. Dry roast the chilli also.

Remember to dry roast in a low to medium flame, as high flame may burn the ingredients.

4. Now in the same pan after removing all the above ingredients dry roast the curry leaf until it turns crispy..which you may achieve after 15-20 minutes.

you can see the curry leaf has become crisp..like this

5. Now wait till all the ingredients are warm. then grind the dhall and red chilli first till they are coarsely grinded.

now add the curry leaves to the mixer jar and grind a little..

6. grind the ingredients until they are coarsely powdered, the curry leaf powder should be coarsely grinded not a fine powder. after grinding add salt and hing to the mixture and just give it a whip so the salt and hing are thoroughly mixed.

the texture should be like this..

Now transfer the contents to an airtight container to retain freshness..

Notes:

1. I have mentioned jeera and black pepper as optional as I feel it will make the podi little bit spicy.
  so its up to you to add them if you like the flavor of jeera.. and more pepper if you like it spicy.
2. always dry roast in low to medium flame..because the dhall have to roasted till you get the aroma, on high flame you may burn the dhall and chilli.
3. salt and hing( astefodia) can be added according to taste preference.
4. don't dry the curry leaf in sun, dry them in shade..as it retains the colour and freshness.

Ok..now do try this healthy kadi patta/curry leaf/ karuveppillai powder..
1 tbsp. of curry leaf powder + 1 tbsp. of ghee + 1 bowl of rice is a best combination..

I am sure this will come handy on a lazy day,when you don't feel like cooking..yet you need a healthy meal..so do try this recipe and let me know if you have any comments.. I will reply as soon as possible..
I will be back with another exciting recipe soon..actually I am planning to post idly podi for a long time..so may be I will back soon with that recipe...or may be something else..😍.. who knows...life is full of surprises..be back soon..until then tata..👋













 

HOME MADE CHOCOLATE/ CHOCOLATE BURFI

👋Hi friends..

I am back after a long time( I know really long time😏)..
so lets start with a sweet note this time..
This is a receipe shared by Hema aunty..thanks aunty for sharing such a wonderfull home made chocolate with easily available ingredients..👍....and I really miss you a lot..
ok now back to the recipe.. this a easy chocolate recipe.. you don't need any fancy ingredients..  just milk powder, butter,sugar and cocoa powder( use a good quality cocoa powder).. as the taste and flavor depends on the quality of cocoa powder..
the only tricky part in this recipe is finding out the one string consistency.. but again I will give a tip just in case u missed the one string consistency.. so come on..lets make some yummy chocolates..

INGREDIENTS

• Milk powder( I use everyday )             -     2 cups
• Cocoa powder( preferably hersheys)   -     5 Tbsp
• Sugar                                                    -    1 cup
• Water                                                   -     1 cup
• Butter                                                   -     100gms

RECIPE

First of all lets assemble the ingredients together.
I am using everyday milk powder( even amul milk powder is good), butter( I am using amul salted butter, u can use unsalted butter also), hersheys cocoa powder( I would prefer hersheys over Cadbury)..

now I am going to make a sugar syrup with 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup water. just follow the measurements , as more water may result in more time to form the 1 string consistency.
In a pan add sugar and water and let it come to boiling..

stir the sugar and water mixture  frequently.. the sugar will take a few minutes to dissolve..
Until then lets mix milk powder and cocoa powder..

mix the milk powder and cocoa powder until they look homogeneous( looking like a brown colour mixture)

Now keep stirring the sugar syrup more frequently as  the sides may get deposited with sugar..so keep on mixing with the spoon.

Now once the white layer is formed on the sides, reduce the flame as you might miss the one string consistency..
please refer notes on how to find the one string consistency..

So now just touch the sugar syrup with pointer finger and try to make a string with the thumb finger..

Now you see a string is formed and it shouldnot break.. may be when you touch the syrup and if you cant make a clear string like this one..please boil it more.. but keep it in low flame.. as on higher flame you may miss this stage and you will end up with a 2 string..which will make the chocolate dry also you wont get the perfect consistency.. so once you see white deposits on the sides of the pan( like I have showed in the previous step) keep the flame in low..
After the one string consistency is reached switch off the stove and add the butter

The butter will start to get melting with the heat of the syrup, but just keep mixing until you have a nice glossy sugar and butter mixture

Now once the butter is fully melted add the milk powder and cocoa mixture .

Now mix the mixture until you don't see any dry milk powder

once you have a mixture which looks like a dough, transfer it into greased plate or a pan..

 

 

                              Now let it cool for 4-5 hrs. don't try to cut the chocolate when its still hot.. once its warm you can cut into small pieces...

 

 

once the chocolate is warm the sides on the butter would have dried , that's a perfect time to cut it into pieces..

OKAY ...now lets get into the dangerous part.. I am sure beginners will have trouble finding the 1 string consistency.. also some time even after cooling you may not able to cut the chocolate.. or when you mix the milk powder to the butter mixture it may end up dry instead of a molten mixture.. so I am going to explain all possible options to fix it...so don't worry these tips will come handy..

Notes:
1. always use good quality cocoa powder as the flavor of the chocolate depends on it.
2.i am using salted amul butter, but if you get unsalted butter you can use it.. no need to change anything..just replace with same quantity..
3.ONE STRING CONSISTENCY: even I learnt 1 string consistency first time in making this chocolate.. so don't panic.. its not a big deal.. first keep  checking once the white patches appear on the sides.. when you touch the sugar syrup the string may not be formed.. just main point is lower the flame once the quantity reduces and white sugar coating appears on the sides.. be carefull while touching the sugar syrup as its gonna be really hot..
my tip is...take a drop of it in a small plate and then try to touch it..
so keep chking every 2 mins as the one string consistency is very near after the sugar patches on the sides.. until you know hoe to find the 1 string consistency be patient and keep chking often in a low flame..
4.DISASTER MANAGEMENT:
 now I am gonna give few tips just in case if you add the milk powder even before the 1 string consistency, in that case you wont be able to cut the chocolate into pieces.. it may be a gooey mixture even after cooling.. so in that case no worry, try to put the mixture back in the pan and in a low flame keep heating with continuous stirring for few minutes( until the mixture leaves the pan).. now transfer it back to the greased plate and let it cool.. but say again if u cant cut it into pieces.. refrigerate the mixture for 4-5 hrs and now grease your hands and make it into chocolate balls,,,
ta da.. instead of chocolate square u will have chocolate balls..
So no worry..
next on adding the mixture to the sugar and butter mixture of u find the mixture to be very dry..that means you have crossed the 1 string consistency.. again no worry.. just ass 1-2 tbsp. of hot boiling water and mix again, you will get the consistency..but be carefull.. just not more than 1-2 tbsp. of boiling hot water..
5. you can be creative, add roasted nuts to make this nut chocolate..

Now I think I have covered all the disaster.. I guess.. atleast this is what I faced during the first few times... but I never stopped trying.. so I found out many ways of how to fix the disaster..
once you know how to fix the mistakes, your confidence will increase and also the fear will be gone..
sometimes LESS IS MORE... less fear when more disaster happens... so eventually after 3 -4 mistakes..you will be out of mistakes...so u gotta get it right..

so friends do try this Home made chocolate and let me know how it turned out..
I will try to post more interesting recipes soon...until then..tata👋