Vazhaipoo (Banana flower) Puttu

Plantain flower or Banana Flower known as Vazhaipoo is a nutritious vegetable with lots of fiber, proteins and unsaturated fatty acids, banana flowers are also rich in vitamin E . It also has medicinal value and benefits. Stir fries and vada are the two most popular dishes made from the flower.In India, we never waste any part of a banana tree, the stem, flowers and even the leaves and they are much seen in any festivals celebrated at home. Right from packing foods, the leaves are used in cooking foods and serving food too. If you find some one’s house gate is tied in India with banana trees it’s a sign of celebration there. I would call the banana tree as one of the God’s most precious creature. Cleaning banana flower is little tedious and time consuming .Cooked version of banana flower is an excellent and effective medicine for painful menstrual disorders with bonus nutrition like Vitamin A and C. Good alternative medicine for stomach ulcers, dysentery and painful digestion.

 

Prep time	Cooking time	Serves
Depends on the quantity of the flower to be peeled	20 mins	3 nos

Cuisine: South Indian

Recipe Category: Poriyal Varieties

Ingredients Banana flower – 2 cups Chick peas(Bengal gram) -3/4 cup Grated ginger -1” Mashed Garlic -3 cloves Red chillies -2 nos Onions -2 nos Turmeric powder -1/4 tsp Grated coconut -1/2 cup Coriander leaves (garnishing) Seasonings Oil -2 tsp Mustard seeds -1/2 tsp Fennel seeds -1 tsp Hing –pinch Curry leaves -1 sprig

Method

1. Soak the channa dal for 20 minutes and grind it along with dry red chili and fennel seeds to a coarse texture and keep aside.Steam this for about ten minutes in a steamer and cool at room temperature. 

2. Clean the vazhaipoo and chop finely. , soak them in buttermilk until ready to use. Now drain all the buttermilk and squeeze the petals to get rid of any water and chop them.

3. Heat two tablespoons of cooking oil in a kadai and add half a teaspoon of asafoetida, finely chopped curry leaves, , ginger and garlic and sauté for a few minutes.

4. Add the steamed channa dal to the mixture without lumps. Sprinkle some water and keep aside for five minutes. Once done slightly scramble the dumpling and keep aside.

5. Now add the vazhaipoo, along with half a teaspoon of turmeric powder and salt. For garnishing, add grated coconut and curry leaves and serve hot. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.

Served with 

Ghee rice

Rasam 

Notes

Whole banana flower will yield 2 cups of chopped petals.

Check out more poriyal varieties here:

Avarekai poriyal

Grated radish poriyal

Cabbage poriyal

Arai keerai poriyal

Plum Iced Green Tea

Scorching hot summer weather calls for a cold glass of tea or lemonade. This plum iced green tea is superb for the summer months, plus it’s simple and gives a nice twist to your typical iced teas. Drop the chopped plums into the same teapot, and then just wait for the tea to cool enough to be placed in the fridge. I kept this iced tea more on the tart side as I really like it that way, but feel free to add more sugar (or a liquid sweetener if you prefer) if you’d like a sweeter tea. The green tea with the mint and plum was so refreshing.Find more interesting recipes regarding Beverages here.

Prep time	Total time	Serves
5 mins	15 mins	4 persons

Cuisine: American

Recipe Category: Drinks

Ingredients Green tea bags -4 Water -5 cups Ice cubes –as needed Lemon zest -2 tsp Ripe plums -5 -6 no’s Mint leaves -3 sprigs Lemons -2 no’s (juiced) Honey -1/4 cup Sugar -1/2 cup

Method:

1. In a large saucepan, bring 2 cups water to a boil. Remove from heat, add the tea bags, and let steep for 10 minutes. Discard the bags and allow the tea to cool to room temperature. Add the lemon zest and mint leaves and leave to sit for 5 minutes. 

2. On stove top in a medium pan, add in the plum fruit, honey and water. Bring to a boil then turn heat down to low leaving it to simmer for 10 minutes. Remove fruit from heat and Pour the cooled plum mixture through a fine sieve to separate juices from pulp and skins. 

3. Add the juice from the lemons and plums.Leave to chill in the fridge for an hour and then serve with sliced lemon and mint leaves.

 Served with

Ice cubes, lemon wedge, and fresh plum slices.

Technorati Tags: Green Tea recipes,Tea recipes,Iced tea recipes,Plum recipes,Plum Ice tea recipes,Plum Iced green tea recipes,Beverages,Cooler recipes.,Summer recipes,International and global cuisine,Drink recipes.

Dill leaves(Sabsige Soppu) Dal –Karnataka recipes

Dill leaves are otherwise known as Sabsige Soppu in Kannada which has a special place in the special diet and is a rich source of calcium. These leaves come from the healthy green vegetables family, but are not as popular as the other greens because of the strong pungent smell. The masala's when combined with toor dal  make this North Karnataka dish an intoxicating combo with rice or roti.

 

Prep time	Cook time	Serves
15 mins	20 mins	4 people

Cuisine: Indian

Recipe Type: Dal varieties

Ingredients Toor dal -1/2 cup Chopped Dill greens -1 ½ cups Onions -1/2 cup Tomatoes -1/2 cup Chilli powder -1 tsp Turmeric powder -1 tsp Dhania powder -1 tsp Black pepper powder -1 tsp(Optional) Green chillies -2 nos (Slited) Garlic pods -6 to 8 cloves Salt – to taste Oil- 2 tbsp Mustard seeds – 1tsp Cumin seeds -1 tsp Hing - pinch

Method

1. Pressure cook toor dal, dill, a pinch of turmeric  and  2 cups of water till just soft and don’t cook it mushy.Wash and cop dill discarding the thick fibrous stalks.

2. Heat oil in a vessel and add the mustard seed. When the mustard starts dancing around, add cumin seeds, garlic and hing.

3. Add the chopped onion, a pinch of turmeric and some salt. Cook till onion turns soft.When done, add chopped tomatoes.  

4. When it gets mushed up, add chopped onions and required quantity of salt to it and fry till done. Now add chilli powder, dhania-jeera powder and turmeric powder and just give a stir.

5. Add chopped dill leaves and cook  on simmering the flame till done. Add in the cooked dal to the dill mixture  and pour some amount of water to it and bring to a boil.  Check for salt.  

5. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with rice and also with roti/chapati.

Serve with

Roti or rice.

Beetroot poriyal

Notes

Fry cumin seeds and curry leaves in a little ghee and add it to the dal.

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Technorati Tags: Dill leaves recipes,Dal recipes,Karnataka recipes,Sabsige soppu recipes,North Karnatake recipes,Healthy recipes,Diet recipes.