Quinoa-Pongal

 #QuinoaPongal #QuinuaPongal :

#Quinoa is a pseudocereal just like #Buckwheat. It is called pseudocereal because the edible seeds are obtained from a flowering plant and not from grass. Quinoa, a flowering plant belongs to amaranth family. The scientific name is Chenopodium quinoa.

Quinoa is high in protein and gluten free.

A cup of quinoa gives twice the amount of protein and 5 g more fiber than the same amount of Rice.

It is rich in Vitamin B, dietary minerals and dietary fiber.

100 gms of uncooked Quinoa contains 14.1 gms of protein [ 20% of daily value DV ], folate 184 ug [ 46 % of DV and higher amount of dietary minerals like Magnesium 197 mg [ 55% ], Manganese 2 mg [ 95 % ], Zinc 3.1 mg [ 33 % ], and Phosphorus 457 mg [ 65 % ].

100 gms of cooked Quinoa is rich source of Manganese and Phosphorus [ 30 % and 22 % respectively ], moderate source of dietary fiber [10 - 19 %], folate, Iron and Zinc [ 11% of DV each ].

To know more on Quinoa

As usual I prepared pongal from quinoa [ quinua ] also.

Preparation Time          : 5 mins

Cooking Time               : 15 mins

Quantity prepare           : 2 1/2 Cup approx.

Ingredients :
3/4 Cup	Quinoa [ quinua ]
1/4 Cup	Green gram split
1/4 Tsp	Fenugreek [ optional ]
1 Tsp	Black Pepper
1 1/2 Tsp	Cumin seeds
1 Tsp	Ginger finely chopped
1 Tsp	Turmeric tuber finely chopped *
10 - 15	Curry leaves
4 - 5 cloves	Garlic, chop nicely
1	Green chilly slit lengthwise [ optional ]
3/4 Tsp	Salt [ adjust ]
To Temper :
5 - 6	Cashew nuts, break into pieces
1 Tsp	Cumin seeds
8 - 10	Black pepper
10 - 12	Curry leaves
3 -4 Tsp	Ghee

* Turmeric tuber can be replaced with 1/4 Tsp of turmeric powder.

Method :

Take a pressure cooker and put quinoa, green gram and fenugreek [ venthayam ].

Rinse well with water.

Add cumin seeds, slightly crushed black pepper, finely chopped ginger, turmeric tuber, garlic, slit green chilli, salt and curry leaves.

 Now add 3 cups of water and mix well.

Close the pressure cooker with its lid and put the weight on.

Pressure cook on HIGH flame for a whistle and then cook for 8 mins on SIM.

Turn off the stove and wait till the steam goes off.

It will take approximately 10 mins to run out of steam.

Open the cooker.

Heat a kadai with ghee on a stove over medium heat.

Crackle cumin seeds and then add black pepper.

Fry till black pepper starts spluttering and emanates aroma.

At this stage add curry leaves and pour on to the hot ponagal in the cooker.

Again keep the kadai on the stove and fry broken pieces of cashews adding a tsp of ghee.

Transfer once the cashew pieces turn golden brown in color.

Add rest of the ghee also into the cooker and mix well.

Serve hot quinoa pongal on a plate, add plenty of ghee over it.

Relish along with an apt accompaniment.

The first choice being Pongal thuvaiyal [ Coconut Thuvaiyal ] and

the second choice would be vadava thuvaiyal.

Quinoa [ quinua ] pongal also goes well with coconut chutney or 

citron pickle or Pudina Sauce.

You might like to try :

Quinoa Paruppu Payasam

Quinoa Conjee [ Quinoa soup ]

Pesarattu

Idli from Pesarattu dough

Green gram vada

Buckwheat Pongal

For other tiffin varieties

Breakfast and Dinner ideas


For Accompaniments

Chutney Varieties

Ideas for dishes from Edible seeds

Edible seeds Recipes

Kuzhipaniyaram-with-Broccoli

#KuzhipaniyaramWithBroccoli : #Broccoli belongs to a family called cruciferous vegetables and the family is scientifically called  Brassicaceae family [ also called Cruciferae ]. Some of the cruciferous vegetables are cabbage, cauliflower, kale, brussels sprouts and similar green leaf vegetables.
#Broccoli is rich in minerals, vitamins, fiber and low in calories.
It is tasteless and flavorless. It takes very less time to cook. So I included chopped broccoli with capsicum & spinach to prepare a healthy and tasty #kuzhipaniyaram.

Ingredients :
1 1/2 cup	Idli Batter [ Idli maavu ]
1 Tbsp	Rawa [ Sooji ]
1 Tsp	Gram dhal
1 Tsp	Black gram split
1	Onion, chop nicely
1/4 cup	Broccoli chopped nicely
1/4 cup	Capsicum chopped nicely
1/4 cup	Spinach chopped nicely
1 Tsp	Cumin seeds
1 Tsp	Crushed black pepper
1/2 Tsp	Salt [Adjust]
4 - 5 Tsp	Groundnut oil

Method :
Take Idli maavu [ Idli batter ] in a vessel just half an hour before starting to prepare broccoli kuzhi paniyaram.
Add rawa, gram dhal, split black gram and salt.
Mix well and set aside.

After half an hour heat kuzhipaniyarakal [ tawa ] on a stove over medium flame.
Add all chopped item, cumin seeds and freshly crushed pepper.
If required add little water to attain the idli batter consistency.
Mix well and adjust salt.

Pour a small amount of oil in each pit of the kuzhipaniyarakal.
Wait till oil starts fuming.
Then fill each pit with prepared broccoli kuzhipaniyara batter till three fourth height.
Sprinkle some oil over the kuzhipaniyaram.
Wait till the edges start turning slightly golden brown.
Flip each kuzhipaniyaram with a slender spoon or a steel rod.
Cook on slow flame till both sides turn golden brown in color.
Transfer into a serving bowl once its done.

Again repeat the same process to make another batch of kuzhipaniyaram.

Enjoy hot Kuzhipaniyaram with Mint Chutney or any 

spicy chutney of your choice.

You may also like to try

Kuzhi Paniyaram

Thinai Kuzhi Paniyaram

Thinai Sweet Kuzhi Paniyar

Spinach Poori

Kodi pasalai dhal

For other Tiffin varieties

Tiffin Recipes


For other Chutney varieties

Chutney Recipes

Chowchow Adai

#ChowchowAdai : #Chowchow is known by various names in Thamizh like #SeemaKathirikkai, #BangaloreKatharikkai and is called #Chayote in English.
Last week I went to market to buy a small bottle gourd as I had planned to prepare #adai for dinner. But the bottle gourd available in the shop was too big. I didn't need that much big vegetable as it would go waste. I scanned through other vegetables of the shop and picked up chowchow. I chopped chowchow nicely and prepared adai. The taste of adai was very good and everybody thought it was bottle gourd adai. Here comes the preparation and the ingredients.

Can make approximately 5 - 6 pancakes [ adai ]

Ingredients:
To soak:
1/3 Cup	Boiled Rice [ Idli rice ]
1/3 Cup	Raw Rice
1/3 Cup	Thuvaram paruppu [ Toor dhal ]
1/3 Cup	kadalai paruppu [ bengal gram ]
To grind:
1/2 Tsp	Asafoetida powder
1 Tsp	Fennel seed
1 Tsp	Cumin seed
1/2 inch long	Ginger piece
2 - 3	Dry Red chilly [ adjust ]
1 Tsp	Salt [ adjust ]
To add:
1	Chowchow, peel and chop nicely
1 medium size	onino, chop nicely
4 Tsp	Coriander leaves chopped
10 - 12	Curry leaves chopped

Gingelly oil [ till/sesame oil ]
Ghee to apply over the adai

Method :
Take boiled rice and raw rice in a vessel.
Wash and soak for 2 hours.
Take thuvaram paruppu and kadalai paruppu in another vessel and soak for 2 hours.

After two hours put asafoetida, ginger piece, red chilly, salt, cumin and fennel seed in a mixie jar.
Grind coarsely and then add soaked rice.
Add little water and grind coarsely.
Transfer into a wide mouthed vessel.

Now take soaked thuvaram paruppu and kadalai paruupu and run for a few seconds without adding water.
Transfer into the same vessel containing rice batter.
Mix well and adjust salt.

Add chopped onion, chowchow, coriander leaves and curry leaves.
Mix well the batter and adjust salt.
The batter should be slightly thick and able to spread on tawa easily.
If it is too thick add little water and mix well.

Heat a tawa [ dosai kal ] on a stove over medium flame.
Apply a teaspoon of oil over hot tawa.
Keep two ladle full of adai batter at the center of the tawa and spread evenly using the bottom side of the ladle.
Apply oil on and along the rim of the adai.
Flip the adai once the rim becomes golden color and cook the other side also.
Transfer on to a plate once both sides become golden color.

Apply 1/2 Tsp of ghee over adai
Serve hot with Aviyal 

or coconut chutny 

or murungaikai sambar.

Adai tastes too good with jaggery.





You may also like to try :

Paruppu Adai

Vazhaipoo spinach Adai

Pesarattu

Arisi Roti

Kezhvaragu Adai

Kuthiraivaali Idly

#BarnyardmilletIdly - #KuthiraivaaliIdly :

#Kuthiraivaali is called #Barnyardmillet in English.
Kuthiraivaali is one of the millet whose fiber content is more than rice and wheat.

It is one of the richest sources of Thiamin [ Vitamin b6 ].

Kuthiraivaali - Barnyard Millet

English                                : Barnyard Millet Or Japanese Barnyard Millet
Common Name                  : Sawan Or sanwa Or Samo Or Morio
Marathi & Chhattisgarh       : Bhagar Or Varai
Kannada                             : Oodalu
Oriya                                  : Kira
Punjabi                               : Swank
Telugu                                : Udalu Or Kodi Sama
Scientific Name                   : Echinochloa Frumentacea
Source : Echinochloa , Barnyard Millet 

To know on Millets

The taste of Kuthiraivaali is better than varagu or samai and more or less equal to raw rice.
Here comes the recipe to make idly with this millet.

Ingredients :
1 cup                                 Barnyard millet [ kuthiraivaali ]
1/3 cup                              Black gram flour
1 Tsp                                 Salt
1/2 cup                              Curd
1 packet                            Eno Fruit Salt

Method :
Wash barnyard millet once and drain water completely.
Now grind just for 2 or three rounds [ just for a second ] so that the grains break up like sooji.
Transfer into a vessel.
Add black gram flour [ urad flour ], curd and salt.
Mix well and add some water to get dosai batter consistency so that when millet get soaked up will attain idly batter consistency.
Close it with a lid and allow to stand for 2 hours or until barnyard millet gets soaked.

After it gets soaked up keep an idly maker with water on a stove over HIGH flame.
Add eno fruit salt to the batter and mix well.
The batter foams and raises.

Grease the pits of the idly plate and fill the pits with batter.
Keep inside the idly maker and  steam cook for 8 - 10 minutes.

Check before scooping out idlies with a tooth pick or knife edge.

Again grease the pits with oil and fill with batter.
Steam cook for 5 to 6 minutes.
[ Subsequent batches take lesser time to cook than the first batch. ]

Enjoy hot idlies with chutney 

or sambar.




Other related recipes you might like to try

Kuthiraivaali Venthaya Kanji

Kuthiraivaali Sundal

Kuthiraivaali Upma [ Barnyardmillet Upma]

rawa Idli

Rawa buckwheat Idli

Ideas for Breakfast/Dinner

Tiffin Varieties

Accompaniments for tiffins

Chutney Recipes