Nellikkai-Mittai - Amla-Candy

#NellikkaiMittai  #AmlaCandy : #Nellikkai is known as #gooseberry in English. It is called #Amla in Hindi. They are sour, slightly bitter, sweet and astringent in taste.
Goose berries are rich sources of Vitamin C and a good anti oxidant. The fruits, leaves, bark of the nellikkai plant have been used in Ayurveda system of medicine since time immemorial.
We have already seen to preserve these healthy nellikkai in honey. Here I would like to present a method of making Nellikkai Mittai - Amla Candy.

Ingredients :
1/2 Kg	Nellikkai [ Amla - Goose berry ]
1 1/2 Cup	Sugar [ adjust ]
1/2 Tsp	Black Salt [ adjust ]
1/4 Tsp	Salt [ adjust ]
1 Tsp	Black pepper

Method :

Wash nellikkai 2 times and pat dry using a clean & dry towel.

Put in a clean and dry plastic bag and tie it.

Keep in the freezer for 2 days.

2nd day afternoon or 3 rd day morning take out the bag containing nellikkai from the freezer.

Allow to come to room temperature.

Then using a knife remove seed and cut into pieces.

Place on a big plate.

The nellikkai would have become soft and you may find it easy to remove the seeds.
Use a sharp knife to remove the seeds and chop nellikkai.

The water oozes out of the nellikkai while removing seed.

So keep a tray or plate below to collect the dripping water. 

Now grind black pepper, rock salt and sugar.

Add the ground powders and salt to nellikkai pieces in the plate.

Mix well using a clean spoon.

Keep the plate under direct Sun light.
As time passes water comes out of the nellikkai pieces and dissolves sugar mixture.
Keep stirring with a spoon at regular intervals.
The watery sugar mixture slowly becomes thick and forms a layer over the nellikkai pieces.
Dry in the Sun for next 4 to 5 days or until it completely dries up.
Store in a clean and dry bottle.

Keep tasting the pieces from day one to till it becomes a candy.
Its very tasty and the taste differs at each stage.
Regularly take these nellikkai mittai in the morning.
mm... enjoy healthy tangy nellikkai mittai!!!





Other ways of preserving Nellikkai [ Amla - Goose berry ]

Thaen Nellikkai [ Honey Amla ]

Nellikkai Jam [ Amla Jam ]

Maangai Jam [ Unripe Mango Jam ]

Ideas for other Dishes

Recipe Index

Amaranth-Ragi-Chikki

#AmaranthRagiChikki #AmaranthRagiMittai : So far we have seen recipes done with #amaranthseeds . But here #puffedamaranthseeds and #ragiflakes have been used in the preparation of  #chikki [ #mittai ].
Lets see the preparation.

Ingredients :
1 cup	Puffed Amaranth
1/4 cup	Ragi Flakes
3/4 cup	Jaggery
1/4 Tsp	Cardamom powder [ optional ]

Method :
Smash jaggery with a stone to break it into small pieces.
Put in a vessel and add 1/3 cup of water.
Heat on a stove over medium flame.
Stir well to dissolve the jaggery in water.
Turn off the stove once it dissolves completely.
Strain through a filter to remove impurities.
Take the strained jaggery mixed water in another vessel and heat over medium flame.
After some time a nice aroma of jaggery comes out.

Pour few drops of boiling jaggery syrup into a bowl containing water.
If it forms a ball inside the water and does not dissipate in water then its the right consistency.
The ball thus formed makes tang sound if it hits at the sides of the bowl.

Add puffed amaranth, ragi flakes and cardamom powder into the jaggery syrup.

Mix well and immediately transfer onto a plate dusted with rice flour.
Spread evenly and then slice it using a knife.

Or make balls after dusting hands with rice flour.




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