Boiled Masala Peanuts

When I think back on college memories (ok..its been long but not too long ago), one of my favorite memories is us girls buying a whole lot of packets of the street side boiled peanuts mixed with a lot of stuff including maybe some dust and pollution as well. We pick that up, cross the street and would go sit on the historic Egmore museum steps for hours and indulge in total kadala potufying (transalation.. check out anything that remotely resembles a guy and rate them from 1 to 10). And yes, when I moved out of Egmore and continued on to my post grad, the tradition still continued but unfortunately the location of my kadala-wala was not very conducive to look at guys. It was at the end of a railway track – the only view from there was the dirty tracks and a few crazies running them across. So, it was more of a togo from that place.

Traditions die hard. Especially if it involves devouring a hot plate of boiled peanuts. I wish there were kadalawalas standing in every corner here in the US serving the ever green snack. What do these hot dog selling guys know what they are missing. Anyways, my sad story apart, I was totally craving for this after having a big long discussion with my friend over the phone about our kadala days. So, I decided to just go ahead and make it.

You can soak the regular store bought plain shelled peanuts and then pressure cook them to match the inshell boiled peanuts. I also use this type of peanuts to make a garlicky spicy vetha kuzhambu – famously called mallatta kuzhambu by my Cuddalore friends. Apparently, peanuts are called mallatta in the Cuddalore – Pondicherry area. I learnt this the first time my Cuddalore friend told me she was going to get mallatta cake – and I was expecting something like a black forest or chocolate cake and she hands me over some chikki. Sometimes life’s lessons are learnt the hard way.

What you mix with the peanuts is entirely up to you. Eat them plain or eat them overly dressed up – they never disappoint.

Wash and soak about 2 cups of raw peanuts overnight. (With or without the cover is fine)

The next day, wash the peanuts again and pressure cook with lots of water. Add about 2 -3 tsps of salt to the water before cooking so that the peanuts pull in the salt from the water.

Cool until the peanuts turn tender but not mushy. A little bite to it is also preferred.

You’re almost done. You can taste a whole cup of just the plain stuff. No one is watching.

Chop up some green chillies, onions. tomatoes and cucumbers into small pieces. One classic ingredient I did not have at home was raw mango. If you can get it on time to make this, chop up into fine pieces like the cucumbers too. And btw – this kind of a peanut masala dish is also called ‘Monkey Nuts’ in many places. Sure, I’d go monkey over this any day.

Add all the ingredients to the boiled peanuts. Sprinkle some red chilli powder on top for a little spice. Taste and add salt only if you need to. Top off with some fresh cilantro and mix well. You can squeeze juice of half a lemon if you like the flavor. I don’t go there.

Mix up well and serve fresh.

Traditionally in India, this is served wrapped in old newspapers. Maybe those toxins do add to the flavor. But, all that gave us immunity – what do you say? Anyways, LA Times does bleed when I touch the paper with wet hands so I know the ink is pretty fresh on there. So, I do a double wrap – first wrap with plastic foil and then cover with the newspaper for the traditional look. I know – I never cared for all this before but I’m a mom now and this stuff freaks me now.

Now that my peanuts are ready, all I need is some girlfriends and some gossip – because at my stage in life we all realize no matter how high you rate guys – they are all the same - their clothes never hit the laundry basket right and the toilet seat does not come down to the correct position. Ever.

Enjoy. Peace out.

Click here for a Printable Recipe

Corn Ball Pick Me Ups

I saw. I want. I made.

That's pretty much the story behind this little find here. It was one of those day when we wrapped up dinner and sat down to watch my fav channel - Food TV and my little one's fav show - Good eats by Alton Brown. He as usual had a hilarious episode while trying to use up left over corn tortillas. He called these Masa Tots.

And then he made these. And my heart stopped. Well..not really. But I just had to eat these. And it was perfect timing as superbowl sunday was just coming up and this was THE dish for me to make.

These are super easy to make. While Alton used his left over tortillas, I went and bought a pack of yellow corn tortillas from the store. Who's got time to wait for leftovers?

Tear them up or if you are OCD like me, you can cut them into long bits.

Add the cut bits to a food processor with a chop blade and just chop fine.

 

Get it to almost this stage.

Then, keep processing and add about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of just plain cold milk to bring it all together into a big mass. Don't add too much milk and make it watery. No good. Add enough - maybe in drops so that the corn mix comes together and starts forming a ball.

Alton added an egg here - but I just skipped that. These remind me of corn pakodas and we desis never use eggs for our pakodas. So this should work fine without that too. Right? You bet.

Can you see how find this has been ground up because of the milk? Now, add salt to taste for the corn mix.

Then add about 1 tsp of paprika powder or red chilli powder to the mix.

Throw in some finely grated carrots and about 1/2 onion finely chopped to the mix.

Here comes the kicker. Add about 2 jalapenos roughly chopped. Alton of course wore gloves while doing this. But we are hard wired to take this heat on our hands. Ah..nothing. Sissy matter. 

Mix all the ingredients well and make small balls. The pic you see below is actually before I added the jalapenos. I made a few of these for the kids first before I added the spicy stuff in.

 Fry the corn tots in hot oil until golden brown.

These were super soft to eat inside. I had a feeling while watching the show that it might be a hard one to bite - but was totally wrong. Loved these little balls. And they were awesome when eaten right out of the oil. Aaah..perfect!

I used up all the tortilla. There were 30 small ones and this gave me about 55 corn balls. Perfect to share. And I was good and I did share. Took it to my friends house to watch the big game together.

You could enjoy them just as is.

Or make them prettier and attractive. Poke a little toothpick and serve. The kids and the grown up kids both get a little lollipop.

Thank you Alton. You know we all love you here at our home!

Enjoy. Peace out!

Quick Lunch - Corn, Avocado and Veggie Soft Tacos

Do you find yourself super hungry at 12:00 in the afternoon - but haven't made anything for lunch yet? But, you really want to eat a healthy, satisfying meal. That's how I felt one day. And so this was developed in my kitchen! 

Once again, there are no rules to this - pick your favorite veggies. Add your own spices. And get on your way to having a delicious lunch.

First with the avocados. This buttery fruit which is primarily also used like a veggie too is pretty bland by itself - actually I don't find it bland. But my husband does.  So, I need to spice it up for him.

And this is what I do to spice it up. Sprinkle with some salt to taste and red chilli powder. Squeeze a few drops of fresh lime juice on top. And let it sit on the counter while you take care of the other prep work.

Now for the fresh corn. Roast it over a medium flame until all sides are done.

Once again spice this up - dip one half of a lemon into a mix of salt and red chilli powder. Then, spread it all over the corn to get the flavors in.

On a side note, I so want to be in chowpatthy beach in Mumbai eating this ..like right now!

Don't know why - but I had to show you this pic. No step here though.

So, here are my ducks in a row. Avocado, Carrots, Zucchini, Corn, Yellow Bell Pepper and Onions.

Cut the corn kernels lengthwise and set aside.

Saute each veggie one at a time in about 1 tsp of oil or less.

When they're all done, mix together well in a bowl.

Lightly warm up the soft tortillas on a tawa.

Here's an extra kick. This is a regular pudina chutney I had at home.

To make the pudina chutney, fry together 1tbsp of channa daal, 1 tsp of urad daal, 2 green chillies, 1 inch ginger piece chopped finely, 1 bunch of fresh mint leaves and also about 3/4 cup of coconut. Then, grind all together well to make a chutney. You can use this for dosas, idlis, upmas, rotis and pretty much anything. Even for chips as a dip!

Apply some of that green stuff onto the warm tortilla.

Add in a couple of spoons of this gorgeous filling.

And you're pretty much done.

Make a few of these for the family and get everyone together to sit down for a nice healthy lunch.

I had some baked sweet potato fries at home - so someone added it to the tacos! Its up to you to figure out who that person could be!

Enjoy! Peace out!

Sweet Corn, Fresh Mint and Paneer Fried Rice

What a weekend it was! I met my wonderful friend back from college Kamakshi and she made the most delicious soft aappams for me. And I also took picutres of a dish she made for a future post - a Tapioca delicacy from Kerala.

And then, I finally got to meet a lot of new friends who I got to know through the blog. We got interacting on the blog's FB page and one thing led to another and slowly we all became good friends. I visited the bay area and got to meet all of them during the weekend. We had some wonderful conversations and great food! I'll post a few pictures later. Thank you to all 10 of you for a memorable weekend.

I ended my trip with watching Eat Pray Love with my sister. We should have maybe just gone out to eat and pray and chat with sisterly love! The movie was ok - but I felt it was a drag. Finally back to work and routine.

Now moving on to this post. This was an impromptu fried rice that was created in a jiffy. And it was all gone in a jiffy too!

There was left over paneer in my fridge. There was a whole bunch of mint leaves in my backyard that was just begging to be be eaten up! And there was this little kid in my house who wanted corn in some form in her next meal. And that is how people, this dish was born!

Before you start cooking this, keep about 2 cups basmati rice with 3 cups of water in a rice cooker or pressure cooker. Once the rice is done, cool it down. You can also add a tsp of oil to the rice and let it just sit - helps in separating the grains while cooling down.

Here's my favorite fresh backyard mint....I love the smell of my fingers when I pluck them out of the plant. Forget aromatherapy hand lotions - nothing to beat this!

Cut Paneer into small cubes and set aside so its ready to be sauteed.

In a wide pan, add about 1 tsp of ghee and fry some cashewnuts till they turn golden. Remove from pan and set aside.

Then, add the cut paneer pieces to the pan and turn the heat on medium and start sauteeing. You can add a tsp of oil or ghee also to fry the paneer pieces.

Add a pinch of turmeric and salt to taste just for the paneer. And yes..the paneer will stick when you fry it in a steel dish - but if you do it in medium, they just come off easy too. Once the paneer is done, remove it from the pan and set aside.

Now, add another tsp of oil and fry some whole jeera.

Then, add in chopped onions and some finely chopped green chillies and fry till translucent.

Then, add a spoon of ginger garlic paste to the onions and fry for a minute.

Now add about 1 cup of fresh or frozen corn to the onions and cook for a few mins. Add salt to taste and also a pinch of turmeric powder.

Then add the masalas - I added 1 tsp of pulav masala, some red chilli powder. You can also add fresh green chillies at the beginning for a spicier tasting pulav.

Now, add the freshly chopped mint to the corn and mix well. All of it will wilt in a min but your house will smell and feel like a pretty magaize cover page house!

Now add the cooked paneer to the rest of the ingredients. Cook together for a min.

Then, add the cooked rice to the veggies and paneer.

Mix gently without smashing up the rice too much. This is no place to take out all your energy! Cook like a ballet dancer. You could also dance alongside for some self-entertainment if you need to. I do it too as soon as I make sure no one's watching!

When all the rice is mixed up, add the roasted cashews on top and mix gently one more time.

Serve hot. Serve yourself. Sit back, relax and enjoy your plate of deliciousness!

Of course I had to give you all a close up shot! Coz my cashew loves the spotlight!

Before I go, here's something I've been wanting to talk about.

A few of us foodie bloggers from this part of the world - Los Angeles, Orange County and San Bernadino county have gotten together and decided to meet up soon in person! Just for the fun of it.

So, if you are blogger from around here or has a blogger friend who lives around here - please do visit this link and get the details - Foodie Bloggers Meet. Looking forward to meeting you soon!

Enjoy. Peace Out!