Methi Jeera Tambuli

Tambuli, The Taste of South India and a great good-for-health side dish is a beaming blend of yogurt and chutney. Served as a starter along with steamed hot rice before the main course, this is a super cool recipe during sweltering hot summers!

Dish Type: Side Dish (mainly for rice, chapathi)

Preparation Time: 5 min

Cooking time: 5 min

Serves: 5 persons

Ingredients

Methi seeds    1 tsp

Jeera seeds     1 tsp

Red chillies      6 nos.

Salt to taste     (1 tsp approx)

Raw coconut grated    ¼ of a coconut

Ghee                ¼ tsp ( adrop)

Curd                4 – 5 tbsps

Directions

Put a drop of ghee in a kadai and place it on a stove.

Light the burner and on low flame, fry methi, jeera and red chillies.

Stir fry till methi turns slightly brown and jeera splitters.

Switch off the burner and let the contents in the kadai cool.

Now grind these along with grated raw coconut and salt.

Keep adding curds at intervals.

Texture and consistency of the ground mixture depends on individual choice.

Transfer the contents to a bowl. Seasoning is optional.

Methi Jeera Tambuli is now ready.

Doddapatre Thambuli (Spicy Yogurt with Coleus)

Cold, cough, sore throat, congestion, indigestion…oho!....then no more procrastination! Off to our gardens, let’s pluck them…and be back soon….Doddapatre leaves, fresh from my garden…those succulent, strong scented (has the aroma of oregano but a bit more pungent), thick, roundish, spongy, green foliage with toothed edges from an evergreen shrub that grows and spreads so easily even in gentle weather.

Pluck a leaf or two, boil them in hot water and sip the decoction (kashaya) when you feel sick especially with common cold or abdominal ailments. Wanna add a drop of honey and lime for that zing thing….yes please!

Even as I am chatting with you….

Mangala’s Potluck is ready to serve you Doddapatre Thambuli fresh from its kitchen. Thambuli, a simple yogurt and fresh coconut based preparation, cool dish ideal for hot summers, so healthy n tasty, so lovingly prepared and sweetly served by moms, yet so easily turned down by kids, only to realise later in life….”Well, it’s our turn now to be turned down by our kids”!!! 

Dish Type:  South Indian Side Dish

Time required:  10 min

Serves:  4 persons

Ingredients                 

For sautéing:

Ghee                            ½ tsp
Cumin seeds                ½ tsp

Pepper corns               ½ tsp (5 to 6 nos.)

Doddapatre leaves      12 nos.

For grinding:

All the above sautéed ingredients

Salt to taste                      ½ tsp

Fresh grated coconut       1 tbsp

Jaggery                            1 tsp (optional)

Curd                                1 cup

For seasoning:

Ghee                            ½ tsp

Mustard seeds              ½ tsp

Urad dal                      ½ tsp

Curry leaves                4 to 6 nos.

Green chilli                   1 no.

Red chilli                      1 no. (split to half or a tad smaller, optional)

Directions:

Wash doddapatre leaves thoroughly in salt water. Drain out the water and keep the leaves aside. Wash curry leaves also and keep aside.

Grate fresh coconut and keep aside.

Heat ghee in a skillet. Add cumin seeds and pepper corns. When jeera turns brown, add washed doddapatre leaves. Sauté them on low flame for 3 to 4 min. till you see the leaves wilting, watering and changing colour. Switch off the flame and transfer the contents to a plate. Let it cool.

Now added grated fresh coconut and salt to this plate. Grind them in a mixie jar using minimum amount of water to a paste consistency. Transfer the contents to a bowl and now add fresh curd / buttermilk and blend them well with a spoon. It’s time to do seasoning….

Heat ghee in a small skillet. Add mustard seeds, urad dal, green chilli (slit), red chilli and curry leaves (in that order). Fry for five seconds. Switch off the flame. Pour this seasoning on to the bowl.

Doddapatre Thambuli is now ready. Serve it cool with hot steaming rice, pickle and papad.

Tete a Tete:

Leaves can even be chopped to smaller size before sautéing.

You can use pepper corns / green chillies or a combination of both for the spicy taste.

Asafoetida is not required for Doddapatre Thambuli

Doddapatre leaves can be just chewed after a mild n gentle wash along with a pinch of pepper n salt. Good for cough n sore throat. Great stuff gifted by Mother Nature! 
Doddapatre is also used for making Bhajji, Pathrode. 
Grind few leaves of Doddapatre along with Thulasi (Basil), Hibiscus leaves, Curry leaves and soaked methi seeds and use it as a pack for conditioning your hair.

Coleus Aromaticus, Plectranthus Amboinicus, Cuban Oregano, Country Borage, French Thyme, Spanish Thyme, Mexican Thyme, Mother of Herbs, Saviara Sambara, Sambrani soppu, Sambara balli, Karpooravalli, Pattharchur and Ajwain are a few other terms used to describe Doddapatre leaves.

Recipe contributed by Smt. Mankali, a septauagenarian lady and an expert cook from Idagunji Taluk, Karnataka State.

Other recipes contributed by Smt. Mankali
Beetroot Gojju (Sauce)

Brahmi leaves Yogurt Sauce (Ondelaga Thambuli)

Cucumber Dosa

Banana Fritters / Yeridevu

Other Curd Recipes in this blog:
Ondelaga Thambuli (Spicy Yogurt with Brahmi leaves)
Hasi Majjige Huli (Veg Sambar using Yogurt)

                        

Ondelaga Thambuli (Spicy Yogurt with Brahmi Leaves)

Omigosh, can you believe? Just now I finished making a dish, penned and posted the recipe too in my blog and now I forget its name too! While I recharge my memory cells, don’t miss reading this story…

Adam n Eve upon their creation, as a gesture of celebration, performed intense penance to appease The Creator Lord Brahma. Lord Brahma in turn, pleased by their penance granted a boon. Buoyed by the boon, they asked Him, “Oh Lord, bestow us something from nature, which when used, makes our memory All Powerful.” Thus rose from the earth, to make our memories memorable, leaves of Brahmi bestowed by Brahma The Lord.

 On sharing this story with “Honey” my hubby, hoping he will be inspired to make sincere attempts to boost his power of memory instead of using me as a Ready Reckoner for his bills n pills, the boss in him quickly quipped in admiration, “From this day on, you‘ve been promoted as ‘My Permanent Reminder’ for the remainder of our lives!”

While there is no magic bullet heard of, so far, to fight Alzheimer’s disease, Brahmi leaves, a traditional therapeutic herb, botanically known as “Bacopa monnieri”, if used regularly from a early age, promises to be theraupetic enough to keep us away from brain degeneration at old age.  A potent therapy for neuropathy, a reducer of stress and booster of cognitive abilty, let’s include these leaves in our daily menu and pride ourselves with a bounty of benefits offered only by Brahmi.

Ha see…now I remember this unforgettable recipe! Brahmi Soppina Thambuli  (Spicy Yogurt with Brahmi Leaves) 

Dish type: South Indian Side Dish

Time required: 10 min

Ingredients

Brahmi leaves                     1 small bunch

Raw grated coconut            ¼ coconut

Cumin seeds                         1 tsp

Yogurt (Curd)                      3 tbsps

Jaggery                                 1 tbsp

Salt to taste                          1 tsp approx.

Directions:

Wash Brahmi leaves along with its roots in water 2 or 3 times thoroughly till the leaves and roots are completely clean. Drain out the water.

Grind the leaves and roots and filter the ground paste. Now grind raw grated coconut and cumin seeds to a smooth consistency. Add the brahmi paste and grind for few more seconds till they blend well. Transfer this to a bowl. Add curd, jaggery and salt. Mix them well. Let it stand for a while till salt and jaggery dissolve.

Spicy yogurt with Brahmi leaves is now ready. Use it at the start of lunch as first course by mixing with hot rice. Savour the beauty of Brahmi!

Tete a Tete

Extremely easy recipe. No need to switch on the stove since all ingredients are used raw. No need of seasoning too!

Ideal for summer. Brahmi leaves are known as “Ondelaga soppu” in Kannada.
Recipe contributor: Smt. Mankali, a septuagenarian lady from Idagunji Taluk and an expert cook

Recipes viewed here are a part of  "Mangala's Potluck" section in this blog  

You may also view:

Few other Dessert Recipes
Sambar Varieties
Side Dish Recipes
Breakfast Recipes

Rice Varieties

Gojju Varieties

Spice Powders

Snack Recipes

Few other recipes contributed by Smt. Mankali
Banana Fritters / Yeridevu
Brahmi leaves Yogurt Sauce (Ondelaga Thambuli)
Cucumber Dosa
Banana Fritters / Yeridevu

Other Recipes using Curd:
Doddapatre Thambuli (Spicy Yogurt using Coleus)
Hasi Majjige Huli (Sambar using Vegetable and Curd)

HASI MAJJIGE (Huli) with Chayote

Sep 15th 2016
Guess what does a student like me do in Sheshadri Mokshagundam Sir’s art class….drawing or painting? Either, neither or better still, chat with my neighbour! So when dear mother of our endearing Sir, 

Smt. Lalithamma  Ramamurthy, a nonagenarian lady and an expert cook makes that special though rare appearance, and if I am lucky to be seated by her side, I waste no time in calligraphing (read: scribbling) about cooking tips, plucking leaves out of her recipe roster while brushing aside my paintings!

Music [ON]  Tip.Top. Tip…Top…Toe….[FF] >>>> 4eversmartfrmhead2toe…

Shhhh….I think Sir is coming. Hey comp, will you shut up or shall I shut you down, lest Sir shall whh..easel me out with his colour-filled wand. Hmmm… looks like he is in an excellent mood…I hear him humming n see him smiling, as ALWAYS!

Time for me to salute…..

“Thank you Sir, for aiding me add sugar n spice to make my blog space feel sweet n nice.”

Mangala’s Potluck presents to you, the first of a series of Smt. Lalithamma Ramamurthy’s signature recipes - “HASI MAJJIGE (Huli)” right below

Simple, soothing Easy Recipe that suits all seasons. Cause for the ease: Cool Curd stating “I’m in” Dhal declaring itself “Out”….cool nah? Saves Time!

(Hasi = Raw) + (Majjige = Buttermilk) = Hasi Majjige = Raw Buttermilk….ishte naa…why write one biiiiig recipe for this, right? Not right.

Known famously in Karnataka as “Hasi Majjige (huli)” i.e. “Raw Buttermilk (sambar)”, there’s more to it than just its name. It is christened so because this type of huli or sambar is made using Majjige (diluted yogurt) in its hasi or raw form and not boiled along with the vegetables. In this recipe, the slight sour taste of sambar is derived by yogurt which dethrones the typical tangy tamarind. 

Dish Type:  South Indian Vegetable Stew

Time required:  15 min

Serves:  4 persons

Ingredients

Yogurt                          125 ml

For boiling

Chayote                       2 nos. (Chayote is Seeme badanekaayi in kannada)

Salt to taste                 3 tsps approx. (2 tsps at the start of boiling + 1 tsp                                                      when you add ground masala)

Water                          500 ml

For grinding:

Red chillies                  5 or 6 nos. (byadagi variety)

Methi seeds                1 tsp

Mustard seeds            ½ tsp

Turmeric                     A pinch

Asafoetida                  A pinch

Raw coconut               ¼ of a coconut (grated)

For seasoning:

Oil                               1 tsp  

Mustard seeds              ½ tsp 

Red chillies                  2 nos.

Asafoetida                   A pinch

Curry leaves                3 or 4 leaves

For garnishing

Coriander leaves (optional) 

Directions

Wash chayote thoroughly, drain out the water and peel the skin (reuse peels for making chutney). Chop chayote into ¾” cubes and keep aside. Keep raw grated coconut ready.

Start with seasoning. For this, heat ghee in a small skillet. Put mustard seeds. When they crackle put broken red chillies and switch off the flame. Add asafoetida. Boil the chopped vegetables in a vessel along with water and salt till the vegetables become just soft. (Do not overboil)

While vegetable is kept for boiling….

You can do shallow dry frying. Heat a medium sized kadai. Dry fry methi seeds, mustard seeds, asafoetida and red chillies separately. Transfer them to a plate. Let it cool.

Grind the above ingredients along with raw grated coconut using small quantity of water and continue grinding to a smooth consistency. Add this ground mixture to the not yet fully cooked vegetable. Also add a tsp of salt. Continue boiling for another 5 min. or so. Can you feel the “Ah, wow” smell! Switch off the stove. Beat yogurt to get a smooth butter like consistency. Mildly dilute it using just enough water. Add this to the boiled vegetable. Garnish with thoroughly washed and chopped fresh coriander leaves.

Chayote Hasi Majjige is now ready. Serve with hot cooked Rice / Ragi mudde or as a side dish for Chapathis, Rotis, Nucchina Unde.

Other yogurt recipes in this blog: 
Doddapatre Thambuli (Spicy Yogurt with Coleus) 
Ondelaga Thambuli (Spicy Yogurt with Brahmi leaves)

Tete a Tete

Do not overcook vegetable.

Do not add yogurt at boiling stage.

Asafoetida can either be added during seasoning or during grinding. Choice is yours.
Chayote also known as Chow Chow, Seemebadanekaayi (in kannada)

Hasi Majjige can also be done using Cucumber / Bottlegourd / Snakegourd

Few other recipes contributed by Smt. Lalithamma Ramamurthy:

One of my sketches done in Sheshadri Sir's art class

Heralekaayi Gojju (Citron Lime Sauce)
Pulgura (Huli Soppu) or Greens Chutney
Sambar Powder
Rasam Powder
Menthyada Hittu (Fenugreek Powder)
Vangibath Powder