Asian style veg with sesame sruce

Asian style Dinner in a bowl

Sounds fancy. Tasted good. Looked purple!! That was this black carrot in season that sort of colored the meal.

Sesame rice - in a cooker, heat oil, splutter some sesame seeds, red chilli, ginger, add rice. Roast a bit. Add salt, water and cook. One or two whistles.

Veg
Wok. Hot oil. Ginger. Garlic. Nicely chopped veggies. I did broccoli, carrots( which I microwaved a bit) capsicum, and some other stuff. Forgot. You can add pumpkins. Add to hot wok. Stir fry. Add peanuts or almonds. Mix Teriyaki, soy and just a bit of tomato sauce with rice flour. Make slurry and add to veg. Stew for 2. Can add coriander. Yeah yeah. I know :/ Tastes good you know. Oh. Can add chilli flakes or black pepper or green chilli. Boil some eggs to go with the meal.

My Pati's Toghaiyal

This one you like. You can make all kinds if toghaiyal. Some dal (chana+urad or only urad or only tho or as in paruppu thogaiyal)

This one is one if many my pati used to make. She knew I loved it. She would even make from peels if vegetables- pumpkin, gourds... You have to get the flavor right. Kind of umami. Sweet, sour, salt, heat, some freshness.

Ingredients ( for the one I made today. Feel free to improvise. You should.)
Chana dal
Urad dal
Kadi patta
Green chilli
Hing
Tomato
Ginger
Tamarind
Gud

And it certainly classifies as lazy. Okay.
 Heat 2tbsp oil. Put the Dals. Hung. Roast. Chilli. Kadi patta. Ginger. 30 seconds. Tomato. Doesn't have to be roasted much. Salt. Jaggery(gud). Switch off. Microwave a bit if tamarind with water. Squeeze out the liquid onto other ingredients. Add little bit of water. Soak for about 10 and grind.
Have with hotrice and ghee.

Idli

So Ro wanted to know how idli is made. People have different measures and swear by them. Mine is - 2 raw rice. 2 boiled rice. 1 urad dal. Soak dal and rice separately. 6 hrs. Grind separately. Add salt and mix. Ferment. Scoop out in moulds and steam.

But if you can't get udad where you live and don't have a mixi, make rava idli.
Semolina. You should get it anywhere in the world.

Oil. Heat. Add mustard, jeera, chopped green chilli, ginger, chana dal, hing, and say...two cups of semolina. Roast. Add 2 cups curd. ( not while its roasting! After it cools) Add Salt. Add water to make idli batter consistency. Leave for 10 mins and make idlis. You can add a bit if cooking soda. It helps. To the batter, you could also add carrots, coriander, kadi patta.

You won't have idli moulds. Steam in cups or plates.


Tell me how it came out. Should work.

Postu

At this rate of laziness....tsk tsk.

Since I'm being fed lovingly by my not-so-lazy mum, here's Postu. The easy way. That's how pati makes it too.

Choice of veg - tomato/potato/ridge gourd (pperkanga/jhinga)
Take 100g of  poppy seeds (gasagasa/khuskhus). Since its cultivation is restricted its a pricey commodity. And yes..you ARE going to make postu with it. Don't go experimenting

Grind poppy seeds with a one or two green chillies. Grind dry first. When it is well powdered add some water and grind to chutney consistency. In a kadai, heat two table spoons of oil. Add mustard, one red chilli and veg/berry of choice. Cook till done. Add the paste. Stir. Keep at it. Dont go off to anywhere. It gets booked in about 7-10 mins. You'll know when it smells right and the paste leaves sides of kadhai. Somewhere along the way, add salt.
Have with hot freshly made rice and ghee.

I had it a couple of days ago. Was yum. I guess we like the strange things we grow up with. There's taste and there's a story and there's a memory.