Vazhai Kai Podimas

Vazhai Kai Podimas

Select two pieces of Vazhai Kai of green colour and with some portion with a brownish tinge. The brownish tinge indicates the Vazhai Kai is matured enough.	Ingredients for the Podimas. The grated Coconut , Lemon juice and Ginger , add to the taste.	These ingredients are used for sautéing . Cut all the ingredients into small , uniform pieces. I normally use extra-virgin-olive-oil and Sundrop Sunflower oil in the ratio 1:3.	Cook the 2 pieces of Vazhai Kai in the pressure cooker. Use a colander or a plate with holes as the base, so that water does not get collected near the Vazhai Kai. Wait only for one whistle and switch off the heat. This will prevent the Vazhai Kai from overcooking and soggy. Spare a minimum of 15 minutes to cool off.
When the Vazhai Kai is still warm, strip off the outer skin with a flat knife and the skin will come out nice and smooth. This is how the Vazhai kai look after peeling off the skin.	Now you can grate the Vazhai Kai in a grater. You should select the course side with larger holes. Have a look at the consistency of the grated Vazhai Kai. Always use stainless steel grater. Otherwise the Podimas will quickly turn black.	See Fine Cooking. Click with Left Mouse Key and you can see all the enlarged images.	Rangarajan Ramaswamy Never use high carbon knives or materials while working with any part of Plantain Tree.

Fine cooking Add 2 table spoon of oil in a kadai. While on heat, add mustard seeds and when the cracking stops, add udad dahl, chena dahl , Curry leaves, ginger, Chillies, Asafoetida. At the end add the grated Vazhai Kai and grated coconut. Add salt, Turmeric and just turn the podimas a couple of times without exerting any pressure. You can add maximum ½ lemon Juice if you like for the 2 vazhai kai. The Podimas goes well as a side dish with rice, sambar and rasam. It also goes well with anybody born on Mother Earth without any side dish. If you minimise the chillies, the children and the guests alike will make frequent visits to the kitchen. So, make more than 2 Vazhai kai, maintaining proportions. Best wishes

Ingredients	Vazhai Kai	Podimas
For the Vazhaikai Podimas		For seasoning
Raw Banana	2 Nos	Cooking Oil	3 teaspoon
Coconut gratings	1/4 cup	Mustard	1 tea spoon
Ginger	chopped pieces	Udad dahl	10 to 12 Round
Lemon	1/2 piece	Chena Dahl	10 to 12 split
Salt	to taste	Turmeric	1/2 teaspoon
		Green / Red Chilli	1 No each
		Asafoetida	1/4 teaspoon
		Curry Leaves	8 to 10
		Coriander Leaves	Finely chopped

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Rangarajan Ramaswamy Bangalore 26.07.2013 03:00 pm