Kootu Podi

There are many recipes in my draft are crying out to catch my attention.Most of them very basic recipes like masalas and ‘how-to’ stuff.I always thought people do know these,so why post them.

But dear Jaya thinks otherwise.In fact she is going to be held responsible for bringing out a lot of posts that might have thought they would never see the light of day!!!If you are still wondering what I am taking about,take a look at her Back to basics event announcement and you will know what’s going on….

Today I am about to post two recipes ,actually-basics,that can be made ahead and used at our convenience.The first one is a spice mix for Kootu.Kootu is a South Indian dish that is served with steamed rice .It is a lot thicker than sambar and has almost equal ratios[sometime even ] of  dal and veggies.The powder is different from sambar powder.If you have lots of time and don’t mind taking your time to roast and grind,then u can make a paste of the spices.But since most of us are in a hurry to catch up with one thing or the other,we can powder the spice mix and store and use when needed.This is mom’s recipe/ratio.

She uses:

Channa dhal- 1/2 a cup
Urad dhal-1 cup
Coriander seeds-2 tablespoon
Fenugreek seeds -1 teaspoon
Asafoetida-a large pinch
Pepper corns-1/2 a teaspoon
Red chillies – 10 [adjust to taste]
Oil-2 teaspoons

Heat oil in a pan and roast all the ingredients till golden brown.Take care not to char them.Cool.Powder finely and store in an air tight container and use as required.[In case it is a lumpy,spread it on a  plate and break lumps and cool if its warm and then store]

I will post the kootu recipe tomorrow…

Happy Cooking…