Navane -Hesarubele Payasa / Foxtail millet and moong dal payasam:

Foxtail Millet Kheer is a delicious addition to the festive menu, including the fasting menu, to the traditional kheer we usually make with rice. This millet, also known as Navane in Kannada & is rich in protein, minerals  & dietary fibre.
I have mixed nutty-flavoured Foxtail millet and a little moong dal to enhance the rustic taste.

Soaking millet makes it easier to digest and allows your body to absorb more nutrients. I usually do it overnight.

Foxtail Millet – ½ Cup
Moong dal – 2 Tblsp
Water (to cook Thinai) – 2 ½ Cups
Jaggery – ¾ Cup to 1 cup
Cardamom powder ½ tsp
Coconut milk – 1 Cup (you can add whole milk as well)
Ghee – 2 tsp
Cashew – 10 nos
Method:

-Soak millet for overnight. Morning, drain the water and leave the millet to air dry on a colander.

-wash moong dal and drain that as well.

-Make jaggery syrup by – Add Jaggery and water in a pan and heat it till the Jaggery melts completely. Use a filter to remove the impurities and extract Jaggery syrup. Keep aside

-Now, take a thick-bottomed vessel or kadai, heat ghee, fry cashew bits, and remove it; keep aside.

-Add moong dal and fry it until light brown; add foxtail millet and fry for 2 minutes.

-Add hot water or 3rd extract of coconut milk or whole milk. Cook until millet and dal turn soft and mushy. (it should hold the texture but turns mushy between your thumb and forefinger while pressing it.)

-If you are using clean Jaggery, here I have used Nolen gur (date palm jaggery); add directly and boil until the raw smell of Jaggery vanishes.

-Add thick coconut milk cardamom powder and allow to boil once. Switch off the stove. Garnish with fried cashews and serve.

Karjura Payasa/ Dates kheer:

I can’t believe it has been six years of blogging and four hundred-plus recipes since I started Shrikripa.in

At first, I intended to restore my recipes to my daughters, near and dear ones. Then, it gave me great learning opportunities, memories, growth, and many beautiful bondings with amazing people.

Today, I want to share our homely recipe of Karjura Payasa, which is nothing but payasam using dates, jaggery and coconut milk, which is a perfect way to end your meal!

Ingredient:

Thank you to all of my readers, who have stood by me, read my recipes, prepared and enjoyed with your near and dear ones, and made an extra effort to write back with beautiful feedback.

Dates – 1 to  1 ½ cups ( chopped)

Jaggery – ¼ to ½ cup ( according to the sweet level)

Coconut milk – 1 tin

OR

Coconut – 1 (To extract milk)

-OR-

Thin coconut milk – 2cups

Thick coconut milk – ½ cup

Salt – ½ tsp

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp

Ghee – 1 tbl sp

Cashew – 1 to 2 tbl sp (Roasted )

Method:

-Take a thick vessel, add ghee and fry chopped dates until it is flavourful.

-Add jaggery, salt, thin coconut milk or plain water and boil the content until the raw smell of the jaggery vanishes.

-Add a thick extract of coconut milk or if you are using tinned coconut milk, add it now. Add powdered cardamom and give one boil and switch off.

-garnish with ghee-fried cashew bits and serve.

Haalittu Payasa / Rice Noodle Kheer :

It is an age-old recipe and an almost extinct dessert in our region/ community. Haalittu, the name itself, suggests the softness of the rice noodles.

Here, freshly prepared rice noodles are cooked in boiling jaggery-laced water, enriched with coconut milk, and flavoured with freshly ground cardamom powder. 

The method is straightforward and not so complex.

Ingredients:

Dosa Rice – 1 small tumbler

Jaggery – ½ to ¾ tumbler or more

Salt- ½ tsp

Fresh Coconut – To extract milk or Coconut milk – 1 pack

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp (freshly ground)

Method:

-Wash and soak the rice for 3 to 4 hrs with sufficient water.

-Grind the soaked rice with salt into a smooth paste.

-Take one thick Kadai, pour the batter, heat on a low flame and cook until it forms a smooth pliable dough, with constant stirring.

-When the mixture cools down, take a chakli presser, fix a multi-hole plate, press the noodles and keep it ready.

-In another thick-bottomed vessel, take jaggery, and sufficient water or if you are using freshly extracted coconut milk, take 3 rd and 4th extract of thin coconut milk and boil until the raw smell of the jaggery vanishes.

– Now, drop the rice noodles and boil further. When noodles are well cooked, add thick extracted coconut milk or open the tetra pack, pour, and give one boil.

-Garnish with cardamom powder and serve hot. Here, we don’t use any ghee-fried dry fruits.

-if you wish to add, you can add and serve.

Balehannina Berati Payasa / Payasam by plantain preserve:

First, I want to wish a very very happy “Ugadi” to all my readers.  Ugadi marks the beginning of the new Hindu lunar Calendar, which is based on the change in the moon’s orbit. Ugadi is a Lunar New year for us.

On the eve of this festival I made our traditional payasam and enjoyed with my family.

“Berati” is nothing but preserved fruit pulp, which is cooked until it forms into thick mass and usually made when it is in abundance and stored for future use.

How to preserve jackfruit and Banana / Berati is already shared in my blog. 

In Coastal region we love jack and Banana in many forms. Berati Payasa (preserved Banana or Jack)  is one of them.

Now we will see traditionally how it is made:

Ingredients:

Berati / Banana preserve – 1 bowl

Coconut – 1 (To extract milk)

-OR-

Thin coconut milk – 2cups

Thick coconut milk – ½ cup

Salt – ½ tsp

Cardamom powder – ½ tsp

For Seasoning:

Ghee – 1 tbl sp

Thin Coconut slices – 2 tbl sp

Cashew pieces – 2 tbl sp

OR

Toasted black sesame – 1 table spoon

Fresh coconut slices – 1 to 2 table spoons

Method:

  • Take out Berati from your freezer and keep aside for some time to attain room temperature.

  • Slice coconut by using small knife, chop these sliced pieces into small bits.
  • Toast black sesame and keep aside.
  • Take little ghee and fry coconut bits and keep aside.
  • If you want to, you can add ghee roasted cashew bits as well.
  • Grate coconut (coconut should be fresh), put one cup of water and grind this in a mixer jar and extract milk by sieving this ground mixture. This is thick coconut milk and you should keep this separately. We use this at the end stage of Payasa making.
  • Do this procedure a couple of times to get a thin extract and lastly discard coconut fibre.
  • If you are using readymade coconut milk, please skip this step.
  • Now take one thick bottomed vessel, put Berati, thin coconut milk and dissolve Berati and keep this on a gas stove to boil.
  • Usually while making Berati, we put Sugar, so no need of additional sugar.

  • Lastly add thick extract of coconut milk and give one boil. Don’t boil it much. Add Cardamom powder and mix.       
  • Remove from fire and add fried coconut pieces, toasted black sesame or cashew brittles to prepared Payasa.
  • Serve with lunch thali or as a dessert.

NOTE:

  • Traditionally only toasted sesame and coconut bits are added.
  • Vegans can omit ghee and roast all the items, instead of frying.

 

Nolen Gur Payesh / Rice kheer with date palm jaggery:

Rice kheer or Paramanna is an integral part of any festivities in many parts of India. Every region has its own method or style. Usage of ingredients would differ according to the region. Such as the addition of plain milk or coconut milk. Usage of Jaggery or sugar. So, in west Bengal, they use date palm jaggery, which is known as Nolen Gur, which is available only during the wintertime; they make a lot of delicacies by using this special jaggery. It ranges from Nolen Gur Payesh, Nolen Gur Rasgulla, Nolen Gur Sandesh are the few.  I wanted to try this out in my cooking and bought it online.

They usually use plain tiny grain rice or dried rice-shaped vermicelli, which is known as Chushi pithe. Chushi pithe is nothing but handmade Rice vermicelli. In Mangalore, we make rice noodles known as Halittu or Paradi and use them in a Payasa/ kheer, and we usually use coconut milk. So, I tried my regional method and proceeded. It tasted divine!! Usage of coconut milk and taste of the palm jaggery was the best decision, and it was very rustic and flavourful in taste.

Ingredients:

Chushi Pithe/handmade rice vermicelli – 200 grams (you can use small grain rice as well)

Almond or Cashew – ½ cup (slivered)

Nolen gur – 300 grams (used Patali gur)

Coconut milk – 200 grams

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp

Ghee – 1 tsp (vegans can skip this)

Method:

-Take one thick bottomed vessel, add ghee and fry almond and rice vermicelli (Chushi pithe) or if you are using plain rice.

-Add around one litre of water and cook until rice cooks perfectly. Whenever it’s needed, add extra water little by little and cook.

-Now, add jaggery of your choice, boil until it smells divine and the aroma spreads. Here, the raw smell of the jaggery should vanish.

-Lastly, add one tetra pack of coconut milk, give one boil. Garnish with cardamom powder and mix.

NOTE:

-If you are using fresh homemade coconut milk, extract three times, preserve thick (1st extract) and add at the end.

-thin coconut milk of 2nd and 3rd extracts can be added while boiling or cooking rice vermicelli.

 

 

 

 

Broken wheat Huggi:

Huggi is a very popular, semi solid dessert of North Karnataka and each house has its own method. It is a sort of homely recipe and you would not find in any restaurant. Broken wheat is known as Godhi nucchu in Kannada language. I learnt Some of my favourite North Karnataka recipes from my previous neighbour aunty, who hails from Solapur near Gulbarga. I used to enjoy whatever she used to offer, starting from simple triangle chapati, obbattu, obbattu saru, chapparadavarekai palya, chavlikai palya and khara byale saru to Godhi nucchina Huggi, which she used to offer to God, every Friday evening and used to offer as a prasadam to us.

Aunty used to use hardly 3 ingredients and it used to taste divine. It is no coconut dessert and you can feel the texture of wheat as well as flavour. Preparation is very quick and simple and needs hardly any pre-preparation.

Recipe goes like this-

Ingredients:

Broken wheat – 1 cup

Jaggery – ¾ cup

Salt – ¼ tsp

Ghee – ¼ cup

Cardamom powder – 1 tsp

Cashew pieces – Roasted (Optional)

Method:

-Wash broken wheat twice. Cook with 3 cups of water and a pinch of salt for 2 to 3 whistles.

-Mean time, heat jaggery by adding ½ cup of water. Strain the liquid and remove the impurities.

-Add strained jaggery syrup to cooked wheat and cook further at a very low temperature.

-When raw smell of jaggery vanishes, add ghee and cook further by mixing in between.

-Lastly when mixture becomes like a mass, add cardamom powder, garnish with roasted cashew and serve.

Halasina Hannu Berati Payasa / Preserved jack fruit payasam:

First, I want to wish a very very happy “Krishna Janmashtami” to all my readers. On the eve of this festival I made our traditional payasam and enjoyed with my family.

Berati” is nothing but preserved jackfruit pulp, which is cooked until it forms into thick mass and usually made during Jack fruit season and stored for future use.

How to preserve jackfruit / Berati is already shared in my blog and it is here .

In Coastal region we love jack in many forms. Berati Payasa is one of them.

Now we will see traditionally how it is made:

Ingredients:

Berati / jackfruit preserve – 1 bowl

Coconut – 1 (To extract milk)

-OR-

Thin coconut milk – 2cups

Thick coconut milk – ½ cup

Jaggery – to taste

Salt – ½ tsp

Cardamom powder – ½ tsp

For Seasoning:

Ghee – 1 tbl sp

Thin Coconut slices – 2 tbl sp

Cashew pieces – 2 tbl sp

OR

Toasted black sesame – 1 table spoon

Fresh coconut slices – 1 to 2 table spoons

Method:

  • Take out Berati from your freezer and keep aside for some time to attain room temperature.
  • Slice coconut by using small knife, chop these sliced pieces into small bits.

  • Toast black sesame and keep aside.
  • Take little ghee and fry coconut bits and keep aside.

  • If you want to, you can add ghee roasted cashew bits as well.
  • Grate coconut (coconut should be fresh), put one cup of water and grind this in a mixer jar and extract milk by sieving this ground mixture.
  • This is thick coconut milk and you should keep this separately. We use this at the end stage of Payasa making.
  • Do this procedure a couple of times to get a thin extract and lastly discard coconut fibre.
  • If you are using readymade coconut milk, please skip this step.
  • Now take one thick bottomed vessel, put Berati, thin coconut milk and dissolve Berati and keep this on a gas stove to boil.

  • Usually while making Berati, we put little jaggery, so add required amount of jaggery and boil until raw smell of the jaggery vanishes.
  • Lastly add thick extract of coconut milk and give one boil. Don’t boil it much. Add Cardamom powder and mix.    

  • Remove from fire and add fried coconut pieces, toasted black sesame or cashew brittles to prepared Payasa.
  • Serve with lunch thali or as a dessert.

NOTE:

  • Traditionally only toasted sesame and coconut bits are added.

Rice kheer:

As a south Indian, moreover in Mangalore, we normally make Akki Payasa aka rice kheer as a prasadam for some poojas, either by adding jaggery or sugar by adding coconut milk or normal milk and it usually in thin consistency. If it is thick, it is known as pindi payasam and I have already posted the recipe earlier. I learnt this recipe from my close friend Surekha, who hails from Allahabad, all thanks to her for such a wonderful tasty kheer recipe. It is one of my daughter’s favourite as well. 

In this recipe, washed rice is cooked in milk, until done and in this process, milk condenses and yields creamy texture and kheer holds melt in the mouth texture as well. Speciality of this kheer is, addition of nutty flavoured Chironji or Charoli. It tastes a little like almonds and are tiny roundels in shape and good substitute to almonds as well. Which contains good fat, vitamins, minerals and dietary fibres in a considerate amount.  This is an ideal recipe for any kind of festival, potluck party.

Now we will see the procedure –

Jeera samba rice / small grain rice – 1 cup (you can use any fragrant rice)

Chironji – 100 grams

Milk – 1 to ½ litre (boiled)

Saffron – 10 strands

Sugar – 1 to 1 ½ cup (according to your sweet level)

Method:

-Wash rice, soak rice for 10 minutes.

-Soak saffron in 2 table spoons of hot milk and keep it aside.

– Take one thick kadai, add little ghee and fry Chironji until light brown.

-Add milk to this vessel and heat this. When it starts boiling, add soaked and drained rice.

-Cook in a very low flame, until rice is done and soft.

-If additional milk is needed, please add the extra amount. Each rice is different, so, please take care while adding milk.

-Now add sugar and saffron with soaked milk into it and boil. When kheer is ready, you will see the top glossy layer and it is the time to switch off the gas.

-Serve this kheer hot or cold, however you like to have it.

 

 

 

 

Halasina Hannina Berati / Jackfruit Preserve:

When summer ends, a whole lot of your favourite fruits also vanish from your eye sight and you will surely miss the season!! The best thing one can do is, prepare some jams or preserves and try to store this for future use.  This jackfruit preserve stays good for almost a year or more in the freezer. It is very handy when you want to make payasam for any festivals or any special occasions. Here is my recipe for homemade jackfruit preserve, which we make every year and use it for Prathamam, which is nothing but kheer or payasam from the preserve!!!

Ingredients:

Jack fruit – 1 big bowl (cleaned)

Jaggery – 2 blocks (I have used organic one)

Method:

  • Put little by little jack bulbs and make a smooth paste in a mixer grinder.
  • Take one thick bottomed kadai, put this paste and keep gas flame in a very low flame and cook for a while.

  • When it changes its colour from bright yellow to a pale colour and when you smell the cooked jackfruit flavour in the air, add jaggery and mix this in a regular interval.
  • After some time, it will turn into a light brown then to darkish colour and it will start to leave the sides of the kadai. Now it is the time to remove it from the fire.
  • Keep as it is and when it reaches room temperature; store it in an airtight container or a zip lock.
  • Keep it under refrigeration/ freezer.

  • You can do this in a microwave as well. Only thing, you should remove the glass bowl at regular intervals and give a stir and proceed as given above.

Note:

-You can use sugar or regular jaggery as well.

-Traditionally we use jaggery in our region.

How to make Coconut Milk and Flour at Home:

If you are a person, who extracts coconut milk for kheer/ payasam like me, it is best suited for you.

Coconut flour is rich in fibre, low in calorie as well as carbohydrate, gluten free and very popular in flour less or grain free baking.

From past two years I am experimenting with various home made healthy flours and last week when I extracted milk from couple of fresh coconuts, I wanted to try this and proceeded.

Method:

First, we will see the Procedure for Coconut Milk Extraction:

DSC_4524_Fotor

Ingredients:

Fresh coconut– 1 or 2

Water – 3 cups

Strainer – to extract the milk.

Procedure:

-Grate the coconut and collect the gratings. (If you are using some frozen fresh gratings, you can thaw and proceed).

-Next is a coconut milk extraction:

-Take fresh gratings, put one cup of water and grind into smooth paste and extract milk through sieve. This milk is a thick milk.

Ribbet collage 2

-Now once again take roughage of the coconut, put one more cup of water and grind, sieve the paste and it is our second extraction of milk.

-Repeat the process and take out a third extraction as well and Collect the roughage and it is the Raw material what we need to make coconut flour.

 

Now we will see how to make coconut Flour:

DSC_4523_Fotor

Now you will know, what is coconut flour?

It is nothing but dried form of this roughage that we have, after the extraction of coconut milk.

Take a dry towel, spread this roughage and air dry in a shaded place for a couple of days. That is it.

DSC_4553_Fotor

Your coconut flour is ready to use. When it has dried, it will be very dry and airy. It will appear like small beads.