Family Favorites: Vadai Pota Mor Kuzhambhu / Buttermilk Curry with Urad Dhal Vadai

Everyone have their own way of making mor kuzhambhu. My Mom makes it  just plain, without adding any veggies to it. Some make it with veggies like okra, pumpkin etc., But my MIL's method is totally different. While my mother opts to make mor kuzhambhu  when she  ran out of veggies or has excessive sour curd, my MIL makes excess curd just to make this one.This is the most popular kuzhambhu in my in-laws place. My MIL makes this with great patience and utmost care.
 The vadai's are not made in the traditional shape but just dropped in oil like bonda's. Serve this curry with white rice and any spicy side dish(dry).

Ingredients:
For Vadai:
1/2 cup Urad dhal soaked for atleast 4 hours
1/2 inch Ginger
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp jeera
1/2 tsp salt
oil for frying
For Kuzhambhu/Gravy
3 cups buttermilk
1tblsp thoor dhal
2 tblsp rice
1/2 tsp pepper corns
1/2 tsp jeera seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1tsp chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
for tempering
1tsp mustard seeds
1tsp jeera
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tblsp chopped ginger
few curry leaves
Method 
Soak the urad dhal for 2 hours and grind to a smooth paste along with ginger, pepper, jeera and salt. Keep aside.
Soak the raw rice in water for about 30 mins.
Dry roast the toor dhal in a pan until fragrant.
Grind the toor dhal, soaked rice, pepper and jeera to a fine paste.
Mix the ground paste to the buttermilk. To this add salt, turmeric powder, chill powder and coriander powder. Mix well with a whisk.
In a sauce pan add a tsp of oil .When the oil is hot add mustard ,jeera seeds, when it pops add chopped ginger, onion, and curry leaves. Fry till translucent. 
Add the buttermilk mixture and reduce the flame.
Just when the gravy foams up (like we do for rasam) and ready to boil switch off the stove and mix well.

Heat up the oil  in a kadai. Gently drop small balls of the dough in the oil. Fry in medium flame till golden brown. Once done, drop them in a bowl of water, squeeze and then drop the vadai in the gravy.
Repeat for the remaining dough.
Allow the kuzhambhu to rest for atleast 30 mins for the vadai to get soaked well.

Notes:

• Take care not to over boil the gravy, there is a high chance of curdling.
• You can also dilute 1 cup thick yoghurt with 2 cups of water to make this gravy.
• The vadai should be fried in low to medium flame and should be slightly brown, so that it can soak up the gravy.
• Dipping the fried vadai's in water is a must as it removes excess oil and also makes the vadai's soft.
• If the Buttermilk is not sour enough, add 1 cup chopped tomatoes along with onion and fry well.

Sending this to "Walk through the memory lane" event held at Gayathri's Cook Spot

Family Favorites - Masal Vadai Kuzhambhu

I thought of writing about the dishes that I loved growing up, ones that brings back memories every time I make them at home(even now), ones that are favorites of a particular member of the family , ones that amma makes often on repeated requests from us..ones that are Grandma's special..well , the list continues...Hence this family favorite series. This is my second post in this one, but honestly this kuzhambhu should have been in the first post.
Generally any tamarind based gravy with a main ingredient is referred to as 'Kuzhambhu' and it forms an integral part of any Tamilian Menu. This one is prepared with the Masala vadai as the main ingredient. The paruppu vadai soaked in the tamarind gravy is a delicacy and its such a favorite at our home.My mother makes this as a special dish, whenever we have some vegetarian guests for lunch.
You dont have to make any side dish or veggies, just some papads will fulfill the entire meal, because I am sure that your guests will not reach out for the rasam or curd to end the meal.

For the Masala Vadai:
Ingredients:
1 cup Channa dhal
1 green chili
1 tsp sombu/fennel seeds
1 medium onion
curry leaves

Method.
Soak the channa dhal for atleast 3 hrs.
Grind the dhal along with sombhu and salt, without adding water.
The mixture should be coarse in texture.
Slice the onion thinly and add to the dhal mixture.
Add the finely chopped chilli and curry leaves.
Mix well and make equal sized balls.
Heat oil in a pot, flatten each ball and deep fry them in medium heat.
Note:
The vadai's should be thick and soft inside, not thin and crispy.

For the Kuzhambhu
Ingredients:
Lemon sized tamarind
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped tomato
1 green chilli
1 inch ginger finly chopped
few curry leaves.
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp urad dhal
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
11/2 tsp chilli powder
3 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste

Method
Soak tamarind in 1 cup of water
Extract the pulp completely and add 3 more cups of water to it.
To the extract add all the dry powders and salt.
Take 2 tblsp of oil in a wide bottomed pot.
Add mustard, urad dhal, fenugreek, and curryleaves.
When the mustard pops, add the thinly sliced onion, ginger, green chilli and fry till translucent.
Add the chopped tomatoes and cook till mushy.
To this add the tamarind mixture and close with a lid.
let it boil for approximatly 10 mins or until the raw smell goes.
Reduce the heat to minimum and add all the vadai's.
Switch of the stove after 2 mins. Close with lid.
Let it sit for an hour before serving.

Note:
If the kuzhambhu is watery, crush one or two vadai's to help thicken the gravy.
Check for salt before adding the vadai's.
You can also use 3tsp of sambhar powder instead of chilli pwd and coriander powder.

Paruppu Urundai Kuzhambhu/Lentil dumplings in spiced tamarind sauce

Most authentic Tamil recipes uses tamarind. Be it sambhar, kuzhambhu, kootu or rasam tamarind plays a major role in Tamilian cuisine .
Any tamarind based sauce with a main ingredient and without dhal is called 'Kuzhambhu' ('z' is pronounced as 'lha'). The name varies as per the main vegetable or ingredient added to it like poondu kuzhambhu or kathirikai kuzhambhu etc., I think we can just start a whole event on just kuzhambhu varieties alone :) .But I hate when people call anything and everything 'curry' when certain dishes has its own name .
Anyways while growing up the typical lunch menu for a week in my household would go something like this. Tuesday and Friday - sambhar , Saturdays - kuzhambhu with any dried beans like mochai, black channa, karamani/black eyed beans, Mondays would be any vegetable kootu/mor kuzhambhu , wednesday - seafood/any veggie kuzhambhu and sundays will definitely be a feast with Non-Veg.
Coming from a family that has kulambhu for atleast 3 days in a week JFI - Tamarind was a delight to participate.
Here is an authentic recipe for parrupu urundai kuzhambhu.
The lentils are soaked , grinded, made into balls and steamed.Then these are added to the spicy boiling sauce.Though the ingredients and the recipe looks lengthy its worth the effort.
This kuzhambhu served with rice and keerai /greens poriyal makes a perfect meal.



For the Urundai/dumplings:
Ingredients:
1 cup Toor dhal
1 medium onion finly chopped
1 tblsp chopped coriander leaves
2 red chilies
1/4 tsp sombhu/fennel seeds
1/2 tsp jeera seeds

Method.

Soak the dhal in water for 2-3 hours
Roast the red chillies, sombhu and jeera in a medium flame for few minutes.
Add them to the soaked dhal and grind coarsly. Make sure its not watery.

To the grinded dhal add choped onion, garlic , salt and coriander leaves.
Make it into lime sized balls and the steam it using the idli plates for 10 mins.
Cool the dumplings.

For kuzhambhu:

Ingredients
1 medium onion
5-6 garlic cloves
1/2 inch ginger finely chopped
2 medium tomatoes
lemon sized tamarind ball soaked in water or 2 tsp of thick tamarind paste soaked in 1/4 cup water.

To Grind:
2 tsp coriander seeds
10 red chillies
1/2 tsp jeera
1/4 tsp sombhu/fennel

Dry fry all the above in a pan and grind it to a powder.
Alternatively you can also add water and grind it to a paste.

For Tempering
Mustard - 1/2 tsp
fenugreek /vendhaiyam - 1/2 tsp
few curry leaves


Method:
Chop the onion garlic and ginger, and tomatoes keep aside.
Add a few tblsp of oil and add the tempering ingredients.When the mustard pop add the chopped onion garlic and ginger and fry well.
Add the tomatoes when the onion is golden brown.
When the tomatoes turn into a pulp add the tamarind water, salt , the grinded masala and turmeric powder.Add 3 cups of water and allow it boil for 10 mins.
Now add the steamed lentil balls /urundai's and allow it to boil for another 7-8 mins.
Allow it to rest for atleast one hour before serving.The sauce thickens as it cools.
If the sauce is watery break one or two dumplings and dissolve in the sauce.





This delicious kuzhambhu goes to the JFI event hosted by Sig with the theme as Tamarind for this month.


Click here for another kuzhambu recipe that uses black eyed peas

This dish also goes to this months "Eat Healthy - Protein rich" event by Sangeeth