Vazhaipoo Kola Urundai / Plantain Flower Kebabs

Vazhaipoo Kola Urundai:

Ingredients:

Plantain Flower 1 small
Toasted Chana dhall 1/2 cup - powdered
Salt
Ginger 3" size peeled and grated
Garlic 6 cloves peeled and grated
Dry red chilies 10 - ground
Onion 1 large finely chopped
Fennel seeds 1-2 spoons toasted
Curry leaves few
Oil for frying.


Cleaning Plantain Flower:


Grease your palms and hands with oil or its better to use clinical gloves. As this flower will imparts dark stain for at least 3-4 days.

Now slowly remove all the thick leathery bracts and discard them.

Separate the fine finger like half white-yellow florets inside.

Holding in one hand, rub the floret's end on your other palm. This makes the florets to open up a little

Now remove the male stamen and translucent pith(male stamen is longest stamen with bulb like end) Discard them.

Store the cleaned florets in water to avoid discoloration. Its better to add turmeric, salt and lemon juice to this water. One can leave them in butter milk too, to increase the flavor.

Once done with cleaning. Chop them finely and once again leave them water, until cooking.


Method:


Chop the plantain flowers/I mean florets. And mix the same with all the above mentioned ingredients, except oil. Bring them to thick dough consistency.

Divide into equal parts, and deep fry the same.

There you go...its done. Just cleaning consumes all your time...so it would be better to plan ahead. Enjoy with snack with warm tea or serve to go with your meals:)

Plantain Flower Stir-Fry / Vazhaipoo Thoran / Vazhaipoo Poriyal

Vazhaipoo Thoran:

Ingredients:

Plantain flower 1 large
Coconut 1 large - grated
Green chilies
Shallots 1 or two (optional)
Ginger 1" grated
Salt
Turmeric powder 1 pinch
Cumin seeds 1 spoon
Mustard seeds 1/2 spoon
Curry leaves few
Coconut oil few spoons.

Method:

Clean the plantain flower, wash and finely chop them. Leaves them in cold water until cooking...to avoid discoloration.

In a wide wok, heat oil and add the tempering spices. Wait till the pop. Now add chilies, ginger and onions.

Followed by finely chopped plantain flower. Further add salt and turmeric powder. Cover and cook.

Once it is done, remove the lid and add grated coconut...stir-fry over high heat.

Serve as a side dish to South Indian meals.

Plantain Flower Qorma

Vazhai Poo Korma:

This is my back home cook, Usha Nandhini's recipe. She is a real sweet heart. Whenever I visit home...I take over the kitchen, she will be helping me around. I always take tips from her before cooking certain vegetables. Since I never get a chance of seeing most of the endemic species/Indian veggies lately...I make it a point to prepare only native vegetables, when I visit home. So she will be letting me know some of her secret recipes. She is smart in making country style recipes. Both my Dad and Mom appreciate her cooking. I owe a lot to Usha!:) She is paying my duty there...

Well...one fine day, she brought these plantain flowers for me. I planned on making the usual, either vadai or kootu! Because that is what Mommy would do! Usha asked me to try this curry recipe, in fact 'Korma'. I was really skeptical about it. Lots of spices in this humble vegetable...how it will turn up??? But she assured me...that I will like it. It was also different to use 'Chana Dal' in this Korma. Chana dal will be cooked and still intact in shape tho'. Adds stregth to the curry actually. She told...its her best meat alternative recipe. Truly it was...very flavoursome...flowers tasted like mutton to me! That was whole lot of experience...every one enjoyed it, absolutely became a fan of this korma, lately. Thanks Usha.

Ingredients:

Plantain Flower 1 large(cleaned)
Chana dal 1 cup soaked 20 minutes ahead
Onions 2 finely chopped
Tomato 2 finely chopped
Fresh ginger paste 2 spoons
Fresh garlic paste 2 spoons
Green chilies 3 slitted
Curry leaves 3 twigs
Cloves 3
Cinnamon 3
Cardamom 3 pods
Fennel seeds 1 - 2 spoons
Bay leaves 2
Cas cas milk few spoons(2 spoons of cas cas wet ground...maybe after soaked in warm water)
Fresh coconut 1 (chopped and wet ground to thick milk)
Oil 1 cup
Salt
Turmeric powder 1/2 spoon
Chili powder 1 -2 spoons
Oil few spoons
Cilantro leaves few to garnish.

Method:

Clean plantain flower carefully. Smear oil in your palm before doing so...as they leave a stain in your fingers. Remove the make stigma, pith and the bract(see my previous plantain flower posts for effective cleaning tips). Then chop them coarsely, leave in cold water, until cooking.

Soak chana dal in water 20 minutes ahead of cooking.

In a pan heat oil, add cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, fennel seeds, bay leaves, curry leaves and green chilies. Fry them for a while.

Now add onions and fry till golden brown.

Then add ginger - garlic paste to it. Fry them till its raw smell leaves.

Later add tomatoes and fry till its water content is lost.

Now add little bit of salt, turmeric, chili powder. Saute for few minutes.

Further add chopped flower and chana dal. Saute till oil and masala coats to all the side.

Now add water. Cover and cook over medium heat.

When the veggies and dal are done....add cas cas milk and thick coconut milk to this. Let this come to boil 3-5 times.

Remember chana dal will be cooked...but still intact in shape.

Garnish with cilantro leaves.

Serve warm to go with chapathis/dosa/idly/iddiyappam. Serves best with plain steamed rice!

Plantain Flower Usili

Vazhaipoo Usili:

Plantain Flower Subzi. Vazhai-Poo Usili. Attipoo/ arattipoo Usili. Kela ka Fool Usili.

When I visited my hometown.....we have palntain tree in the house! I happen to cook palntain flower all the time! We either make 'kootu' or 'vadai' generally! So...for a change...I was going thro' local magazines and came up with this idea of making usili. My Dad really appreaciated this dish! So as Mommy and Bro' Pari!!

Ingredients:

Plantain Flower 1 large(see my other plantain flower recipes for cleaning instructions)
Mustard seeds 1/2 spoon
Cumin seeds 1/2 spoon
Chana dal 1/2 spoon
Urad dal 1/2 spoon
Curry leaves few
Green chilies 3 finely chopped
Dry red chilies 6
Chana dal 1 cup(soaked in water for 20 minutes)
Ginger-garlic paste 1 spoon
Fennel seeds 3 spoons
Salt(to grind with dal)
Salt for beans
Turmeric 1 pinch
Curry leaves few(to grind)
Oil 2 cups

Method:

In a blender dry grind fennel seeds, salt, dry chilies and curry leaves. Set them aside.

Wet grind chana dal bit coarsely and set aside.

In a pan, heat oil. Add mustard, cumin, curry leaves, chana and urad dal. Let them pop and splutter well.

To this add green chilies and finely chopped flower. Fry well. Add salt and 1 pinch of turmeric powder. Sprinkle little water over this. Cover and cook.

When it is 3/4th cooked add chana-wet ground paste and cook without lid. Let the dal paste get well coated with the vegetable. Toss to all the sides..until dal gets fried and cooked.

Run few spoons of oil now, if needed. The dal should not be wet or undercooked anymore. It should be sort of crispy and fragrant now.

Serve this hot as a side dish to rice or chappathi/roti.

Vazhai Poo Bajji:

Plantain Flower Fritters. Aratti Poo Bajji. Kela Ka Fool Pakodi.

Just like that......thought of this recipe! Turned out great! Give a shot, quite easy.

Hope you'll know how to clean plantain flower. If not scroll for my other plantain flower recipes....I have mentioned it earlier.

Ingredients:

Plantain florets 1 cup
Gram Flour 1 cup(besan)
Salt
Soda 1 pinch
Turmeric powder 1/4 spoon
Chili powder 1 spoon
Coriander seeds powder 1/2 spoon
Garam masala 1/4 spoon
Oil for deep frying.

Method:

In a bowl, bring all the ingredients together except oil, and florets. Make a thin running consistency batter.

Now heat up the oil. Dip each floret into the batter, let it coat very thinly. Remove the excess dripping.

Deep fry in oil till golden to reddish color. Fry few at a time. Maintain stove over medium heat. Leave the fried ones over kitchen tissues for a while.

Serve warm with tomato ketchup.

Vazhai Poo Kootu:

Plantain flower Kootu.

Ingredients:

Plantain flower 1
Thoor/ Moong/ chana dal 1/4 cup
Green chilies 3 finely chopped
Onion 1 finely chopped
Garlic 6 cloves chopped
Ginger 2" peeled and chopped
Tomatoes 1-2 fienly chopped
Salt
Turmeric powder 1/4 spoon
Chili powder 1/2 spoon
Mustar seeds 1/4 spoon
Cumin seeds 1/2 spoon
Asafoetida 1/4 spoon
Curry leaves few
Oil few spoons
Cilantro leaves few to garnish.

Method:

Cook any one of the dal(thuvar/moong/chana dal) in a pressure cooker.

Remove the bracts of the flower. Remove its male stamen and transluscent pith as well. Then chop them roughly and leave in cold water until told.

Maybe add salt or lemon juice to this water to avoid discoloring.

Maybe add salt and few spoons of oil in it. Cook till soft and set aside.

In a large wok/handi, heat oil. Add chilies, let it crackle well.

Then add ginger and garlic, fry real good...till its raw odour leaves.

Add onions and salt. Fry till onions turn to golden color.

Now add tomatoes, cover and cook. Once tomatoes wilt, stir-in finely chopped flower.

Fry for few minutes, maybe till the vegetables coats oil. Add cooked dal(lentils).

Cover and cook over medium heat.

When the vegetable is done soft and much of the moisture is absorbed, remove from heat.

Heat oil, in a seperate pan...add mustards, cumin, asafoetida and curry leaves to it.

Allow it to crackle well. Now run this seasoning over the 'kootu' prepared above.

Garnish with finely chopped cilantro leaves.

Serve warm as a side dish for South Indian Meals or as a subzi for chappathi/roti.

Vazhai Poo Vadai: (Chettinad Style)

Atti Poo Vadai/Banana flower Fritters/vadai/Plantain Flower Vadai/ Kela ka Fool Vada.

Ingredinents:

Plantain Flower 1 small
Red Gram/Thuvar dal 1 cup
Salt
Ginger 3" size peeled and chopped
Garlic 6 cloves peeled and chopped
Dry red chilies 10
Onion 1 large finely chopped
Fennel seeds 1-2 spoons toasted
Oil for frying.

Cleanning Plantain Flower:

Smear your palms and hands with coconut oil or better to use clinical gloves. As this flower.....imparts dark stain in your hands for atleast 3-4 days.

Now slowly remove all the thick leathery bracts and discard them.

Seperate the fine finger like half white-yellow florets inside.

Holding in one hand, rub the floret ends on your other palm. This makes the florets to bloom(opens up)

Now remove the male stamen and transluscent shell from it.(male stamen is longest stamen with bulb like end) Discard them too.

Store the cleaned florets in a wide bowl of water.

Its better to add turmeric, salt and lemon juice to this storage water.....to avoid discoloration. One can leave them in butter milk too to avois discoloration.

Once done with cleanning. Chop them finely and once again leave them in the same water.....until you use.


Method:

Soak thuvar dal for 20 minutes in water.

In a blender grate toasted red chilies and fennel seeds. Set them aside

In th same blender add salt, ginger-garlic and soaked chana dal and coarsely grind them into thick coarse paste.

In a large bowl bring finely chopped onins, grated chilies, fennel and chana paste.

Strain chopped plantain flores and add to the above bowl. Mix them thoroughly. Add further salt.(for the flower)

In a wok, heat oil. Make small 2" diameter vadas.....using your wet hands and drop them in hot oil. Fryt hem both the sides. Do not crowd the oil with vada, fry few at each batch. Maintain the stove over medium to high heat. Fry till reddish brown to dark brown(in this vada.....it comes out in dark brown color)

Serve hot as a side dish or as a evenning tiffin.