Mon_Apr_15_00:01:23_PDT_2019
Lakshmi of Veggie Cuisine has come up with a new event that is close to my heart: Regional Cuisines of India or RCI. Each month, we will be making the food of one region/ state of India. This month, the RCI event is being hosted by Latha of Masala Magic. The theme is Andhra Cuisine, i.e., the cuisine of the Southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
I am a relative newcomer to the world of Andhra food. A few years ago, I was living in Bangalore for the summer, a nd ended up with some friends at a Andhra restaurant called Bheema's. That evening was my memorable introduction to Andhra cuisine. We ate off verdant banana leaves; the courses kept coming, progressively ever tastier and ever more fiery, until I had tears of pain running down my cheeks. But I kept gulping down cool water and eating some more. I don't know what they put in that food, but that stuff was downright addictive.
Now, the world of food blogs has provided me with several wonderful "teachers" who are providing a glimpse into their Andhra kitchens. Two of the earliest Andhra food blogs that I came across- Mahanandi and Sailu's Food are both excellent resources for traditional Andhra recipes, written neatly and precisely, accompanied by gorgeous pictures.
From the vast domain of Andhra cuisine, I am choosing one category that I find fascinating: the various ready-to-eat spice powders or podis. From a bunch of dry items that are commonly found in the Indian pantry- dried red chillies, desiccated coconut, different dals (split lentils), a few spices- it is possible to mix together, roast and grind ingredients in special proportions to make all types of spice powders. Once you have a bottle of the dry powder sitting in your kitchen cupboard, it can add a touch of magic to so many meals. It gives the term "instant meal" a whole new meaning...mixed in with steamed rice, you get a tasty dish in seconds. It can be sprinkled on idlis and dosas for a dash of spice when one is too busy to make a fresh chutney. I have been known to sprinkle podis on buttered toast too!
The one essential kitchen equipment for making podis is a good grinder. If you own an Indian "mixer", boy, those are some powerful machines and will have a small dry grinder attachment that will reduce grains, dals and spices to dust, in mere seconds. For those of us who don't own the Indian-style mixies, the usual blenders and food processors are unable to grind hard grains and dals (and it is unwise to try, they can be damaged by doing so). What does work well is a spice grinder, often sold as a coffee bean grinder. Be sure to keep separate machines for grinding coffee beans and spices, unless you happen to like coriander-flavored coffee and coffee-flavored idli podi.
The one I have is a compact little thing from
I am a relative newcomer to the world of Andhra food. A few years ago, I was living in Bangalore for the summer, a nd ended up with some friends at a Andhra restaurant called Bheema's. That evening was my memorable introduction to Andhra cuisine. We ate off verdant banana leaves; the courses kept coming, progressively ever tastier and ever more fiery, until I had tears of pain running down my cheeks. But I kept gulping down cool water and eating some more. I don't know what they put in that food, but that stuff was downright addictive.
Now, the world of food blogs has provided me with several wonderful "teachers" who are providing a glimpse into their Andhra kitchens. Two of the earliest Andhra food blogs that I came across- Mahanandi and Sailu's Food are both excellent resources for traditional Andhra recipes, written neatly and precisely, accompanied by gorgeous pictures.
From the vast domain of Andhra cuisine, I am choosing one category that I find fascinating: the various ready-to-eat spice powders or podis. From a bunch of dry items that are commonly found in the Indian pantry- dried red chillies, desiccated coconut, different dals (split lentils), a few spices- it is possible to mix together, roast and grind ingredients in special proportions to make all types of spice powders. Once you have a bottle of the dry powder sitting in your kitchen cupboard, it can add a touch of magic to so many meals. It gives the term "instant meal" a whole new meaning...mixed in with steamed rice, you get a tasty dish in seconds. It can be sprinkled on idlis and dosas for a dash of spice when one is too busy to make a fresh chutney. I have been known to sprinkle podis on buttered toast too!
The one essential kitchen equipment for making podis is a good grinder. If you own an Indian "mixer", boy, those are some powerful machines and will have a small dry grinder attachment that will reduce grains, dals and spices to dust, in mere seconds. For those of us who don't own the Indian-style mixies, the usual blenders and food processors are unable to grind hard grains and dals (and it is unwise to try, they can be damaged by doing so). What does work well is a spice grinder, often sold as a coffee bean grinder. Be sure to keep separate machines for grinding coffee beans and spices, unless you happen to like coriander-flavored coffee and coffee-flavored idli podi.
The one I have is a compact little thing from
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