Kunuku Paniyaram

Hello buddies,
I am back after a self-imposed mini break!! We had been to Vienna and Bratislava (the capital of Slovakia) for the Easter weekend and it was just a wonderful experience. Vienna is known for its architectural beauty and it took us less than a minute to fall in love with the beautiful city and its lovely atmosphere. More than anything, we found the people a lot friendlier in Vienna than any of the European cities we had been to. Twice we were approached by total strangers offering us help, because we apparently looked like hapless tourists (and oh, we were!!) standing in intersections of every street, reading the map and looking at the numbers!! ;)

And for foodies like us, there is a street called Naschmarkt which is completely dedicated to food, spices, fresh farm produces and hot street food. The minute I entered the street, my nostrils were filled with the aroma of spices, Olives, just-made Falafels.. And we tried our Indian khana at a local restaurant called 'Indian Pavilion' and the food was just awesome! So anyone of you, visiting Vienna next, please do try out this wonderful eatery!

After loads of walking, tons of clicks, and pleasant memories, I am back to the routine.. Yup, Farmville, Blogging, Eating, Sleeping.. What else do you expect???!!! ;)

Coming to our recipe of the day.. You might be confused reading the title, because Kunuku is a different recipe made from Adai batter and Paniyaram, as we all know is made of Dosa batter. By know you should have made the obvious connection. Yes, I just made Kunuku's using the Paniyara Kal.
Image Courtesy: Indiamart
Though I am a great fan of deep-fried foods, I am little freaky/ worried when doing it at home. I would rather prefer eating French fries once in a month from McD or Burger King rather than attempting it at home. So, naturally when the remaining of Adai batter in my fridge screamed "Kunukku" at me, I could not resist the idea of using my Paniyarakal which I flicked recently from my mom during the India trip. ;)

So, here comes the recipe.. This calls for usage for very little oil and the result is just too good!

Kunukku Paniyaram
Mixture of Dals, tempered with spices and shallow fried

What we need:
Par boiled rice - 1 cup
Toor dal - 1/4th of a cup
Chana dal - 3/4th of a cup
Moong dal - a tbsp. Optional
Red Chillies - 4 to 5, adjust according to your spice tolerance level
Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
Asafoetida - 1 tsp.
Salt - according to taste

Onion - 1, medium sized, finely chopped
Green chillies - 1 or 2, Optional
Oil - to shallow fry

How to do:
1. Wash, clean and soak the rice and dals separately for 3 to 4 hours. Soak Moong dal separately for half an hour.
2. Grind the rice first to a smooth batter. Transfer to a bowl.
3. Now grind the dal to a coarse paste, along the red chillies, asafoetida, salt. Add the Moong dal in the end, whipping for just 5 seconds. Mix the dal, rice together.
4. Heat the Paniyarakal and grease with little oil.
5. Meanwhile, mix the chopped onions and green chillies in the batter. I like to have them raw, but you can also saute them in little oil, before adding to the batter.
6. Spoon in the batter into each of the Kuzhi (or Compartment). Don't fill it to the brim; leave some space to help you turn them later.
7. Leave them on with the lid for 4 to 5 minutes on low-medium. Then, using the spatula gently turn them to the other side. If needed, add some oil to the sides.
8. Again, let this side cook for 4 to 5 minutes.
9. Remove them and serve with coconut chutney.

Notes:
1. Generally, Adai batter is thicker than Dosa batter, it should not be a surprise if Kunuku takes more time than Paniyaram.
2. Adding a handful chopped Mint leaves and Coriander will increase the taste and flavor by many folds.

Just after finishing, I realized that I have made an eligible entry for MLLA 22nd helping!! The most popular monthly series "My Legume Love Affair" was started by Susan and is hosted this month @ Ruchika Cooks.

Since Kunuku was not interested in going alone to the event, I am sending along
Chole Tikki
Pasi Paruppu Sundal to the same event.

See you all soon with anoher interesting post. Till then Happy Cooking and Happy Blogging!