Geetha's Kitchen

Ellu Sadam is traditionally made at home and in some Temples as offering particularly on certain Saturdays. At home, first the crows are fed some cooked rice in the mornings, then the freshly prepared sesame rice is blessed and usually shared with neighbors and friends before enjoying it. Ellu Sadam/Ellodarai is delicious served with appalam (papadums), karuvadams or vadams (crisp rice noodles and papadams respectively). I like to pair it with a simple chopped tomato-cucumber salad . Notes: Black or white sesame seeds (unhulled) and black or white urid dal maybe used in any combination depending on how you want the resulting rice color; if you like lighter colored rice, use a combination of one white and one dark, and both white for a very light-colored results. Sesame powder maybe prepared without black pepper also. You can store the Sesame powder for a few days at room temperature or a few weeks in the fridge; for longer storage, keep in the freezer. Peanuts maybe u...

Coconut Rice evokes fond memories of the festival called Aadi or Pathinettam Perukku which is a festival celebrating the life-giving water and the bounty it brings to all life. This South Indian festival is celebrated on the 18th day of the Tamil month Aadi (hence the name "pathinettam") which falls somewhere at the end of July or beginning of August. It is a time of the Monsoons which bring water to the waterways and life to fields and streams. In thanksgiving and honor, women and girls go on a picnic by a water body whether it be a river, brook, pond or lake and enjoy Coconut Rice, Lemon Rice , Puliyodharai (Tamarind Rice) , Yogurt Rice and other treats. Most tropical countries have their own version of coconut rice; some are savory and others sweet. This savory South Indian version of coconut rice involves minimal preparation and easy to make. It uses freshly grated coconut which is toasted with other spices and added to cooked rice to make this aromatic rice. Traditi...