1. Ayurvedic Cooking
with
Jahnavi Vinden-Clark
jahnavidd@hotmail.com
June 14 2009

2. Menu
1. Rasam - Spicy South Indian Tomato Consomme
2. So-Easy Kitchiri with Winter Spices
3. Potato and Cauliflower in Spiced Yoghurt
4. Puris - Deep-fried wholewheat breads
5. Seviya Kheer- Creamy Angel-hair Pudding
6. Melt-in-the-mouth Chickpea flour Ladhus

3. Rasam
Spicy South Indian Tomato Consomme
Preparation and cooking time: 45 minutes. Serves: 4
01
1. 3 tablespoons toor dal or red lentils
2. 3 cups water
3. ½ teaspoon turmeric
4. 4 med-large tomatoes, diced
5. 2 teaspoons rasam powder
6. a walnut-sized piece of tamarind pulp or 1 tablepoon lemon juice
7. 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
8. For seasoning:
9. 1 tablespoon ghee
10. 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
11. about 10 fresh curry leaves
12. ¼ teaspoon asafetida
13. small handful fresh coriander, finely chopped
1 After thoroughly washing the dal, bring it to a boil with the water
and turmeric, reduce to a simmer. Leave uncovered till dal is soft,
about 30 minutes.
2 In the meantime, using a separate saucepan, bring the tomatoes,
rasam powder, salt and tamarind puree to a boil. Simmer till tomatoes
are well cooked.
3 While the tomatoes are cooking, in a small pan, heat the ghee and
add the mustard seeds, they will pop and turn grey. Add the curry
leaves and stir till they become crisp, (but not too brown). Finally, drop
in the asafetida powder, cook for a few seconds, then pour the entire
mix into the cooked tomato broth.
4 Give the cooked dal a quick mash or whisk to break it down a little
further, then combine the dal, the spicy tomato broth and the fresh
coriander. Serve as a starter or a side dish.

4. So-Easy Kitchiri with Winter Spices
Preparation and cooking time: 1 hour. Serves: 4
1. 1 tablespoon ghee
2. 3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
3.
4.
5.
6.
1 inch piece cinnamon stick
¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper or to taste
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
02
7. ¼ teaspoon asafetida
8. 1 cup fresh vegetables, chopped to pieces, 1 inch
or smaller
9. 1/3 cup rice
10. 1/3 cup split mung dal
11. 4 cups boiling water
12. ½ teaspoon turmeric
13. small handful fresh coriander, finely chopped
Heat the ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan and toast
the cumin seeds in it till they are a couple of shades
darker and become fragrant. Add the cinnamon stick,
bay leaf and fresh ginger and cook till the ginger turns
a deeper shade. Add the asafetida and cook for only a
few seconds before adding the vegetables. Stir them
round for about a minute then pour in the rice, dal
and boiling water. Leave to simmer, partially covered
for about 45 minutes or until the dal is somewhat bro-
ken down. Add fresh coriander and serve. Kitchiri is
a complete meal in itself, but becomes quite a spe-
cial meal when served with a side dish or two – fresh
bread or papadams, plain yoghurt, a small salad, chut-
ney or pickle or a simple vegetable dish. What could
be simpler, tastier and more nutritious, all in one?

5. 03
Potato and Cauliflower in Spiced Yoghurt
Preparation and cooking time: ½ - 1 hour. Serves: 4
1. 500g potatoes
2. 500g cauliflower
3. 2-3 tablespoons ghee
4. 1 ½ teaspoons cumin seeds
5. 1 cup yoghurt
6. salt to taste
7. small handful fresh coriander, finely chopped
8. optional – garam masala
1 Cook the potatoes and cauliflower with the ghee and salt by any
method you choose; baking, steaming, pan-frying or deep-frying. You
want them to become soft but remain intact.
2 While the vegetables are cooking, lightly dry-roast the cumin seeds
in a pan over medium heat and crush them using a mortar and pestle.
Set aside.
3 When the vegetables are perfectly soft and slightly browned at the
edges, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the crushed cumin and cook a
further few minutes. Before serving, stir through the yoghurt and fresh
herb and garnish with a sprinkle of the remaining cumin. For a more
spicy variation, sprinkle with garam masala also.

6. Puris- Deep-fried Wholewheat Breads
Preparation and cooking time: 1 hour. Serves: 4
1. 3 1/2 cups wholewheat flour, preferably stone-ground
2. ½ teaspoon salt
3.
4.
5.
1 tablespoon ghee
3/4 cup warm water
ghee for deep frying – at least an inch deep
Making the dough: 1 Combine salt and flour in a large mixing bowl
04
and rub the ghee through to make an even, mealy texture. Making
a well in the centre, add the water while simultaneously mixing it by
hand, gradually bringing it together into a rough ball of dough.
2 Kneed the dough till it is smooth and pliable, about 8 minutes. The
end result will be a slightly stiff dough with a surface which is silky to
the touch.
3 Lightly moisten the surface of the dough, cover with a bowl and al-
low it to rest for at least 30 minutes.
Rolling: Proceed to shape the dough into 16 evenly sized balls. For
rolling, you will need a clean, flat surface which has been lightly oiled.
Roll each dough portion into round disc of 4-5 inches diameter and
even thickness, about 2 mm.
Frying: Heat the ghee in a wok or karai to high heat, avoiding smoking
it. Carefully lower one disc into the hot ghee; it will at first sink to the
bottom, but should quickly raise itself back up to the surface. With a
slotted spoon, using gentle pressure, hold the puri just under the sur-
face of the ghee. It will resist the pressure of the spoon and become
filled with hot air. After about a minute, turn the puri over so that both
sides become deep golden and crisp. Using a slotted spoon, move
the puri onto a paper towel-lined dish while you cook the remaining
puris. Best served immediately, but you may like to keep them hot in
the oven while the entire batch is being cooked.

7. 05
Seviya Kheer- Creamy Angel-hair Pudding
Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes. Serves: 4
1. 1-2 tablespoons ghee
2. ¼ cup sultanas
3. ¼ cup almond flakes
4. 10 cardamom pods
5. 2/3 cup angel hair noodles
6. 4 cups milk
7. ½ cup sugar
8. 2 tablespoons rosewater
1 Heat the ghee in a heavy bottomed saucepan and, stirring, toast the
sultanas till they all puff up. Remove with a slotted spoon. In the same
ghee, toast the almond flakes till just blushing golden, add these to
the sultanas.
2 Drop the noodles into the remaining ghee, and stir till they turn
whitish. Pour in the milk and cardamom, stirring till it reaches a boil.
Lower to a simmer and stir till the milk has reduced and thickened
to a thin custard consistency. Stir in the sugar, sultanas and half the
almonds and simmer and stir for a further couple of minutes.
3 Remove from the heat, stir in the rosewater and serve in individual
bowls, garnished with the remaining almond flakes.

8. Ladhu – Melt-in-the-mouth Chickpea flour fudge
Cooking time: 20 minutes. Ball-rolling time: about 15-20 minutes.
Makes: 24 balls
06
1. 2 cups besan (chickpea flour), sifted
2. ¾ cup unsalted butter or ghee
3. 2 tablespoons chopped pecans or walnuts
4. ¼ cup sultanas or currants
5. ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
6. ¾ cup palm sugar, jaggery or soft dark brown sugar, lightly packed
7. 1/8 cup water
1 In a heavy-bottomed pan, cook the besan over medium-high heat,
about 5 minutes, stirring constantly and thoroughly to ensure even
toasting. The colour achieved will directly influence the flavour - a
light-coloured ladhu being mild-flavoured, and a dark one having a
stronger, more nutty, caramel taste. Be sure to achieve a colour at least
one to two shades darker, as you do want to avoid the slightly bitter
taste of raw chickpea flour.
2 Add butter or ghee along with nuts, dried fruit and nutmeg, mix
thoroughly and cook a further 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add
sugar and cook for a final few minutes. When done, the mixture
should barely hold together when pressed against the side of the pan.
Set aside or transfer to a tray to cool.
3 When the mixture is cool enough to handle, but not cold, sprinkle
with the water, mix through using your hands, and then proceed to
shape into balls about the size of a small golf ball. You may find a little
cold water on the surface of your palms helps in shaping. Arrange the
ladhus on a plate or bowl and serve at room temperature.