The 15th edition of Blogging Marathon is here this month. For the next 7 days I would present some Indian Thalis which are a regular fare for us. Also one recipe from the thali will be featured.
Here is the Ugadi (Telugu New Year) festival menu which we all enjoyed this year. Since Ugadi signifies the advent of spring, all the freshly harvested vegetables are used, specifically raw mangoes.
The festival spread this time was Palak Bajji, Mamidikaya Pulihora/Raw Mango Rice, Beerakaya/Ridge Gourd Pacchadi, Carrot Curry, Sambar, Boorelu (I fried them in oil the traditional way instead of making them in the paniyaram pan) and Holigalu, along with Rice and Buttermilk.
This time we were lucky to lay our hands on a small piece of sugar cane as well. I have no access to fresh banana leaves on which the festival lunch is served, so I had to make do with an imitation of a banana leaf!
I remember my grandma assisting my mom in making these for the festival and it used to be a very elaborate fare and we kids were not allowed to step into the kitchen until the food was offered to God.
This version of Holiga passed on from my grandma is slightly different and more traditional in that the outer cover used is Fine Sooji / Chiroti Rava and not Maida or Wheat Flour. These come out very thin and soft and remain soft for a couple of days as well.
Ingredients -
For The Filling (Poornam) -
Chana Dal 1 cup
Jaggery grated 1 cup
Cardamom Powder 1 tsp
For the Outer Cover -
Chiroti Rava / Fine Sooji 1 cup
Salt as needed
Turmeric 1/4 tsp
Ghee 1-2 tsp
Oil 2 Tbsp
Method Of Preparation -
To prepare the filling (Poornam) -
Wash and boil chana dal either in the pressure cooker or on the stove top until it is just tender.
Drain the extra water and let the cooked dal cool.
Meanwhile heat the grated jaggery with about 3 tablespoons of water until it melts.
Pass the jaggery solution through a metal tea strainer and discard the impurities.
Add the jaggery solution to the boiled chana dal and grind in a mixer to a fine paste adding cardamom powder.
It should result in a stiff dough. If it is runny, heat it and let the extra moisture evaporate. Let it cool.
Tip - I found that if the poornam is a little runny, microwave it uncovered until the desired consistency is achieved.
To Prepare the Dough -
In a mixing bowl, add the chiroti rava, salt, turmeric and blend in the ghee.
Add water gradually and knead it into a soft dough. Pour the oil over the dough and knead for a few minutes.
The dough should literally sit in a pool of oil. Not to worry, the oil is later drained off when rolling out the holiga.
Cover and set the dough aside for a few hours. Anywhere from 2-8 hrs is ideal. (I made some after 2 hrs and some more after 8 hrs.)
To Roll out the Holiga -
Pinch out a small lime size portion and with the help of your fingers, spread it out like a disc and take equal portion of the filling and close the edges so that the filling doesn't spill out.
On a banana leaf or a specially made thick aluminium foil or a parchment paper, pat the filled dough with your fingers into a thin circle taking care so that the filling doesn't ooze out. No flour is used for dusting but fingers can be oiled for the patting job.
Heat a griddle / tawa and gently transfer the patted holiga onto the tawa and cook on both sides sprinkling oil/ghee as needed until both sides are evenly cooked.
Remove from tawa and store in a roti-warmer.
Continue for the remaining dough. Both the dough and the filling can be stored for more than a day in the refrigerator.
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#15.
Also sending it to Valli's Thali Mela.
Preparation Time 40 min + resting time 2 hrs
Makes 18-20 medium sized ones
Posts
awesome thali.....totally tasty and yumm
wow very nice and yummy platter...awesome!
Polis look so yummy Harini..looking forward to see all your creations..love this thali!
Poli with rava is something new to me. The thali looks very appetising.
Original recipes are always hits Poli looks simply superb and thali wow very inviting.
Harini yippude dinner ayindi me thali chala tempting ga vundi amoo malli tinali anipistundi hee:)
these look so good..just wondering is it customary to have different kinds of rice at same meal?
Mireille
http://gourmetglobal.blogspot.com
Love this Thaali Harini...and the poli is my all time favorite. Darn...I can't grab these from the screen. So tempting and the thaali in plantain leaf...awesome.
All the preparations look delicious.
Awesome plantain plate, My favourite Mamadikaayi puliyogarai., your plate is so inviting dear.., awesome clicks too
Poli came out too good dear....
Inviting thali.. Making outer cover for the poli with sooji is new to me.
superb thali and festive colours :) awesome spread Harini.. looking fwd to the week from ur space !
Kalyani
Sizzling Tastebuds
Event : Pickles & Preserves Fest + Giveaway
Event : CWS - Oats
such an inviting thali...would want to keep aside all things and start gorging
Love dteh Ugadi spread.. the idea of imitation plate is so novel.. i should pick up one of these.. at least gives a feel of the leaf :D.. the Holige base is really new to me.. looks great!
Ongoing Event : WTML
Beautiful spread. Poli looks delicious...
such a nice spread..even I had a similar menu for this ugadi..
such a nice spread..even I had a similar menu for this ugadi..
such a nice spread..even I had a similar menu for this ugadi..
Omg, wat a festive feast, polis looks extremely stunning and tempting..
looks delicious. nice feast
Nice spread of items. Poli looks yum and inviting.
very very well done...The platter looks really good...like that banana platter..and love these dishes ..wonder when I shall be able to cook such an elaborate meal.
Sadya looks good, but that poli there is really eye catching. My father is a HUGE fan of the stuffed poli :)
Mouthwatering platter, especially with those polis.
ugadi festival