“Kirlailele Matki- Methi Pallo- Piyava Ambado (Sprouted Moth Beans- Fenugreek Leaves- Onion Fritters” … come monsoon and the aroma of ambado/ bajias/ vadas etc. being fried spreads out of almost every kitchen making one crave to enjoy a few bites and it’s always a delight to relish crisp ambado/ bajo be it served during meals or as a snack … tried giving a small twist to our own traditional/ regular cabbage- piyava ambado from GSB Konkani Saraswat Cuisine and prepared it with sprouted matki and methi leaves along with onions- spices ... turned out perfect crisp outside and soft within ... I served it for meal with dalitoy- sheetHa (rice)- upkari (bhaji) and it was awesome combo … Yummilicious …
** Sprouts are always stocked in my fridge as I regularly prepare use them either prepared as curry or to be added a few to salads/ kismuri or even bhel. If you are wondering about this habit of mine, let me tell you that I developed it in last 2 decades, when all of a sudden I decided to curtail on non. Veg food and in order to balance protein I added sprouts. It is totally another matter that within a few years my blood reports declared I was deficient of all vitamins and what not’s and my Dr. advised me to continue eating with my normal food that I ate in growing up years and hubby who loves fish the most insisted that I add them on more into our daily diet instead of depending on supplements.
** But then, the habit of stocking sprouts continued and to date, I do so on regular basis. Coming to moth beans/ matki, I confess these days I need to prepare list of to buy items to avoid ending up with double stock, sigh, with my forgetting nature I ended up with 2 kgs. of moth beans which I am struggling to finish off to avoid it getting spoilt, the very reason why you see more recipes using them. I sprouted a large batch of matki and put them in fridge so that I can consume a little bit on daily basis by trying out new dishes. A few years back I had prepared and shared sanna idly/ khotto, a spicy idly often served during meals in GSB Konkani Saraswat homes and it was fantastic in taste.
** On those thoughts I thought of trying out Ambado/ fritters the traditional way prepared by GSB amchies which you will find in many variations shared before in Blog. Moong (Green Gram) and Matki (Moth Bean) is good for health as per Ayurveda unlike other beans which was what suggested to me, though I am not an expert, but then it has solved a lot of issues in my case. However, never follow anybody or any method blindly when it comes to health, a good consultation and plenty of healthy food backed with exercise should be your goal, so invest in it, you will never regret it, after all health in wealth and one needs to be careful these days with the habit of outsourcing of food ready to eat.
** Coming to Ambado, these are deep fried fritters, so enjoy them in limits, if desired you may use Air Fry/ Tava Grill method too, though I cannot at this point mention it's outcome as I have not yet tried it. However, I intend use in full my AirFryer and will let know as and when I prepare any dishes in them. On a lighter note, I think one should not worry much, recently I heard a famous nutritionist mention the pros and cons of going under severe diet and completely refraining from oil. That talk made me realize that anything had in limits is fine with your body, especially when you follow the age old method of food traditions passed on by generations, So, do try this out and enjoy with family.
** Sharing my recipe for “Kirlailele Matki- Methi Pallo- Piyava Ambado (Sprouted Moth Beans- Fenugreek Leaves- Onion Fritters” … my style …
** Ingredients :
Kirlailele Matki/ Sprouted Moth Beans : 1 cup
Tandulu/ Rice/ Akki : 1 cup
Onion/ Piyavu/ Kanda : 2 large sized finely chopped
Methi/ Fenugreek Leaves : 2 cups finely chopped
Curry Leaves/ Kadipatta/ Karbevu : 10-12 finely chopped.
Black Pepper Corns/ Kaali Miri : 2 tsp
Hing/ Asafoetida Powder : 1 tsp
Salt/ Namak/ Meeta : to taste
** Masala to be Ground :
Coconut/ Nariyal/ Soyi : 1/2 cup freshly grated.
Kashmiri Dry Red Chillies/ Byadgi Mirchi/ Kumte Mirsanga : 8-10
Tamarind/ Chinchama/ Imly/ Huli : A small pinch
** Plenty of oil for deep frying : any edible oil you always use.
** Preparing of Methi Leaves : Choose fresh green tender methi (fenugreek) leaves always for preparing any dishes. Pick and clean leaves, discarding stems. We need to add only the leaves for most of the dishes, however for chutney preparation you can use the tender stem if desired. Wash well, let drain off excess water completely and chop them fine. Squeeze out as much water as possible and keep it ready aside. I have used about 2 cups of finely chopped leaves (only) for preparing of these ambados.
** Note : You can apply a little bit of salt to methi leaves, rub it all over, leave aside for 10-20 minutes and then squeeze of water properly, wash and keep aside ready too. This step is carried out to remove bitterness from fresh methi leaves. I personally do not follow this method for any recipe, as I strongly believe that nature provides us veggies as is needed during that particular season to be consumed as it is and not throw out anything that may reduce its health properties. Again, it is all a matter of habit, in my home we enjoy that slight bitter taste very much, you may choose any method.
** I have used 1 cup of kirlailele matki/ sprouted moth beans for this recipe. I am sure you know the method of sprouting which takes about 48 hours depending upon weather, however if you are newbie to this method then I am sharing a link to the same at the bottom of this recipe, please browse through for the details. And yes, before I forget, I must mention as handful of sprouts a day is good for health as they are high in protein, depending off course on you diet, as non. Veg meals too have plenty of protein.
** Wash and soak rice (I used thick variety of surti kollam rice, you may use any rice that is not fine polished) in plenty of water for about 2 hrs. Drain off the water, wash well; and put it in a colander for about 20-30 minutes for all of the excess water to be drained off completely. It is very important to remove all of the excess water for batter to be of perfect texture without turning too smooth on grinding in case of it being wet, again you can replace this whole procedure by using coarsely ground rice flour too.
** Add coconut, red chillies, tamarind into mixer grinder and grind to fine paste with required amount of water. Avoid excess water lest we end up with a thin textured mixture. Remove masala into a wide stainless steel bowl. Now add kirlailele matki/ sprouted moth beans and grind to a semi coarse texture WITHOUT adding water. Mix a few times in between for even grinding, remove and add this to the masala in vessel. Lastly add drained rice and grind to a fine rava texture sprinkling a little bit of water and mixing a few time for even consistency. Remove and add this also into the vessel.
** Now add finely chopped onions, methi leaves, curry leaves, coarsely powdered pepper along with salt to taste to ingredients in the vessel and mix well. DO NOT ADD WATER while binding the mixture. The mixture should come to a smooth binding consistency when rolled in palm. You should be able to prepare small ambados/ tikki/ vadas out of them without them breaking open or cracking up. If absolutely necessary, only then sprinkle some water for even binding of the mixture. Now keep it aside covered for 15-20 minutes for the mixture to rest and be evenly absorbed by the ingredients.
** Note : Always allow resting period for ambado/ tikki mixtures for the ingredients like rice to soak in the excess moisture. If you are using it at a later point, say in a few hours then just put it into a airtight container and keep it fridge. This step works wonders with preparation of ambado/ tikki etc. You may remove as and when needed to be fried, let rest for 5 minutes and straight away begin to fry by rolling to ambado/ balls.
** For Frying Ambados/ Fritters : Heat plenty of oil in a thick bottomed kadai/ pan and when it reaches smoking point, lower heat to minimum and wait for 4-5 minutes. To check correct temperature, just drop a pinch of mixture in oil, if it sizzles and bounces back, it is perfect, if it settle down without a sizzle then you need to heat oil and if it turns brown immediately then the heat is excess and you need to wait for another few minutes before frying, so be careful and check before frying for proper outcome.
** Take in a large tablespoon of the mixture and gently roll it into a ambados/ round balls/ tikki/ vadas between your palms and then gently press it to flatten it out a bit. Prepare a few and keep them ready to be added into hot oil before you begin to deep fry. Once the oil has reached perfect heat, add them one by one gently into the hot oil and let fry undisturbed for a few minutes, say about 3-4 before you gently roll them with the help of spatula, this avoid the breaking off the ambado into the oil, so do follow it.
** When lightly browned flip over and continue frying until other side of ambado is lightly browned, then keep rolling a few times all over until they are evenly browned, turned crisp all over and also cooked from within. This procedure does take some time, say about 12-14 minutes, so do not hurry or raise the heat of the oil for even cooking of ambado. It has to be cooked from within too, which will take some time, so be patient. When done gently remove with the help of ringed spatula and place them on an absorbent paper/ towel for excess oil to be drained. Repeat the same procedure by following the same method for frying of more ambado until required number of ambados are done. You can put the mixture in an airtight box and store in the fridge to fry them hot for later use too.
** Note : Do not overcrowd the kadai as there should be enough space for the ambado/ tikki/ vadas to get evenly fried. Also when you have added in the ambados allow them to cook on medium heat till they are cooked before you try to stir them and flip them over with spatula. If you disturb the ambado in a hurry to flip or turn over before they are done, they may loosen and break up in the oil making a mess of it.
** Note : Again, remember to maintain the heat to medium while frying and to fry evenly until crispy on all sides It takes about 8-10 minutes. If you find that the oil is getting cooled slightly lesser in heat level and the ambados are soaking in oil, raise the heat level for a few minutes, to bring the oil to the consistent heat level.
** Note : If you find it a difficult to bind the mixture, you can keep the mixture in fridge for 15-25 minutes and then try out the same. This step helps the mixture to dry out a bit and easier in binding. With practice, you will learn to gently roll it between palms and add it to the hot oil, without the assistance. If you still find the mixture a little bit softer and the ambado breaks up, then you can add in a 1-2 tablespoon of rice flour to the mixture and mix well, allow to rest for a 2-3 minutes and then try out preparing the same.
** “Kirlailele Matki- Methi Pallo- Piyava Ambado (Sprouted Moth Beans- Fenugreek Leaves- Onion Fritters” is done and ready to be served. In GSB Konkani Saraswat homes it is always served hot as a side dish along with other dishes during meals. These crisp ambado tastes awesome served with Dalitoy (spiced dal) and sheetHa (rice) and we really enjoy them that way especially during festivals/ weekends. However, if preferred you may serve this as a snack or starter too, in which case do serve it along with some coriander coconut or tomato ketchup for best taste. In all a wonderful snack which you can try out and enjoy with your family and friends during holidays.
** Special Note : I have a collage of pictures for proper understanding of the textures and frying procedure which will be helpful if you are new to preparing of these ambado, plz. do check them out. There are many more Ambado/ chettambado/ tikki/ vadas in my blog shared before, a few of which also include step by step procedure pictures, you may check those out if desired and prepare any of your family choice. I am sharing a common link to those below for easy access, do check them out in leisure ..…
** For “Traditional Cabbage- Piyava (Onion) Ambado/ Tikki/ Vada/ Fritters” recipe, please follow the link given below …
** For “The Method of Sprouting Beans”, Please check out the link shared below ….
** For more recipes on “Matki/ Moth Beans”, please check out the common link shared below, there are plenty which you may like ….
** For more recipes on “Methi/ Fenugreek Leaves”, please check out the common link shared below, there are plenty which you may like ….
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