Simple Veggie Fries

Some recipes are so involved that they have entire web pages devoted to the cause of explaining the process and nuances of it. And then there are the simple ones, the ones that do not even fill up a post-it note, but are still very tasty, versatile and eye-catching. The Simple Veggie Fries is one such thing.
My mom taught me two real-quick recipes - the simple Veggie Fries and the Simple Curry. According to her, you just can't go wrong with these two recipes.
The beauty of these recipes is that they are both very versatile. Keeping the basic recipe the same, you can just use different veggies and they all turn out good - all the time!

Okra - Simple Fry

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• any vegetable - 1 pound
• chilli powder - 1/2 tbsp
• turmeri - 1 tsp
• corriander powder - 1 tbsp
• oil - enough or shallow frying - about 3 tbsp.
• salt, to taste

Method:

1. If you are using carrots, beetroots or potatoes, peel and slice them into thick fingers, like for french fries. If you are using naturally slender vegetables like beans or okra, snip the ends and cut them in to 3 inch pieces.
2. In a large wok, heat oil for shallow frying.
3. When the oil has warmed, add chilli powder, turmeric and salt.
4.  Add the cleaned and prepared vegetables, taking care not to crowd the wok.
5. Stir fry until the vegetables have browned crsip on the outside. 
6. Add corriander powder and stir to coat the vegetables.
7. Let it cook for 3 minutes and then turn the vegetables, so the other side can cook.
8. Remove from fire after 2 minutes.

I'll post more pictures when I use this recipe with other vegetables.

If you reduce the chilli powder, this recipe is very kid friendly.

Microwave Appalam

Appalams are thin wafers made from urad dal flour. There was this lady in my neighborhood who sold home-made podis (spice mixes) , appalams and vathals (sundried wafers) to support her family. Even though it is available in convenient packs at the grocery store, my mom would sometimes buy it from this lady, as a notion of nieghborly support.

Back home when I was little, deep fried appalams were my favorite. I remember requesting my mom to prepare appalams for every meal. But, now that I am the cook and cleaning maid at my home, I try to stay away from deep fried anything. To save my backsplash from grease splatters and my sanity from rancid smoke, I have taken to crisping appalams in the microwave. Lucky for me, I didn't need a written recipe for how to fry appalams . I was a good enough cook to figure this out myself LOL.

Let me post a couple of disclaimers here. Microwaved appalams do not taste as yummy as the ones prepared traditionally. It is a compromise between health, convenience and taste. Also, microwaves, in my opinion, are like babies - no two are alike. The wattage and cooking times vary from unit to unit. Adapt the following to suit your microwave.

Ingredients:

• appalam - store bought or homemade
• pam or any cooking oil 

Steps:

• Spray pam on both sides of applams. Or, spread a little oil,  with a pastry brush.
• Arrange applams in a plate, in a single layer. Nuke on high for a minute. Flip the appalams and nuke for another 20-30 seconds.
• At this stage, the appalams should have blistered on the surface. If not, nuke again for another 10 seconds.

While deep-fried fresh appalam would almost double in size and feels light to the bite, microwaved appalams stay relatively dense.

I like this with spicy food like vaththa kozhambu or kara kozhambu.