Arudra Darshan (aka Thiruvadhirai) falls in the month of Margazhi, on the full moon day. This festival is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Parvathi, and it celebrates the cosmic, ecstatic dance of Lord Shiva, and the Chidambaram temple is dedicated to Lord Nataraja, where this festival is celebrated on a grand manner. On this day, Lord Nataraja (Shiva) and his consort Goddess Sivakami (Parvathi) are taken out in a grand procession, and this is very very special event in all the Shaivite temples.
This festival is celebrated mainly in Tamilnadu and Kerala.
Arudra is one of the 27 stars, and it means, a golden red flame. And, of course, this festival falls on the Thiruvadhirai star day.
It is customary to make Thiruvadhirai Kali, and Ezhukari koottu (made out of 7 vegetables). It might look strange that a sweet dish is eaten with a koottu , a savory as a side dish, but these two go along so well, and it tastes yum! These two can be called the Inseparable Combo.
This festival is celebrated mainly in Tamilnadu and Kerala.
Arudra is one of the 27 stars, and it means, a golden red flame. And, of course, this festival falls on the Thiruvadhirai star day.
It is customary to make Thiruvadhirai Kali, and Ezhukari koottu (made out of 7 vegetables). It might look strange that a sweet dish is eaten with a koottu , a savory as a side dish, but these two go along so well, and it tastes yum! These two can be called the Inseparable Combo.
Ingredients
Raw rice (any variety..I used Sona Masoori) - 1 cup
Split mung dhal - 1/8 cup
Water - 2 3/4 cups (i.e., rice rava 1 cup : water 2 3/4 - 31/2 cups; depends on the rice variety)
Jaggery - 2 cups
Sugar - 3 tsps
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
Grated coconut - 4 tsps
Ghee -8 tsps
Cashews - 10, broken
Recipe Cuisine: South Indian; Category: Festival delicacy
Prep time: 20 mts; Cooking time: 20 mts
Serves 4
Dry roast the mung dhal to
golden colour......and
Dry roast the rice also to golden colour and....
after it cools down a bit, grind moong and rice
to fine rava.
Measure the rava in any cup. The ratio of water is 1:2 3/4 cups. So, with the same vessel with which you measured the rava, you must pour 2 3/4 cups water. After several tried and tested attempts, this has become a foolproof measurement. I can vouchsafe.
Keep the measured water in a pan, add 1 tsp ghee, then when it starts boiling...
Keep the measured jaggery, sugar and cardamom powders , all ready, kept
add the jaggery-sugar-cardamom powder mixture, keep the flames on the lowest, keep stirring. Add the grated coconut too.
Wait till the jaggery melts, now add 2 tsps ghee and the rava. Keep stirring, otherwise, small lumps may form. At this stage, we can traansfer the mixture into another vessel, place it inside a pressure cooker, filled with the required level of water, cover and cook for 2-3 whistles. This is an easy process for beginners...why beginners?? even for experienced people like us...it also speeds up the process...
Keep with a lid covered for a little while. Keep some hot water handy, incase you feel, the kali needs a bit more water, you can add. The water measurement depends on the variety of rice
Add some more ghee, keep stirring. You can see the Kali leaving the sides of vessel, announcing to you, it is reaching the final stage. At times, the rice rava looks as if it’s not cooked fully. So, it’s better to transform this into a vessel, keep in pressure cooker and cook for 3 whistles. Otherwise if we eat the not properly cooked rava, we will get tummy ache!
In the meantime, in ghee, roast the cashews to golden colour
and add to the Kali. Mix well. Switch off. Kali is ready for neivedhyam.
This post first appeared in www.malpatskitchen.com
Notes
*Normally, we check for impurities in jaggery. But as far as Kali is considered, it is done this way, and never once have impurities been found later. It’s good to use organic jaggery powder, which has no impurities.
*Sometimes, if it is very old rice, it might require some more water. So, keep boiling water handy, in case you feel, the rice rava has not been cooked and it needs more water, then you can add water in small quantity and keep stirring.
* if we want to make it an easy pressure cooker recipe, then while grinding the rice into rava, add moong too.
* some cook the roasted whole moong dhal, but it takes too much time. It’s better to make it into rava along with rice
*we can also first cook the rava for 5 mts, after it is half cooked, can add jaggery, so that you are saved of the problem of the rava staying uncooked after adding jaggery
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