Monday, June 18, 2012

Milagu Vellam





Milagu Vellam or Molugu vellam as we call it colloquially is a typical Kerala Iyer recipe, something similar to the popular Moru Kachiyathu. It is really very simple and can get ready in a jiffy if you have some curds handy. Milagu refers to Pepper and vellam means water, it’s nothing but a watery concoction of pepper and curds. Milagu vellam along with vazhaka chenai mezhukkuperatti, is a meal that is served to most convalescing mothers.

This dish was not made very frequently in my house, but it was a regular fare at my maternal grandparent’s home. My grandfather was very picky about what he ate and was very particular about the timings too. Lunch would be served exactly and 10:30 am, followed by tiffin anywhere between 2:30 to 3 pm and then dinner exactly at 8 pm. He would never snack on anything in between. Lunch would almost always consist of some coconut and dal based gravy like Sambar, Molagootal, Moru Kootan or Poricha Kuzhambu with some thoran, kootu or pachadi. Dinners would be lighter, (though he used to have only rice), wherein Rasam, Vatha Kuzhambu, Molagutiam or Milgu Vellam would be served along with a mezhukkuperatti. So, that’s how I got introduced to this dish and ever since it has been my comfort food. What is yours?





Serves – 3 to 4
What you’ll need
  1. Thick Curd – 1 Cup, (preferably a day or 2 old, should be slightly sour)
  2. Pepper Powder – ½ tsp
  3. Turmeric Powder – ¼ tsp
  4. Ghee – 1 tsp
  5. Curry Leaves - few
  6. Salt to taste

For Tempering
  1. Oil – 1 tsp
  2. Mustard Seeds – ½ tsp
  3. Cumin Seeds – ½ tsp
  4. Fenugreek Seeds – ¼ tsp
  5. Dried Red Chilly – 1, broken

Method
  1. In a bowl add the cup of curd and add an equal amount of water and whisk well. Keep it aside.
  2. In a vessel, add about ½ cup of water (100 ml), and add the turmeric powder and pepper powder. Mix well and place it on heat.
  3. Allow this to boil on medium flame till almost all the water has evaporated.
  4. Now add a tsp of ghee and mix very well. It will all come together.
  5. Reduce flame and slowly add the whisked curds, stirring all well.
  6. Simmer till the mixture starts frothing up. Don’t allow to boil.
  7. Now add some fresh curry leaves and remove from heat.
  8. Add salt to taste and mix well.
  9. For the tempering, heat a small frying pan with oil, add the mustard, cumin and fenugreek seeds, and lastly add the dried red chilly. Once the red chilly turns bright red, remove from heat and pour over the milagu vellam. (take care not to burn the fenugreek seeds, else they will give a bitter taste)



That’s it, serve warm with hot rice and any curry of your choice.


Linking this to the Kerala Kitchen Event hosted by Julie.

27 comments:

Tina said...

its new to meeeee..looks yummy.

Sriya said...

very delicious dish nice presentation ...love to have it ...we call this menthi majjiga ...we add coriander leaves and ginger to it ...

sesh said...

As usual, superb presentation. As I have mentioned in fb, I am very reminded of my Patti (Father's mother), who at the stroke at a bell used to produce such wonderful, earthy dishes, with no frills attached. My mother has learnt so much from her and the kitchen was the place they bonded so very well which is much more than a mother daughter relationship. Indeed, palakkad cooking involved lots of people, since they almost used all available season vegetables and their cutting, cooking and presentation used to be so varying so as to involve the people at home. Gastronomic, of course, but more than that healthy, mostly prepared with things available during the season and veggies from the kitchen garden, like banana, yam, spinach, ladies finger etc. I miss all that and want to recreate that magic. let's see

Julie said...

Wow..very deliciois flavors,Kaveri..Made perfect!!

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hotpotcooking said...

Wow!!! Mouth watering, love those kerala dishes. Looks yum

Shobha said...

Very different ..never tasted this..

Unknown said...

Simple yet flavouring dish.love it with rice .

Anonymous said...

SEEMS EASY TO MAKE.WILL MAKE IT SOON.

Swathi said...

Milagu vellam and some mezhukupuratti then rice will taste delicious.Lunch will taste great. Nice recipe Kaveri.

Mélange said...

A very meaningful read Kaveri..I was truly anxious while coming here what this milagu vellam after all is about.And the combo of pepper and curd ! What a splendid healthy idea there.Thanks for this enlightening post !

Sangeetha M said...

simple yet comfort recipe...haven't tried this combo,sounds so yummy too...neatly presented!
Spicy Treats

Priya Suresh said...

Wat a comforting food, simply inviting.

Akila said...

Wow very easy n delicious

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Unknown said...

wow very simple recipe like tempered yogurt curry! nice!

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Unknown said...

Looks delicious!

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Unknown said...

Yummy curry.

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Roshni said...

Very flavourful... yes, it is quite similar to kachiya moru... though pepper is not used in that

Suja Manoj said...

New to me,adding pepper will surely make it more interesting,will try this.

Rajani said...

Milagu vellam is new to me - I have been stuffed with 'thippili rasam' during the post-natal pathiyam though. Must try this simple dish.

Vidhya said...

I too am a fan of this simple yet delicious dish.This is one of my dishes that I make when I feel lazy yet doesn't want to compromise on taste.

Nalini's Kitchen said...

Simple yet delicious and inviting....

Gayathri NG said...

Interesting dish, looks so authentic...

Shabbu said...

Yummy recipes...happy to follow u..
do visit and follow my space in your free time...
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Shylaja said...

Authentic and healthy recipe

Hema said...

Very interesting recipe, will try this out soon..

Prathima Rao said...

Lip smacking traditional recipe!!!
Prathima Rao
Prats Corner

Faseela said...

bookmarked it right away.....superb....

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