Navaratri Naivedhyam Recipes

Navaratri Naivedhyam Recipes

Recipe # 1 – Ven Pongal and Peanut Sundal

Ven Pongal

Ingredients
1 cup rice
1/2 cup split moong dal
4 – 6 cups water
1 table spn fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 tspn whole black pepper corns
1/5 tspn cumin seeds
4 – 5 curry leaves
2 tblspn raw cashew nuts, unsalted
2 tblspn ghee
salt to taste

Preparation

Cook the rice and dal together in the water until very very soft. Perhaps use 4 cups to begin with and add more if required. It will take 20 – 30 minutes to cook.

• While the rice and dal is cooking, finely chop the ginger and roast it in 1Tblspn ghee.
• Add the cumin, whole black pepper and curry leaves. Sauté a little without burning to release the flavours. Set aside.
• Roast the cashews in the remaining ghee until golden brown but not burnt.
• When the rice and dal mixture is cooked, mix vigorously, mashing the dal and rice together. You want a buttery texture.  Mix in the spices with the ghee that they were sautéed in. ·
• Top with the roasted cashews.

Peanut Sundal 

This variety of Sundal made of raw peanuts does not need any soaking.

• Ingredients 
• 2 cups of Raw Peanuts 
• Salt 
• Hing 
• 1/3 cup of fresh coconut grated. 
• 4 Green Chillies. 
• Curry Leaves. 
• A few drops of coconut oil. 

Preparation 

• Place the peanuts in a cooking vessel, inside the pressure cooker and add sufficient salt. Add enough water. 
• Cook for at least 2-3 whistles. 
• Drain all the water 
• Take a kadai or wok and add a spoon of coconut oil. 
• When the oil is hot, add mustard, curry leaves, hing and immediately the cooked peanuts. 
• Allow to saute for a few minutes. 
• Meanwhile, grind the coconut and green chillies without adding any water in the mixer for a few seconds. Set aside. 
• When the contents of the kadai are well mixed and sauted, add the ground coconut mix. 
• Add a little more salt only if needed. 

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Recipe # 2 - Moong Dal Sundal 

Ingredients 

• 2 cups of Moong Dal. 
• Water to cook the dal. 
• Salt 
• Hing. 
• Pinch of red chilli powder. 
• 1/3 cup of fresh grated coconut. 
• 5-6 green chillies or according to taste. 
• Seasoning: Mustard, Curry Leaves. 
• Oil.

Preparation 

• Moong Dal cooks very easily so there is no need to soak ahead. 
• Take a vessel and put in the moong dal. Then add water to just cover the moong, salt and a pinch of red chilli powder. 
• Allow it to cook on medium flame for about 6-7 minutes. You will see that the moong with absorb the water and slightly grow in size. 
• It is important that you do not overcook the moong as it tends to get mushy. 
• Drain out the water and set aside to cool down for 10 minutes or so. If needed, spread it out on a plate so it dries out the water a little. 
• Meanwhile grind the coconut and green chillies in a mixer to a rough mix. 
• Take a kadai, add 2 spoons of gingely/coconut oil and allow to heat. 
• Season with mustard, hing, curry leaves and then add the cooked moong dal. 
• Immediately add the pulsed coconut-chilli mix and give it a slow mix. 
• Use your ladle to carefully mix in the ingredients and flavouring. Too much handling could again break the moong and make it mushy. 
• Garnish with chopped cilantro. 

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Recipe # 3 - Arachu Vitta Sundal

Ingredients 

• White Channa – 2 cups. 
• Water just enough to cover and cook. 
• Salt 
• Hing 

Roast 

• 4 spoons Channa Dal. 
• 2 spoons Dhania. 
• 8 red chillies 
• 1 spoon of urad dhal. 
• 1/3 cup of coconut. 
• Mustard, Curry Leaves, Oil & Hing for seasoning. 

Preparation 

• Soak the white channa for at least 6-8 hours prior to preparation of neivedhyam. Cook in the pressure cooking adding water,  salt and turmeric for 3 whistles. 
• Drain the water  
• In a kadai, add a spoon of oil and when it is hot, add all the ingredients specified for roasting. Roast on a medium flame until they get brown and you get a gentle aroma. 
• Pop in the mini mixer jar, add fresh grated coconut and using a  little of the cooked channa water, grind to a very smooth paste. 
• Take your kadai/wok and add 2 spoons of oil. Season with mustard, curry leaves and hing and add the cooked white channa beans. 
• Stir them gently and now add the ground masala from the mixer jar. 
• Mix well and allow to cook for a couple of minutes until all the water is absorbed. · You can also make this sundal out of Mochai or Field Beans  

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Recipe # 4 - Yellow Peas Sundal 

Ingredients 

• 1 cup Yellow Peas. 
• 1/4 cup of dessicated coconut. 
• 3 green chillies. 
• Salt. 
• Hing. 

 Seasoning 

• Mustard, Curry Leaves 

Preparation 

• Soak the yellow peas for about 6-8 hours.  
• Drain all the water and pressure cook with a little salt and just enough water. 
• Switch off after 2 whistles. 
• Grind the coconut and green chillies without any water in to a coarse mix. Set aside. 
• In a kadai, add a spoon of coconut oil and when it is hot, add mustard, curry leaves and a dash of hing. 
• Immediately add the cooked yellow peas and a little salt and hing as required. 
• Garnish with the coconut-chilli mix and incorporate it well in to the peas. 

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Recipe # 5 – Kadambam Sundal  

Ingredients  

• Channa /Chickpea - 1/2 cup 
• Brown Channa - 1/2 cup 
• Dried Peas, Mochai, Peanuts, Moong dal, Black eyed pea - fistful 
• Blanced Almonds - 5  

Seasonings 

• Mustard seeds, Urad dal - 1 tsp 
• Channa dal - 1/2 tsp 
• Green Chilis - 1 
• Red Chilis - 2 
• Curry leaves - 5 - 6 
• Coriander leaves for garnish 
• Oil - 1 tsp 
• Salt to taste  

Preparation 

Since the cooking time is different for each lentil, pressure cook each of them separately. Let it drain. Chop the blanched almonds, keep aside. 

• Heat a pan with oil, season it with mustard seeds, channa dal, urad dal, chopped green chilies and red chilies. Saute for 2 mins. 
• Then add the drained legumes to the pan and season it with salt. Simmer for 2 mins and remove. 

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Recipe # 6 –  Sweet Green Gram Sundal

Ingredients 

• 1 cup Green Gram Dal. 
• 3/4 cup grated Jaggery or soft brown sugar. 
• Water to cook. 
• 1 tsp of Cardamom Powder. 
• 1 spoon of ghee. 

Preparation 

• Take the cup of  green gram dal and roast it dry in the kadai for a few minutes. You will slowly get the aroma of the roasted green gram dal. This should suffice. It is not required to soak the green gram dal.   
• Always roast on a medium flame. Set aside. 
• When the dal cools considerably, put in a vessel and pour water to cover the beans. Cook it without adding salt. 
• Switch off after ten minutes, and set aside. 
• In a kadai, add  spoon of ghee, and the cooked green gram dhal. 
• Now add the 3/4 spoon of jaggery and mix well. The jaggery will melt and coat the cooked green gram dhal. 
• Immediately switch off the stove and add the crushed cardamom. 
• Stir in immediately and mix well. 

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Recipe # 7 - Sweet Black Eyed Beans Sundal (Vellai Karamani Vella Sundal) 

Ingredients 

• 1 cup Black Eyed Beans (Vella Karamani) 
• 3/4 cup grated Jaggery or soft brown sugar. 
• Water to cook. 
• 1 tsp of Cardamom Powder. 
• 1 spoon of ghee.  

Preparation 

• Soak the Black Eyed Beans in water for at least 4-5 hours prior to preparation of Sundal.  
• Cook in the pressure cooker until you get one whistle and then reduce the heat and cook in low for ten minutes and then switch off.  
• Drain the water 
• Rest of the procedure is the same as in Green Gram Sundal given above 

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Recipe # 8 - Black Channa Sundal garnished with sliced coconut pieces 

Ingredients 

• 1 cup Black Channa. 
• Water to cook 
• Salt 
• Oil 
• Mustard 
• Curry Leaves 
• 4 dry red chillies 
• 1/4 cup of finely slit coconut pieces. 

Preparation

• Soak the black channa for at least 6 hours prior to cooking.
• Put in a wide mouthed container, add salt, turmeric and add just enough water to cover the channa. 
• Cook in a pressure cooker. Wait for one whistle and then reduce the flame and keep for ten minutes and then switch off. 
• Drain the water 
• Take a kadai, add 2 spoons of coconut oil. When the oil is hot add mustard, curry leaves, hing, dry red chillies and then the cooked channa. 
• Mix well and wait until the seasoning ingredients are mixed well in to the legumes. · Garnish with finely sliced coconuts 

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Recipe # 9 – Bengal Gram Sweet Sundal 

 

Ingredients 

• Bengal gram dal - 2 cups 
• Salt - 1/2 a pinch 
• Ghee - 2 tsps 
• Sugar - 6 tbsps 
• Cardamom powder - 1 pinch 
• Fresh coconut gratings - 6 tbsps 

Preparation 

• Dry roast bengal gram dal on low flame till it gives out a pleasant aroma. 
• Switch off flame and add 4 cups of water and allow the roasted dal to soak in it for half an hour. 
• After half an hour switch on flame and cook the dal in the same water adding the salt till it becomes soft but not mushy. 
• Drain the dal and keep aside. 
• Heat ghee in a pan and add the cooked and drained dal and saute till dry. 
• Add 3 tbsps of sugar and stir till it melts and becomes dry again. 
• Allow to cool and then mix in the remaining sugar and cardamom powder. 
• Garnish with fresh coconut gratings. 

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