Paal Kanji with Cherupayar Thoran / Rice & Milk Porridge with Green Gram (Thoran) Cooked in a Spicy Coconut Masala

Spread the Joy!

If you ever ask me what do you need after a week of tiring days or when you drop home after a long vacation or feel like eating nothing heavily because you have got into a overeating week. Infact i crave for this if i didn get to eat this for more than a month or so..Then this is the answer from me. This combo is to die for, and i often do…There is nothing more comfortable for me than this.

This is my family recipe, started from my grandma (not sure where she got the recipe ), she passed it to her daughters and my mom passed it to me and ofcourse i will share it with my kids..It is a treasure recipe which calls for simple ingredients but taste so heavenly. We make this thoran as a combo for this kanji, but sometime we also make a small pancake kind of thing which we call as “thattu” using the same bean and serve it with this. I will surely post the recipe soon in my blog. That is nothing but a thogayal made out of this bean which is toasted into small pancake kind of stuff.

Now taking about this kanji, this needs only simple ingredients. There is no big spices going in there. You need lots of fresh thick milk for this and the finishing touch will be some ghee fried cumin seeds. Feel free to add a lots of it because that makes it so special. You can get the aroma filled in your house before you are done with the finished product. Since this kanji is so mild and there is no salt going in there, so the sidedish for this should be made a little spicier or on the intense side. So i add a little extra chilli in there. You can reduce it as you like.

Please please try this once and i am sure you will go mad for it.

Preparation Time : 10 mins
Cooking Time:1 hour
Serves – 3 to 4

Ingredients:

For Paal Kanji:
Rice – 1 cup
Water – 4 cups
Milk – 750 ml to 1 liter
Cumin Seeds / Jeerakam – 1 tblspn
Ghee – 1 tblspn

For Green Gram Thoran:
Green Gram / Pacha Payaru – 1 cup
Salt to taste
Water – 3 cups

For Grinding:
Coconut – 1 cup
Dry Red Chilli – 5 to 6 or to taste
Garlic – 3 cloves
Turmeric powder / Manjal podi – 1 tsp

For Tempering:
Coconut Oil – 1 tblspn
Mustard Seeds / Kaduku – 1 tsp
Urad dal / Ulundu Paruppu – 1 tsp
Cumin Seeds / Jeerakam – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 spring

Method:

For making Paal Kanji:

Start by cooking the rice. Take rice and water in a pressure cooker and cook for 7 to 8 whistle. Then simmer for 10 mins. Now switch off the flame and let the pressure release all by itself. Open the pressure cooker and give a good stir.

Now add in milk to this and mix well. Keep this on a low flame.

Now make tempering. Heat ghee in a small pan. Add in cumin seeds and let them crackle till they turn golden.

Pour this over the rice mixture and mix well. Paal kanji is done.

For making Green Gram Thoran:

Take washed green gram in a pressure cooker. Cover them with water and add salt to them. Cook them for 6 whistle. Now let the steam go all by itself. Open the pressure cooker and see whether the dal is cooked. If not cook it for longer. If there is any water left, drain the mixture.

Now grind the ingredients given in the list coarsely without adding any water.

Now heat oil in a kadai. Add all the tempering items and let them sizzle for a min.

Add in the ground masala and toss well with the masala. Season the mixture with some salt.

Now add in the cooked dal and toss well with the masala.

Serve with paal kanji.

Pictorial: