Womencz recipes- kerala prathamans- paysams

Prathamans


Ingredients:
1 cup rice flour (as per note)
1 tbsp. ghee
1 tbsp. sugar
1 cup soft jaggery grated or crushed
4 cups fresh coconut grated without brown skin (for coconut milk as per note)
1/2 tsp. ginger powder
1/2 tsp. cumin powder
1/2 tsp. cardamom powder
Banana leaf squares (approx. 6-7 inches)
Method:


Make a thick batter of rice flour, water and 1/2 tbsp. melted ghee.
Batter should coat back of spoon when poured.
Warm leaf a bit over fire, spread a ladleful batter over it.
Leave a side margin to avoid over running.
Roll and secure with twine, if required.
Place rolls in a perforated compartment of a steamer.
Pour water to boil in the lower compartment, fix shut.
Put on fire, allow to cook for 10-12 minutes.
Remove from fire, cool and untie.
Peel and cut into small pieces.
Dissolve 1/2 cup water and jaggery, strain into deep vessel.
Boil mixture to one thread consistency.
Add pieces of rice batter and rich coconut milk.
Cook and simmer till reduced to 3/4 in volume.
Add medium coconut milk, stir.
Add sugar, stir to dissolve, allow to boil.
Simmer and cook, stirring frequently till thickened.
Dissolve cumin, cardamom, ginger powders in 1/2 cup thin milk.
Add to mixture, allow to simmer, till thickened.
If too thick, one may add some thin milk, and bring to a boil.
Check sweetness, everytime coconut milk is added, and adjust sugar if required.
Serve hot.

Making time: 1 hour
Makes: 10-12 servings
Shelflife: 1 day

Notes:

1. Rice flour: To make excellent prathamam, wash, soak rice for 10 minutes, drain, and spread over a clean cloth to dry for 1 hour. Grind to a fine powder in a mill or grinder, sieve and use for prathamams.

2. Coconut milk: Of different grades.

Soak 4 cups scrapped coconut (do not use the brown skin), in 2 cups boiling hot water, keep aside, covered, for 2-3 hours.

Strain, but save water. Grind coconut to a very fine paste, add back drained water and blend again till a milky texture is got. Drain and keep this milk aside. This is the rich coconut milk or 1st milk.

Grind the residual coconut again with 3 cups warm water, drain, and keep milk aside. This is the medium or coconut milk or 2nd milk.

Add 2 cups warm water to the residual coconut, grind again and strain milk. Now the residue does not have much strength. This extract is the thin coconut milk or 3rd milk.

The above procedure will produce a total of approximately 7 cups of coconut milk, of three different grades. If differently graded milk is not asked for in recipe, one may combine all the three extracts and get just one medium consistency coconut milk.

Refrigerated it will last for 2 days, or freeze into cubes and store in freezer bags, using as required



Ada pradhaman (Payasam) recipe



Description
Ada - 200 gms
Jaggery - 750 gms
Ghee - 200 gms
Cardomom - 50 gms
Coconut - 3
Raisins - 10
Cashewnuts - 10

Ingredients

Melt Jaggery and keep aside.
Boil water and keep the ada in it till it is cooked soft. Strain after 10 minutes and keep aside.
Mix the melted jaggery with the cooked ada and stir for ten minutes in low fire.
Take two extracts of the coconut milk and add the second extract to the above mixture.
Boil this until it becomes thick. Take it off the fire and add the first extract of milk.
Fry the cashew and raisins and ghee and garnish the payasam