Though fish on a stick sounds like a part of an aspiring hitchhiker’s bucket list, it was a way of life for many. Researchers say that fish broth was amongst the first few meals to be cooked over a flame in a pot as hunter-gatherers discovered the joy of a cooked, steamed and nutritious meal.
Clay was available in abundance. Initially, the process of baking clay and using right proportions of water was a mammoth task. However, after mastery, there was no looking back. News travelled far and wide. The Greeks, Etruscans, Romans, and Chinese exploited its use. Thus, a new medium of cooking was born.
In India, the clay pot known as ‘tandoor’, a portable oven that can roast several items including fish, chicken, kadai vegetables and cottage cheese. It makes the food succulent and moist on the inside and crisp on the outside, providing the perfect balance. The more traditional south Indian households resort to making use of ‘manchetties’.
It is time to dig out that clay pot that has been gathering dust in the cabinet. Though a renaissance village feel lingers around these earthen pots and pans, the trend of cooking with them is quickly catching on. Make use of these comeback queens at home and be in sync with the latest cooking mantra.Here are two mouth-watering recipes that could be recreated to go back in time and relives bygone days.
Keera Kadayal:
Ingredients:
1 bunch palak
1/2 cup split green gram dal
1 spoon curry powder
A pinch asafoetida
Salt to taste
1 tsp ghee
1/2 spoon jeera
1 spoon split urad dal
Method:
1) Pour some water in a mud pot and bring it to boil.
2) Wash the split green gram dal and add to water.
3) In the meantime, clean the palak leaves, cut them into pieces and keep aside.
4) After it boils for 15 minutes, add palak leaves at its half cooked state.
5) When the palak is cooked, add asafoetida and vegetable powder.
6) Once the palak is cooked, fragrant aromas shall rise.
7) For seasoning, heat a kadai and add Ghee, Jeera and split urad dal. Once urad dal turns light brown, pour this mixture on top of cooked palak.
Your keera kadayal is ready to be served.
Kerala Prawn Curry:
Ingredients:
250 gms of prawns
1 coconut
100 gms of onions
2 tsp of tomato puree
10 gms of ginger
10 gms of garlic
2 lemons
Salt to taste
5 tsp of coconut oil – 5 tsp
5 green chillies
Method:
Make garlic and ginger paste.
2. Chop onions and green chillies; extract coconut milk.
3. Marinate the prawns in salt and lemon juice.
4. Heat oil and sauté onion in the clay pot and green chillies till they turn golden brown.
5. Add garlic-ginger paste and fry, add the prawns and toss the mixture.
