Simplicity Coimbatore , Adai for marghazhi
The kitchen at my parents’ home was the production centre for a variety of dishes from all kinds of cuisines. Those were the days of Eve’s weekly , round table cookbook , Australian Women’s weekly and so on. Recipes were poured over and ingredients were sourced from anywhere one could manage and dishes were conjured up.
Amidst this vast repertoire of global food, I fear that some of the specific native cuisine took a bit of a back bench. Of course the idli ,dosa, paruppu saadham staple was and continues to be a part of our daily menu but I am talking about the more community centric foods back then ,like the Adai ,which was made predominantly in typical Brahmin homes.
My foray into the art of Adai enjoyment happened only after I began making my own. This too happened purely by accident. A few years ago ,as mentioned in past articles,we began to include heritage rice grains into our diet. As a result of this we launched into a search for rice based dishes which could be made as a substitute to the dosai. The Adai caught my interest because the process was simpler than grinding the dosai batter and also it contained so many varieties of lentils and rice grains. I could therefore experiment away with the many heritage rice grains which had found permanent home in my store room.
After trying out different ratios of rice to lentils , what worked best for me was the recipe we adapted from the blog ‘Rak’s kitchen’.This particular Adai turned out to have the right level of crunch , ideal texture for pouring from the ladle and also contained some of my favourite Indian ingredients like perungayam , dried red chillies , curry leaves and nallennai (cold pressed sesame oil) .
I also enjoyed the whole process of soaking the different lentils, loved looking at the many colours and just for that I would use the pink masoor dhal. The work is so calming. To wash the lentils, the rice, to soak them in water in separate bowls with the thought that the family is in for a sumptuous meal a few hours later is undoubtedly a joyful task.
Also what makes this more interesting are the different condiments which one can pair with this lentil and rice pancake. The traditional pairing I am told is a generous blob of home made butter with a small helping of natural jaggery. But there are that breed of die hard Adai fans who will swear to the Adai and spicy green chilli chutney combination. At home we have added a bit of everything , the creamy , the sweet and the spicy. So the way we eat a piping hot Adai is to break off a small piece and dab it with a bit of the butter, the jaggery along with small pieces of a mild green chilli pickle.This pickle is the dry one which is marinated with cumin, salt, mustard and is more flavourful than hot. It is a combination which is so well rounded and absolutely delicious.
An impromptu meal ,late one night,at home ,had me serving hot Adai to a bunch of hungry teenagers.Unfortunately this lot get bad press that they eat only junk.I wish I had taken a video, of their impressive ‘adai demolishing’ skills, that day. It made the ‘mom’ heart very happy !
It also occurred to me that it is the perfect winter dish. The wholesome batter comprising of Bengal gram (kadalai paruppu), pigeon pea lentils (thuvaram paruppu),red lentil (mysore paruppu) and white lentils (vellai ullundhu) as well as both (heritage) par boiled and raw rice makes it so hearty and nourishing. A lot of people talk of making it ‘healthier’ by adding oats , quinoa or any other grain. The irony is, in doing that we are blindly following a western mindset of what ‘healthy’ is. Our indigenous rice grains and lentils are the best suited for our digestive system and metabolisim. By altering traditional recipes we are also unknowingly creating an imbalance in the way different ingredients are paired together. This is what leads to flatulence, indigestion and acidity later on and we end up blaming the lentil instead of what really caused it.
The idea of eating butter with the adai is also more than just to accentuate the taste.The protein in the butter /ghee helps in the absorption of the proteins from the different lentils. Hence the age old nei and paruppu combo. The key to a wholesome diet is of course moderation. When we do eat conscientiously , it is also very difficult to overeat. A serving of an Adai or two (depending on the circumference) is not just satisfying,it is also an extremely satiating meal. There is a slow release of energy and it leaves us feeling good for the better part of the Adai.
During the colder months, an Adai meal is a good option for an early dinner .As the month of marghazhi reaches it’s end, one can almost feel a shift in temperatures. When we get attuned to understanding food as something which nourishes and heals then the daily dietary needs will follow a more conscious path.
All of this is going to be practiced only if the food tastes good obviously. An Adai can be adapted to suit so many taste preferences. There are recipes which include ginger and garlic , grated carrots, sesame seeds, peanuts etc. It can be as flavourful as you and your family desire. Give our vintage recipes a chance ,it’s a good food philosophy to begin the New Year with.
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