One Indian ingredient that you don't see much outside of homes (or
India) is "poha", or "aval" in Tamil, or rice flakes. It's made by
parcooking and flattening rice, so it's similar to rolled oats, or
wheat/rye flakes. However, since it's usually husked/polished (and,
for that matter, parcooked) first, it "cooks" extremely quickly. In
fact, rinsing and draining it often hydrates it enough to make it soft
enough to eat (after standing briefly -- between 5 minutes and half an
hour, depending on how thickly it has been rolled).

You can use it much like rice, but it's very amenable to being
flavored, as I did tonight with tamarind and spices:

1 cup thin poha

1/2 tsp tamarind concentrate
ground red chili to taste
salt to taste
1-2 Tbsp hot water

oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp urad dal
pinch of hing
pinch of turmeric

Rinse and drain the poha.

Mix the tamarind concentrate, salt and red chili in the hot water.
Stir well till the tamarind is dissolved.

Add the tamarind liquid to the poha, and mix well till it's fairly
evenly distributed.

Heat the oil, add the mustard seeds, cumin and urad dal. When the
seeds begin to pop, add the hing and turmeric.

Add the poha, and quickly mix well to distribute the seasoned oil
through the poha. Stir gently till the poha is warmed through.


Frying some onions before adding the poha to the oil would probably be
nice, as would green chilies or raisins.


N.

Natarajan Krishnaswami wrote:
> One Indian ingredient that you don't see much outside of homes (or
> India) is "poha", or "aval" in Tamil, or rice flakes. It's made by
> parcooking and flattening rice, so it's similar to rolled oats, or
> wheat/rye flakes. However, since it's usually husked/polished (and,
> for that matter, parcooked) first, it "cooks" extremely quickly. In
> fact, rinsing and draining it often hydrates it enough to make it soft
> enough to eat (after standing briefly -- between 5 minutes and half an
> hour, depending on how thickly it has been rolled).
>
(snipped for brevity)

Thank you, Natarajan!

Now can you tell us what to do with kodri and samo?

Thanks in advance!

Namaskar,
Tamo Mitamu

Natarajan Krishnaswami > wrote:
> One Indian ingredient that you don't see much outside of homes (or
> India) is "poha", or "aval" in Tamil, or rice flakes. It's made by
> parcooking and flattening rice, so it's similar to rolled oats, or
> wheat/rye flakes. However, since it's usually husked/polished (and,
> for that matter, parcooked) first, it "cooks" extremely quickly.

Can it be made at home, from ordinary rice? It sounds very useful.

Kake

On 2006-12-14, Kake L Pugh > wrote:
> Can it be made at home, from ordinary rice? It sounds very useful.

Yes, theoretically. But it's a ridiculous amount of work. Buying it
dried, by the bag, at Indian groceries (or online, perhaps) is
definitely your best bet.

However, I do have a recipe, which I've never, ever seen used.
Guessing a bit how to adapt it to the modern kitchen, start by
par-cooking brown rice, and letting it soak overnight. Drain it well,
then toast it uniformly over a very hot flame (stirring with a
suitable device, say a bamboo whisk). Flatten the rice in a very
large mortar, or perhaps with a heavy rolling pin, and winnow/sift out
the husk and broken pieces with a mesh colander. (If you have tools
for flaking other grains, I bet they'd work here, too.)


For your entertainment (in that I doubt most of us have ready sources
of paddy), here's the recipe adapted above, from S Meenakshi Ammal's
_Samaithu Paar_. (The cookbook, translated into English as _Cook And
See_, is perhaps the canonical cookbook for my ethnic group's
vegetarian cuisine.)

BEATEN RICE FLAKES (AVAL)

Winnow paddy and remove completely, stones, chaff, etc. For 32 cups
(8 liters) of paddy, take 32 cups (8 liters) of water. Boil water
vigorously in a big vessel. (Brass, copper, or even an earthen pot
can be used.)

Add the (cleaned) paddy and cover with the lid. After half an hour,
see if the bubbles are beginning to rise. Then immerse a burning
piece of wood or a bit of live coal. Let it hiss. Remove. Turn
the paddy with a long ladle, thoroughly once or twice, from top to
bottom.

Remove fire wood from the oven. Wait for a few minutes and remove
paddy from fire. Let stand overnight. Next morning, empty into a
big bamboo basket. Drain out the water completely and spread the
paddy (in circular rings) in the shade on a clean floor.

Heat an earthen frying pan over a fire-wood oven. Roast the paddy,
taking 1 cup at a time. Turn it with a small-sized bundle of
coconut splinters ("Thennai Vilakkumaru"), using the stub end. When
the paddy begins to pop and burst, turn vigorously, till the
bursting stops. Pour it at once into a stone mortar and pound hard
with a big, heavy wooden (or iron) pestle, when still hot. Beat it
out into light, thin flakes. Winnow out the husk, sift the broken
ends, and keep the clean flakes in an airtight container.

Note: when two people pound it simultaneously by alternative
strokes, the flakes turn out better.


N.

On 2006-12-14, Kake L Pugh > wrote:
>> Can it be made at home, from ordinary rice? It sounds very useful.

Natarajan Krishnaswami > wrote:
> Yes, theoretically. But it's a ridiculous amount of work. Buying it
> dried, by the bag, at Indian groceries (or online, perhaps) is
> definitely your best bet.

Good plan, thanks. It seems quite easy to get hold of online in the UK.
It's a shame I recently stocked up on spices; I'll poke my neighbours
and see if any of them want to collaborate on an order. For any other
interested UK people, these are the sites I found selling it:

http://www.natco-online.com/
http://www.simplyspice.co.uk/
http://www.spicesofindia.co.uk/

> For your entertainment (in that I doubt most of us have ready sources
> of paddy), here's the recipe adapted above, from S Meenakshi Ammal's
> _Samaithu Paar_. (The cookbook, translated into English as _Cook And
> See_, is perhaps the canonical cookbook for my ethnic group's
> vegetarian cuisine.)

Is that "Cook and See" as in "try it and see"? That sounds like an
excellent sentiment.

> Note: when two people pound it simultaneously by alternative
> strokes, the flakes turn out better.

I wonder why this is.

Kake