Corn GuLiyappa

Last week I almost felt like the awesomeness of December winter was in the air. That’s when the bizarre North East cyclonic storms gave us an iconic threat with gusts of wind blowing hard and our toes went curling numb. It had been long time since Bangalore saw such rains, winds and chillness, a much desired respite from battling water problems in our city. Rain Gods heard our prayers, loud and clear. Misty Bangalore sky cried all day long and so through the night, bringing along with it biting cold, good drizzle and much shower we needed earnestly. We rushed home from work drenched in rain to stay indoors, sipped on piping hot adrakwali chai, snacked on spicy corn nuggets, enjoyed the melody of raindrops dripping onto our balcony shades, relished simple warm dinner and enveloped ourselves in the coziness of duvets pouncing on us, doing all that pleases one’s senses to stay cosy on a lovely rainy day like this one.

The splendid weather reminded me how much I love rains and winters. Though these rains really irk the hell out of me and have never done much good to my health or my sinuses, inhaling the aroma of the wet soil and indulging in some sizzling, spicy food can ignite happy mood and evoke nice feelings. It’s a perfect time you sit on the porch observing dark gloomy skies, while relishing some fresh hot pakodas, or sip hot, spicy masala chai and enjoy the showers outside in disposition to elevate the blissful moments.

But then to break the traditional monotony of snacking on pakodas and bajjis, to keep it healthy in lure of my health and to deem it ideal for my little toddler too, I whipped up these quick guLiappams, flavoured them with grated sweet corn, freshly chopped mint and seasoned them with green chillies. GuLiappams are traditionally South Indian breakfast dish made using fermented lentil batter, often spiced mildly, authentically made in cast iron appam mould (a slotted pan where the batter is filled) and cooked on a gas top. The ones I made are quick, instant and spicy too, making them ideal for breakfast. I paired them with some spicy peanut chutney powder I made in the day and they made up for an excellent evening snack we craved for the rainy day.

Corn and Mint Appams

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup semolina (sooji rava)
1/2 cup rice flour
1 sweet corn, grated
Couple of mint leaves, chopped
1/2 cup regular yogurt or more (not the Greek/thick yogurt kinds)
1-2 green chillies, chopped to fine pieces
1 tsp. baking soda
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Grate the sweet corn and mix in semolina and rice flour to it. Add in regular yogurt little by little till it comes to thick batter consistency. Sweet corn as some water content in it, so judge the amount of yogurt required to make a batter as thick as cake batter or dropping consistency. Add the chopped mint leaves and green chillies and adjust salt to taste. Whisk well. Finally add in the baking soda, give the entire batter a quick, good whisk.

Oil the appam pan well and bring it to heat. Using a spoon, scoop out the batter and drop into each appam mould. Fill all the moulds with the batter and allow to cook on medium low heat. Carefully flip the appams upside down and allow them to crisp well on both the sides. Serve hot with some fresh coconut chutney or chutney powder like I did.

Pick up one, take a bite, its savoury, spicy and bold. The Peanut chutney powder I made earlier in the day added further to the spice, making it delightfully right for that evening. I shall share the recipe for Peanut chutney powder in my forthcoming posts. Till then, make merry, enjoy life and celebrate Diwali in full fun and masti!