LADDU

                                                                                                                                                                LADDU                              

                                                                      

                 l addu or Laddoo is a ball-shaped sweet popular in Indian Subcontinent as well as regions with immigrants from the Subcontinent such as Hijaz. Laddu is made of flour and sugar with other ingredients that vary by recipe. It is often served at festive or religious occasions. Laddu comes from the Sanskrit word transliterated as ladduka or lattika meaning a small ball. Though contested, it is widely believed to originate from the Mithilanchal region of Bihar during the times of Chandragupt Maurya

                                 

                               Common flours used for laddu include besan (chickpea flour), rava (wheat semolina) and ground coconut. These are combined with sugar and other flavorings, cooked in ghee and molded into a ball shape. Some laddu recipes are prepared using Ayurvedic medicinal ingredients, including methi laddu, multigrain and resin laddu.

            Laddu flour (alternate spelling: ladoo flour, ladu flour) is a coarsely ground whole wheat flour sold particularly in the USA as an ingredient for certain Indian dishes, (in particular for laddu). The ostensible explanation for the purpose of the term is to differentiate it from the many other kinds of wheat flours that are available.  

                                      click this link to get a better information of laddu :                                         http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laddu

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PAYASAM

                                                                                                                                                                  PAYASAM                         

  

               The Sanskrit name is क्षीर/Ksheer. In Hindi, खीर; Punjabi, کھیر/ਖੀਰ; Khiri (ଖିରି) in Oriya; Sindhi: کھیر; Urdu کھیر/kheer in Nepali: खिर, also known as Payasam (Tamil: பாயசம், Telugu: పాయసం Malayalam: പായസം), Payasa (Kannada: ಪಾಯಸ) or Payesh (Bengali: পায়েস)

              The Hyderabadi version is called Gil e firdaus, and is quite popular. It is a thick kheer made of milk and bottle gourd. Gil e firdaus, literally translated, means the clay of paradise.

Payasam is served as an offering to the Gods in South Indian Hindu temples during rituals and ceremonies.In Kerala Ambalapuzha palpayasam(Milk Kheer) is a famous payasam. 

               In South Asia, Kheer is prepared and eaten on almost every festival. It is considered a holy dessert and used as a part of Bhog/Prasad. The dish is also consumed at Muslim weddings and prepared on the feasts of Eid ul-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha. A similar dessert, variously called fir-ni, phir-ni or phir-nee, is eaten among the Muslim community of North India, and also in Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. Today, restaurants offer fir-ni in a wide range of flavors including apricot, mango, fig, saffron and custard apple.

                                                                                                                                                                                                              click this link to get a better information of payasam :
                                                     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kheer   

                                                 
    http://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Restaurant_Review-g298570-d1048793-Reviews-Sangeetha-Kuala_Lumpur_Wilayah_Persekutuan.html

MASALA CHAI

                                                                                                                                                                MASALA CHAI

                                                                                                                                                             Masala chai  (Hindi: मसाला चाय, literally "mixed-spice tea" Urdu: مصالحہ چاےٴ‎ Nepali: मसलेदार चिया) is a flavoured tea beverage made by brewing black tea with a mixture of aromatic Indian spices and herbs. Originating in South Asia, the beverage has gained worldwide popularity, becoming a feature in many coffee and tea houses. Although traditionally prepared by decoction, retail versions include tea bags for infusion, instant powdered mixtures, andconcentrates. In many places, there is a misconception that "chai" in itself is made with cardamom, ginger, and the other common spices. However, chai is simply the Hindi word for tea and can be prepared black, with milk, without sugar, etc.

                                                                                                                                                                     Tea plants have grown wild in the Assam region since antiquity, but historically South Asians viewed tea as an herbal medicine rather than as a recreational beverage. Some of the chai masala spice mixtures, or Karha, that are still in current use are derived from Ayurvedic medical texts.

In the 1830s, the British East India Company became concerned about the Chinese monopoly on tea, which constituted most of its trade and supported the enormous consumption of tea in Great Britain: approximately one pound (by weight) per person per year. British colonists had recently noticed the existence of the Assamese tea plants, and began to cultivate tea plantations locally. In 1870, over 90% of the tea consumed in Great Britain was still of Chinese origin, but by 1900 this had dropped to 10%, largely replaced by tea grown in British India (50%) and British Ceylon(33%).

          

           However, consumption of black tea within India remained low until an aggressive promotional campaign by the (British-owned) Indian Tea Association in the early 20th century, which encouraged factories, mines, and textile mills to provide tea breaks for their workers. It also supported many independent chai wallahs throughout the growing railway system.

          

            The official promotion of tea was as served in the English mode, with small added amounts of milk and sugar. The Indian Tea Association initially disapproved of independent vendors' tendency to add spices and greatly increase the proportions of milk and sugar, thus reducing their usage (and thus purchase) of tea leaves per liquid volume. However, masala chai in its present form has now firmly established itself as a popular beverage, not just outlasting the British Raj but spreading beyond South Asia to the rest of the world.
                                                                                                                                                                                        click this link to get a better information of masala chai :
                                  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masala_chai
                               
               http://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Restaurant_Review-g298283-d1845802-Reviews-Maharaja_Restaurant-Langkawi_Langkawi_District_Kedah.html

BANANA LEAF RICE

                                                                                                                                               BANANA LEAF RICE                                     

         

                                                                            

            Banana leaf rice is a traditional method of serving rice dishes in South Indian cuisine. Due to the migration of South Indians, banana leaf rice can also be found in areas with significant ethnic South Indian diaspora like Malaysia and Singapore.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              In banana leaf meals, white rice (or parboiled rice in authentic South Indian restaurants) is served on a banana leaf with an assortment of vegetables,pickles, papadum and other regional condiments (usually sour, salty and/or spicy). The banana leaf acts as a disposable plate and it in itself is not consumed. The choice of banana leaves is mainly due to the broad leaves as well as to the ubiquity of the plant in South India. Typically, only vegetarian gravy (e.g. sambar) will be served on the rice as it is meant to be a traditional vegetarian dish. However, sometimes boiled eggs, curriedand/or fried meat or seafood are served as well. Traditionally there will be two servings of rice, with the first being served with gravy, side dishes and condiments whilst the second serving will be just rice with curd as a palate cleanser.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Banana leaf meals are eaten with hand. Banana leaf meal etiquette also dictates that, after the meal, the guest must always fold the banana leaf inwards as a sign of gratitude to the host, even when the host is the proprietor of an eatery. However, when meals are served at funeral wakes, the leaf is folded outwards as a sign of condolence to the family of the deceased. Due to this, folding the leaf outwards is considered rude in any other circumstance. In Malaysia, some Malaysians of non-Indian origin sometimes fold their banana leaf outward as a sign of dissatisfaction with an eatery's banana leaf meal. This is due to the erroneous belief that folding the leaf inwards or outwards is a way of rating the meal.

                                                                                                                                                                                                      click this link to get a better information of banana leaf rice :

                        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_leaf_rice

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                  http://food.malaysiamostwanted.com/venues/kashmir-cafe-taman-university

IDLI

                                                                                                                                                              IDLI                              

       Idli (Kannada: ಇಡ್ಲಿ, Tamil: இட்லி, Telugu: ఇడ్లి, Malayalam: ഇഡ്ലി) also  romanized idly or iddly, plural idlis, is a traditional breakfast in south Indian households. Idli is savory cake of South India that is most popular throughout the southern part of India including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka. The cakes are usually two to three inches in diameter and are made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils (de-husked) and rice. The fermentation process breaks down the starches so that they are more readily metabolized by the body.

Most often eaten at breakfast or as a snack, idlis are usually served in pairs with chutney, sambar, or other accompaniments. Mixtures of crushed dry spices such as milagai podi are the preferred condiment for idlis eaten on the go. A variant of Idli known as sanna (Konkani: सान्नां sānnāṃ) is very popular amongst the Goans and other Konkani people. Another variant known as "Enduri Pitha" is very popular in Odisha. For preparation of "Enduri Pitha", mixture of black gram paste and ground once-boiled rice is wrapped in turmeric leaf and steam cooked.                                               

                           Idli (and the process of steaming) was known in India by as early as 700 CE. Earliest mention of idli occurs in the Kannada writing calledVaddaradhane by Shivakotiacharya in 920 AD, and it seems to have started as a dish made only of fermented black lentil. Chavundaraya II, the author of the earliest available Kannada encyclopaedia, Lokopakara (c. 1025), describes the preparation of idli by soaking urad dal (black gram) in butter milk, ground to a fine paste and mixed with the clear water of curd, and spices. The Kannada king and scholar Someshwara III, reigning in the area now called Karnataka, included an idli recipe in his encyclopedia, 'Manasollasa', written in Sanskrit ca. 1130 A.D.There is no known record of rice being added until some time in the 17th century. It may have been found that the rice helped speed the fermentation process. Although the ingredients used in preparing idli have changed, the preparation process and the name have still remained the same.

                                  click this link to get a better information of idli :
                                                http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idli
                                               
                                           http://www.muruganidlishop.com/