RAW BANANA PODIMAS (VAZHAKKAI PODIMAS)

Kerala is famous for its Plantain trees & Coconut palms. Each house will have at least a couple of these trees in their backyard. Kerala is famous for its special variety - Nendran Vazhai. But this recipe is made with the other variety ( ponthan kai)which is available in Tamil nadu.

Preparation Time: 10 mts Cooking Time: 20 mts Serves: 2

Ingredients:

Raw banana - 3 nos

Green chilies - 2 nos

Lemon - 1 no

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Black gram dal (ulundu paruppu) - 1/2 tsp

Asafoetida powder - 1/2 tsp

Refined oil - 2 tsp

Salt - to taste

Method:

Cut the bananas in to two. Keep it in a bowl of water & boil till it is soft. Allow it to cool down & grate it using a grater. Chop the chilies in to small pieces. Heat oil in a pan & fry the mustard seeds. Add the black gram dal & asafoetida powder & fry well. Then add the cut green chilies & fry for sometime. Add the grated banana. Sprinkle the salt & stir it well. Squeeze the lemon on top & mix well . Vazhakkai podimas is ready.

Variations:

We can add coconut scrapings to the podimas. If coconut is used, then lemon juice is not needed. We can also fry a sliced onion before adding the grated banana. Again lemon juice can be omitted in this.

Tips:

1. The bananas should be cooked to the right consistency. The moment it starts to get soft, remove it from the heat & allow it to cool. This way, the gratings will come out nicely. If it gets overcooked, then the banana will become mushy while grating.
2. Add the salt while boiling the bananas. This way the salt will spread evenly.
3. We can also add the salt to the grated banana, mix it well & prepare the dish.
   
   

Taste it & enjoy.