OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: CENTRAL TIFFIN ROOM (CTR)

 OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: CENTRAL TIFFIN ROOM (CTR) 

It's not often that one gets an opportunity to eat at a restaurant that is over 100 years old! The reason is simple- there are not many of them! One of Namma Bengaluru's favourite eating places - which we visit from time to time- does qualify for this honour. 

Central Tiffin Room in Malleshwaram - known far and wide simply as CTR- was established way back in 1920 which makes it 105 years old as I write this post. It has been in its current location at 7th Cross Road, Malleshwaram since 1952. 

For most patrons- CTR means Benne Masala Dosa- the South Indian dosa/ crepe which is roasted with a liberal amount of butter ( called Benne in Kannada). It is crisp and has a filling of potato palya within it. 

Their website informs us that they make and serve over 7500 Benne Masala Dosa per day!! 

We naturally had the Benne Masala Dosa- the most talked off dish in CTR.

We love this dosa- each time we visit here the taste remains as delicious as always!! 

Naturally, the restaurant exudes a quaint, old world charm. Try to get a place upstairs when you visit there. It is less crowded than the downstairs area and has so much nostalgia hovering over the place. 

We particularly loved the Essence of Teachings from the Bhagawat Gita. 

 We also had idli and vada- two other popular South Indian breakfast items. These were of course served with the traditional accompaniments of sambar and chutney. 

When you are done with eating and feeling satiated with the delicious food, you must have another favourite of mine- the South Indian filter coffee. 

A word of advice for those of you who are new to town and have been recommended a visit to CTR.  Since there is so much demand, the service tends to be brisk. You will be well advised to be ready with your order. Asking the waiter doesn't help much as he will rattle off so many items that you may find it difficult to comprehend. Instead, have a good look at the decidedly old world menu board! You will note with interest that CTR dates back to 1920 and they have no holidays!!! 

They won't hustle you out while you eat your food, but please note that CTR is not a modern coffee shop where you can sit - with or without your laptop - for hours over a coffee or two.

If you visit Bengaluru and haven't been to CTR yet, I would strongly recommend a visit. Definitely worth it!! 

TOMATO PACHADI

 TOMATO PACHADI

I remember reading that tomatoes were brought to India in the 16th century by the Portuguese. These days, both in the South of India or in the North, we use tomatoes in so many dishes in our Indian cooking. Call it thakkakli in Tamizh or tamartar in Hindi, we find tomatoes used in almost every place that serves food- from the up market 5-star hotel to the common highway dhaba. 

Tomatoes have numerous health benefits as described in this article in Very Well Health.

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes for dishes made with tomatoes, such as:-

• Tomato Saaru
• Tomato Kurma
• Tomato Thokku
• Tomato and Carrot Soup 

Today's recipe is for an easy to make Andhra-style Tomato Pachadi which goes well with our traditional breakfast of idl/dosa. I have adapted this from Tomato Pachadi from Swasthi's Indian Healthy Recipes.  

In case you wish to avoid the use of garlic, you can use 1/4 " piece of ginger instead at the time of grinding. 

We tried this out recently and enjoyed it with hot idlis for breakfast. 

Ingredients:-

• Tomatoes, medium-sized, 4 
• Byadgi Red Chillies, 4
• Chana Dal (Bengal Gram), 3/4 tbsp
• Urad Dal, (Black Gram), 3/4 tbsp 
• Cumin Seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric Powder, 1/8 tsp
• Garlic Cloves, 2
• Salt, to taste
• Oil, 1 tsp

For Tempering:-

• Mustard Seeds, 1/4 tsp
• Urad Dal, 1/2 tsp
• Hing, (Asafoetida), 1/8 tsp
• Curry Leaves, a few 
• Dried Red Chilli, broken into halves, 1
• Oil, 1 and 1/2  tsp

Method:-

Wash and chop the tomatoes

Peel and chop the garlic

In a thick bottomed kadhai, heat 1 tsp of oil  and on medium heat roast the Byadgi red chillies, chana dal and urad dal until the dals change colour and the chillies become crisp

Add the cumin seeds and roast for a few seconds

Transfer to a plate and allow it to cool

Add the chopped garlic to the same kadhai and saute, to this add the chopped tomatoes, turmeric powder and salt and mix well 

Cover and cook on medium heat till the soft become soft and mushy

Allow this to cool

In a mixer grind together the roasted chillies, urad dal, chana dal and cumin seeds on pulse mode till it gets crushed to a coarse powder

To this add the cooked tomatoes  and very little water and grind to get a chutney-like consistency

Check for salt and add if necessary. Transfer to a bowl

Heat oil in a seasoning pan and when it becomes hot add the mustard seeds, when they splutter add the urad dal and saute till the dal turns golden

Add the hing, curry leaves and broken red chilli and saute for a few seconds

Pour this seasoning onto the Tomato Pachadi

Switch off the gas and transfer to serving bowl

Serve Tomato Pachadi with idlis or dosas  

YELLOW PUMPKIN CHUTNEY

 YELLOW PUMPKIN CHUTNEY

In our South Indian homes, as we make idlis and dosas often, we need to have a battery of chutneys in order to avoid making the same chutney at all times/too frequently. In the old days, every chutney was invariably made with coconut but these days more and more chutneys have vegetables too so as to make them more healthy. 

It is also one way of pushing healthy vegetables that are not much sought after- into kids! 

Yellow Pumpkin is called Manjal Poosinikai or Parangikai in Tamil, Kaddu in Hindi, Sihi Kumbalkai in Kannada, and Duddhi in my mother tongue, Konkani.

It is well established that Yellow Pumpkin has numerous health benefits  being high in vitamins and minerals yet low in calories. 

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes for chutneys made with vegetables such as:-

• Carrot Chutney
• Radish Chutney
• Red Bell Pepper and Tomato Chutney

Today's recipe is for a chutney made with Yellow Pumpkin which is quite delicious. This is commonly made in Mangaluru- Udupi region of my Home State of Karnataka.

We enjoyed this with dosas for breakfast. 

Ingredients :-

• Yellow Pumpkin, 250 grams
• Coconut Gratings, 1/3 cup
• Byadgi Red Chillies, 3
• Tamarind, size of a small marble
• Green Chilli, 1 
• Black Gram Dal (Urad Dal), 2 tsp
• Coriander Leaves, a handful
• Oil, 1 tsp 
• Salt, to taste

For The Seasoning:

• Mustard Seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Black Gram (Urad)  Dal, 1/2 tsp
• Asafoetida, 1/8 tsp
• Curry Leaves, a few
• Oil, 1 tsp 

Method:-

Wash and peel the yellow pumpkin, discard the core and the seeds and chop the pumpkin into pieces

Remove the coriander leaves from the stems, wash and keep aside

In a pan, heat 1 tsp of oil and roast the Byadgi red chillies and urad dal together on medium heat till the dal changes colour 

Remove from the flame and allow it to cool 

Cook the pumpkin pieces in a vessel adding 1 cup of water till it becomes soft 

Allow it to cool

Grind together the roasted ingredients, coconut gratings, tamarind, green chilli, and coriander leaves along with the cooked pumpkin, and salt to taste, to a coarse paste without adding any water

Transfer this to a bowl

In a small pan, heat 1 tsp of oil and on medium heat add the mustard seeds and when they splutter add the urad dal and sauté till it changes colour

Add the asafoetida and curry leaves and sauté for a few seconds

Pour this seasoning on to the Yellow Pumpkin Chutney

Serve with idli, dosa, rice or chapati 

RISHTA : ONE MORE RTC BATTER OPTION

 RISHTA : ONE MORE RTC BATTER OPTION  

In modern day India, all kinds of convenience foods are fast catching on especially in the large metros.  Amongst the wide range of convenience food that vary from beverages to breakfast cereal, those more attuned to Indian food are happy that we have several options for Ready To Cook (RTC in today's parlance) idli/dosa batter. As you know, for many in the Southern States idlis and dosa are frequently on the family dining table. So, anything that gets them there with the minimum of effort is most welcome. 

The reasons for the popularity of RTC batters are obvious. More women are working and time is at a premium in most homes. People (who can afford it of course) are more than willing to pay for the convenience that RTC batter provides. Contrast this with the old days when the batter had to be made at home by soaking the rice and other ingredients followed by the tiresome task of grinding the batter. 

For those new to South Indian cooking, I must clarify that the process of making idli or dosa is the same whether you use home made batter or the store bought RTC batter. 

While we had several brands on the department store shelves over the last few years, a new one for me was Rishta manufactured by Rishta Foods,  I must thank my friend, Raunak Kundu for introducing me to this product when I received a gift hamper from them. 

This family owned firm started making idli/dosa batter in 2015. It appears their products have become quite popular since then.  They have an interesting and eye catching by line; " We Serve What We Eat At Home!" 

We tried this out the other day and enjoyed it immensely. The idli/dosa batter comes in two types: one is the Regular Speciality Batter which has single polished rice, unpolished urad dal and methi.  With this batter, I tried out both idlis and dosas (pictures below). 

They also have a Multi Grain version which has the more healthy combination of brown rice and sprouted ragi.  I used this batter to make idlis and what we call Appo in Konkani, also called Paddu/Paniyaram in the South. This was served with their mildly-spiced Milagai Podi and home made chutney 

The manufacturers mention that no soda and preservatives have been added in the batter. I found the Rishta batter is fairly thick, and much thicker than other brands I have used till now. It has a grainy texture which makes for a better and more coarse finish to the idlis and dosas. 

In summary, I find this product definitely worth the price even though it is a premium product that is more  expensive than the other brands that I have come across. The packaging was excellent. It speaks of the care taken to maintain hygiene/product quality. I would highly recommend Rishta's Idli Dosa Batters for those who look for premium quality and convenience. 

In Bengaluru, you can order Rishta products online from MilkBasket, Big Basket, BB Daily and TownEss ( formerly Town Essentials). 

All you need to do for Home Delivery is to Whats App on 8339912345. 

If they maintain the product quality, this could be the start of a new "Rishta" ( relationship!) for many idli/dosa fans like me! 

BERAKE ROTTI

BERAKE ROTTI

Usually for breakfast, we make the more common items like idli, dosa, upma etc. In my home state of Karnataka, we also make Akki Rotti etc for breakfast.

In Kannada, "Berake" means "mixed" therefore today's easy to make breakfast dish is called Berake Rotti as it is made using different flours that are mixed together.

The measurements shown below yielded me with 11 Berake Rottis which we enjoyed for a hearty breakfast with garlic chutney

This recipe is adapted from "Berake Rotti" from the popular website Shetty's Kitchen which I came across in Facebook.

Ingredients:-

• Wheat Flour, (Atta), 1/2 cup + some for dusting 
• Gram Flour, (Besan), 1/2 cup
• Rice Flour, 1/2 cup
• Semolina, (Rava), 1/2 cup
• Small- sized Onion, finely chopped, 1 * optional 
• Green Chillies, finely chopped, 2-3 
• Coriander Leaves, finely chopped, 1/3 cup
• White Sesame, 2 tsp
• Cumin seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Carom seeds, 1/4 tsp
• Salt, to taste
• Ghee/Oil, as required to make the rottis 

Method:-

In a large bowl, mix well together all the above ingredients ( except the ghee/oil)
To this, add water as required and knead well to make a soft dough 

Keep aside and allow the dough to rest for 15 -20 minutes

After that, knead the dough once again
Divide the dough so as to make equal sized balls for making the rottis
Dust each of the balls with wheat flour and roll the balls to form circular discs (rottis)

Heat a tawa and on medium heat roast each of the rottis one by one, first on one side then when they

are done, drizzle ghee/oil and flip to roast the other side

Serve the Berake Rotti with chutney of your choice