Vazhaipoo Kuzhambu, Banana Flower Gravy

          Vazhaipoo Kuzhambu, gravy with banana flower, I had seen this on a cookery show, long time back, but never got to try it, until now. I remembered the recipe very vaguely, so then I saw this recipe video and followed it. They also call this gravy as ' Saiva Meen Kuzhambu ', which means Vegetarian Fish Gravy', the reason might be that, the ingredients added and the way it's cooked is all similar to that of a Fish Gravy. The kuzhambu is tangy and spicy and goes very well with some plain white rice..

Vazhaipoo Vadai, Banana Flower Fritters

          Vazhaipoo Vadai, fritters made with a mixture of ground lentils and banana flower, I have made this a couple of times, but until now, couldn't post it due to some reason or other. Usually I make it the same way as Chana Dal Vadai and I just add some chopped banana flower to the vada batter. But this time I have followed another recipe, I have used tuvar dal in the place of the usual chana dal and have also added some garlic, the vadas turned out really good, serve them as a snack or as a side with some rice and moru kuzhambu..

Banana Flower & Cabbage Rice, Vazhaipoo Muttaikose Sadam

          Vazhaipoo/Banana Flower and Purple Cabbage, we love this combination at home, I usually make a poriyal/stir fry with this combo and they go very well together. So when I had a little bit of cabbage and half a banana flower, instead of making the usual poriyal, I made this mixed rice with them. I made it more like a fried rice and added spring onions, baby corn and finally some peanuts to give a nice flavor. When we cook banana flower like this, we don't taste the bitterness from it. The rice tastes really good, serve it with some potato chips for a simple and delicious meal..

Vazhaipoo Pakoda, Banana Flower Fritters

          Whenever we drive from Bangalore to Chennai, we usually make a break in between at a restaurant, and we usually have some snack and coffee there. The one snack that we have had on all the times we stopped there, is this Vazhaipoo Pakoda, my daughter just loves it. The pakoda is so crispy and the vazhaipoo/banana flower/kele ke phool gives a nice taste to the pakodas. Usually in other restaurants, you'll find vazhaipoo vadai and cutlets but this pakora, I have not tasted anywhere else. I wanted to make it at home, I didn't have any recipe, so I just made it according to the taste that I remembered, asked my daughter to taste and waited for her verdict. She gave me a thumbs up, the pakoras tasted very good and I should say 99% close to the taste of the pakoras from the restaurant. Do try this the next time you buy banana flower, I am sure you'll love it..

Banana Flower (Vazhaipoo) Adai

          Adais are like pancakes or dosas, usually made with a mixture of dals and rice, a healthy and wholesome dish. When you add some vegetables to it, it becomes a complete meal. Vazhaipoo has a slightly bitter taste, usually it is cooked as a poriyal or kootu. At home, when I get this vegetable, I usually use half of it to make this adai, it blends nicely with the dal in the adai. To make the adai even more healthier I replace half the rice with ragi flour, it tastes great, try it out..