Vazhai Poo Usili

Vazhai Poo Usili – Banana Flower Vazhai Poo is an excellent source of fibre. It has many health benefits. Apart from being rich in fibre, it is very effective as a scavenger in cleaning the stomach. Dressing banana flower can be quite time consuming but it is worth the effort. You switch on a good music or watch Cartoon or Animation in TV while doing this to break the monotony. Every effort is worth when the end result is good.

Vazhai Poo or Plantain Flower should be dark red in colour on the outside and feel heavy. You can see the outer most layer and look at the colour of the Florets, it should be somewhat pinkish or off white.	The Florets should look healthy and shiny.	Close up view of 4 florets arranged for viewing.  The formation fills the heart with joy and nature’s marvels.	The dressing preparation has the main focus on effectively separating the Florets from Stamen and Husks. The process takes a lot of time and patience. The Vazhai Poo looks strong and healthy when it is mid way.	I have just processed around 10 florets and separated them from stamen and husk, which are not good for processing further. You can memorise the names of the different parts of the plantain flower for your knowledge.
On completion of 3 to 4 layers and separating the florets from stamen and husks, start cutting the florets in batches, in almost the same lengths and soak them immediately, to prevent discolouration. This completes the Vazhai Poo Florets preparation and soaking. Relax now.	For making the Usili, I am considering ¾ cup of Tur Dahl and ½ Cup of Chena Dahl by volume. This ratio works out well and you have slightly excess dahl, which can be consumed as it is without Vazhai Poo. Soak the dahls for a period of 25 to 30 minutes.	The main ingredients for the Usili.	For the Usili preparation, add 6 nos of dried Red Chilli cut into small pieces and a part of dahl. This will ensure that the Red Chilli is ground to a coarse consistency. Otherwise the Red chilli may not be cut  properly. This is the trick. Add 6 t 8 curry leaves and altleast ½ teaspoon of asafoetida. The asafoetida will add to the taste of dahl. Now separate the small portion and store it in a small container.	Now add the remaining dahl in the dry mixi and grind the soaked dahl without adding any water to a thick consistency. This way of preparing the Usli mix twice will help as the dry grinder is always of a smaller capacity. Now mix both the previously ground red chilli-dahl mix and the present one and turn the mixture by hand till the consistency is uniform. Drain out all excess water to be used in Rasam at a later stage.
It is time for the Dahl paste to go into the pressure cooker for steaming. Use colander for good results. Every drop of water should get drained out. Arrange the steaming in two tiers of colander for dahl and Vazhai Poo.	Now in another colander, keep all the Vazhai Poo for steaming, as the second layer. This arrangement will ensure that water does not enter into the dahl or Vazhai Poo. You can see the dryness of the Vazhai Poo and enjoy it.	Add 2 table spoon of oil in a kadai. While on heat, add mustard seeds and when the cracking stops, add udad dahl, chena dahl, Curry leaves, ginger, Chillies, Asafoetida.  Add salt required only for the Vazhai Poo as the salt is already used for the dahl. On a low heat, turn the contents slowly till it becomes homogenous.	A magnified image of the last few layers. The florets are very tender and they can be consumed as they are. You can give them to the children and they will enjoy the taste.	The very last layer of the plantain flower. Look at the Nature’s creations.  The taste is to be experienced than narrated.

Ingredients	Serves 3 to 4
Vazhai Poo Usili
Tur Dahl	3/4 Cup
Chana Dahl	1/2 Cup
Red Chilli	6 nos
Vazhi Poo	1  long Flower
Asafoetida	3 pinches
Oil	2 Table spoons
Mustard Seeds	1 tea spoon
Curry Leaves	6 to 8 leaves
Salt	to taste
Butter Milk Diluted	250 ml

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Rangarajan Ramaswamy 01.08.2013 03:00 pm