Last Tuesday my cousin called up saying she wanted a proper South Indian vibe for her kid’s birthday. Honestly, panicked a bit. Decided to test run the whole menu at home over the weekend. Grabbed my stained recipe notebook – yeah, the one with turmeric fingerprints all over it.
Planning & Ingredient Hunt
Started scribbling down stuff everyone actually eats, not just fancy Instagram food. No way I was making 20 dishes. Kept it simple:
- MUST have idli & dosa – even picky kids dunk those in chutney.
- Vada – because birthday means fried food, duh.
- Sambar & Chutneys – can’t have idli swimming naked.
- Puliyogare – that tangy rice stuff? Adults go crazy for it.
- Payasam – something sweet to end it.
Took an annoyingly long time at Patel Brothers. Forgot urad dal once, went back. Fought with a coconut grater. Coconut won. Used a bag of pre-grated stuff instead.
Cooking Marathon (Mostly Mine)
Day 1: Batter Blues
Soaked rice and urad dal separately – like grandma nagged me to. Left it overnight. Next morning, hauled out the ancient wet grinder. That machine screams louder than my blender. Made dosa/idli batter. Looked too thick, dumped more water. Immediately regretted it. Had to throw in extra rice flour later to fix it. Consistency still felt… suspicious.
Day 2: The Frying Zone
Wore my oldest shirt. Good call.
- Sambar: Chopped veggies rough. Fried mustard seeds popped everywhere – cleaned seeds off the floor for ages. Lentils boiled over twice. Stupid pot.
- Coconut Chutney: Blended coconut, chilies, ginger. Fried mustard seeds & curry leaves in ghee. Poured the oil sizzle thing over the chutney. Smelled insane.
- Vada: Whipped up soaked urad dal batter. Wet hands are key for shaping. Made tiny test vada first. Oil was right? Dropped one in. Perfect golden brown. Okay, nailed it. Fried like 30. Kitchen smelled like a snack shop.
- Puliyogare: Pan fried peanut powder, sesame seeds, curry leaves. Mixed it into cooked rice with tamarind paste and premixed puliyogare spice powder (cheating? maybe. working? absolutely).
- Payasam: Boiled milk forever. Added vermicelli, sugar. Stirred so much my arm cramped. Cardamom powder saved it.
The “Party” Test
Dragged in neighbors. Laid everything out buffet style.
- Dosa batter was weirdly thick? Couldn’t spread it thin. Made fat, spongy mini-dosas. Tasted fine but looked ridiculous. Called them “dosa bites.” People bought it.
- Vada disappeared instantly. Got asked for seconds.
- Sambar got compliments? Must have been the ghee smell.
- Puliyogare rice – half loved it, half found it spicy. Should have kept some plain rice.
- Payasam was solid. Can’t mess up sweet milk stuff.
Big takeaway: Double the chutney next time. Everyone used like gallons. Also maybe warn folks about the puliyogare spice level. Also need faster dosa-making hands. Lots of work, smells will cling to clothes for days, but seeing people go back for thirds? Felt worth it.