This is a menu very special to the people  of  Kerala. It was a great favourite  in our household too. Grandma made it once a week.

We would all sit around her and consume it holding between our fingers, a spoon devised from the Jack Fruit leaf, folded like a cone. She would relate stories from the Puranas. Sometimes, the stories would be about the famous Tenali Raman. Grandma was a walking, talking, library !  

Later, my Mom also used to prepare it once a week or once in ten days. The recipe remained unchanged. But the stories now included the Brer Rabbit series , Hans Anderson’s fairy Tales ,Grim’s Fairy Tales and Alice In Wonderland.

 Wonderful hand -pound unpolished rice was available in plenty those days and it would be lovely to have this hot gruel or kanji flavoured  with home made ghee with the side-dish made of Full Green Moong Dal and raw bananas laced with coconuts.

It is packed with vitamins and protein. Easily digestible, it is a very good post-illness food item The Dal also cools the system.

There were no takers for this in my husband’s place. Kanji was a term associated with fever. And mind you, fever  would  invariably demand  ‘Rasam Rice.’And the Art of Gruel & Puzhukku Making made a slow exit from my life to be revived after thirty years, when my parents moved in with us  at Delhi. The ‘Kanji once a week’ routine started and my son loved the Puzhukku and his Mallu friend enjoyed both the Kanji and Puzhukku.

The summer is on and let’s have this item on our table at least three days a week to cool our system to cope with the GRUELling  heat !

KANJI   or GRUEL:

Rice                       …………………………………………………….Two table spoons.

Ghee                      ……………………………………………………..Two Teaspoons.

(You can buy the hand-pound unpolished variety if available)

PUZHUKKU

Green   unbroken  Moong Dal (Pachappayiru or Payathamparuppu)……1 cup.

Raw Banana……………………………………………………………..2

Green Chilli………………………………………………………………1(  long   )

Curry Leaves.

Salt to taste.

Turmeric  Powder.

Grated coconut………………………………………..1 cup.

METHOD:

KANJI

Boil the rice in four glasses of water till the rice is completely done and disintegrates. Add a little salt and keep aside. Add one more glass of water if it is thick.

PUZHUKKU

In a kadai, place the dal and fry on a  low fire for a few minutes. Add water and turmeric powder. Slice the banana into half-inch pieces and mix into the boiling dal. Slit the green chilli and slide it into the mixture. After the dal and the vegetable get cooked a little, add the salt. When everything is cooked well, add the grated coconut and curry leaves and garnish with mustard seeds in coconut oil…this garnishing being optional.( Garnishing adds flavour to the dish and mustard seeds are supposed to add warmth to the body. In the rainy season, it would do good to garnish).

There you are! The items are ready!

 Take Kanji in a bowl and add a couple of spoons of ghee.  In a small bowl take a few spoons of the Puzhukku. Now go ahead and enjoy .

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