Gajar Pal Payasam

Kerala Cuisine : From the Kitchen of a Kerala Pattar

While returning home Friday evening, we stepped into the Kovai Pazhamudhir Cholai at Anna Nagar.  He had fresh Delhi Carrots, long and slender, and with the typical red colour of Delhi Carrots.
                                  
Image courtesy : Flickr/blogspot.


It was tempting all right.  Picked up about 600grams, along with some other vegetables and kept them in the fridge. 

What should have been an ordinary Sunday turned out to be a very happy Sunday.  My two sons, telephoned in to say that they were coming home for lunch with their families. 

As usual, when my wife becomes very happy, she finds a scape-goat in me.

"Yenna, Market Poyee Erandu Liter Paal, Oru Thengai, Konjam Mundiri Yellam Vangikondu Vaango.  Pera Kuttigal Vara, Vaykku Ruchiya Ethavathu Panni Vaikkanam."

"O.K. O.K.  Two liters milk, one coconut, some cashew nuts, what else?"

"Masa Masa Ennu Irukkame, Ponoma Vanthoma Endru Irukkanam.  Therinchutha?  Vantha Odane, Kulichuttu Saamiyai Pathudungo".

"Aanalum Bhagavan  Karunaiyee Karunai.   Ippadi Nadakkum Endru Yaaru Ethirpartha?"  It was more of an aside than a continuation of her speech.

She had tears in her eyes, and that would have fallen but for the door bell ringing.  The ayah, had come to dust and sweep the house and clean the utensils. 

Obediently, I took a walk to the nearest grocery shop, collected all the things that she wanted and in a record time of 30 minutes was back home.  In the meantime she had cleaned the Delhi Carrots, cut the edges and then having scraped the outer skin with a blunt knife, cut them into small pieces  and put them in the Prestige Pressure cooker to boil. 

Simultaneously she had put about two liters of milk, in a stainless steel Adukku, to boil with about one and half cups of sugar. 

One of the good qualities of Delhi Carrot is, it cooks very neat, and becomes soft and malleable without taking too much time.  After opening the cooker the cooked carrots were put in the stainless steel jar of the Sumeet Mixie till it became a homogenous paste. No water was added while the Carrot was being ground to a  fine paste. 

By the time this operation came to an end, the milk had started to boil. 

Leaving the carrot paste in the stainless steel jar of the mixie, she gave her full attention to the boiling milk.  Normally, once the milk starts to boil, the carrot paste is added.  But she would not do that. Being Kerala born, she would boil the milk till all the water in the milk is evaporated.  A very patient and time consuming affair.   The milk had to be stirred continuously otherwise it would overflow the Adukku.

The time has come to mix the carrot paste with the boiling milk on low heat  and an even flame. I think, here is where her culinary expertise comes into play.  She will not mix the paste and boiling milk at one go.

Her reasoning is very simple.  There is every possibility for the milk to curdle if the paste from the Mixie is mixed with the milk.  She will pour one laddle of the paste, stir the milk and watch for any untoward thing happening.  If everything is normal, laddle after laddle the paste would be individually mixed  and stirred till all the paste and boiling milk become a concentrated whole. 

The gas oven would come back to normal heat and the mixture stirred continuously till such time she feels that it is ready for the palate.  In a jiffy, it would come off the gas table, and allowed to cool, to room temperature.

Normally she does not add any thing other than chopped cashew nuts as garnish. 

"Amam, Ongalai Yaaru Pattaa Patta Vilai  Koduthu Jumbo Cashew Nuts Vangi Kondu Vara Chonna?  320 size Irukkaliya?"

I bit my lips. I had clean forgotten the instructions. Small size cashew nuts from Murugan Stores, whereas what I had bought was the Jumbo size from Nuts & Spices.

Any way it was a small misdemeanour.  She cut the nuts into small pieces and added them raw to the preparation.  

When the Delhi Gajar Payasam had come down to room temperature,  she cleaned a cup with her Pudavai Mundhaanai, and filled it half and brought it to me for tasting.  

                                        
Image courtesy : http://www.indobase.com/recipes/recipe_image/recipe_965.jpg

My God, it was Amirtham, lip smacking and this time she had out shone her previous efforts. 

"Yeppadi Irukku? "

But for the presence of my two sisters, I would have kissed her and given my approval.

But all I could say was, "Your preparation of this delicacy reminds me of my dead Mother".

PS : When served chilled, it is irresistible.


Rajaputhran.