Bondas over pakoras: Four must-try Andhra breakfast-cum-snacks recipes during Mumbai rains

In Mumbai, south Indian breakfast is mainly restricted to idlis and dosas along with quirky innovations with the same two dishes. While a sizeable population of Telugu communities from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana reside in and around the city, Andhra food, excluding versions of Hyderabadi biryani, is yet to make it to the popular taste preferences among Mumbaikars.

A quick check on well-known restaurants serving south Indian dishes gives one a list of ‘Udipis', ‘Theerams', ‘Madras cafes' and ‘Thambis', but the city is devoid of outlets recognised for serving the best Andhra meals in the city. It may come as a surprise for many that while New Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore have their own Andhra Bhavan and local Andhra mess outlets, Mumbai does not have one. And the ones who set out to dedicate their culinary ventures to the much-needed cuisine had to shut operations during the pandemic.

After an extensive search, Mid-Day Online tracked down ‘Allam-Vellulli'--which translates to ginger-garlic - a restaurant serving authentic Andhra food in Navi Mumbai's Kopar Khairane. From Mysore Bonda to Semiya Upma, Abhishek Podishati, the Telugu chef at the outlet, shares with us four mouth-watering breakfast-cum-snacks recipes, which will add a new flavour to your monsoon food experiences.

Mysore Bonda

Ingredients:

1 cup maida or refined wheat flour

½ tablespoon (tbsp) baking soda, salt to taste

½ cup yoghurt or curd

½ tbsp cumin seeds

Method:

1. To make the batter, mix all the dry ingredients together with curd and set it aside for about 15-20 minutes. Add a little water and ensure the batter is thick in consistency.
2. The frying pan should have oil up to one inch from the bottom. Heat the oil at medium flame.
3. Check if the oil is ready by putting a little amount of batter in it. The batter should sizzle and come up, but should not change the colour immediately.
4. If the oil is too hot, the bondas will not cook thoroughly and one may not get the crispy texture on the outer surface. Bondas must be soft in the inside and crispy on the outside.
5. Serve the cute little bondas with coconut chutney.

Pulihora. Image credit: Abhishek Podishati

Pulihora

Ingredients:

Tamarind

Lemon slice

1 cup rice

½ tbsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp split chickpeas or chana dal

½ tbsp mustard seeds

1 tbsp split black lentils or urad dal

1 tbsp jeera, 2 red chillies

1 tsp of asafoetida, curry leaves

Coriander leaves

Salt to taste

2 tbsp oil

2 tbsp peanuts

Method:

1. Wash and soak the rice for 15-20 minutes. Simultaneously, soak the tamarind in a bowl of hot water. Cook the rice.
2. Roast all the other ingredients mentioned above and allow them to sit.
3. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, chana dal, urad dal, cumin seeds, red chillies, asafoetida, curry leaves, peanuts, salt and turmeric powder.
4. Add tamarind water and cook for 15-20 minutes.
5. Add the rice and mix well with tamarind puree. Let it cook for some time and serve in a bowl.

Also read: Touch of sweetness: How Mumbai's Goans are using black jaggery to stay true to culture, memories

Semiya upma

Ingredients:

1 cup vermicelli (semiya)

2 tbsp oil to cook the vermicelli

3 tbsp oil to make upma, salt to taste

1 tsp mustard

½ tbsp split black lentils or urad dal

1 tbsp split chickpeas or chana dal

2 dried red chillies, curry leaves

2 tbsp peanuts, 2 green chillies

2 finely chopped onions

½ tsp turmeric, 2 tbsp peas

2 finely chopped carrots

½ tbsp lemon extract

2 tbsp finely chopped beans

2 tbsp finely chopped coriander

Method:

1. Cook semiya in water. Add little salt while it cooks.
2. Heat three teaspoon oil in another pan and add mustard, urad dal, chana dal, dried chillies and curry leaves, peanuts and roast until it's crunchy on low flame.
3. Add green chillies and saute well.
4. Add onion and saute well.
5. Add peas, carrot, beans and saute for a minute.
6. Now add turmeric and mix well.
7. Now place the lid and cook until the veggies are cooked.
8. Add cooked semiya and mix gently. Be careful to not mash the vermicelli.
9. Add coriander, lemon extract and mix well.
10. Finally, serve the upma with green chutney.

Punugulu. Image credit: Abhishek Podishati

Punugulu

Ingredients:

2 cup dosa batter

1 tbsp rava

1 tbsp rice flour

2 finely chopped onions

1 green chilli (finely chopped)

Coriander (finely chopped)

1 tbsp cumin

Salt to taste

Oil

Method:

1. Take two cups of dosa batter in a vessel.
2. Add rava, rice flour, onions, green chilli, coriander, cumin and salt.
3. Add more rice flour if required to thicken the batter.
4. Dip your hand in water to make lemon-sized balls of batter. Drop them one by one in the hot oil.
5. Keep the flame low to medium and stir occasionally. Fry the punugulu until they are golden brown.
6. Drain off the oil and use a tissue or kitchen towel to remove the excess oil.
7. Serve the punugulu with peanut or tomato chutney.