A - Z Karnataka Vegetarian Recipes ~ C for Congress Kadalekaayi / Congress Kadlekai

So far in the series,
A - Akki Halbai
B - Biscuit Rotti

I have been planning to do this A- Z Karnataka vegetarian recipe series for quite a while now and had somehow fixated on 'chow chow bhath' for my 'C' recipe. Believe it or not, I haven't posted khara bhath or kesari bhath recipes so far on my blog for that reason. However when I started to make a list for this series, somehow I thought of including recipes unique to the region as far as possible and chose this congress kadale kayi instead.

Congress kadale kaayi or kadle kai is the quintessential Bangalore snack, prepared by toasting peanuts and seasoning with spices. Kadale kayi or colloquially kadlekai (cud-lay-ka-e) means peanuts in Kannada. It is a quick and easy recipe and one can fix up this snack in less than five minutes if one already have toasted peanuts handy. It is commonly sold in Iyengar bakeries, small condiment stores and even in those push carts that appear in the evenings. One might even notice the chaatwaalas / street food vendors carry them to top the regional street treats like girmit, tomato slice chaat, nippattu masala chaat and others.

The Srinivasa Brahmin's bakery located in Gandhi bazaar, Bangalore is credited to have created this spicy snack in 1956. (BTW, that's the location where I used to got to college. I couldn't stop myself from mentioning it. Love the area. 👍) It was to boost their sales when there was a ration on all purpose flour / maida which they needed for their regular fare of bread, buns and rusk. 

The Indian National congress party is the grand old political party of India. One may ask why the name of an Indian political party associated with this snack. One of the common stories points to the Congress party split in 1969. In a parody, these kadlekai meaning peanuts came to be called Congress kadlekai since they are always split before seasoning. 

Peanuts in this case need no deep frying as in the case of chickpea flour / besan coated masala peanuts and so can be called a guilt free snack compared to other deep fried snacks. Care should be taken to toast the peanuts well until crisp and do not burn them. One can always adjust the seasonings to their preference. Even 1/4 tsp. of ground sugar can be added as well to the peanuts at the end if preferred but I didn't add. They can be enjoyed as a snack or can be used in chaat items.

1 cup - 240 ml
Ingredients: 
1 cup peanuts / ground nuts/ kadale kayi beeja
2 tsp. oil
1 small sprig of curry leaves
1/4 tsp. red chili powder (I added a little more. The quantity can be adjusted as needed.)
1/4 tsp. pepper powder
A big pinch of turmeric powder
1 pinch of  asafoetida powder
Salt to taste

Directions:
* In a thick bottomed pan, fry peanuts on low medium flame until light brown, continuously stirring. When done properly, the peanut must be crisp when tasted. I always fry the peanuts in a microwave until they turn crisp when tasted. This is easier and quicker than the pan fry method. I usually give a break every couple of minutes until they are done. 

* Let them cool down. Take a handful of peanuts and rub them between your palms. The skins will slip away. A little bit of skin here and there is fine. Repeat the process with the remaining peanuts until deskinned and halve them.  

* Heat oil in a pan on low flame and add the curry leaves. Fry them until crisp. Next add chili powder, pepper powder, turmeric and asafoetida to the pan and give a quick stir. Be quick since the spice powders may burn. 

* Immediately add the halved peanuts and salt. If preferred, 1/4 tsp. ground sugar can be added too. 

  

* Stir the peanuts until well coated with the spices. Fry for about a minute on low flame and turn off the stove.

* Remove the pan from the stove and let it cool a bit. When it is cool enough to handle, crush the curry leaves well with the hand.

* Let cool and store them in an airtight container. They can be enjoyed as a evening / time pass snack or in chaat items.

 'C' tidbits from a Kannadiga kitchen:

There are not many ingredients that start with the 'C' sound in a Kannadiga kitchen barring a few like the chiroti rave and chamacha (meaning spoon). 'Chiroti rave', pronounced chi (as in chin)-row-tee and ra-way is an indispensable ingredient in the preparation of the famous sweet dish 'chiroti' from the state. Rave means semolina and the variety used in the chiroti preparation is fine semolina and so, the fine semolina goes by the name chiroti rave in the state. How important is chiroti for a Kannadiga, you ask. Important enough to be 'the dessert' of a wedding feast of everyone and anyone, including mine. Chiroti rave is also used in holige / poli preparation unlike other states' versions where all purpose flour or wheat flour is used for the outer covering of the festive sweet flat bread.

Cluster beans are called chowli kayi in some regions while cheenikayi is pumpkin, chepekayi (pronounced chay-pay-kaa-e) is the guava fruit and chakotha is the pomelo fruit. Devanahalli, where Bangalore international airport is located is synonymous with the pomelo fruit.


'C' Dishes:
The variety of delicious and popular 'C' food compensates for the lack of the ingredients, I should say. I have listed below a few I can recall. 

* Chakkuli / Chakli - A deep fried savory snack
* Chattambade -  Masala vada, a spicy fried snack made with Bengal gram called so in some of the coastal areas 
* Chigli unde - Sesame seed laddus (balls)
* Chikkinunnde - Traditional deep fried balls with a sweet stuffing
* Chiroti - A layered and puffy dessert that looks like a poori. Eaten with a genrous serving of sugar and almond milk / milk.
* Chow Chow bhath - A combination of savory and sweet semolina puddings called khara bhath and kesari bhath served together
* Chuda / Chivda - A beaten rice flakes based snack made through out the state, a must in North Karnataka homes with evening cuppa. most of the days
* Chutney pudi - A dry spicy condiment 
* Churumuri - A quick and light snack made with puffed rice
* Churmundo - A Konkani style wheat laddu
* Chane gashi - A  Konkani chickpea based curry 

And a few from Kodava kitchen:
*  Chekke kuru pajji - Jackfruit seed chutney
* Chekke pappada - Jackfruit wafers
* Chikklunde - A unique kind of laddus made with puffed rice 
* Chouthe mor pajji - Cucumber and curd relish
* Chouthe pachadi - Cucumber chutney

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