Andhra Snack and Sweet Platter ~ Fried Cashews

Some 'platters' are going to be posted here this week, as part of the 'Indian Thaalis and Platters' themed month long marathon. I could not decide what to present under this theme among the jumble of ideas I had. Initially I wanted to do a colorful poori platter, a thought I have been nurturing for years now. I however discarded the idea when I cooked three pooris under breakfast theme. Some of the ideas I kept contemplating included a millet platter, steamed dishes one, a platter with variety of pohas, pakoda platter, vrat ka khana, a breakfast platter with Karnataka style 'bhaaths', 'rice' platter, parathas, dosas, guilt free snacks, sandwiches, fusion food and so on. I kept on listing the dishes that could go under each category but ended up altogether with something else when it was time to implement the ideas.

The first one in the series is a traditional platter that would have served as snack time food for kids, up until a generation ago in the state of Andhra Pradesh besides some of them being festive food. This is what my mother and her siblings would have as an after school treat, all freshly homemade and stored in big tins to snack on for a week or two. It was a time when people moved around a lot instead of being couch potatoes and no machines to substitute for their work. It was a time when kids played around instead of being glued in front of televisions and computers. Also a time when low-cal food wasn't a fad yet and hence no guilt attached to eat these high calorie foods. In fact, traditionally sunnundalu is considered to be one of the highly nutritious foods to consume.

I am not into frying that much and it would be a big fat lie if I say that I make these traditional goodies as regularly as my grand mothers used to make. Thanks to a wedding I attended in Los Angeles this February, this platter happened. The bride's parents who happen to be my cousin and his wife had brought all those sweets and chegodi from India and I happened to get a big batch of those. The rest of the savory snacks are store bought. The idea of this traditional platter occurred when I remembered that these were the snacks my mother grew up on. The only exception being jeedipappu burfi / cashew burfis that I included in this platter because I had them though my grandmother never made them. The cashews would be a special treat for guests.

I have ariselu, ladlu and cashew burfi under the sweets category.

Ariselu / Athirasalu - This is a traditional sweet prepared using freshly ground rice flour and jaggery syrup. Freshly ground flour is the key here. Store bought rice flour doesn't work in this recipe. Small portions of the dough is patted and deep fried. This stays fresh at least for two weeks or more. This sweet is commonly prepared in south India, Maharashtra and even in some eastern parts of India and go by different regional names. 

Boondi laddu - These laddus are one of the traditional sweets of India and popular through out the country. These laddus are made with fried, tiny chickpea flour balls added to sugar syrup and shaped into balls. 

Cashew burfi / Jeedipappu burfi - Burfis made with a cooked mixture of ground cashews and sugar.

Sunnundalu - A highly nutritious laddu from Andhra Pradesh which is prepared using black garm / urad dal, both with husked and skinned variety. It can also be made with moong dal. The recipe can be found here.

I have chekkalu, chakli, chegodilu, mixture, spicy cashews under the savory snacks. Chekkalu are fried rice flour crisps that are also made in other parts of south India. Both chakli and chegodi are rice flour based snacks that are deep fried. Chakli are spiral shaped where as chegodilu are tiny rings. Where as mixture is literally a mixture of boondi and spicy sevs with a tempering of curry leaves and peanuts.

The fried, spicy cashews are homemade which are quick and easy to make. They are a savory treat though high in calories. Any spice powders according to preference may be added but I added only salt and chili powder here as my grandmother used to make. Also remember not to fry the cashews in big batches. Cashews turn golden brown quick and by that time all the cashews are flipped / tossed, some may get burnt.

Ingredients:

Cashew nuts

Oil / ghee as needed for shallow frying

Salt to taste

Chili powder to taste

Directions:

* Heat ghee / oil in a pan and don't bring it to a smoking point. Add a handful of cashews.

* Fry them on low heat until golden brown on both sides, flipping them in between. Transfer them onto a plate lined with paper towel and fry the remaining cashews.

* Turn off the stove and transfer any remaining ghee / oil that was used to fry to another cup. Add the fried cashews back to the pan and add salt and chili powder. 

* Toss the pan well so that the cashews are coated well. Serve them immediately or store them in an airtight container.

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