Basil

I bought a packet of basil from our local farmers market and did'nt know how to use them. I loved the fragrance and was desparate to use it in my cooking. Unfortunately my husband is not a fan of trying new things or the smell of basil.

Just to give you some facts, basil is widely used in Italian cooking. It is called "Ocimum basilicum". the smell reminds me of our good old "Tulsi" which is called Ocimum tenuiflorum. Apparently it tulsi is also called holy basil.

So i finally madea basil coconut chutney and basil thogayal. Boy, let me tell you it was super delish.

I will post my recipie for these two.

Basil chutney

basil leaves a hand ful

coconut 2 tbsp

tamarind paste 1tsp

green chilli 4

grind all the above and add salt to taste. Season it with mustard seeds and urad dhal. chutney is ready. serve for idli or dosa.

Basil thogayal

basil leaves 1/4 cup

urad dhal 2 tbsp

red chillies 2

perungayam a pinch

tamarind paste 1 tsp

In a pan, fry urad dhal and red chilli with litle oil till golden brown. the nadd the basil leaves and fry them as you would do for pudhina thogayal. let it cool and grind all the ingredients with salt and perungayam. in thogayal consistency. It tastes goodwith rice, bread and chapathi.