.: evil jungle prince :.

Indian people will likely get a giggle out of this experimental entry, as its my attempt to produce ponganalu (savory Indian cakes) without the proper type of skillet -- namely a ponganala pennam (ponganala skillet). Instead, I used a Swedish pancake pan which produces a flat-bottomed cake as opposed to a properly rounded cake, which you can see in Mahanandi's beautifully photographed, detailed ponganalu entry.

Here they are! Not half as elegant as the original, but monster tasty, particularly when paired with a chili-infused peanut chutney. Oh wow was this a delicious combination of tastes. Following are the recipes I used, courtesy of Mahanandi who I cannot thank enough for sharing her beautiful food culture with us. They are repeated here only for my own purposes -- that is, to assist myself and possibly others prepare dishes such as this without the proper accoutrements/ingredients and using terms more familiar to North American cooks.

Ponganalu (Recipe Courtesy of Mahanandi)

1. To prepare the ponganalu batter, soak 1 cup rice and 1/2 cup urad dal in water for about six hours. Drain the water, reserving it to the side. Place the soaked rice/dal in a blender and add back just a little of the reserved water. Blend, adding a little water as needed until you get a batter which is the consistency of standard pancake batter. Allow to sit overnight to ferment.

2. The following day, you will find that the batter has increased in size after fermentation. Into this batter, add the following: 1 red onion or 6 shallots, 4 green chillies (can be left out if you wish), fine chopped cilantro, a few spoonfuls of garbanzo beans (canned, not dry), 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp salt.

3. Add some peanut oil to a ponganala skillet or Swedish pancake (blini) pan and heat to medium heat. Add the batter to each section and cover, so that the oil does not go everywhere. Allow to fry for five minutes. After five minutes, flip the ponganala and fry for five minutes on the other side until golden.

Peanut Chutney (Recipe Courtesy of Mahanandi)

1. Dry roast 1 cup of peanuts until fragrant. Set aside.

2. In the same pan, add a little peanut oil and fry 4 dried chillies, 1 small onion (diced), and 1 clove garlic (sliced).

3. Place roasted peanuts and fried chillies/onion/garlic into a blender together with 2 tsp tamarind juice, 1/2 tsp salt, and a little water. Blend, adding water as necessary until you achieve a hummus-like consistency (or thinner if you desire).

4. Remove paste from blender and set aside. Finally, fry 1 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp mustard seeds, and fresh curry leaves in a little oil. Stir this into the paste. Add more salt if necessary.