After the fishy business we planned for chicken curry, Since cooking rice for 6 of us at home was tedious, we thought about Putt: the steam cake! Putt was easier to be made so was the best solution since it needs no incredients other than the Putt powder ( sort of fried powdered rice ) that came readymade packets and some Jeera !
So putt was an easy business. Chicken preparation went aside. That was fine, with telephonic support from my mother, all the stuffs were purchased prepared and done as per her rules. Nothing was of much doubty and problematic as our chief cook Pradeep have experience watching the stuff made
Putt was something new to all of us. No one never have been involved in the matter at home. Everytime Putt was made in my home I might have been asleep and I was never interested how the junk breakfast stuff was being made. All I have seen is the steam coming out of the special apparatus: puttkutti. I knew the apparatus had water in the pot below and the rice powder and coconut in the Kutti. Its easy .
So we kept the pot of water to boil, and mixed the powder with little of salt water as per the instructions we had received. “No too much to make it like the chapathi dough, just a bit so that it should still be powdery and should set in shape when a handful was squeezed ”
Seems easy. That was done. Saltwater sprinkled and the powder mixed and the small cap was put in the pipe (kutti). Thanks to Harisree Ashokans comedy in a movie Chronic Bachelor. We never forgot that. Filled the first layer of coconut, and then with the mixture. One after another, so that the 3 pieces were got from one try of putt making.
The pipe was capped and was placed on the pot and we waited for the steam.
After the so called 7 minutes, by the time which the putt will have to be ready, nothing has happened. The steam was to come out of top of the cap of the pipe. And that was not happening. We knew something was wrong. After all, it’s the first time. I called home and asked mother what might have gone wrong. “may be you packed it hard, should have done loosely. Do one thing, punch holes though the cap-holes to let the steam through”
And we did it. Cooked for few more minutes and tried to take it out….. it was still powdery. That was not it is supposed to be. It isn’t so in the hotels, then what went wrong?
The steam had been leaking out of the pot where it was joined with the pipe. So that might be the problem. Lack of steam pressure ? Sp we took a piece of cloth and put it around the mouth of the pot so as to make the joint tight: steam tight.
That worked fine to stop the steam from escaping. Finally steam had to come out through the pipe and the powered to be heated and the nice steamy putt to be baked. We refilled the pot with more water and heated. waited for a few minutes for the steam to come, nothing was happening. As we sense some heat over the pipe, we took it out and still the putt came out as powder.
With chicken curry ready waiting to be eaten, Putt had to be ready in time. And that was not happening. Something was wrong , may be with the vessel. So we switched to plan B. Lets make it in Idli maker !
We filled it with the powder and the coconut stuff instead of idly and started to steam it. Waited for sometime and then took it ans see if the Pudly (Putt + Idly) was ready J
The same old steamed rice powder !
Hell !!!!!
This time the telephonic conference was with Pradeep’s mom. And she said the powder was not enough watered. So THAT was it.
Conclusion no 1:
Not enough water in the mixture can make the putt powdery !
Now we added more water to the mixture and put the stuff on. This time it came up well. Yippe yee ! the putt was coming up fine . finally that happened. Not nice and fine , it was ugly looking one. But a cooked putt hat tastes good.
We moved on to the TV to see if Windies can nail the Kangaroos in ICC champions trophy final, and Pradeep alone in the kitchen. Later he shift was made. This time he asked another one to take over as he went to a quick shower. They made the mix put it on everything was going ok. By that time Pradeep was back and was in the kitchen.
There was some noise and pradeep shouted “Ayyyoo”!
We ran to see that the pot was still there and the Pipe with the Putt was lying down!
The joint was loose and the steam pressure raised the pipe this time and the pipe moved up and fell down ! Steam power ! Yes the same one that ran the older trains.
The expert cook this time made the cloth that was wound much tighter and put the pipe again. This time we could see not the pipe, but the Putt itself raising up !
The steam was so powerful and the joint tight enough so that the steam worked to raise the rice powder and all stuff out of the pipe !
God !
Is this the kitchen or some kinda Heat Engines lab?
Later we made another conclusion :
Conclusion No. 2 :
Wit the steam power, extra water in the mix can kick the Putt our of the pipe !
The trainee chefs added more water to the mix. That was the cause.
Finally This was fixed. We added more powder and adjusted the wetness but this time, the Aluminium Pot which made steam began to leak.
Finally,
Conclusion no: 3
Putt is not the easiest food item to make, and if someone says so, he doesn’t know anything about The great Steam cake of Kerala
After this experience I swear never to look at Putt junk breakfast stuff .
Making putt is a real craft, and making nice good looking Putts are real Gifted craft !
No more the easiest made stuff. I think making chicken curry is easier thing
