Since the recipe is a really short one, I decided to make up for it in the write up ;)
Have I told you about my very first air travel? I was 4 year old when it happened. It was a very short flight, Cochin – Trivandrum. (If you are not familiar with the route, it’s a very short route, 30-45 mins).
Well, the whole point of the trip, was for us to experience the air travel. Since my parents were bankers, they had this thing called Leave Travel Concession (LTC), and so that’s how our first flight happened.
Though I’ve vague memory of the whole event, I do remember some things very clearly. I was wearing one of my finest dresses, an off white and baby pink frock with frills and my Amma was wearing a blue cutwork saree, my Appa was in his standard dress code – Khadi Shirt & Mundu and my brother was donning his tight shirt and snug shorts being his standard small boy costume :)
I was excited and curious about the whole trip.However, what clearly stands apart in my memory is our welcome at Trivandrum.
We were going to attend a family get-together at my aunt’s place in Trivandrum. By the time, we reached my aunt’s home, the rest of my mother’s family were there and we were greeted by the whole jingbang, including the tradition of putting rupee note garlands on my Appa & Amma. There are pictures of the whole event in the family album which is probably why I remember it so clearly!
What stood apart during my childhood air travels was the glamour associated with the whole thing. People always used to wear their finest clothes, mesmerised by the smartness and fluency of the ground staff, in awe of the pretty air hostesses and handsome pilots, looking forward for the exquisite meals served in the flight. The whole thing was a glamourous and much anticipated event in itself.
Fast forward to today, I feel the glitz and glamour of air travel is missing, it’s not lost completely lost (let’s not forget the dedicated pages in fashion magazines for airport looks) but the old “zing” is somehow, MIA.
With the multitude of airlines present today, air travel is very common and affordable to many. If you take a quick scan of the passengers in any big airports, you can see people from all walks of life, people walking around in their pj’s with flip flops to dainty supermodel figures in pointed heels and couture dresses.
And this blog would not be complete if I didn’t discuss the food. But let’s forget about it completely, if you are in for a short trip. The word budget airline is almost synonymous with “no food” (there are exceptions, though).
These days I often hear people complaining about airline food most of the time. The funny thing is most often the complaint is, lack of food. Many a times, it so happens that by the time, the air hostess reaches your aisle, the food of your choice is over. I’ve also heard about parents complaining about lack of kid friendly food, even though they’ve specifically asked for it.
Earlier, I said, the glamour & glitz isn't lost completely, however when it comes to food, I think the word “glamour” and airline food, combined together is an oxymoron! I usually opt for veg menu, during my flights home and I end up with some thoran and parippu (Veg Stir Fry & Dal)
Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with “thoran” and “parippu”, it’s just that you are expecting the five star chef food experience as seen in airlines ad. You can always eat “thoran” and “parippu” at home, you don't have to fly high to eat that, right?
Ok, forget the main course, the two things that I always look forward in a meal is starter and dessert and you can be rest assured it will be some rock hard bread roll and watery payasam (am talking about the flights to Kerala here).
That being said, this recipe is courtesy of a flight trip to Kerala, now you may think that’s an irony, considering all that I just said about airline food. Well, I’m free to express my opinion (after all I’m a Malayali ;) and I’m ready to appreciate the good when I see it.
So, this salad was served on one of our flights home and it’s description in the menu, made me curious to try this. The funny thing is, when I opened and took the first bite, the voice in my head (which happened to exactly sound like that of my parents) exclaimed “aa cherupayar aayirunno etra valya karymayittu thanne” ;) (it was nothing but a glorified version of green gram)
Anyways, the salad was good, though it was just our simple and humble “cherupayar” (green gram / moong dal). It was flavourful, refreshing and filling.
I often get requests for healthy recipes, suitable for diabetic patients and people on diet. So here you go, this is a very healthy yet tasty and flavour filled dish. There is no dressing and the ingredients are all readily available.
Here is the recipe…
Add all the ingredients, except the crunchy snacks, to cooked cherupayar and mix well. Drizzle some lemon juice and top with the crunchy snacks. Your salad is ready…
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cooked green gram (cherupayar) ( (refer notes))
- 1 small Onion (chopped)
- 1 small Tomato (chopped)
- half of 1 small Cucumber (chopped)
- half of 1 small Carrot (grated)
- 2 tbsp Chopped coriander & mint leaves (each)
- 1-2 tbsp Crunchy snacks (it can be mixture, kara boondhi, sev or even corn flakes)
- Salt & pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients, except the crunchy snacks, to cooked cherupayar and mix well. Drizzle some lemon juice and top with the crunchy snacks. Your salad is ready.
Notes
You can add fruits & veggies of your choice, like cabbage, capsicum, green peas, baby spinach, lettuce, pomegranates etc; You can also add grated coconut, if you like.
You can also drizzle some extra virgin oil, if you like. You can use Amchoor (dry mango) powder or chaat masala to season the salad, for an added kick.
