Vegetable Paniyaram

 Hot vegetable paniyaram ready for snack or lunch 

Main ingredients

Chop nuts and onions

My mother-in-law used to make spicy paniyaram by adding chopped green chillies, curry leaves, and cumin seeds. Though we liked sweet paniyaram, the idea about other varieties of paniyaram interested me. This is one such variety  that's tasty and nutritious. We don't have to prepare separate paniyaram batter, we can use idli batter. This turned out to be a quick one to prepare in the morning for kid's lunch. Here goes the recipe which can be done in the matter of minutes....

Preparation time: 10 min
Cooking time: 5 min
Serving size: 20 paniyarams

Ingredients

• Idli batter - 1 cup
• Mixed vegetables (Frozen or freshly chopped) - 1/2 cup
• Oil for seasoning and making paniyaram
• Onion - 1/4 of medium sized one
• Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Urad dal - few
• Cumin seeds -1/4 tsp
• Fennel seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Nuts - About 20 in nos

Note:

Saute the onions and vegetables

Paniyaram pan is required for this recipe

Preparation 

1. If not using frozen mixed vegetables, chop fresh vegetables(like carrot, beans) of your choice, into smaller pieces.
2. Chop the onion to smaller slices and set aside.
3. Bring a skillet to warm on medium heat and add oil.
4. When oil is warm, add the mustard seeds and once it splutters add the cumin seeds, urad dal and fennel seeds, followed by the chopped onions.
5. Saute the onion for a minute and add the vegetables.
6. Saute the vegetables for 1-2 minutes after which it is ready to go into the vessel that has the Idli batter. 
7. In a mixie/blender pulse the nuts or you can use a food processor to chop the nuts into smaller pieces.
8. Mix the seasoned vegetables and nut pieces with the batter.

Cook for a minute on each side

Cooking

1. Warm the paniyaram pan on medium heat.
2. Add 2 drops of oil in each of the moulds.
3. Add about 1 tsp of the batter that just fills the moulds, careful not to make it flow out of the mould.
4. After 1 minute turn over the paniyarm and cook for another 1 minute or till it is light brown.
5. The nutrient-rich paniyaram is ready to go for lunch.

Nutritional facts

The rice in the batter has enough of carbohydrate for kid's meal. The urad dal and nuts provide required protein and fiber for a meal. Onion improves the immunity. Vegetables like beans, carrots have iron, protein and vitamin A. For the health benefits of spices used refer "Essential Spices for Healthy Cooking".

Paniyaram ready to go for snack and lunch

The vegetable paniyaram is a good finger food for kid's lunch or snack. I make this nutrition packed item frequently for the kid's lunch. I'm sure it would be handy for lot of other moms. Let me know how you like this recipe and how your kids like it...

You may also be interested in these recipes:

Paneer Fried Rice

Stuffed Cheese Chapati

Sweet Wheat Dosa and Paniyaram