PULIYOGARE GOJJU (SPICY TAMARIND SAUCE)

Huge tree. Long drooping leaves. Curvy fruity poddies held together by a vast network. Each pod is well groomed with a hard outer shell and a soft inner pulp. Inner than inner lies those nutty brown seeds, hard to crack. Shed those seeds and the shell. Remainder reminds us, “Hey , don’t you remember? A wealth of health hidden in me has made me popular the world over, thanks to Vitamin B, C, E, hmmm…forgot how many more letters…wait I’ll be right back with left – overs :)”

That’s Tamarind for us, a tangy sweetie Fruitie. When used as spice, it is called Hydroxycitric acid (HCA). Use it raw as a fruit when ripe, in desserts, jams and sauces or dry and grind to use as spice. Makes the dish taste nice.

Dish type: Traditional Sauce

Time required: 20 min

Yield: 100 gms

Ingredients for sauce

Tamarind                    1 lime size

Jaggery powder          2 tbsps approx. (depends on individual taste)

Salt to taste                 1 tsp approx.

Ingredients for Dry Frying

Red chillies                  10 nos. (5 nos. byadagi variety + 5 nos. Guntur variety)

Coriander seeds          4 tsps

Methi seeds                1 tsp

Cumin seeds                1 tsp

Black Pepper corns     1 tsp

Clove                          1 or 2 nos.

Turmeric                     A pinch

Dry coconut                3 tbsps (grated and powdered)

Turmeric pwd             A pinch

Black til seeds             2 tsp

Ingredients for seasoning:

Oil                               1 tbsp

Peanuts                       2 tsps

Mustard seeds             1 tsp

Channa dal                  1 tsp

Black gram dal            1 tsp

Asafoetida                   A pinch

Dry red chillies            2 to 3 nos.

Curry leaves                1 sprig

Directions:

Soak tamarind in water (enough to cover tamarind) for 2 hrs and squeeze to extract thick liquid.

Dry fry all ingredients listed above “for dry frying” separately and transfer each of them to a plate. When completely cooled, grind them to fine powder. Add this powder, salt and jaggery powder to tamarind liquid and mix them well.

Heat oil in a kadai. Add ingredients listed above “for seasoning” in the same order as listed. Now add tamarind liquid mix to the seasoning in the kadai. Let it boil well till the liquid turns thick enough to form paste like consistency. When done, switch off. When cool, transfer it to an air tight glass container.

Puliyogare Gojju is now ready.

Tete – a – Tete

Mix this with cooked and cooled rice, garnish with finely chopped fresh coriander leaves to make Puliyogare or Tamarind Rice

Recipe contributed by nonagenarian Smt. Lalithamma Ramamurthy

Recipes viewed here are a part of  "Mangala's Potluck" section in this blog