Gongura Chutney/Pachadi (Roselle chutney)
You say gongura and I say Andhra! It’s The king of Andhra cuisine. The one and only gongura pachchadi. This chutney made with the sour leaves of the roselle plant is an absolute favorite dish, and I’ve always thought the store bought one was too oily and oversalted. So this year, I got a couple of plants at a plant sale. And it’s doing extremely well in the Florida weather. I harvested about 8 cups of leaves today, and set to work making this yummy chutney. My husband and I had it for lunch with hot steaming rice, and a dollop of ghee. Heaven! I researched several recipes, and used the Guntur recipe, the way it’s made in Guntur in Andhra.
Green Chili Thokku (Spicy Chili Reduction)
I am not sure what language thokku is in, most likely Telugu, but it refers to any fresh herb/vegetable pounded/ground to a paste with salt, tamarind and jaggery, and reduced in sesame oil. The key ingredients are tamarind, jaggery, and sesame oil. This recipe makes a thokku out of fresh green chilies and is dynamite!
Mint Rice (Pudhina Rice)
This is one of the easiest lunch/rice recipes. Perfect for summer afternoons, paired with a cucumber or onion raita and a cruncy papad. Fresh mint flavors this rice, I don’t add cilantro as I want the flavor of mint to be the dominant one.