
Prep Time | 15 minutes |
Cook Time | 30 minutes |
Servings |
servings
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Ingredients
- 1 lemon-sized tamarind
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 1 tsp Turmeric powder
To Roast And Powder
- 2 tbsp toor dal
- 2 tbsp black pepper increase or decrease per your heat tolerance
- 2 red chilies
- 1 sprig Curry leaves optional, but adds flavor
- 1 tsp Coriander seeds I don't always use, and can be optional
- 1 tsp Oil/ghee to roast the spices
To Temper
- 2 tbsp sesame oil more would be perfect
- 1/2 tsp Hing
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
Ingredients
To Roast And Powder
To Temper
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Instructions
- Soak the tamarind in about a cup of warm water, and extract the juice
- Heat the tsp of oil/ghee to roast the spices
- In this order, add the spices: toor dal, coriander seeds, black pepper, and finally red chilies, and toast.
- Add curry leaves at the end, and toast to remove all moisture
- Cool the spice mix, and powder coarsely
- Heat the 2 tbsp of oil, pop the mustard seeds, and add hing. Add the tamarind extract and cook until the raw smell goes away, about 5-8 minutes
- Add the powdered spices, lower the heat, and make sure to break up the lumps formed
- I drizzle a bit more sesame oil as the gravy thickens and cook till the oil glazes it
- Eat with hot steaming rice, with a side of kootu vegetable gravy) and papad.
Recipe Notes
My mom used to make this gravy on rainy days, and fry vathal/vadam/papads. Spicy in a good way, with the goodness of black pepper. It is supposed to rev up a waning appetite, and cleanse the system. Considered a pathiya food item (special restricted diet). Made for lactating and post-partum moms to help with healing, not sure how it works.
But, this is an amazing gravy and is wonderful on a bed of hot steaming rice. I always make a side of kootu (vegetables blended with a mild spice mix, and cooked with dal) to make a complete meal.
Best Combinations:
- Milagu kuzhambu, rice, avarakai/chow chow kootu
- Milagu kuzhambu, rice, vadam, vathal/appalam
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