Andhra style Gongura pachadi | Pulichakeerai thokku
Gongura pachadi is an Andhra style chutney recipe prepared with fresh sorrel leaves, garlic, fenugreek seeds and spices. Serve this Gongura chutney or pachadi with hot rice and ghee for a quick meal.
Gongura is called Sorrel leaves in English, pulicha keerai in Tamil, Pitwaa in Hindi, Mestapat in Bengali and that’s all I know. It somewhat proves that Gongura is widely consumed in all parts of India.
In Tamil Nadu, they use these green leaves as pulichakeerai thokku or pulichakeerai kootu.
This pulicha keerai thokku is popular in villages as the best accompaniment for rice.
It goes well with baby potato fry and these both compliment each other nicely.
Which happens to be my family’s favorite too 🙂
Though people grow these leaves widely for food, they have excellent medicinal values and few of them I mentioned here.
Nutrition info source: https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/herbs-and-spices/sorrel.html
What is Andhra Gongura pachadi?
This Gongura pachadi is a popular Andhra recipe used as a side dish for rice. You might have heard atleast once if you are an Indian or an Andhra food lover. Call it Gongura chutney or Gongura pickle or pachadi the basic recipe is the one I gave here that many Andhra families follow.
If you wish to have it as pickle form, use more oil and red chilli powder as per taste. And cook the pachadi again in oil after grinding for few more minutes. Cool this fully and store Gongura pickle for up to six months.
Andhra cuisine is popular for its chutney/thokku/pickle recipes and their daily food has atleast one portion of any one of the pachadi.
The very mention of the name Gongura makes one Telugu food lover drool 🙂 Gongura Chicken, Gongura mutton, Gongura Pappu are other popular options from this cuisine. Make this gongura pachadi ahead in large quantities and store it in the refrigerator. You can add a scoop of this whenever you make gongura chicken or mutton. I have done this many times when I am in a hurry and definitely, the authentic taste of gongura chicken was never compromised.
You may like these popular Andhra recipes.
Sorrel leaves health benefits and side effects:
- Gongura helps to regulate blood pressure as it has a good amount of potassium. Hence it can reduce the risk of even stroke.
- Vitamin A and Beta carotene in sorrel leave help in improved eyesight and eye health.
- The high dietary fiber content helps for better digestion, improving gastrointestinal problems.
- Finally, it is also known to reduce inflammation and pain. Some studies going on to find the connection of this sorrel in cancer treatment.
Note: As a word of caution, consuming gongura in large amounts will be dangerous because of the toxin(oxalic acid) content it has. Moderate small quantities are always good for healthy consumption.
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Gongura pachadi | Andhra style Gongura chutney | Pulichakeerai thokku
Equipment
- Flat frying pan
- Blender
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 3 large cups Gongura leaves (Pulicha keerai)
- 4 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- 8 garlic pods
- 8 red chillies
- ¼ tsp asafoetida
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ tsp chilli powder
- ½ tsp jaggery
Instructions
Preparation:
- Pluck the Gongura leaves from the stems and clean them properly to remove the dirt and sand.
- Chop into half if the leaves are too big.
- Chop garlic cloves.
Recipe:
- Heat 4tbsp of sesame oil in a cooking pan.
- When the oil is hot enough add a tsp mustard seeds and a tsp of fenugreek seeds.
- Let the mustard seeds start crackling and fenugreek seeds become light brown color.
- Now add half a tsp of cumin seeds and fry for ten seconds.
- Next, add finely chopped garlic and split dry red chillies.
- Reduce the heat and fry the garlic for 30 seconds.
- Add a 1/4 tsp of asafoetida.
- Now add 3 large cups of Gongura leaves and let them cook in oil.
- Cook the leaves for around 6 minutes until they shrink.
- Maintain the heat in lower settings to avoid burning the Gongura leaves.
- Don't let the leaves become dark.
- Add 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder and 3/4 tsp of salt as per taste.
- Also, add half a tsp of red chilli powder and saute with the leaves for 30 seconds.
- Finally, add half a tsp of jaggery and switch off.
- Let this mixture cool down for a while and grind into a coarse Gongura chutney.
- Do not add water while grinding and this Gongura pachadi should have a grainy texture like this.
- Store this pachadi for up to a month in an airtight container and use clean spoon every time when you scoop the required pachadi.
- Serve this tasty Andhra Gongura pachadi with hot steamy rice topped with ghee. Goes well as Gongura pickle with dosas and appam.
Video
Notes
1) Use fresh Sorrel leaves to get a better taste.
2) You can also use onions along with garlic but you cannot store this onion version for more than two days.
3) Sesame oil is the best choice for this pachadi.
Nutrition
Preparation:
- Pluck the Gongura leaves from the stems and clean them properly to remove the dirt and sand.
- Chop into half if the leaves are too big. Chop garlic cloves.
Recipe:
- Heat 4tbsp of sesame oil in a cooking pan.
- When the oil is hot enough add a tsp mustard seeds and a tsp of fenugreek seeds.
- Let the mustard seeds start crackling and fenugreek seeds become light brown color.
- Now add half a tsp of cumin seeds and fry for ten seconds.
- Next, add finely chopped garlic and split dry red chillies.
- Reduce the heat and fry the garlic for 30 seconds. Add a 1/4 tsp of asafoetida. Now add 3 large cups of Gongura leaves and let them cook in oil.
- Cook the leaves for around 6 minutes until they shrink.
- Maintain the heat in lower settings to avoid burning the Gongura leaves.
- Don’t let the leaves become dark.
- Add 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder and 3/4 tsp of salt as per taste.
- Also, add half a tsp of red chilli powder and saute with the leaves for 30 seconds.
- Finally, add half a tsp of jaggery and switch off.
- Let this mixture cool down for a while and grind into a coarse Gongura chutney.
- Do not add water while grinding and this Gongura pachadi should have a grainy texture like this.
- Store this pachadi for up to a month in an airtight container and use a clean spoon every time when you scoop the required pachadi.
- Serve this tasty Andhra Gongura pachadi with hot steamy rice topped with ghee. Goes well as Gongura pickle with dosas and appam also.
Tips:
1) Use fresh Sorrel leaves to get a better taste though old leaves are also suitable to make pachadi.
2) You can also use onions along with garlic but you cannot store this onion version for more than two days.
3) Sesame oil is the best choice for this pachadi.
