Parupu urundai kulambu
Paruppu urundai kuzhambu – This is one of the popular veg gravies of Tamilnadu made by cooking spiced lentil balls in a tamarind based curry.
These lentils ball or paruppu urundai when cooked in the tangy gravy gives an exquisite taste same as paruppu vadai. Unlike Masala vada, these urundais are either steamed or cooked directly in the gravy.
Paruppu urundai to steam or not?
This is absolutely a personal choice. Yes! You can steam the balls in a steamer or idli maker for ten minutes and add them to the gravy. Or add directly and cook at medium heat as I do. I always prefer the latter method instead of steaming separately. This is hassle-free and also tasty because the lentils are necessarily cooked in spicy tamarind juice.
Steamed urundais have their own advantages like being soft. I have seen some do steaming and shallow frying and adding the balls to the gravy. This method gives Vada curry taste to the parupu urundai kulambu.
Whatever method you choose just make sure to cook the dal balls inside out thoroughly.
Tips to make a perfect Paruppu urundai kuzhambu:
- I always prefer urundais with more gram dal and less toor dal. The urundai kuzhambu taste like steamed vadas paired with tamarind gravy in this way.
- Don’t grind the dals coarsely and do not use water to grind because the balls will disintegrate in the gravy.
- Make small size balls if cooking directly in the gravy. For large batches, you can steam the balls for 5mins before adding.
Serving suggestions:
Serve this gravy with hot rice topped with little ghee or sesame oil and Potato fry and appalam(fried urad papad). This dal balls gravy is also a good match with soft spongy dosas.
Few interesting sides:
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Paruppu urundai kuzhambu recipe
Equipment
- Cooking pan
- Blender
Ingredients
To make balls:
- ½ cup Gram dal
- ¼ cup Toor dal
- 1 tsp Fennel seeds
- 2 Red dry chillies
- ½ tsp Salt
- 2 pinch Asafoetida
To make coconut paste:
- 2 tbsp Coconut
- ½ tsp Cumin seeds
- 1 tsp Fried gram
To make gravy:
- 2 tbsp Sesame oil
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
- ¼ tsp Asafoetida
- 4 Garlic cloves chopped
- ½ cup Onion
- ½ cup Tomato
- ¼ tsp Turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp Sambar powder
- 1 Cup Tamarind water
- 2 cups Water
- 1 tsp Salt
Instructions
Preparation:
- Soak 1/2 cup of gram dal and a 1/4 cup of toor dal in a bowl of water. Wash and soak unclean lentils.
- Add 2 dry chillies and 1tsp of fennel seeds along with the dal let the items soak for 2 hours.
- Soak gooseberry sized tamarind in warm water for 20mins.
Recipe for urundai kuzhambu:
- How to make paruppu urundai:
- Drain water from the soaked dal mixture, add a generous amount of asafoetida and a half tsp of salt.
- Take this mixture in a blender and grind into a paste without using water. The moisture from soaked dal is enough to blend.
- Make small balls from the mixture and keep aside.
- Make coconut paste:
- Blend two tbsp of coconut with 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds and a tsp of fried gram(pottukadalai). Grind into a smooth paste by adding a little bit of water.
- Keep aside.
Paruppu urundai kulambu recipe:
- Heat 2tbsp of sesame oil and season with a tsp of mustard seeds and a pinch of asafoetida.
- Add finely chopped or crushed garlic cloves and a few curry leaves.
- Saute few seconds and add half a cup of onions and stir until transparent stage. You can use shallots for better taste.
- Next, add chopped tomatoes and cook till soft.
- Add a 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder and 1tbsp of sambar powder.
- Next, add a cup of tamarind water with a cup of water and mix well. Bring to boil.
- Add the coconut, cumin and fried gram paste with a tsp of salt for the gravy.
- Mix, cover with a lid and cook the gravy for five minutes. When the raw smell of the tamarind goes off completely, add the dal balls(paruppu urundai) gently. Reduce the heat, cover with the lid and cook for 5mins.
- Flip the balls carefully after 5mins and cook the other halves of the urundais. Cooking the inner portion of the balls properly is important.
- Switch off and serve with hot rice, appalam and potato kara kari.
Video
Notes
1) You can steam the balls for 10mins before adding them to the gravy. In that case, reduce the total cooking time of the kuzhambu.
2) Do not do coarse grind as the balls tend to brittle and lose their shape. While cooking the balls make sure the heat reaches its center. Keep the heat medium and cook well. Before switching off, you can break one ball to check the inner part.
Nutrition
Preparation:
- Soak 1/2 cup of gram dal and a 1/4 cup of toor dal in a bowl of water. Wash and soak unclean lentils.
- Add 2 dry chillies and 1tsp of fennel seeds along with the dal let the items soak for 2 hours.
- Soak gooseberry sized tamarind in warm water for 20mins.
Recipe:
How to make paruppu urundai:
- Drain water from the soaked dal mixture, add a generous amount of asafoetida and a half tsp of salt. Take this mixture in a blender and grind it into a paste without using water. The moisture from soaked dal is enough to blend.
- Make small balls from the mixture and keep aside.
- Make coconut paste. Blend two tbsp of coconut with 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds and a tsp of fried gram(pottukadalai). Grind into a smooth paste by adding a little bit of water. Keep aside.
How to make urundai kuzhambu:
- Heat 2tbsp of sesame oil and season with a tsp of mustard seeds and a pinch of asafoetida. Add finely chopped or crushed garlic cloves and a few curry leaves.
- Saute few seconds and add half a cup of onions and stir until transparent stage. You can use shallots for better taste. Next, add chopped tomatoes and cook till soft.
- Add a 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder and 1tbsp of sambar powder. Next, add a cup of tamarind water and a cup of water and mix well. Bring to boil.
- Add the coconut, cumin and fried gram paste with a tsp of salt for the gravy. Mix, cover with a lid and cook the gravy for five minutes.
- When the raw smell of the tamarind goes off completely, add the dal balls(paruppu urundai) gently. Reduce the heat, cover with the lid and cook for 5mins.
- Flip the balls carefully after 5mins and cook the other halves of the urundais for 5 more mins. Cooking the inner portion of the balls properly is important.
- Switch off and serve with hot rice, appalam and Potato kara Kari.
Tips:
1) You can steam the balls for 10mins before adding them to the gravy. In that case, reduce the total cooking time of the kuzhambu.
2) Do not do coarse grind as the balls tend to brittle and lose their shape. While cooking the balls make sure the heat reaches its center. Keep the heat medium and cook well. Before switching off, you can break one ball to check the inner part.
so yummy!! i love it! i ll definitely try it!!
Taste and yummy