Puliyodharai

Puliyodharai is one of the all time favorites of many food lovers. When I prepared this time, it was a big hit at home. My kid loved the dish very much.

Lets see how to prepare this dish.

Ingredients:

Tamarind - 1 big lemon sized ball

Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp (max. of 10 to 15 count, adding more fenugreek gives a bitter taste)

Red chilli - 14

Asafoetida - a generous pinch

For seasoning:

Mustard - 1 tsp

Urud Dal - 2 tsp

Channa Dal - 2 tsp

Ground nut - 2 tsp

Preparation time: 1 hour

Servings: 4 Adults

Method:

Soak the tamarind ball in 1 to 1 1/2 cups of water overnight. 

Now, add little oil to a hot pan and roast the fenugreek seeds first. Just roast it for 2 to 3 minutes, make sure it is not roasted very dark. Keep it aside.

Add little more oil to the pan and add all the red chillies. If you are using asafoetida bar, add that also to the red chillies while roasting. Otherwise add it during seasoning.Roast the chillies in a way they are not roasted very deep. Keep it aside. 

Once cooled, grind together fenugreek seeds and chillies (and asafoetida if added)together in the mixie. Make it to a coarse paste. It need not be very soft like powder. Just make it to a coarse powder.

Now, take the tamarind extract from the soaked tamarind. In a heavy bottomed pan, add together tamarind extract and the ground mixture from the mixie. The tamarind extract can be little watery. When boiling, it will become thick.

During boiling, check for salt and chilli. The main rule in preparing puliyodharai mix is salt and chilli should be strikingly felt. If you still feel to have more flavor, add little chilli powder or salt  as per your taste. Add little oil to the mix when boiling. Allow the mix to boil until the tamarind extract becomes thick like chutney. If you take it with spoon, it should not flow like water. It should be thick.

In the mean time, add 3 to 4 tbsp of oil in a pan. Once oil is heated, add the mustard seeds. Once it splutters, add urud dal, channa dal, ground nut together and roast them together until they are golden brown. Take Care not to roast them until they become black in color. If you use asafoetida powder, add the large pinch of asafoetida to the seasoning and switch off the flame. Keep them aside. 

Dont mix the seasoned items to the tamarind extract. They will take the sour essence and you cant bite it when mixed with rice. When the tamarind extract becomes thick enough, switch off the flame. Puliyodharai mix is now ready

Prepare rice in the regular process, but make sure each grain of rice is separate. Dont boil it too much.

When the rice is still hot, transfer it to a big bowl. Add 3 to 4 tbsp of oil to the rice and wait for 2 minutes. Now add the puliyodharai mix and seasoned items together. Mix the rice and the mix together with a spatula. Make sure each grain of rice is mixed together with the puliyodharai paste. Check for salt. Add required salt as per your taste and mix it well. 

Allow it to cool for 30 minutes. Puliyodharai is now ready to be served.