Vellarika Pulinkari

Pulinkari is made in different styles with different vegetables. I however religiously stick to my mother's recipe. Lots of memories tag along with this dish. I started my journey into the world of cooking with "pulinkari". To my luck it turned out good :). It's a very simple recipe. Here goes...

Ingredients:
1. Vellarika - 1
2. Chilli Pd. - 1 tblsp
3. Turmeric Pd. - 1/2 tsp
4. Salt - as reqd
5. Tamarind pulp - 1 cup extracted from lemon sized ball
6. Curry leaves - 1 sprig
7. Methi seeds - a pinch (apprx 8)
8. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
9. Dry red chillis - 2 (broken)


For the coconut paste:
1. Grated coconut - 1.5 cups
2. Jeera - 1 tsp


Method:

1. Remove skin, deseed and make 1" cubes of vellarika. Pressure cook adding chilli pd., turmeric pd., salt and just enough water to submerge the pieces.

2. Make a paste out of coconut and jeera by adding some water. The paste need not be very smooth.

3. Once the pressure is off, add the tamarind pulp. A shortcut method would be to use tamarind paste (about 1.5 teaspoons). Add enough water and boil for 3-4 minutes.

4. Add the coconut paste. Adjust the consistency and salt. Let it boil for about 4-5 minutes.

5. Heat oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds, methi seeds, red chillis and curry leaves. After it splutters, add to the curry.

Everytime I make pulinkari I eat it with rice and yogurt and also crush a fresh green chilli...tastes really good.