Monday, August 18, 2008

Okra Curry

Pachadi in Tamil Nadu, usually involves yogurt with a vegetable and/or fruit and a tempering with mustard seeds and chillies. This is a Kerala Pachadi which is more a curry of vegetables. It's pretty unique.


Okra Pachadi

8-10 pieces of Okra, cleaned and chopped
Gingelly Oil (you could use any oil you have on hand - the gingelly oil just makes it more authentic)
1 tbsp Tamarind Paste, dissolved in 1 mug of water (OR) 1 large tbsp fresh tamarind
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1-2 tsp Chilli Powder
2 tbsp shredded Coconut
1 tbsp roasted Sesame seeds
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tsp Sugar

Seasoning: Mustard seeds and red chillies.

Fry the okra in a little gingelly oil on a saute pan. Add the tamarind, turmeric and chilli powder and allow to cook until the fresh smell of the tamarind disappears.

Grind the coconut, sesame and mustard seeds and add it to the cooking okra. Add salt and sugar.

In a separate pan, heat some mustard seeds with a tiny bit of oil. Add the red chillies. When the mustard begins to splutter, add this seasoning mixture to the okra curry.

Serve warm with rice or rotis.


This is off to Srivalli for her Curry Mela. The round-up is going to be one for the bookmarks!

Srivalli has started a Campaign to Heal by raising money for Lakshmi, a mother of 2 children, who desperately needs heart surgery. In India, without insurance, it is almost impossible to get a loan for major surgery, even when it is life-threatening. To find out how you can help, please see Srivalli's post.

15 comments:

Kumudha said...

Okra dish looks so tasty! I'm sure this will taste great with chappatis!

Beth (jamandcream) said...

I love okra but find it hard to come by where I live. The dish looks delicious.

Anonymous said...

Okra is one of my favorite vegetables. your's looks so amazing :-)

Ranjani said...

I heart Okra, and am always on the look out for new okra recipes- I'm bookmarking this!

As usual I have missed Srivalli's event...I suppose I'm just too slow:(

Bharti said...

That looks super delicious. I'll give it go when I get okra next. BTW, is gingelly oil the same as sesame oil?

Arundathi said...

Kumudha - yup - it tastes great with rice and rotis.

Beth - Thanks! I guess you could use frozen okra too - they are easily found in Indian stores.

Dindintonight - Thanks!

Ranjani - Do try it. You can still make it to Valli's event - I think the deadline is the 20th.

Bharti - Yup - its the same. Will update my post too. Thanks.

Srivalli said...

thanks for the lovely entry Anu...looks awesome!

Srivalli said...

Anu, I am really so sorry for missing out that last para!...thank you so much for the support!..

Jayashree said...

Love this pachadi. I usually grind some green chillies too.

Sunshinemom said...

I am not fond of this one so rarely make it, but husband had it once at Mummy's place and insists on my making it!!

Rajani said...

hey nice and quite different from the usual vendakkya pachhadi that we make at home. will try.

Anonymous said...

Had to look up gingelly oil -- turns out its sesame seed oil.. Looks like I have enough to make the authentic version :)

Arundathi said...

Valli - you are very welcome. Thanks.

Jayashree - That's a nice idea. thanks.

Sunshinemom - Now you've gotta make it for him! My husband too loves his mom's and I learned because of that, but I enjoy it too!

Rajani - Cool! Let me know if you enjoyed it!

Jude - Yes, they are the same. I hope you enjoy it!

Anonymous said...

I tried making this with 10 pieces of okra.....but it just made one tiny bowl of vegetables.....and the seasonings are very overpowering for the amoint of vegetables. Do ypou think you might have used more than 8-10 pieces of okra?
Mary

Arundathi said...

Mary - oh i'm sorry it turned out to be too overpowering. i didn't count the actual no. i used but kinda eyeballed it - i'm sure there wasn't more than a dozen though.
it is a very strong curry - maybe next time increasing the amount of okra or reducing the spices will help.