Pakoda Kuzhambu:

Ingredients for Pakoda:

Gram flour 2 cups
Ghee 1/4 cup
Soda 1/4 spoon
Salt
Onions thinly sliced 1 bowl
Green chilies chopped thinly like sticks 1 cup
Curry leaves 1 cup
Ginger- garlic paste 1/2 cup
Oil for frying.

Ingredients for Kuzhambu:

Cricket ball size tamarind or 1 spoon of thick tamarind paste
Red onion 1 large finely chopped
Garlic 1 large peeled and semi crushed
Tomato 1 large chopped
Jaggery or brown sugar 1 spoon
Salt
Turmeric powder 1/2 spoon
Chili powder 1 spoon
Rice powder 1 spoon
Sesame oil 1 cup
Mustard seeds 1 spoon
Cumin seeds 1 spoon
Fenugreek seeds 1/2 spoon
Chana dal 1/2 spoon
Urad dal 1/2 spoon
Asafoetida 1/2 spoon
Dry red chilies 3-5
Curry leaves

Method:

In a wide tray have your gram flour well spread.

In a separate cup add salt and cooking soda. To this add the melted ghee/vanaspathi. Mix them thoroughly.

Drop this mixture to the flour tray. Evenly spred them and mix them.

Now add onions, green chilies, ginger-garlic paste and curry leaves to it.

Make a note….You should not add any water to this. The flour should be dry. Mix them well togather.

In a deep pan, heat oil.

Just before dropping them in oil. Sprinkle them with water(not too much) and drop it without any actual shapes. So that the onions are just caught up to the flour with very less water. Mostly improperly together. Fry it crisply…till onions are really reddish brown….with good aroma. Repeat the same procedure for every batch.

Method for Pakoda Kuzhambu:

In a deep pan, heat few spoons of oil. Add garlic, fry till its raw smell goes off. Further add onions, fry till they turn to golden brown color. Now add tomatoes, fry them till they loose their water content.

Now add salt, turmeric, chili powder, sugar and rice powder. Blend them together.

Later add tamarind paste and 2 cups of water. Cover and cook over medium flame.

Once the gravy consolidates…add pakodas to it. Allow it to boil once. Remove from heat. Let this sit for a while….pakodas get juicy over time!

In a separate pan, heat oil. Add mustard, cumin, asafoetida, fenugreek, chana dal, urad dal, dry red chilies and curry leaves. Let them pop and splutter well. Run this seasoning over the gravy.

Serve this along with plain steamed rice. Run a spoon full of ghee over it…..just before serving.