Pulliyodarai
Ingredients:
- rice 400 ml
- tamarind the size of an orange
- channa dal 50 ml
- fenugreek seeds 1 tsp
- red chillies 11
- oil for frying and sprinkling
- mustard 2 tsp
- turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
- a pinch of asafoetida
- curry leaves 10
- salt to taste
Method:
Cook the rice by using sligtly lesser quantity of water so that the rice does not become mushy and the grains remain separate. Cool the cooked rice in a large
tray. Sprinkle 3 tsp of oil over the rice. Soak tamarind in 400 ml of water. Soak channa dal in a little water and keep aside. Dry roast fenugreek seeds until they
turn brown in color; grind into a fine powder. Halve the red chillies and keep aside. Squeeze out the tamarind and pour the tamarind and water solution through a sieve
into a vessel. Drain the channa dal. Heat a little oil in a large saucepan with a capacity if at least 2 litres and add mustard and halved red chillies. When mustard crackles,
add channa dal and saute until the water in it evaporates; now add turmeric powder, water and tamarind solution, powdered fenugreek seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves; reduce the flame to the minimum,
stirring the contents all the time. In 30 or 40 minutes the aroma of tamarind subsides, also all the water in the contents of the sauce pan evaporates and the contents gradually thickens into a sauce.
Now turn off the heat and cool. Add this pullikachal sauce to the rice. Add salt to taste and mix well. Serve hot.