Chundakai Vathal Kuzhambu

You will need:

• ½ cup chundakkai
• ½ cup grated coconut
• few curry leaves
  
• 1½ big onion (chopped finely)
• 3 tbsp tomato puree or ( 1 big tomato chopped finely)
• 7 garlic pods(chopped roughly
• 2 tbsp sambhar powder
• 2 cup water
  
• salt for taste
• 1 tbsp sugar
  
• tamarind to taste
  
• 3 tbsp gingelly oil(nallennai)
• 1 tsp gram flour (kadala mavu)
• 1 tsp rice flour
  

Procedure:

Step 1:

Dry roast the coconut and curry leaves:

Heat a non stick pan on medium heat and add the grated coconut along with the curry leaves. Roast in low flame till you get nice aroma and dark brown color. In low flame it will take 5 mins. Roasting the coconut at high flame will result burned coconut  which will give bitter taste.

Allow it to cool and dry grind it using a blender or mixie to get fine powder. 

Roasted coconut Powder:

Step 2:

Heat oil in a pan and add chundakkai to it and fry it for 2 to 3 mins. Then add chopped onions, chopped garlic along with chundakkai and keep frying till onions turns transluent.

Step 3:

Add the sambhar masala powder now and saute it for a min. Then add the tomato puree.

Hint: If you are adding tomato pieces, better to add it before adding sambhar masala powder.

Step 4:

Now add the tamarind along with water and salt. Lower the heat and allow it to cook for 20 mins till the oil comes on top.


Step 5:

Mix rice flour and gram flour with  ½ cup water and keep it aside.

Step 6:

Now add the roasted coconut powder. Then add the rice flour gram flour paste and stir it nicely. Close with a lid and allow it to cook for 3 more mins. You can add sugar/sarkarai at this stage.

Serve it hot with white rice. If you dont like bitter taste then reduce the chundakkai to ¼cup. Using nallennai will take out the bitter taste from Chundakkai.