July 15, 2009

Pulikuthi Upperi ~ Kerala Iyer Special




Any dry vegetable side dish is referred as Upperi/thoran in Kerala cuisine. Pulikuthi upperi is a signature dish of Palakkad iyer cuisine. Its a medley of veggies cooked in tamarind and curry powder. And the most relished combination for this side is a simple Tomato rasam. This combo is often made during the monsoon season during when, piping hot rasam is preferred. In Kerala, during the rainy season, we get monsoon variety of Ladies finger and Brinjal. Those special varieties give an extra kick to the already delicious dish. I don't have the pictures of those monsoon veggies. Shall update it later. This is a dish which uses only traditional/naadan veggies. In most homes, the veggies will be often handpicked from their backyard.

You need
Brinjal - 3 nos
Raw plantain - 2 nos
Lady's finger - 8 nos
Arbi/Taro root/Chembu leaves - 4 nos
Green chilli - 3 nos, slit.
Turmeric - a big pinch
Tamarind - marble sized
Salt


To dry roast and powder
Raw rice - a fistful
Red chillies - 3 nos
Methi seeds - 1/2 tspn


Seasoning

Coconut oil - 1 tblspn
Few curry leaves


Dry roast rice and red chillies together till rice turns slightly brown.Add the methi seeds just few seconds before you switch off the fire, since it gets roasted fast. Cool and powder it. Keep it aside.

Wash and cut the vegetables in to 1 inch long pieces. Cut the arbi leaves into strips of 2 inch width. Roll and tie into a knot. Cook the vegetables in enough water with turmeric, salt and tamarind extract and green chillies. Vegetables can be cooked well or fork tender. Both ways it tastes good. Its up to each one's preference.


Once the vegetables are cooked, stir in the ground powder and cook till all the moisture dries up. If you like it mushy, you can stop cooking before it turns dry. Sprinkle a tablespoon of coconut oil and few curry leaves. The dish is mildly spiced with little tanginess from the tamarind. Serve with rice and bowl of tomato rasam.








24 comments:

  1. This dish really brought me back to Nemmara. Thanks for the same. And ur instant manga kari is a hit in my home too :)
    Thanks for sharing. Take Care !

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  2. Vidya, Thanks for the quick comment.

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  3. This Palakkad special is new to me..I was wondering seeing what this pulikuthi is..looks healthy.

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  4. good one..easy to make and sounds so delicious too..would go so well with sambar rice..

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  5. Tangy yummay delicious curry looks so mouthwatering and very new to me.

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  6. Jaya, this post has made me long for a good bout of rain.
    I enjoy puliyakuthi upperi as is with rice and some papadam on the side.

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  7. SOunds really nice,i usually make different,thanks for this wonderful recipe:)

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  8. Totally new. I have never seen combination of brinjal and raw plantain before.

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  9. Mmmmmm Looks really delicious..
    Moreover nice combo of veggies.

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  10. VERY NICE..WILL TRY THIS FOR SURE..HAVE BOOKMARKED IT:)

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  11. pulikuthi recipe sounds tasty...something new to me!
    you have a nice space!

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  12. Nice one, actually very new to me. I have to try it sometime

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  13. Sounds so yummy - completely new to me as well.

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  14. healthful medley of vegetables,looks tasty :D

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  15. wow a palkad special curry ! Hand picked veggies from backyard.... makes me nostalgic:) BTW the upperi looks so delicious dear.

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  16. This is so new for me...very interesting..

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  17. this is new to me and sounds yum! the combination of veggies sound good :)

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  18. Sounds like a yummy recipe, Jayasree!

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  19. This recipe is so interesting. Never heard of it.

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  20. Aww... one of my favorites, thanks for sharing. Pulikuthi veggies are a nice change to the usual poduthuval and koottaan my mom used to make... your recipe brought back memories... I haven't had this dish in over a decade!

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  21. hi, the recipe i had is different, but think this will be better and sounds really yummy..cud u explain how to tie tht knot with arbi leaves..i didnt understand tht part..

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  22. Shankar, thanks for dropping by. If the arbi leaves are small, you start rolling from either of the broader side. And it will resemble like a rope. bring the ends together and put a knot. If the leaves are broader, cut into two and proceed. If you find this difficult, u can as well cut them into strips and add. I shall try to update the post with those pics soon, which will give a clear idea.

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