- 4
- 5 mins
- 10 mins
- 15 mins
KickingLemons
Pickled Spinach Chutney
Thokku, a term from the Tamil language, describes pickles that are made by grating or chopping and cooking the ingredients until they become mushy. This flavorful condiment, is a fusion of chutney and pickle. Unlike regular pickles, the main ingredients in thokku are cooked. Additionally, thokku can be made instantly without any soaking time, and the main ingredient is chopped into chunks. Keerai thokku is a traditional South Indian dish made with spinach, spices, and tamarind paste. It is a flavorful and nutritious condiment that can be enjoyed with rice or Indian breads like chapati or dosa.
Ingredients
Ingredients for blending
1 large onion (100g), roughly chopped
6 garlic (16g), roughly chopped
1 tbsp chili powder
3 tbsp water
Ingredients for tempering
1 tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
¼ tsp fenugreek
Ingredients for Thokku
1 tbsp ghee
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 bunch Spinach (130g)
Tamarind paste (10g)
¼ tsp asafoetida
2 dry chilies, chopped⅓ cup water
1 tsp salt
½ tsp sugar
KickingLemons
Directions
- Combine the onions, garlic, Kashmiri Chili powder, and water until a smooth paste is formed. If additional water is needed for blending, feel free to add more. Keep in mind that the cooking duration will increase to allow for the excess water to evaporate.
- Begin by heating a pan over low heat and adding ghee and oil. Once the oil has reached the desired temperature, proceed to add the tempering ingredients.
- Once the mustard seeds have ceased popping, proceed to add the blended paste.
- Mix thoroughly, increase heat to medium and let it simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the oil starts to separate.
- Add the chopped spinach to the pan and cook for one minute until it wilts and becomes coated with the masala paste.
- Then, add tamarind juice, asafoetida, salt, sugar. Give it a toss.
- Cover the pan using a lid, lower the heat to a simmer, and let it cook for an additional 4 minutes. Stir occasionally to avoid the thokku from getting burnt.
- Serve thokku with hot rice, dosa and idli.