Puli Inji

  Puli Inji. I came to know about this from a friend who always talks about having this with Biryani at another friend's place whenever I serve Biryani. Finally we got a chance to taste her Puli Inji and my fellas fell in love with the taste, a perfect blend of sweet and sour with a hint of heat. So this recipe is a courtesy from my dear friend Sameera. She served with her awesome Malabari Biryani, the rich, flavorful dish with very few ingredients. Haven't gotten it right yet, In shaa Allah will post it someday.

INGREDIENTS :

Ginger    - 1/2 Cup (finely chopped)
Green Chilly - 2 (finely chopped)
Tamarind Paste - 1 Tsp
Red Chilly Powder - 1/2 Tsp
Jaggery - 2 Tblsp
Flour - 1 Tsp
Salt - To taste
Oil - 2 Tblsp

Garnish :
Oil - 1 Tsp
Mustard - 1/4 Tsp
Curry Leaves - few
Dried Red Chilly - 1

METHOD :

   Finely chop ginger and green chillies. Heat a pan along with oil over medium flame and fry the chopped ginger and green chillies until the raw smell is gone. Move to a plate lined with paper towel and drain the extra oil. Then cook this ginger and green chillies in a little water along with red chilly powder and salt. Once it becomes soft, add the tamarind paste and jaggery, bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the flour in little water, add to this simmering mix and let it thicken.
 Finally heat oil in another pan, season with the ingredients under garnish and add to this. This step is optional.
 Puli Inji is served as part of Sadhya, the Onam meal and has many variations too. I'll post the recipe for another variety of Puli Inji that is common in my household, soon.
 It makes a fantastic side dish for fish biryani.

Tomato Jam

Tomato jam is one of the important side dish served along with biryani in weddings at our place. Though as an effect of modernization, the recipe has changed a lot with added fruits and nuts. This classic recipe is always a hit. Like tomato jam we have few more must haves with the meal, like boiled eggs, fried appalam and onion raita. Its very simple but tastes soo yumm.

INGREDIENTS :

Tomatoes   - 4 big ones
Sugar         - 1/4 cup
Ghee          - 3 + 1 Tblsp
Cashews     - 1 Tblsp
Raisins        - 1 Tblsp
Lemon Juice - 1 Tblsp
Salt              - A Pinch

METHOD :

    Blanch the tomatoes and remove the skin. Cool them a bit and in a food processor just mash them well. Don't puree them because the texture adds a nice texture to the jam.
   Heat a pan and add a tablespoon of ghee and roast the cashews and raisins and keep aside. In the same pan bring the pureed tomatoes cook under medium flame. Add the sugar with a pinch of salt. Let the sugar dissolve completely. At this point you can check the sweetness and add more sugar if you like, because if the fruits are not that sweet you might need more sugar. Then add the lemon juice. Reduce flame and let the mix evaporate, add the ghee now and let it thicken a bit.
   When it starts to leave the sides add the roasted cashews and raisins and remove from fire and cool down.
  This has a shelf life of a week and can be refrigerated for a month or frozen for about 3 months.