Kottamalli Tokku - Coriander Relish

KOTTAMALLI TOKKU

My husband is very enthusiastic when it comes to shopping for food items. I really get inspired to cook a variety of dishes with all the different coloured fresh vegetables he purchases. But to my greatest horror he keeps getting bundles and bundles of coriander every time he returns from shopping. Most of the time I have to discard the half used up, dry old bundle half heartedly when the new bundle arrives. God bless the kindly greengrocer who drops an extra bundle of coriander as kosru ( complementary ) in our shopping bag even in these days of sky rocketing prices !

After tasting the store bought Kottamalli Tokku at my daughter's place I decided to prepare tokku at home using all the kottamalli ( coriander ) my husband buys from time to time. Now we have a constant supply of kottamalli tokku which we relish with every meal !

INGREDIENTS

Fresh coriander - 1 bundle ( makes two loosely packed cups when chopped)

Red chillies - 5

salt - 2 tsps

Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 tsp

Asafoetida - 1 pinch

Tamarind - 1 marble size ( soaked  in 1/4 cup of warm water )

Jaggery - 1 tsp

Gingely oil - 2 tbsps

Mustard seeds - 1 pinch

METHOD

1. Remove the roots and wash the fresh coriander thoroughly before chopping. The stems can also be used as it is good fiber and it also adds to the body of the finished dish.

2. Dry roast fenugreek seeds till  brown in colour and add the red chillies to it.

3. Roast till the chillies are crisp and the fenugreek seeds become dark brown in colour.

4. Heat 1/4 tsp of oil in a pan and add asafoetida followed by the chopped fresh coriander.

5. Saute till the leaves wilt.

6. When the coriander cools down grind it with the roasted fenugreek seeds and red chillies, salt, tamarind and jaggery into a smooth paste. Add the water used for soaking the tamarind while grinding.

7. Heat the remaining oil in the pan and add mustard seeds.

8. When the mustard seeds splutter add the ground paste.

9. Keep stirring and cook till the oil separates.

    

Cool and store the Kottamalli Tokku in a clean dry bottle. Enjoy it with hot rice and a dollop of ghee. Relish it with dosas or chapaties. Spread it on bread for a tongue tickling sandwich.

This post goes to "Herbs and Flowers in my Platter" - Coriander leaves/Cilantro event in Krithi's Kitchen  and here's the original event announcement in Seduce Your Taste Buds.