vegetable thuvaiyal that are so tasty that will take you by surprise
thukaiyal has always been my favourite. traditional thuvaiyals you can find in village recipes.
because that is a must in their simple, nourishing food.
what is the difference between chutneys and thukaiyal?
chutneys are fresh and thukaiyal will last atleast last for a day, without refrigeration, if refrigerated will last for a week.
my aunt says her mother in law even when she was living alone even at her last days, for dinner she used to make fresh rice, rasam and paruppu thukaiyal and that too in the traditional “Ammi”
all traditional food was ground in Aatukal or Ammi. It was a good exercise and also the taste was out of the world. the reason is they say the heat from the motor in the mixie and grinder spoils the taste of the chutney or thuvaiyal.
today I was talking to my sis-in-law and then I told her about the pudina thuvaiyal (mint) in her wedding feast. that was almost 20 years ago, and I have tried so many combinations but am still not able to get that taste. this is what food does to you, triggers your memories, takes you back to places to relive, makes you feel nostalgic and creates a bond between the place or the person.
she said that it was a cook who used to come with his team and do for all their functions and festivals. I know, because even in my aunts house in village there was a team of cooks who came for all the functions.
This is a list of thukaiyal that we make it at home. you can store it for a week and enjoy.
remember the thukaiyal should be of a dough consistency sort of, meaning not watery. so you need to sauté the vegetables, coconut, or greens well so that all water is evaporated. Also if you use tamarind it is ok, but if you use pre-soaked tamarind water or paste, ensure that it is cooked well.
also it is always better to cook in simmer, I always tell my friend “you also don’t get cooked with it”. so you just need to put all the four burners into use and simmer everything and you can do your job. I do that only. very rarely my food gets burnt.
Thandu thuvaiyal : banana stem thuvaiyal.
I never believed when my Periyamma made this and that it was thandu thukaiyal. weekly once they made it in the villages. and another thing to note is, just because they were good for health they did not abuse it by eating it everyday.
buy tender thandu and clean it (removing the fibre, that itself is an art) and chop into fine pieces.
thandu, red chillies, tamarind, little coconut, little pottukadalai (chutney dhal or fried gram), curry leaves little, salt. sauté in a little oil in simmer, till thandu gets cooked well.
remove and grind. goes very well with dosai, idli, rice and roti.
peerkangai thukaiyal. Ridge gourd..
in villages they used the vegetable for sambhar or kootu and used the peels for thukaiyal. but I don’t use the peels unless we get it from our farmhouse, because so much of chemicals are sprayed. but the flesh inside is also very tasty.
ridge gourd, red chillies, tamarind, curry leaves little, salt. sauté in a little oil in simmer, till the veggie gets cooked well. grind and season with mustard seeds, ulutham paruppu and finely chopped onions. vera level taste.
pudalangai thukaiyal.
same as ridge gourd thuvaiyal.
pulichakeerai thuvaiyal . gonghura
Wash leaves well. sauté in a kadai with little oil. add salt, tamarind and grind.
thengai thukaiyal- coconut
break open the coconut, and take out chunks using your knife or the peeler edge. I use it, it is easier.
pour a tsp of oil, add mustard seeds, ulutham paruppu, red chillies, tamarind, salt, curry leave, ginger a piece and sauté well. add coconut pieces. sauté for 5 minutes let it cool and grind.
Ingj thuvaiyal
same as coconut thuviyal. except for no coconuts.
coriander thuvaiyal
wash coriander well, and add red chillies and salt, tamarind to taste. grind with very less water.
Paruppu thuvaiyal
Tuvaram paruppu a handfull, saute in simmer in a tsp of oil. till it becomes aromatic.
add red chillies, salt, curry leaves and a small piece of tamarind.
when cool grind it.