Monday, May 10, 2010

Puli inji/Ginger Pickle/Ginger curry

Today I am going to share with you another traditional Kerala dish.It is Puli Inji - Ginger curry. This is actually considering as a pickle and is one of the main dish in Kerala feast. We mainly serve 2 or 3 pickles in the feast: ginger, mango and lemon. This puliinji is one of them.

There is a story behind the deliciousness of the pickle.I don't know whether you guys heard about the story of Vararuchi who was a member of King Vikramaadithyan's court, (around 300 AD). When he was searching for a girl as his partner, he set four conditions (to find out smart & intelligent girl - :) ). One of the condition was the girl should prepare 101 curry for his lunch. He visited so many home but none of them could satisfy these conditions. At last he reached  a poor peasant's home. An old man and his grand-daughter lived there . He told them about the reason of his visit and explained the conditions. The girl assured all his conditions. You might be thinking that the girl prepared 101 curries for his lunch, No, she just prepared the ginger curry which is same for preparing that many curries!.

We prepare the pickle day before the feast so that we can keep it overnight and will be perfect for the next day's feast. We can use this for a week or two by keeping it in a refrigerator.On Onam festival, Amma used to prepare these pickles on Uthradam day night. I always help her for  cleaning &cutting the veggies. But she never let me  cook any dishes especailly this ginger curry..The important part of preparing  this is frying the ginger and we should be very careful while doing that..if we burn it, the entire curry gets spoiled and loses its taste. In those days I was not that serious about cooking..sure, once she let me do the cooking the next day feast would be in trouble:(. I always enjoy the festivals..because it is a best time to enjoy with parents and family members. 

It is a very delicious pickle. The best part is that it is good for digestion too That's why it is included as a member of the heavy feast:)). Amma used to prepare this pickle in many different ways.Sometimes mom do not use jaggery..if u r not using the jaggery/sugar you can enjoy the real tangy taste of the tamarind in the curry. Sometimes amma used to add Pearl onions while frying the ginger..But this version can not be kept for long time.Usually i prefer to prepare this curry on festival time especially Onam and vishu..but this time i just prepared it as per my husband's request.Usually you can keep the ginger pickle for a week or two in the refrigerator...Never use wet spoons, it will get fungal.If u get a chance, try this puliinji, rice and curd. very delicious combo... We like it very much.

Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Cost of the item:0.99 usd/pound
Ingredients
For frying
Oil for frying
Ginger       -2big root
Green chili -10 nos
For the curry
Tamarind     - one lemon size
Chili powder - 2 tbsp
Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Water   - 1/2cup
Jaggery - small portion
For seasoning
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Red chili - 2 nos
Curry leaves - 1spring
Preparation


Step1:
  • Cut the Ginger and green chili into very small pieces.
  • Heat oil in a pan.fry the Ginger and green chili until get nice brown color.keep the fried Ginger-green chili mix on a kitchen tissue paper(u can avoid the excess oil).
  • Once it gets cool, grind the fried Ginger chili mix and make a nice powder. Do not add water while grinding
Step2 :
  • Extract the tamarind juice
  • Mix the chilipowder coriander powder and the tamarind juice. Add 1/2cup of water.
Step4 :
  • Add the Grinded Ginger into the tamarind-chili juice and mix well
Step5:
  • Heat oil in a pan add the musatrd seeds,once it started spluttering, add the red chili and curry leaves,sauté for sometime.
  • Add the Ginger mix into the oil. Cook it until the gravy thickens.
  • Add the jaggery  and just heat for 30 seconds .
The delicious puli inji is ready.enjoy the feast
Cook's Tip
  • Cut the ginger into very small pieces..if u do not have time to cut the ginger jush crush it using the mixer then fry it.Go not make a paste ..just crush it..
  • Make a nice powder of the fried ginger using the mixer(let the fried one to  cool down)
  • you can add sugar instead of jaggery.

71 Said:

Unknown said...

Wow, that looks really yummy and mouth watering :)

Shabitha Karthikeyan said...

Prani, Ginger pickle looks so good. Never tried it at home..Mmmmmmmmmmm

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

Wow, that's a healthy n spicy curry...rich click dear.

Suji said...

Entamme..Njangal next puliinji edan erikuwayrunu..Oue fav anu..ginger ulla enthum evide welcome anu tou...Brilliant click Prani..

Love
Kairali sisters

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

Thanks for sharing the story and the detail steps on making this healthy ginger curry!

Sushma Mallya said...

Yum,love the colour, & loved reading your write up as well

Priya Suresh said...

Slurppp!!thats a droolworthy ginger pickle, truly tempting and majes me drool...

Ms.Chitchat said...

Very nice version of puli inji. Would love to try this. Click is too good.

Suhaina said...

This is how my mom too makes it. I am missing it here. I don't take the pain, since NO one else likes this here.So, if I make I have to finish it alone. But I just love it. I am drooling here Prani. Nice click too.

Sanyukta Gour(Bayes) said...

hey lovely recipe..thanks a lot for sharing..wil surely try...clicks is so inviting...

BeenaShylesh said...

wow....i would love o have some sadhya......ummm yummy......and first time hearing such story....thnks for sharing such story with us...

SathyaSridhar said...

Rani,,how are you ter?..Inji curry is my faav too my amma do this curry but i hv nt tried at home sure will cook soon dear..well presented n cooked in traditional way.

M D said...

nice write up on Puli inji, it's looking yummy and mouth watering too.

Simply Life said...

ooh that looks delicious!

Indian Khana said...

The one I get is much more thicker than this ...looks so tempting and thanks a lot for sharing the recipe

Rachana said...

Mouthwatering! I love ginger in my food and this is utterly delicious :)

Life is beautiful !!! said...

Prani, I loved reading ur post. If Vikramathithyan is now here, in this era, he will never found any difficulty in finding a suitable girl. We are all talented enough to make 1001 curries ;) I think this dish is soo special for you. I loved the colour and consistency of the dish. Nice presentation and definitely I will try it. Thanks for sharing.

divya said...

yummy recipe...thanks for sharing

Suja Manoj said...

Puli inji looks so perfect..i simply love your version and it has a rich color. There is no celebration without puli inji...

I also make it somewhat similar and love adding jaggery..inherited the recipe from my grandmother :)

Divya Kudua said...

Puli Inji is one of my fave during Sadyas and I am always angry that they serve only a little!!Looks delicious and hey,we've got the same template!!

Prema said...

Very nice step by step description of recipe! Luks gr8!

Nitha said...

Looks so perfect.. Yummy...

PJ said...

very unique recipe; its new to me. ginger pickle looks so yummy and delicious.

Gita Jaishankar said...

Ginger curry looks so spicy and so yum :)

Priya said...

it my fav :) yummy :)

Priya dharshini said...

very new dish to me..i guess puli n inji must be a gud combo..

Namitha said...

Love this..still have some more in my fridge...yumm

Suman Singh said...

never had this before...looks delicious...YUM!

Madhavi said...

Oh this ginger pickle looks so good, love to have this with paratha!!

Swathi said...

Rani,

Nice puli inji curry. I love them.

PranisKitchen said...

Priya,Shabitha,jay,Kairalisisters,sonia,sushma,Priya,chitchat,suhaina,sanyukta,beena,sathya,MD,simplylife,Priti,Rachana,manju,divya,suja,divya,Prema,Nitks,PJ,Gita,Priya,Priya,Gulmohar,suman, madhavi,swathi
Thanks for the lovely comments dear friends,You are always welcome here..

The Housewife said...

Wow! That looks so good! I've had it before but never knew how to make it! Thanks for sharing!

Panchpakwan said...

Wow Prani,
Lovley write up. The curry looks so spicy and mouth watering. Loved the color too.

Nithu Bala said...

nice recipe dear..

Mimi said...

I enjoyed your post. I haven't had this before, but you make it sound delicious and have such detailed directions, I will have to give it a try.
Mimi

Kiran said...

Wow Prani Love the Ginger Pickle and the story that goes along with it.It sure is worth 101 urries.Love it.

Ann said...

OMG!! Looks sooo mouth watering..yummmmmmy!

Niloufer Riyaz said...

First time here. Yummy and tasty pickle.

Indian food recipes said...

prefectly prepared inji curry!!!brilliant presentation 2

I'm a Home Chef !!! said...

gr8 post...liked the story behind it...nice click too

Nandinis food said...

Wow! That's a wonderful background of the pickle! I'd eat with some curd rice!

Mary Bergfeld said...

This sounds terrific and it has wonderful color. I'll wager it is delicious. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

Vikis Kitchen said...

Puli inji makes me crave. very nice recipe dear.

VineelaSiva said...

Wow prani yummy recipe.Never made it.Will try.Lot of recipes to try.

San said...

Ginger pickle is new to me rani,nice blurb behind it.Bet it would taste divine with curd rice :) Fantastic pictures dear.

PranisKitchen said...

The Housewife,jyothi,nithu,mimi,kiran,Ann,Niloufer,sangi,I am homechef ,nandini thanks for the comments dear friends.

Malar Gandhi said...

I loved ur story very much. The interesting part of our ethnic food is preservation, content and sharing...I guess. Heard so many stories like this from my Dad...how a girl should be. We too make more or less similar inji-puli curry. I liked your version lot better, Sounds super delicious.

TREAT AND TRICK said...

Great post dear, love this ginger curry..it's attractive and delicious....

Anonymous said...

Wow!! What a mouth watering picture.. I bet this will be a very good combo for curd rice. And also love the story.

Vrinda said...

My fav too,lov the color u got there...

Sook said...

Oh wow, this curry looks so great! I love all the flavors in this curry.

Urmi said...

Ginger curry looks delicious and spicy. I cannot resist myselg looking at the tempting picture.

Unknown said...

that looks great!! where can I find that tamarind?

GayathriRaj said...

Hey wow yaar...first time to ur blog and first click itself u have attracted me by ur way of presentation... nice clicks and wonderful story too...

Uma said...

Hi Prani! How are you?

Oh my my! what a delectable pickle! new for me.
definitely gonna try this!

Catherine said...

Wow this looks so yummy!

Unknown said...

Oh I love puliinji..Yours looks so tempting..Will prepare it soon :)

Krishnaveni said...

awesome...looks great. excellent side dish...superb click too.....

Chitra said...

Love this .My mom makes this for sodhi.Will try ur version soon..

Lorraine said...

This looks delicious. I have never tried anything like this. Thanks for the interesting story and history of this dish. I love to hear stories about other cultures and religions. When you know the history of a dish, it makes it so much more special. Thanks!

arthi said...

Ginger pickle looks so delicious and spicy!!!

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What a delicious Pickle!!!

Loving it..bursting wit flavor...

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Umm Mymoonah said...

Ginger pickle is so tempting and clear instructions:-)

Anu Nandu said...

Nice step by step collage - really helps in understanding the texture changes.

I can't believe the king would test the smartness of a girl on the way she cooks! Hmm...makes me wonder many many things!

Suma Gandlur said...

Yummy pickle. We have another version but I bet this one tastes delicious too.

PranisKitchen said...

Malar,Treatand trick,hema,vrinda,sook,babli,sandi,gayathri,uma,katherine,yummyteam,krishna,chitra,raina,arthi,sugarplum fairy,mymooh ,mrigayani,suma thanks a lot for ur lovely comments

PranisKitchen said...

hi mrigayani first of all VARARUCHI was not a king.other thing he had set four other condition as well..

Parita said...

Curry looks extremely tasty and delicious!

Padhu Sankar said...

Ginger pickle looks so yummy and I enjoyed the story also .

Myvegfare said...

hi parni, I have BM'ed this one, looks so tempting!!, I am going to make this.., very mouthwatering..thnx for the recipe...

Dori said...

Looks good... Everything here is looking too good!

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