A ginger based pickle sweetened with jaggery and made tangy with tamarind…
After my last post, it is but obvious that a few posts coming up have to be those that are a part of the sadya. This week, for the Blogging Marathon #138 theme “Festival Specials”, I chose to feature three recipes that are usually served during the sadya for the festival of Onam. This is the Onam week back home and hence, a sadya is something that everyone is enjoying. One of the key pickles served in this meal on a banana leaf is “Puli Inji”. I am not a fan of pickles, but I have a soft corner for this dish. Each time I am at a sadya, I would always ask for an additional serving. Hehe…
Puli Inji literally translates as “tamarind ginger”, so those are the main ingredients that go into this pickle, apart from the jaggery, which gives it the sweetness angle. The recipe needs a lot of ginger and I am allergic to it, so I got HD to peel it for me. I used a food processor to chop the ginger really smooth. The process of making this pickle is really easy, except that it needs a little bit of patience, to let it cook on the stove. I referred to the recipe by Meena, since her recipe had minimal ingredients and hence would ensure that the main ingredients shine through. I made the whole big jar, and my SIL asked me to give her half of it. 😀 It was totally delicious and addictive. My puli-inji was a little dry, however I like this texture. However, if you want a little liquid in your puli-inji, then just boil it a little short with some liquid. As it cools, it tends to dry up. Either way, it is lip-smacking delicious… Off to the recipe…
Puli Inji/ Inji Puli | Easy Spicy & Sweet Ginger Pickle
Ingredients
- 300 gm fresh ginger
- 200 gm dark jaggery
- 1 big pc tamarind two lime sized pieces
- 4-6 green chillies
- 4 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 2 sprigs curry leaves
- 2 tsp chilli flakes
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Wash and peel the ginger to remove all its skin. Cut it very nicely, or easier process it with the chillies in a food processor till nicely minced.
- In a bowl, add jaggery, tamarind and one cup of water. Bring to boil till the jaggery is melted. Set aside.
- In a sauce pan, heat the oil. Splutter the mustard seeds. Fry the curry leaves and the chilli flakes.
- Add the minced ginger-chilli mixture and saute for five minutes or till the raw smell is gone.
- Strain the jaggery tamarind water into the ginger mixture. Add another 1/4 cup and squeeze out the tamarind completely, pour the water.
- Adjust the seasoning and simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally to avoid the mixture from sticking to the pan.
- After some time, you will see the mixture getting syrupy. Cook till the mixture is nicely thick with little liquid and tastes done. Adjust salt and switch off.
- Cool completely before storing into a clean glass jar. Use within a month and only use a dry spoon to serve.
Thank you so much for trying the recipe and giving your feedback.
You make blogging worthwhile always.
Puli inji is my favorite. This is a perfect one for feast and I love to have this with adai too.