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Chintakaya pachadi
చింతకాయ పచ్చడి: tart young green tamarind, salt-cured for the year, then pounded with chilli and tempered with mustard and hing
In Telangana and coastal Andhra, the tamarind trees hang heavy with tender green pods from December to February, and every household that can lays in a jar of chintakaya before the pods ripen and turn brown. The raw pods are pounded with salt and turmeric and left to mature into a sharp, olive-green base that keeps for the whole year. Small portions are then ground with chillies and finished with a crackling tadka whenever the family wants it. The taste is pure, mouth-puckering sourness with a fresh, almost apple-like green note, very different from ripe tamarind. Mix it into hot rice with sesame oil, or eat it with jonna rotte (sorghum flatbread) and raw onion. The common mistake is to let wet pods into the jar: wash the tamarind the day before, then spread it to dry completely. The salted base is very acidic and roughly 15% salt, so it keeps in a cool cupboard; the finished pachadi with chillies belongs in the fridge and is best within 3 weeks. It is ready when the paste is coarse, dark green and smells sharply sour. Chef's tip: roast dried chillies for a smoky winter version, or use green chillies for a brighter, fresher heat.
- Total time
- 63 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 24
Ingredients
For the salted tamarind base
- 1 ⅛ lb raw green tamarind podsyoung, tender pods; weight after removing strings and seeds. Look in Indian grocers in winter, sometimes frozen
- 2 ⅝ oz coarse saltabout 15% of the tamarind weight
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
To finish one portion
- 10 green chilliesor 8 dried red chillies, dry-roasted
- 3 tbsp gingelly (sesame) oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp chana dal
- 1 tsp urad dal
- 2 dried red chilliesbroken
- ¼ tsp gluten-free asafoetida
- 1 sprig curry leaves (optional)
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: The day before, wash the 1 ⅛ lb raw green tamarind pods and spread it on a towel in a single layer to dry completely, turning once. It must be bone dry before you start.
Step 2: Prepare the jar: wash jar and lid in hot soapy water, rinse well, then stand the jar upside down in a 250°F oven for 10 minutes (or boil jar and lid for 10 minutes and let them dry upside down). Let it cool completely; jar, lid, bowls and spoons must be bone dry, because a single drop of water is the usual reason a pickle goes mouldy.
Step 3: Snap off the stalks, pull the strings from the sides of each pod and break it open; remove the hard seeds (very young pods have soft seeds you can leave).
30 minStep 4: Pound the pods in a mortar, or pulse in a dry grinder, with 2 ⅝ oz coarse salt and 1 tsp ground turmeric to a coarse paste. No water at all. The paste turns olive green and smells sharply sour.
10 minStep 5: Press the base into the dry jar, smooth the top, close and leave in a cool, dark cupboard for at least 1 week before using. Stir only with a dry spoon. Kept this way it lasts a year; discard it if fuzzy mould, a rotten smell or sliminess appears.
Step 6: To finish a portion, take about 150 g of the base. Heat a little of the ¾ tbsp gingelly (sesame) oil in a pan over a medium heat and fry the 10 green chillies until blistered, 2–3 minutes. Cool, then grind with the tamarind to a coarse paste.
5 minStep 7: Heat the rest of the 2 ¼ tbsp gingelly (sesame) oil over a medium heat. Add 1 tsp mustard seeds; when it pops, add 1 tsp chana dal, 1 tsp urad dal and 2 dried red chillies and stir until the dals turn golden, about 1 minute. Add 1 sprig curry leaves if using; they will spit, so step back.
3 minStep 8: Turn off the heat, stir in ¼ tsp gluten-free asafoetida, then pour the hot tempering over the ground pachadi and mix well.
Step 9: Keep the finished pachadi in a clean jar in the fridge and eat within 3 weeks. The tempering oil should coat the top. Throw it out if mould, fizzing or an off smell appears.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 38 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 6 g
- Fat
- 3 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
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Good to know
- How long does chintakaya pachadi take?
- About 63 minutes in total: 55 minutes to prepare and 8 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 24 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of ground turmeric?
- Leave it out (it mostly adds colour).
- What can I use instead of mustard seeds?
- Cumin seeds, same amount (different flavour, same crackle).
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