gongura ulli pachadi / gongura onion pickle

Gongura Ulli Pachadi / Gongura Pachimirchi Pachadi

 

Today´s recipe is another favourite dish of Andhra´s cuisine - Gongura Onion Pachchadi. Gongura pickle is very famous pickle in Andhra. It is famous for its tanginess and spiciness. My man is a big fan of gongura pickle. Whenever it’s the season of gongura ( red sorrel leaves ), I bring huge quantities of gongura and prepare this pickle. My man relishes this pickle with almost everything - upma, dosa, ragi dosa, rice etc. He picks a tablespoon full of

pickle with a dollop of hot ghee in the hot steamed rice and enjoys it with a raw peeled onion. The thought itself is mouth-watering.

 There are many versions of preparing this Gongura pickle. We can prepare both instant pickles and long shelf life pickles. Today´s version of pickle is gongura onion pickle aka gongura ulli pachchadi. Here we blend fried gongura leaves with raw onion and other spices which gives it a wonderful flavour. Since we are adding onion in the pickle itself, we do not need to munch on onion as a side. This gongura onion pickle stays good for upto 20 days if handled properly and refrigerated.

The raw onion is grounded to a coarse paste and is very unique in its flavour. When we eat the pickle, the small pieces of onion gives a nice crunchiness and taste to the pickle as a whole. My mom usually makes this pickle in small batches for the fear of the pickle getting spoilt. She prepares the normal gongura pickle, separates a small amount of this pickle and adds raw onion coarse paste to the separated pickle and preserves in the fridge for upto 7 - 10 days. This is also a good method for keeping the flavour of the pickle and onion fresh.

You can also view my tempting instant tomato pickle which does not require any refrigeration. And of course the mouth-watering salted and spiced gooseberries which are very healthy. 

Preparation

Separate the leaves from the stems. You can also include the tender stems. Wash the leaves very well with water and dry in shade on a clean cotton cloth. Allow them to dry until there is no moisture on them. But they should not wither completely. If they become too dry then the gongura pickle will also become too dry. Wash the green chillies and chop or break them into pieces. Keep aside.

Add oil in a pan.

Once the oil is hot, add the chopped green chillies and fry.

You can cover with a lid if you feel that they are spluttering.

Fry until you see small discolouring on the skin of the green chillies. Remove these green chillies and keep aside.

To the same pan, add the washed and dried red sorrel leaves.

Add salt and fry the leaves become mushy.

The raw smell of the leaves should also disappear.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, take another pan and add coriander seeds. Dry roast the coriander seeds until they change to a light brown colour and you get a nice aroma from them. Keep stirring continuously while roasting the spices else they will burn. Transfer to another plate.

Dry roast cumin seeds in the same pan. Do not burn these spices. If they burn, then you will get a burnt smell from the pickle and the pickle might taste bitter as well. Remove these to another plate and keep aside.

Now dry roast the fenugreek seeds to a light brown colour without burning them. Keep stirring continuously while frying the spices for even cooking.

Dry roast the red chillies in the same pan until they turn to a little black colour. Allow all the fried spices to cool down. 

Peel the onions and cube them. Keep aside.

Now grind all the dry roasted spices - coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds and red chillies.

Grind to a coarse powder.

Now add fried green chillies and grind again.

Now add the cubed onions and whip for 2-3 seconds for each pulse. You should not make a paste of the onions. You should be able to see bites and pieces of onions. I actually ground a little more than required. So I had very less pieces of onion. Transfer this spice paste to another bowl and keep aside. 

In the same mixie jar, add the cooked gongura leaves.

Grind this to a coarse paste.

Add this to the onion paste and mix well. Check for salt and spice. Add chilli powder if you want it more spicy.

Now lets do the tadka for the pickle. Take oil in a pan.

Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds.

When they splutter, add garlic pods.

When they change to a light golden colour, add curry leaves and dry red chillies.

Fry for 2 minutes. Now add hing  and turmeric powder. Fry for another minute and switch off the flame.

Add this tadka to the gongura mixture.

Mix well and transfer to a clean and dry glass bottle. Refrigerate the pickle and use when required. This stays good for upto a month if handled properly. Use clean and dry mixie jars, utensils and spoons during the preparation and while handling the pickle. Enjoy this spicy and tangy pickle with hot steamed rice with a dollop of ghee.

Ingredients

Gongura ( Red Sorrel Leaves )  3 bunches

Green chillies 30 ( OR ) 50g

Oil 6 tbsps

Onion 2 big ( OR ) 80g

Coriander seeds 1 1/2 tbsp

Cumin seeds 2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds 1 tsp

Red chillies 30

For Tadka

Oil 3 tbsp

Curry leaves 2 sprigs

Red chillies 6

Garlic 12 pods

Hing 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder 1 tsp

Mustard seeds 1 tsp

Method

1. Separate the leaves from the stems.
2. Wash the leaves very well with water and dry them in shade on a clean cotton cloth.
3. Allow them to dry until there is no moisture left on the leaves.
4. Wash the green chillies and break them into pieces. 
5. Heat oil in a pan and add the broken green chillies and fry until they discolour a little. Keep aside.
6. In the same pan, add the dried gongura leaves and salt. Fry until they are completely cooked. Keep aside. Allow to cool.
7. In another pan, dry roast coriander seeds until a nice aroma releases from them. Transfer to another bowl.
8. Dry roast cumin seeds. Keep stirring continuously to avoid burning. Transfer to another bowl.
9. Dry roast methi seeds until they change to a golden colour. Keep aside to cool.
10. Similarly, dry roast red chillies until a little black colour. Keep aside.
11. Allow all the spices to cool.
12. Take all the dry spices in the mixie jar and grind to a coarse powder.
13. Add green chillies and grind to a paste.
14. Now add onions and whip for 2-3 seconds for each pulse. Grind to a coarse paste such that there are bites and pieces of onion.
15. Transfer to this paste to another bowl.
16. Now add the gongura leaves to the mixie jar and grind to a coarse paste. 
17. Mix the gongura paste to the onion paste and mix well. Check for salt and spice. Add chilli powder if you want it more spicy. 
18. Do the tadka with mustard seeds, garlic, curry leaves, red chillies, hing and turmeric powder.
19. Add this tadka to the gongura pickle and store in a cleand and dry glass jar. 
20. Refrigerate the pickle and it can be stored for upto 30 days.

Notes

 

• Take care while grinding the onions. It should not be a fine paste. It should be very coarse. You should be able to see the onion pieces. Only then we will get original flavor and taste of the gongura onion pickle.
• You can adjust the green chillies according to your spice. The spice level was perfect for me and my family.
• This gongura onion pickle will taste the best if prepared in the traditional rock mortal and pestle. Alas, I do not have one, but planning to buy one.
• Use clean and dry utensils during the preparation and while handling the pickle. Right from mixie jars till spoons and ladles, always use dry ones. Even little amount of moisture will result in quick spoiling of the pickle.