Spicy And Tangy Methi / Fenugreek Leaves - Vendiya Keerai Thokku

          I am a big fan of Fenugreek Leaves/Methi/Vendiya Keerai, love its slight bitter taste and awesome flavor. Whenever I get them, even if I don't use them up immediately, I clean, wash, chop and store them in the freezer, it keeps well for at least 2 weeks. It tastes great in sambars, dals, curries and especially pairs very well with potatoes and paneer. I also make this Thokku with it, the bitterness of the leaves is balanced with the tangy tomatoes and the spicy chilly powder. Can have this as a side dish for rotis, mix it with rice or even as a sandwich spread, tastes simply divine..

Need To Have

• Chopped Methi - 1 1/2 cups
• Onions - 2 medium chopped
• Tomatoes - 2 medium chopped
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Red Chilly Powder - 3/4 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Jaggery - 1 teaspoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Urad Dal/Black Gram - 1 teaspoon

Method

          Heat some oil, add the mustard seeds and the urad dal. Once it starts spluttering add the asfoetida and the chopped onions and saute it for 2 or 3 minutes. Now add the chopped tomatoes along with salt, turmeric and chilly powders.

          Keep sauteing it until the tomatoes turn mushy, then add the washed, cleaned and chopped fenugreek leaves and mix. Add the jaggery, reduce the heat and cook it ( mixing it at intervals) till it is completely cooked and oil leaves the side. The final consistency should be that of of a spread or jam consistency.

Note
Be a little liberal with the oil, this stores well in the fridge for at least a week.
You'll find fresh fenugreek leaves in Indian grocery stores, can also use the frozen ones available.
Use nice ripe and tangy tomatoes for this dish, and also add chilly powder according to your spice level, the final dish will be balanced with a sweet, sour, bitter and spicy taste.
If you don't find fenugreek leaves, can do this with any kind of leafy vegetable that has a slight bitter taste, or do with chopped spinach and add a teaspoon of powdered dry fenugreek seeds or crushed kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) at the end.

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Thakkali Thokku/Tomato Pickle/Spread

          I always have some kind of thokku/pickle at home which comes in handy, when you don't have time to make chutneys or other side dishes. Of all the thokkus, the house favorite is the Thakkali Thokku, we use it as a spread on bread, mix it with rice or as a side dish for our idlis, dosas and rotis. Though you get a lot of ready made ones, I always prefer home made, the main reason being you can make it less oily and less salty.   Everybody has their own version, this is the way I make it..

Need To Have

• Tomatoes - 7 medium
• Red Chilly Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Jaggery - 1/2 teaspoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Curry Leaves - 10
• Salt - to taste

Roast And Grind

• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Fenugreek Seeds - 1/4 teaspoon

Method

          Boil about 3 or 4 cups of water, when it starts boiling add the tomatoes. After 5 minutes or so you can see the outer skin of the tomatoes start splitting. At this stage, remove the tomatoes from the water, cool, peel the skin and blend them.

Dry roast the ingredients given under 'roast and grind', cool and powder them. Heat some oil, add the mustard seeds, when it starts spluttering, add the blended tomatoes, along with the asafoetida, salt, turmeric and red chilly powders.

          Mix and cook it till it thickens to a jam consistency. Add the jaggery and ground powder, mix for a minute and switch off. Heat some oil in another pan, add the curry leaves, saute for a minute. Add this to the tomatoes, cool to room temperature and serve.

Note
A short cut for the tomatoes, you can use the canned crushed tomatoes or the peeled whole tomatoes (I have used them to make thokku when I was in the US).
Don't let the fenugreek seeds turn dark, they'll taste bitter.
If your chilly powder is a less spicy one, use more.
Use ripe tomatoes, the skin splits faster for them than for the less ripe ones.
While blending or mashing the tomatoes, it need not be really smooth.
If you add a lot of oil for making the thokku, and the oil floats on top, then you can store it outside for a week or so, the store bought ones has so much oil and salt ( used as preservatives). But I prefer reducing the oil and storing the thokku in the refrigerator.
Cover and cook once you have added the blended tomatoes, prevents splattering and less cleaning later.

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Coriander And Ginger Thokku

          When I leave for vacation to India and the husband stays back, I make couple of thokkus, to make things a little easy for him while I am gone. Even, otherwise I like to have some kind of thokku in the refrigerator, be it the tomato thokku or this coriander thokku, serves as a spread on bread, rotis or can be mixed with rice. My daughter loves them, she can have them with almost anything. Adding ginger to coriander makes it even better..

Need To Have

• Washed And Chopped Coriander - 2 cups
• Chopped Ginger - 1/4 cup
• Dried Red Chillis - 4
• Tamarind - lemon size ball
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Fenugreek Seed Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Jaggery - 1 teaspoon

Method
          Soak the tamarind in warm water to make it soft. Grind together the coriander leaves, ginger, soaked tamarind and red chillies with salt. Heat oil, add the mustard seeds, once it stops spluttering, add the ground paste, jaggery, keep cooking till the oil leaves the sides and it comes to a jam consistency. Now, add the fenugreek seed powder, mix well for another 5 mins, remove, cool it and store it.

Sending it to Priya's Now Serving for the The Big Chutney Chow Down event.

Note
My red chillies are very hot, use more if needed.
If you add more oil, it can stay outside for a longer time, usually in the store bought ones, you'll see the oil floating on the top. I don't use so much oil, so I keep it in the fridge.
I forgot about the jaggery, only after reading a comment, I remembered it.

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Brinjal Garlic Thokku

          Long time back,I had tasted homemade brinjal pickle at a friend's place, until then I didn't know that brinjals can be used for making pickles, it was very good, would try to get the recipe from her someday. Today, when I was wondering what to make with brinjal and garlic, for sending it to the Dish it Out-Brinjal n Garlic event hosted by Sangee, this thokku idea popped out. This is a very simple thokku, made with very few ingredients and the process is easy too..

Need To Have

• Big Eggplant - 1/2
• Garlic - 2 whole bulbs
• Tamarind - 1 big lemon size
• Chilli Powder - 6 teaspoons
• Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Fenugreek Powder - 2 teaspoons
• Jaggery - 1 teaspoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Curry Leaves - 2 sprigs

Method

           Soak the tamarind in hot water, and extract the pulp from it. If the garlic pods are too big slice them into two and chop the eggplant into 1" cubes. Heat some oil in a pan, add the brinjal cubes with little salt and saute till cooked, but not mushy, remove and keep. Heat some more oil in another pan, add the mustard seeds, once it stops spluttering, add the curry leaves followed by the garlic. Saute the garlic till slightly golden, for like 5 mins or more, then add the tamarind extract, turmeric powder, chilli powder and salt. Boil this, till the raw smell of tamarind disappears, and it becomes slightly thicker, like a gravy, now add the brinjals and the fenugreek powder and the jaggery. Cook it on medium heat till it comes to a thokku or jam consistency, leaving out oil on the sides. Your thokku is ready, you can have it, mixed with plain rice or as a side for idlis, dosas or rotis or just have it with some curd rice.
Sending this out to Dish it Out event of Vardhini hosted this month by Sangee.

Note

Can use small brinjals too, around 5 or 6.

I had to use 6 teaspoons of my chilli powder, use yours as per your taste.

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