Karuveppilai thokku is a tasty south Indian condiment with goodness of curry leaves and best way to use up the fresh leaves, including in the diet. Goes well with steamed rice, idli or dosa.
This aromatic dish can be prepared whenever you have lots of curry leaves in hand, around the year and have it in stock to include the goodness everyday.
Check out my Mint Thogayal Recipe and Curry Leaves Chutney Recipe in this website.
Difference between thokku and thogayal: My thogayal is small batch and can be stored 5 days in fridge. But karuveppilai thokku can be stored like a pickle for long time in fridge.
Thogayal includes urad dal and coconut sometimes, thokku does not.
Thokku has more oil than a thogayal. I learnt this recipe from my MIL last year and she makes this often. Like the easy method and we always want to use up the curry leaves, consume it. So this is a wonderful way, give it a try.
Ingredients
Here are the simple ingredients needed to prepare this easy dish.
- Curry leaves - Use fresh curry leaves for best taste, flavour and shelf life.
- Red chilli - For spice
- Tamarind - To balance the spice and raw smell of curry leaves
- Jaggery - Enhances overall taste.
- Asafoetida - For flavour.
Please see recipe card below for exact quantities.
Instructions
Let's see how to make curry leaves thokku.
- Firstly, soak tamarind in hot for 30 minutes in little water.
- Meanwhile, roast red chillies, asafoetida (see note 2) in a tablespoon of oil.
3. Cool and place it in blender along with salt, jaggery.
4. Then, extract thick tamarind extract (thick extract with ½ cup water).
5. Place cleaned, measured curry leaves.
6. Then, grind to a thick paste.
7. Then heat pan / kadai with 1 tablespoon oil and splutter mustard, cut red chillies and asafoetida.
8. Then,add the ground paste.
9. Cook furthermore until thick.
10. Then, as it cooks, the colour changes.
11. After that, add more oil as needed (I added 2 tablespoons).
12. Let the oil gets incorporated in the thokku and gets cooked without any moisture.
13. Once it looks shiny and thick like in the picture, switch off the stove.
14. Cool down thoroughly before storing in an airtight container.
If you handle well, it stays good for a month in the fridge. You can mix with rice or have it as side dish for idli dosa.
Substitutions & Variations
You can prepare the same with a mixture of curry leaves, mint and coriander leaves.
You can use tamarind paste in place of tamarind extract. Use as per the instructions in the tamarind paste bottle.
Storage
Store karuveppilai thokku after it completely cools down. Otherwise it will affect the shelf life.
Use only clean dry spoons.
Take required amount and put back in fridge as soon as possible. Do not leave over counter top for long time and then put it back in the fridge.
Top tip
Use generous oil as it will make sure thokku is cooked well and there is no moisture as well as helps with texture. It gives longer shelf life as well.
Make sure to balance the tamarind and spice to ensure the taste.
Recipe card
Karuveppilai Thokku Recipe | Curry leaves thokku
Equipments (Amazon Affiliate links)
Ingredients
- 4 cups Curry leaves Measure loosely filled
- 1 tablespoon Tamarind Pack & measure
- 7 Red chilli
- ½ teaspoon Jaggery
- Salt
- 3 tablespoon Sesame oil Divided
To temper
- 1 tablespoon Oil I used sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon Mustard
- ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida
- 2 Red chillies
Instructions
- Firstly, soak tamarind in hot for 30 minutes in little water.
- Meanwhile, roast red chillies, asafoetida (see note 2) in a tablespoon of oil.
- Cool and place it in blender along with salt, jaggery.
- Then, extract thick tamarind extract (thick extract with ½ cup water).
- Place cleaned, measured curry leaves.
- Then, grind to a thick paste.
- Then heat pan / kadai with 1 tablespoon oil and splutter mustard, cut red chillies and asafoetida.
- Then,add the ground paste.
- Cook furthermore until thick.
- Then, as it cooks, the colour changes.
- After that, add more oil as needed (I added 2 tablespoons).
- Let the oil gets incorporated in the thokku and gets cooked without any moisture.
- Once it looks shiny and thick like in the picture, switch off the stove.
- Cool down thoroughly before storing in an airtight container.
Video
Notes
- You can prepare the same with a mixture of curry leaves, mint and coriander leaves.
- I used solid asafoetida, so roasted along the red chilli, if using powder, add lastly once the chillies get roasted.
- You can use tamarind paste in place of tamarind extract. Use as per the instructions in the tamarind paste bottle.
- I made the thokku thick and lesser in oil though I have added 4 tablespoon oil. If the thokku is bit loose/watery, shelf life is lesser. So it is your choice to add more oil, less thick in consistency.
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