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Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Vendakkai Pachadi (ladies finger or okra gravy)




Ladies finger, as we all know is very good for memory power. I have often heard people telling that they will take ladies finger on the day of the math exam. I am not sure of any scientific reason behind that .But as a habit we have come to believe it and try to give it to our children. Many tasty dishes can be made out of this common vegetable. Ladies finger sambar and fry always tops the list.


In chettinad we make tasty vendakkai pachadi out of this which can be used as an all in one curry when we don’t have time to cook. This can be mixed with rice like sambar or rasam and can be taken as a side dish also for curd rice.


The main thing to be noted by the beginners while cooking ladies finger is that it should be sauted in oil in medium fire nicely so that the sticky thing in the veg gets off. If water is added without sauting nicely the curry will become sticky like a paste. While cutting also we should be very careful that it does not have any water content. After washing the veg it should be wiped dry with a towel or paper napkin


Ingredients
Ladies finger-250 gms(15 medium sized ones)
Small onion-15 or big onion-1
Green chilli-2
Tomato-1
Sambar powder-1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder-1/2 teaspoon
Thoor dhal-2 to 3 table spoons (1 hand full)
Coriander leaves-little
Curry leaf-little
Procedure
Cut the ladies finger into small pieces like in the picture. Chop the onion and tomatoes also.Split the chilli in the centre lengthwise Cook the thoor dhal 1 whistle less than you cook for sambar(switch off the stove 5 minutes after the first whistle in medium fire).Once the dhal is cooked open the cooker and take the water on top of the dhal (if there is not much water add a cup of water to the dhal and take out that water and keep aside.)

Keep the kadai in the stove. In 1 table spoon of oil season the pachadi with a teaspoon of mustard seed, cumin seed, broken urudh dhal and little curry leaf. First add the onion pieces then the tomatoes and green chili and sauté for a while. When there is not much water content add the ladies finger pieces and sauté in medium fire for 5 to 6 minutes without it getting burnt. If you find it difficult to sauté add few drops of oil. Once the pieces are sauted well add the water from the dhal kept aside. Add turmeric powder, sambar powder and the salt needed also. Cook for 10 minutes in medium fire. If water is less add little more. Once the pieces are cooked fine add the dhal also (don’t overcook the dhal).Cook for 5 minutes more. Let the consistency be semi solid. Garnish with coriander leaves. Coriander leaves will add to the taste. So if you have stock, be little liberal in adding coriander leaves

19 comments:

Shama Nagarajan said...

this is new to me...looks delicious

Pooja said...

lovely dish sollai ! thanks for the tip !

gtyuk said...

nice dish, new to me, I always do it like a poriyal or add in the curries; this preparartion seems to be similar with sambhar but with less dhal, right? thanks for the recipe

Kayal said...

The recipe looks so simple. This is similar to sambar know aachi. Jus we are not adding any tamarind.

Raj said...

I have been trying to read up as much recipes as possible to compile a good list of chettinad dishes.
I used to be a chef and i am trying to get back into the field. I am truly amazed with your dedication. I always feel that what we eat in the name of chettinad in chennai is a disgrace to the wonderful cuisine. I feel because of your blogs you are giving the dying cuisine a new lease of life. keep up the good work. I would like to ask 1001 question to you and will be very happy to mail you with my queries. please rely to my mail id raj19762006@gmail.com if I am not intruding your work in any way. Please keep blogging and keep spreading the good work.

Janani said...

Hello Achi,

I tried this Vendakkai Pachadi it turned out awesome. We all enjoyed it thanks. Is it possible to post Cauliflower soup recipe.

Poornima said...

Hi Achi,
tried the vendakkai pachadi,came out very good, its been long time since i made it, remembered after seeing it ur blog.
thanks for the recipe.

can u pls post mango innippu pachadi as it is mango season now.
also i second the cauliflower soup recipe request.
thanks!

Poornima said...

Hi Achi,
tried the vendakkai pachadi,came out very good, its been long time since i made it, remembered after seeing it ur blog.
thanks for the recipe.

can u pls post mango innippu pachadi as it is mango season now.
also i second the cauliflower soup recipe request.
thanks!

Poornima said...

Hi Achi,
tried the vendakkai pachadi,came out very good, its been long time since i made it, remembered after seeing it ur blog.
thanks for the recipe.

can u pls post mango innippu pachadi as it is mango season now.
also i second the cauliflower soup recipe request.
thanks!

Unknown said...

It was nice. I normally cook sambar by adding everything(which you had mentioned in the recipe) into the cooker and then keep it for 3-4 whistles (LAZY). Saw your recipe and tried it out today....It came out really nice. Same ingredients but the taste was not like Sambar. Good Tips !!
Thanks !!

WhyteHousieBala said...

Hello aunty,

Mom would add tamarind juice to this dish.. i used to cook in that way.. today, i tried ur recipe.. tasting similar.. twas nice..

Bala

Solai Chidambaram said...

your mom is right Bala.The original chettinad recipe includes tamarind.But now a days we substitute it with tomato as it is more healthy and safe.in olden days there was no refrigerator and people used less tomatoes.but we are in the modern world.So little bit alterations

EKC said...

how to do the chalna (side dish for parotta)which normally used to get in road shops

Unknown said...

Achi maaa....Thanks for posting this vendakkai recipe....It turned out finger liking good...

We loved it and enjoyed it w/family.Keep posting........

Sweet Regards,
Shibu & Roshin
Hong Kong.

Unknown said...

Thanks solai achi.

My cousine sister,(her name is solai)
,whenever we visit to pudukottai, now she lives in karaikudi,prepares this dish.

We prepared at home, it came exactly as our cousine, used to prepare.

This dish recalls the good old fresh memories.

Thanks.

Balu

Unknown said...

hi aachi

can you post vendikkai mandi receipe. or is there changes to be done for this same receipe for mandi.

~sherly

Solai Chidambaram said...

presi,mandi recipe is already there.please search in chettinad vegetable curries sec

Unknown said...

aachi,

i see only keerai mandi .. i want vendikkai mandi receipe

~sherly

Skl said...

Hello aunty,
We tried this dish,turned out great,goes well with rice,roti's,easy to make,ladies finger is tasty and healthy too,a different version other than sambar,very delicious,thank you,skl