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June 3, 2013

EASY KARA KUZHAMBU | KATHIRIKAI KARA KULAMBU - BACHELOR RECIPES

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kara kuzhambu

This is my father's Kathirikai kara kuzhambu recipe without coconut in Bachelors style. When I was young, my father was in Mumbai for two years. He stayed in a bachelor’s room. He learnt some simple recipes from his friends and started cooking. Whenever he comes for vacation, he used to cook for us. We(me and my sis) loved our appa’s cooking more than my mom’s as we got bored of her routine food.

But now after marriage, I crave for my mom’s recipes like anything. My appa makes rasam and kara kuzhambu very well. Both are very simple recipes but tastes great. So I thought of sharing Kara kuzhambu/Puli kuzhambu recipe today. It can be done very quickly during busy mornings. It has no grinding part. So I have mentioned this as Bachelor’s recipe. It tastes spicy and hot. I followed my father’s recipe as such.

Don’t feel exhausted by seeing the ingredients list. It looks big but this recipe takes hardly 20 minutes to prepare. I used brinjal / kathirikai and whole garlic flakes. Its a simple kathirikai kara kulambu recipe. U can also try adding drumstick OR dried berries (sundakkai, manathakkali vathal) for more flavour. 

I had this kuzhambu for 3 days by refrigerating it. The taste got improved day by day. This kuzhambu stays good for 3-5 days as it has no coconut. The addition of sambar powder, red chilli powder and coriander powder makes this gravy very thick. So adjust the consistency as per your liking by adding more water. Use gingely oil for nice flavour and also it helps to reduce the body heat developed by tamarind..

A tip from my father : My appa always tells me to taste the tamarind extract after adding masala powders (chilli powder , sambar powder , dhania powder ) & salt. If it tastes good, kuzhambu comes out really well. We can adjust the quantity of tamarind or chilli powder/sambar powder based on the taste. But every time I forget to do this. This time I reminded my father’s tip and followed it. May be that’s the reason , this kuzhambu tasted great.


kara - kulambu


INGREDIENTS
  • Tamarind – Big gooseberry size/ Medium lemon size (Based on the tanginess of tamarind you have)
  • Brinjal – 4 nos (medium sized)
  • Sambar powder – 1.5 tbsp ( any brand or home made)
  • Red chilli powder – 1/2 tsp
  • Coriander seeds / Dhania powder – 1 tsp
  • Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
  • Jaggery – 1 tsp
  • Salt and water – As needed
To temper & saute
  • Gingely oil / Nalla ennai – 4 tbsp
  • Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
  • Methi seeds – 1/2 tsp
  • Urad dal – 1 tsp
  • Jeera/cumin seeds – 1 tsp
  • Channa dal – 2 tsp
  • Hing – A big pinch
  • Red chillies – 2 nos (pinched)
  • Curry leaves – few (chopped)
  • Big onion/ small onion – 1 no / 10 nos (finely chopped)
  • Whole garlic cloves – 10 nos
  • Tomato – 2 nos (finely chopped)

HOW TO MAKE KARA KUZHAMBU - METHOD
  • Soak tamarind in warm water for 10 minutes & take the extract using 1.5 cups of water. Add all the spice powders given above and salt..Taste it and adjust as per your need. Cut brinjal lengthwise into 4 pieces and keep them immersed in water to avoid color change. Chop onions and peel garlic. Set aside.
Kara kuzhambu tile3
  • Now in a kadai , heat oil and temper all the ingredients given above in the same order..Make sure to add all the ingredients after the mustard seeds splutter ..Saute everything in medium flame.Then add onions , whole garlic cloves & curry leaves..Saute till it turns golden brown.
kara kuzhambu tile1
  • Add the brinjal pieces , saute for sometime & then add the tomato pieces.Saute till musy.Now add the tamarind extract which we kept ready .Add jaggery ,1/2 cup of water ,cover the kadai with a lid till brinjal gets cooked. Usually it takes 8-10 minutes. Keep the flame medium.
kara kuzhambu tile2
  • Then open the lid and check whether brinjal is completely cooked. Check for water. Add more water if necessary. Allow the gravy to boil for 10 minutes to get thicken. Switch off the flame and transfer to a serving bowl.Add a tbsp of gingely oil & raw curry leaves. Cover it with a lid..
kara luzhambu tile4
  • Serve it after 30 minutes.Mix with plain rice ..Enjoy with papad & any kootu as accompaniment..

kathirikai kara kuzhambu

NOTE :This Gravy/ kuzhambu should be boiled well for minimum 10 minutes in medium flame to get a good taste. Otherwise you’ll get the raw smell of powders.. Kuzhambu will thicken by itself as time passes. So add little more water , reheat and serve. Using gingely oil is a must. If you dont have gingely oil , use any cooking oil. But gingely oil gives the actual taste.



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32 comments :

Sudha Sabarish said...

So tempting Chitra.Lookd delicious.

Preety said...

easy peasy ..looks delicious

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AparnaRajeshkumar said...

stunning pictures ! when i am bored i prepare this kind of kuzhambu !

Shama Nagarajan said...

delicious and inviting

meena said...

i too prepare like this sometimes,i agree with the taste.

Vimitha Durai said...

Easy peesy comfort food Chitra

Unknown said...

irresistible... picture perfect..... love the last pic with rice and kootu.. very comforting and very homey!!
Sowmya
Event - Authentic Indian Sweets w giveaway

divyagcp said...

What a nice color kuzhambu has got..Looks super tempting..

virunthu unna vaanga said...

wow what a color of kuzhambu... love it very much n tempting...

Shanthi said...

wonderful kuzhambu...very tempting...

Unknown said...

the instructions are not in sync with the pictures, you lost me at when do the tomatoes go in and when do we add the tamarind mixture. It would be great if you could explain that better

Divya Shivaraman said...

love karakuzhambu with appalam...yummy and tangy curry

Akila said...

Lovely kuzhambu... Love the reddish Brown colour

Chitra said...

Thanks for letting me know. i have updated it :)

Sunanda said...

This is so quick and easy recipe.. Nice color..

Sunandas Kitchen

Lifewithspices said...

nice color..love it

Jeyashris Kitchen said...

this is one of my favorite. Nicely done

Priya Suresh said...

Lipsmacking, love that bright and inviting colour of the kuzhambu.

Iniyaal said...

Good one. Exactly what I was looking for . Thanks for posting this delicious recipe.

Polarizedview said...

Thanks. Tries it and it came out very well.

Polarizedview said...

Tried this recipe and it came out very well. Thanks.

heartripper said...

Very helpful for bachelors like me.thank u very much madam.every week three times i preparing ur recipe.

Chitra said...

Thank u so much sir for ur prompt feedback. I am really happy :)

Chitra said...

Thanks a lot. Feeling great to read ur comment :) U made my day !

Unknown said...

Hi. Thank u very much I tried this today and it came out really well.

Unknown said...

Saved my day. Easy and does justice to Kara kuzhambu :-).

Chitra said...

Thank u so much :)

aditi said...

Hi,
I just tried this kozhambu and it has come out so tastyyyyy! Easy recipe well put. Thanks a ton

Chitra said...

Thanku so much :)

Chitra said...

Thank you :)

palamz said...

I tried this recipe mam,came out well. Thanks alot....

Chitra said...

Thank you 😊