Poondu kuzhambu is a spicy South Indian garlic gravy made with tamarind, small onions, garlic, and gingelly oil. This authentic Chettinad-style kuzhambu is made without coconut or sambar powder and pairs deliciously with hot rice, sutta appalam, and kootu.
Poondu kulambu (garlic kuzhambu) is an easy-to-make, deeply flavorful gravy for lunch. I adapted this recipe from The Hindu Food Safari magazine, shared by a professional chef. It turned out finger-licking good with a glossy layer of sesame oil on top. It is completely beginner-friendly and requires no grinding or sambar powder. I have used plenty of small onions (chinna vengayam) along with garlic cloves, which gives the gravy a rich sweetness balancing the tangy tamarind.
This gravy naturally thickens as it cools. Like most traditional tamarind gravies, it tastes even better the next day as the garlic absorbs the spices. You can easily make a larger batch, store it in an airtight glass container, refrigerate, and enjoy it for an entire week!
Quick Notes for US & Abroad Kitchens
- Garlic: Fresh pre-peeled whole garlic cloves from Indian or Asian grocery stores work perfectly and save prep time. Ensure the cloves are firm and free of dark spots.
- Oil: Authentic Indian sesame oil (nalla ennai / gingelly oil like Idhayam) is essential for traditional flavor and shelf life. Do not substitute with toasted East Asian dark sesame oil.
- Tamarind: If using store-bought seedless tamarind paste, use 1 to 1.5 tablespoons dissolved in warm water to avoid over-souring.
- Storage: Let the gravy cool completely, store in a dry glass jar, and refrigerate for up to 7–10 days. Always handle with a clean, dry spoon.
Poondu Kuzhambu Recipe – Chettinad Garlic Kuzhambu
Ingredients
- Tamarind – Small lemon size
- Tomato – 1 no
- Red chilli powder – 1.5 tsp
- Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
- Salt – As needed
- Water – 2 cups
- Gingely oil – 2 -3 tbsp
- Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
- Fenugreek seeds – 1/2 tsp
- Urad dal – 1 tsp
- Green chilli – 1 no
- Red chilli – 2 nos
- Curry leaves – few
- Garlic cloves – 1/8 cup ( 20 cloves)
- Small onion – 10 nos Or 1 big onion ( cube cut)
Instructions
- Soak tamarind in little warm water & grind it along with a tomato. Make it a puree. To this puree , add salt , 2 cups of water , red chilli powder & turmeric powder.
- In a kadai , heat oil and temper all the above said ingredients one by one in the same order. Then saute onions and garlic cloves till they change golden brown and emits a nice smell.
- Now add the tamarind puree mixture , stir well and allow it to boil in medium flame till the gravy reduces to half & thickens. Lastly before switching off the flame , add the grated jaggery, add little more salt if necessary..
- Switch off the flame, transfer to a serving bowl and close it with a lid.
- Serve after 30 minutes..Tastes great with plain rice and papad !!
Notes
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Frequently Asked Questions
Sauté the garlic cloves on low-medium flame until golden without burning them, and take care not to blacken the fenugreek (methi) seeds during tempering. A small pinch of jaggery added at the end also rounds out any sharp bitterness.
Yes. This authentic Chettinad version uses no coconut paste and relies on plain coriander powder, red chili powder, and turmeric simmered in thick tamarind water to achieve its rich, dark consistency.
When cooked with generous gingelly oil and simmered until oil floats on top, it keeps fresh at room temperature for 2 days and refrigerated in a clean glass jar for up to 10 days.
Try this traditional Chettinad poondu kuzhambu recipe and enjoy it warm with steamed ponni rice, a drizzle of gingelly oil, sutta appalam, and a mild vegetable kootu!
spicy one..nice color
Looks awesome and mouthwatering.. I usually make garlic vatha kuzhambu..love to try this version too
so colour full ! Finger licking one ! well go with curd rice !
Delicious!!!!!!! Good one…
Looks delicious…
nice n delicious gravy,must be great wid rice
Delicious n mouth watering kuzhambu
super yummy! so tempting..
kzhumbu looks awesome….very tempting …yum
so tempting n colourful!!
I love kuzhambu and this definitely looks tempting.
so tempting and lovely poondu kuzhambu…
such a bright colored kuzhambu…perfect with some steamy hot rice…bliss :-)
The Kuzhambu looks fiery and yummy… I am a huge garlic lover and this dish looks just up my alley :) Love the photos too!
I am a fan of garlic.. Love this kuzhambu.. looks very tempting..
Hai frst tym in your blog..this kulambu looks awesome I wanna try this..but how to take puree…means I have to take the tomato and tamarind water or soaked tamarind as such and drain d water with drainer…is dat ok to tamarind and grind?
please clear my doubts…
am a learner of cooking..so do apolize if I am asking silly questions..
thanks,
Mymoon Hai frst tym in your blog..this kulambu looks awesome I wanna try this..but how to take puree…means I have to take the tomato and tamarind water or soaked tamarind as such and drain d water with drainer…is dat ok to tamarind and grind?
please clear my doubts…
am a learner of cooking..so do apolize if I am asking silly questions..
thanks,
Mymoon
Hai frst tym in your blog..this kulambu looks awesome I wanna try this..but how to take puree…means I have to take the tomato and tamarind water or soaked tamarind as such and drain d water with drainer…is dat ok to tamarind and grind?
please clear my doubts…
am a learner of cooking..so do apolize if I am asking silly questions..
thanks,
Mymoon
Hi, for puree,first soak tamarind in 1/4 cup of water for 15 minutes.It would be soaked well.Remove the soaked tamarind and grind it along with one chopped tomato to a smooth paste.Use the soaked water for grinding this paste.Hope I have cleared ur doubt.Do write ur questions if u have any.It is not silly at all.I am happy to reply u back :)
yummy kuzhambu and this is my favorite too
looks yummy.. will try some time..
Hey Chitra, I tried out this dish and it was yummy. Thanks a ton and cheers for your efforts☺
Thanks a lot for the feedback.Glad to hear :)
M definitely gonna try it chitra
sure, do try and leave your feedback :)
By searching menu for food, akka tooo THANKYOU such an amazing website,,,,,,,,,
Thank you :)
Thank you very much for your dish
You are welcome
Turn out to be great dish
Thank you so much for your feedback :)