Mulaka Ellu Pachadi | Green Chilli in Tamarind Jaggery Sauce

Mulaka ellu pachadi is a sweet, spicy and tangy side dish. Hot green chillies are simmered in a tamarind gravy and green chilly-sesame-coconut masala. The heat from the chillies is balanced with jaggery. The hot chillies combined with the sweetness from jaggery, tangy tamarind and the nuttiness from sesame seeds brings out a burst of flavors in the pachadi.

I don’t know the origin of this dish, but this is something I ask amma to make frequently. The chillies I get here are not so hot. So when I saw these hot Indian chillies in the market, I grabbed them exclusively to make this pachadi. You can have this pachadi along with rice and poriyal/thoran, or you can serve this as a side dish to molagootal, dal or any mildly spiced South Indian gravy.

Mulaka Ellu Pachadi

Green chillies in a tamarind gravy with green chilly-sesame seeds- coconut masala, jaggery and curry leaves

Print Pin Recipe

Servings 4

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Ingredients

• Green chillies – 4 to 5 big sized
• Tamarind – small lemon size
• Jaggery – 1/2 tsp
• Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
• Curry leaves – 1 sprig + few to garnish
• Turmeric powder – a pinch
• Gingelly oil – 2 tbsp
• Salt – to taste

To grind

• Green chillies – 5 to 6 small sized
• Black sesame seeds / Ellu – 2 tsp
• Grated coconut – 1/4 cup

Instructions

• Dry roast the sesame seeds till it starts popping, say 2 minutes. Then grind it with coconut and green chillies to a smooth paste.
• Soak tamarind in 1/2 cup hot water and extract the pulp. Set aside. Cut the green chillies into 1/2 inch length pieces.
• Heat gingelly oil and add mustard seeds. When it pops, add curry leaves and green chillies. Fry for 2- minutes.
• Add tamarind water, jaggery, turmeric powder, salt and mix well. Bring to a boil and cook till raw smell of tamarind goes.
• Now add the ground paste and little water to make a medium gravy consistency. Boil this 3-4 minutes. Garnish with curry leaves.

Notes

• My green chillies were medium hot, so I added only 1/2 tsp jaggery. If your chillies are more hot, add 1 tsp of jaggery.
• Adjust the amount of chillies for grinding and frying according to the heat level of chillies.
• You can also use white sesame seeds instead of black. The color of the pachadi will be lighter in that case.
• Once sesame seeds start popping, remove from heat. Otherwise it will turn bitter.

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Indian