Karuveppilai Thokku | Karuvepillai Thokku Recipe | Spicy Curry Leaves Relish Recipe | Vegan and Gluten Free

Hi Supermoms,

I had earlier shared about  making podi/spice powders and thokku/relish that have longer shelf life. I make it for my better half whenever I travel. This is part two of my earlier post on this topic. You can read Part One  here. 

The main reason behind two curry leaf flavoured dishes was because I found a huge branch of curry leaf tree on my walking track. I did not have the heart to see it lying there. I carefully collected sprigs of curry leaves and brought it home. 

I washed them well and pat drying them in a kitchen towel. Usually when I find a huge batch of curry leaves, I make the Curry leaves powder , Curry Leaves Rice, Curry Leaves Kuzhambu, Curry leaves Chutney. 

But , this time as I was travelling, I thought of making this delicious relish. You need not pat dry curry leaves for this particular thokku . You can wash them well and grind them into a smooth paste . 

Add a teaspoon of this curry leaves thokku  along with steaming hot rice and sesame oil or ghee  for a delicious lunch or pack it for school/office lunch box. 

Store the thokku in a clean, dry, odour free glass jar or bottle.

Karuveppilai Thokku | Karuvepillai Thokku Recipe:

Preparation time : 5 minutes 

Cooking time : 20 minutes 

Storage : Keeps good for 20 days when stored in a clean, dry and odour free container 

1 cup =250 ml cup 

Ingredients :

1 cup curry leaves ( wash and ground along with 1/4 cup water) 

2 teaspoons tamarind paste ( thick ) OR small lemon size tamarind ( soak in 1/2 cup water and extract juice)

2 and 1/2 teaspoons Kashmiri chilli powder

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/4 teaspoon mustard powder

1/4 teaspoon fenugreek powder 

1 teaspoon powdered jaggery ( adjust) 

2 tablespoons sesame oil

salt to taste 

Note : You can dry roast mustard seeds ( 1/4 teaspoon) and fenugreek seeds ( 1/4 teaspoon) till fragrant and grind them into a powder. You can roast a larger batch, powder them and use them for instant pickles and relishes. 

Method :

1. Heat a heavy bottom vessel or kadai/small wok with oil.

2. Add the curry leaf paste , turmeric powder , red chilli powder and allow it to cook for 5-6 minutes over low flame.

3. Add the tamarind juice or dilute the thick tamarind paste with 1/2 cup water . 

4. Add salt, jaggery and allow the mixture cook for approximately 10 minutes.

Chef tip : Keep stirring every two minutes. You can partially close and cook as the thokku will start to splutter. 

5. Add the mustard and fenugreek powder and continue to cook till the oil separates on the sides of the pan. 

6. Switch off and allow the thokku to completely cool before you transfer it to a clean container.

Chef tip : Coat the bottle/jar/vessel with sesame oil before you transfer the thokku.  This helps in longer shelf life. 

Your yummy Karuvepillai thokku is now ready !

Happy Cooking !

With love,

Masterchefmom