Sour, sweet and spicy dishes for your palate

This week, learn the authentic way of making Melkote Iyengar Puliyogare as well as sweet and spicy Shankarpali from celebrity chef Sujatha as part of the Deccan Herald and Prajavani’s Cuisines of Karnataka series presented in association with Freedom Refined Sunflower Oil.

Melkote Iyengar Puliyogare

The 'puli' in puliyogare refers to the sour, tangy taste imparted to the dish by tamarind. This popular dish of Karnataka is commonly offered as 'prasadam' in temples. It is also an ideal dish for lunch boxes.

Ingredients

Half a tablespoon cumin seeds (Jeera)

Three tablespoons coriander seeds

Three tablespoons split black gram (Urad dal)

Black pepper

One tablespoon sesame seeds (Yellu)

Ten Byadgi chillies

Two tablespoons fried grams (Huri Kadle)

Quarter cup dried coconut (Kobbari)

One cup jaggery

One-and-a-half cup tamarind pulp (soaked and squeezed in warm water)

Mustard seeds

Asafoetida (Hing)

Groundnuts

Curry leaves

Three to five red chillies

Salt (as per taste)

Cooked rice

Freedom Refined Sunflower Oil

Recipe

In a pan, dry roast cumin seeds and coriander seeds on a low flame. 

Then, dry roast split black gram till it turns slightly red, and a few black peppercorns
followed by sesame seeds. Transfer to a plate.

Add a few drops of oil to the pan and once it is hot, add Byadgi chillies and roast till it puffs up.

Turn off the stove and roast the dry coconut in the same pan.

Grind all the roasted ingredients along with fried grams to obtain a fine powder.

To prepare the paste (gojju), boil the tamarind pulp. Once it starts boiling, add the prepared powder as required and stir well. Then add some jaggery and stir it till it gets dissolved. Add some salt, mix well and let it cook till the paste starts leaving the sides of the pan. The paste should achieve a thick consistency.

For tempering (oggarane), heat some oil in a pan, add mustard seeds. Once it starts crackling, add asafoetida, groundnuts and red chillies. After a while, add curry leaves. You may also add a pinch of turmeric powder (optional). To the paste (gojju) add the oggarane and give it a nice mix.

This gojju can be stored for many days. Take cooled cooked rice in a bowl, add the puliyogare paste as required and mix well.

Your authentic Melkote Iyengar puliyogare is ready.

Shankarpali

A popular snack served in weddings as well as other celebrations, Shankarpali is characterised by its diamond shape and comes in two flavours: sweet and spicy. This crispy snack is also quite easy to make.

Ingredients for spicy Shankarpali

One cup maida

Two tablespoons chiroti rava

One teaspoon cumin powder

One teaspoon chilli powder

Quarter teaspoon sugar

Salt (as per taste)

Freedom Refined Sunflower Oil

Ingredients for sweet Shankarpali

One cup maida

One tablespoon chiroti rava

Three-fourth cup sugar

Two tablespoons ghee

Quarter cup milk (diluted with water)

Quarter teaspoon cardamom powder

Salt (quarter teaspoon)

Freedom Refined Sunflower Oil

Recipe

To prepare spicy Shankarpali, take maida in a bowl, add two tablespoons of chiroti rava, one teaspoon of cumin powder and one teaspoon of chilli powder. You may add more chilli powder or even a little garam masala to make it spicier. Then add quarter teaspoon sugar and salt as per taste. Mix them well.

Add water little at a time and mix well. Knead it to get the firmness of poori dough. Then add two tablespoons of oil and knead again.

Let the dough rest for 15 minutes. Once it has rested, dip the dough in maida flour and then flatten it using a rolling pin. The flatten dough should be of medium thickness. Cut it to get diamond-shaped pieces.

Fry it in oil on low or medium flame till it turns golden brown. Your spicy Shankarpali is ready. To prepare the sweet Shankarpali, take one cup maida in a bowl. To this add one tablespoon of chiroti rava, three fourth cup sugar, quarter teaspoon cardamom powder. Add two tablespoons ghee and mix well. Add diluted milk little at a time and mix well. Now, prepare it in the same manner as above.

Your sweet Shankarpali is ready. You may also sprinkle some powdered sugar on it.