Gongura puliyogare / Pundi soppina puliyogare

Gongura leaves (also known as pundi soppu, ambada) are rich in folic acid, vitamin C and antioxidants. I love serving guests with unique recipes. Gongura puliyogare is one among the many unique recipes I cook for my guests.

Gongura leaves are sour in taste, so this Puliyogare doesn't require to add tamarind.

Ingredients

Gongura leaves - 1 medium sized bunch
Coriander seeds - 2 spoons
Sesame seeds - 2 spoons

Cumin Seeds - 1 spoon

Fenugreek seeds - 1/4 spoon

Pepper corns - 4 to 6 (adjust depending on spice level you want)

Grated dry coconut (Kobbari) - 8 to 10 spoons

Jaggery - 6 to small lemon sized pieces (adjust depending on sweet level you want)
Red chillies - 8 to 10

Rice - 1.5 cups

For tempering

Oil - 4 spoons

Bengal gram dal - 1 spoon

Mustard seeds - 1/2 spoon

Tumeric powder - 1 pinch

Peanuts - one fist full

Method

Separate the gongura leaves from its stem, wash cleanly and chop into small pieces.

Cook rice by adding 1/2 spoon oil in a pressure cooker. Adding oil ensures that rice will not be sticky. Add little less water than you usually add while cooking the rice. Once the rice is ready, spread it in a big plate so that it cools down and it won't be sticky.

Heat a thick bottomed kadai. Add coriander seeds, sesame seeds, fenugreek seeds, pepper corns and red chillies, add 1/2 spoon oil and roast it for 30 seconds or so / until sesame seeds start spattering. Allow it to cool down and transfer the contents on to a mixer grinder. Grind the same into fine powder.

Roast the grated dry coconut in a thick bottomed kadai for about 30 seconds and allow it to cool down. Add this to same mixer grinder and grind along with other masala into fine powder.

Heat a thick bottomed kadai. Add oil. When oil gets heated up, add bengal gram dal, 2 red chilly pieces, turmeric powder and mustard seeds. When mustard seeds start spattering, add chopped gongura leaves and cook by keep on stirring for about 2 minutes. Now add jaggery, salt and masala powder into it and cook for about 5 minutes. Allow the masala to cool down. Puliyogare masala is ready.

In a tempering spatula, roast peanut with little oil until it gets finely roasted. Allow it to cool down.

Add puliyogare masala, roasted peanuts (add additional salt as needed) on to the rice and mix well. Yummy puliyogare is ready to serve.