Fresh Turmeric Thokku: a spicy, tangy and lip-smacking relish/chutney/pickle made with fresh turmeric roots, tomatoes and a few Indian spices; goes perfectly well with idlis, dosas, rice or even flatbreads!
You start browsing for recipes online and you are almost always pounded with “golden” colored dishes using the trendy ingredient “turmeric”; the “beauty spice”! It could be in the powder form (the easiest way to include this wonder spice in your diet) or using fresh turmeric roots.
Fresh turmeric is not always available in grocery stores or markets. So, on my last trip to the store when I found fresh turmeric, I had to pick a bunch!
The "Super Food":
No one can dispute the healing and medicinal power of turmeric. It is high in anti-inflammatory effects and is used in Ayurveda as a medicine as well as in Indian cooking for centuries!
Basic Ingredients:
With nearly half a pound/quarter kilogram of this “super food”, I had to make something easy, which uses up all of it yet is super tasty. My choice was definitely a south Indian pickle/relish/chutney; the quintessential “thokku” with simple pickling spices like mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and hing/asafetida powder.
To add bulk and a slight tang to the dish, I reached out to some fresh juicy tomatoes; preferably use the sour variety (country, vine-ripened ones).
Easy one-pot pickling process:
Just wash the turmeric roots well to remove dirt, peel, chop and blitz with tomatoes and green chilies/jalapenos for a spicy kick.
Make sure to take care not to touch anything while preparing the turmeric and to wash your hands well after; you are sure to dye everything to a golden yellow color for days on end! My hands were yellow for a couple of days after this!
Temper some mustard seeds and curry leaves in plenty of oil (acts as a preservative too) and mix in the pureed turmeric-tomato paste. Once cooked thoroughly until the oil floats on top, stir in a spice blend which lends the aromatic and flavorful pickle hue to the dish; roasted fenugreek and hing powder.
Serving Suggestions:
Enjoy this tangy, flavorful, spicy fresh turmeric/haldi/manjal thokku with anything you love; it could be dosas (Indian rice-lentil crepes), idlis (steamed rice-lentil cakes), hot steamed rice, Indian flat breads or even as a spread in sandwiches!
Enjoy and Happy Pickling!
Here are some more chutnies/pickles to tickle your taste bud:
Karathe Nonche/Indian Bitter Gourd Pickle
Mirchi Thecha/Green Chilli and Garlic Chutney
Fire up your stove, blend some turmeric and let’s get pickling!!
Step-by-step Method to make Fresh Turmeric Thokku/Relish/Chutney/Pickle:
Preparing the turmeric-tomato paste:
Wash haldi/turmeric roots well, peel and if needed, chop into large chunks.
Chop tomatoes into large pieces.
Blend tomatoes, chopped turmeric roots and green chilies/jalapenos in a food processor or blender to a semi-coarse paste. There is no need to make it too smooth as long as the turmeric roots have blended well.
Keep aside.
Make the spice powder:
In a dry saucepan, roast the methi seeds on low heat until just starting to brown.
Stir in 1 tsp of hing powder, mix and remove from heat. The heat in the pan is enough to roast the hing powder.
Once cool, pound it in a mortar pestle to a fairly fine powder.
To make the turmeric-tomato thokku:
Heat oil in a large deep saucepan and once the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds. As they start to pop and crackle, stir in the curry leaves and ½ tsp of hing powder.
Sauté for a few seconds and then tip in the tomato-turmeric paste.
Add red chilli powder and salt to taste, mix well and bring to a boil.
Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour until you see oil floating on top, stirring in between.
Keep adjusting the amount of salt and chilli powder to suit your taste.
Just before removing from heat, stir in the pounded methi-hing spice powder and mix well.
Let cool and store in dry glass bottles at room temperature for a day or two and then refrigerate for up to 3 weeks.
Serve spicy, tangy and healthy turmeric thokku/relish/pickles with dosas (Indian savory rice-lentil crepes), idlis (steamed rice-lentil cakes), flat breads like chapattis/rotis etc.
It tastes great mixed with plain rice too!
Enjoy and Happy Cooking!
Spicy, tangy and lip-smacking relish/chutney/pickle made with fresh turmeric roots, tomatoes and a few Indian spices; goes perfectly well with idlis, dosas, rice or even flatbreads!
Ingredients
- 250 gm fresh haldi/turmeric roots (about 1 cup chopped)
- 3 large tomatoes (preferably sour or vine-ripened tomatoes)
- 4 green chillies/jalapenos
- 1 tsp methi/fenugreek seeds
- 1 1/2 tsp hing/asafetida powder
- 1 to 2 tsp red chilli powder (depending upon how hot you want)
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 10 to 12 curry leaves
- Salt to taste
- ½ cup sesame oil/any cooking oil
Instructions
- Wash haldi/turmeric roots well, peel and chop into large chunks.
- Chop tomatoes into large pieces.
- Blend tomatoes, chopped turmeric roots and green chilies/jalapenos in a food processor or blender to a semi-coarse paste. There is no need to make it too smooth as long as the turmeric roots have blended well.
- Keep aside.
- In a dry saucepan, roast the methi seeds on low heat until just starting to brown.
- Stir in 1 tsp of hing powder, mix and remove from heat. The heat in the pan is enough to roast the hing powder.
- Once cool, pound it in a mortar pestle to a fairly fine powder.
- Heat oil in a large deep saucepan and once the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds. As they start to pop and crackle, stir in the curry leaves and ½ tsp of hing powder.
- Saute for a few seconds and then tip in the tomato-turmeric paste.
- Add red chilli powder and salt to taste, mix well and bring to a boil.
- Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour until you see oil floating on top, stirring in between.
- Keep adjusting the amount of salt and chilli powder to suit your taste.
- Just before removing from heat, stir in the pounded methi-hing spice powder and mix well.
- Let cool and store in dry glass bottles at room temperature for a day or two and then refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
- Serve spicy, tangy and healthy turmeric thokku/relish/pickles with dosas (Indian savory rice-lentil crepes), idlis (steamed rice-lentil cakes), flat breads like chapattis/rotis etc.
- It tastes great mixed with plain rice too!
- Enjoy and Happy Cooking!
Notes
Adjust the amount of red chilli powder and green chilies according to taste.
For an authentic south Indian flavor, use sesame oil for cooking.
For a slightly sweet tinge, you can add some jaggery/brown sugar.
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healthy and graceful
Thanks so much 🙂
Healthy and lovely turmeric thokku...looks awesome...
Thank you Renu 🙂 🙂
Turmeric thokku is nice and healthy one. Haldi is good for health and it is a healer.
Absolutely Shobha 🙂 I try to add a bit of turmeric whenever I can in my cooking. Thank you so much!
I've never seen this recipe, sounds so interesting and I really want to make it in my kitchen 🙂 lovely colour.
Thank you Jagruti 🙂 🙂 Please do try this. I did make a tomato based one earlier; this is just a similar take on it with haldi 🙂