Garlic has long been considered a herbal “wonder drug”, with a reputation in folklore for preventing everything from the common cold and flu to the Plague!

My Father-In-Law believes that eating this dish keeps his body warm especially after his oil massage :-) Enjoy the taste and aroma of this dish.

This is my entry to the event JFI – Virundhu:Garlic for the month of April, 2008.

Poondu kuzhambu

Ingredients for 2 members:

Garlic peeled – 1 cup

Black peppercorns - 1 tsp

Coriander seeds – 1 ¼ tsp

Cumin seeds – 1 tsp

Channa dal – 1tsp

Toor dal - 1 tsp

Urad dal - ¼ tsp

Red chillies – 1 or 2 as per your taste

Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp

Gingely oil – 1 ½ tbs

Tamarind, lemon-sized, soaked in ¼ cup of water for 5 minutes, juice extracted

Salt to taste

Ingredients

Method:

  1. Heat the 1 tsp of oil in a pan and fry all the above ingredients except the mustard seeds, garlic and tamarind. Allow the mixture to cool.
  2. Grind the tamarind juice and the fried ingredients together. Grind them till it becomes a paste. Keep this aside.
  3. Heat 1 tbs of oil in a kadai and sauté the mustard seeds and garlic until the garlic color changes to slightly brown.
  4. Add 1 or 2 cups of water to the above mixture and heat till the garlic is half cooked.
  5. Add the ground paste and salt to the above mixture. Remove from heat when the garlic is well cooked.
  6. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Note:

This dish will be thick in consistency and can be stored in refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.