Vendakkai Pachadi/Okra Pachadi

M loves okra in any forms. Even my son A is a huge fan of okras. By this I mean to say I cook okras atleast twice a week and have tried quite some variety of recipes. The only thing that puts me off while making the okra is the chopping part! They really mess my knife and chopping board and thatz the reason I have kept a cheap plastic board and (free for something) knife for okra sake!
Other than that I too like okras especially this pachadi. I favor this pachadi more than stir-fries. When hot rice mixed with flavorful soft toor dhal and a tsp of ghee on top paired with this pachadi tastes heaven!

Ingredients:

Okra/Vendakkai/Lady finger-15, washed and finely chopped

Onion-1, finely chopped

Tomato-1, finely chopped

Tamarind- soak large marble sized tamarind in ½ cup water and extract the juice

Sambar Powder-1&1/2 tsp

Salt-as needed

To Grind:

Coconut- 1/3 cup grated

Cumin seeds-1/2 tsp

Sprinkle a little water and grind to a smooth paste.

To Temper:

Mustard seeds-1 tsp

Urad dal-1 tsp

Curry leaves-1 sprig

Oil-2 tsp

How It Happened:

1. Heat oil in a kadai, add the ingredients given under the ‘to temper’ list. When they pop, add onions and fry them.

2. When the onions turn glossy, add tomatoes and fry until they turn slightly mushy.

3. Add finely chopped okras and fry them in simmer. Do not cook in high flame as they will stick to the bottom and will get burnt.

4. Initially they will become a sticky mass but do not panic, as the okras get cooked they will be separate and the stickiness will vanish.

5. Now add sambar powder and salt and cook for 1 minute.

6. Add tamarind extract and ½ cup of water and cook covered in medium flame for 7 minutes/ until the okras are soft and completely cooked.

7. Now add the coconut paste, mix well and cook for another 2 minutes in simmer.

8. Switch off the flame and serve hot.

Notes:

* Cook until the okras are separate and all the stickiness goes off. If you add salt before the okras are cooked they will become stickier and they won’t cook and whole thing will be messy!
* A mix of red chili powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder can be used instead of sambar powder.