Drumstick Leaves (Moringa)~Curds Tambuli.

“Drumstick Leaves (Moringa)~Curds Tambuli” … Moringa/ Drumstick/ Mashinga saanga pallo is very well known for its health benefits … Today ie. on Dahi Handi day (Mosaru Kudke) ie., the next day of Shri Krishna Janamashtami it is a tradition among Mahrashtrians to prepare any dish with the addition of Moringa leaves … try this yummy dish and enjoy the health benefits to stay fit …..

** Drumstick (Moringa) Leaves, Mashinga saanga pallo are well known for its health benefits and are a store house of vitamins and minerals. There are many dishes prepared using these leaves in southern parts of India that I am running short in posting them. In Maharashtra the next day to Gokulashtami/ Krishna Janamashtami ie on the day of Dahi handi the day the matka filled with curds are broken as a tribute to Sri. krishna’s childhood activities, a dish using these leaves are usually prepared. So today I prepared two dishes using the same one was batate upkari/ usli/ bhaji and the other is tambuli. 

** Tambuli as you all know is a chutney sort of dish served at room temperature which is not boiled but with the addition of beaten curds/ thick buttermilk and seasoning etc. Tastes awesome and the best part is it is easy to prepare and is loaded with vitamins and minerals. Prepared mostly in southern parts of India, I came across this dish while searching for dishes in google, I went through many dishes and finally adapted my own method to suit my family taste. A simple dish that can be served with rice of Idly like I did, tastes awesome. Do try if you like tambuli and these leaves are available in your vicinity.

** Here is my simple recipe for preparing “Drumstick Leaves (Moringa)~Curds Tambuli” … my style, tastes awesome with steaming rice ....

** Pick and clean about 2- 2.5 cups of drumstick leaves/ moringa/ mashinga saanga pallo. Put in a colander,  wash, drain and roughly chop it. keep it ready aside. Do not use the stick portion as we need only leaves.

** In a kadai, add 1 tsp of coconut oil (nariyal tel/ narlel tela) or any other edible oil, when hot lower the heat and add in 2 tsp of jeera (cumin seeds) and 3-4 black pepper corns (mire), 3-4 fresh curry leaves (kadipatta/ karbevu) and fry well for a minute. Now add in 4-5 green chillies (tarni mirsanga/ hari mirchi) chopped to small pieces and continue frying for another minute. Lastly add in the prepared and kept moringa leaves and mix well. Lower the heat, cover and cook for a few minutes, till the leaves wilt and shrink ie they are just cooked. Remove and keep aside to cool.

** Once the fried ingredients have been completely cooled, put them in a mixer grinder along with 3-4 tblsp of freshly grated coconut (soyi/ nariyal) and grind to a very smooth paste with little bit of water. The paste should be ground to a very smooth consistency. Remove and put it a bowl. Beat one cup of thick curds (dahi) with ½ cup of water and add it to the ground paste in the bowl with salt (namak/ meeta) to taste and mix well. If too thick you can add some more water to bring to required consistency.

** For Tempering/ Pannaka/ Tadka : Heat 1 tsp of coconut oil (nariyal tel/ narlel tela) in a small pan, when hot, lower the heat and add in ½ tsp of jeera (cumin seeds), ½ tsp of mustard seeds (Rai / Sasam) and when they begin to splutter add in 1-2 dry red chillies (sukki mirchi/ sukkale mirsanga) cut into bit or if small whole along with 8-10 fresh curry leaves (kadipatta/ karbevu) and few seconds. Remove and pour over the tambuli and immediately cover and keep it aside for 5-10 minutes.

** “Drumstick Leaves (Moringa)~ Curds Tambuli” is done and ready to be served. Tambuli tastes best usually served with steaming hot rice along with other side dishes as accompaniment. You can serve it with Idlies too as they taste awesome when relished with fresh steaming hot idlies. I had served it the next day with ragi (nachani/finger millet) Idly and it tasted awesome. Do try this tambuli if you have access to moringa leaves and relish with any dish of your choice. When you serve it with rice, do keep the texture thick and do not add in water, it tastes great that way.