ANDHRA PULIHORA

I grew up in an Andhra household and pulihora runs in our blood. Andhra pulihora tastes different from Tamilian or Kannada puliyogare. Give this a try. You will make it again and again. Pulihora is made for almost all Andhra festivals, weddings, and poojas. When we were kids, Pulihora and Daddojanam (curd rice) always travelled with us on train journeys.

Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 5 mins 

Ingredients

Pulihora masala

• 10 dry red chillis
• 4 sprigs curry leaves (kadipatta, karavepa aaku)
• 2 pinches asafoetida (hing) powder

• 2 tbsp sesame seeds (til)

• 1/4tbsp fenugreek seeds

Seasoning 

¼ cup urad dal (skinned split black lentils) 
¼ cup chana dal (split Bengal gram) 
½ cup raw peanuts 
¼ cup raw cashew nuts   
1 teaspoon turmeric (haldi) powder 
1 large handful tamarind 
3 – 4 green chillis, slit lengthwise 
½ cup groundnut oil   
Salt to taste

Method

Spread rice in a large plate so it cools quickly and the rice grains stay separate. This is important.

1. To make tamarind paste, add hot water to tamarind pulp. Let it sit for 15 minutes, then squeeze pulp. Strain the seeds. You want to keep the pulp thick and not too watery.
2.  Heat oil in a frying pan. Fry all the nuts, dals, and spices in the following order as they need different cooking times - peanuts, chana dal, urad dal, red chillis, cashewnuts, mustard seeds, asafoetida, curry leaves, green chillis, masala and turmeric. Now add the tamarind paste and salt and cook for a few minutes.
3. Pour all the masala onto the rice and mix gently, but thoroughly. Hands work best here. You want all the rice grains to be coated by the pulihora masala