Vatral kulambu

Ingredients :

• Dry vatral - 2 tbl. sps.
• Till oil - 2 tbl. sps.
• Tamarind pulp - 1 / 4 cup
• Sambhar powder - 2 tsps
• Salt - as required
• Jaggery - little

For seasoning :

• Mustard seeds - 1 / 2 sp
• Asafoetida powder - a pinch
• Fenugreek - 1 / 4 sp
• Broken red chillies - 2
• Channa dal - 2 sp

Method :

Take one kalcatti keep on the gas, heat oil, add seasonings and then fry vatral till it becomes dark. Add sambhar powder in the oil itself. Pour tamarind pulp, along with water.  Add salt, turmeric powder, to that, and boil for 10 mints in lower flame. Mix little rice flour in water and add to boiling gravy. Allow to boil till it becomes thick. Add jaggery at the end and garnish with curry leaves. Serve with hot steam rice and any side dish like poriyal.

Variations :
Fresh vegetables like brinjal, sambhar onions, peeled garlic [ 2 pods ], yellow pumpkin, avarai kai, colocaesia can be used to prepare this kulambu.

Some vegetables can be sun dried and preserved. these vegetables when it is dried are called as vatral.
 [ ladies finger, manathakkali, sundakai, bitter gourd,and karamani. ]

This is my mother's  [ Mrs lalitha mani 's  ] recipe.