Paayalaku - Tomato pappu

I spotted paayalaku at one of the grocery stores when I visited Devon Avenue recently. Prior to this, I had seen them only once at our local grocery store and so, I grabbed these edible weeds instantly. This time, I cooked a slightly different version of dal than my earlier paayalaku pappu. These healthy greens are paired with tangy tomatoes in this home-style spicy, delectable dal.

Ingredients:
1 cup toordal
A bunch of paayalaku / vergodalas / purslane leaves - about 2 cups firmly packed, washed & chopped leaves
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/8 tsp turmeric powder
8 chilies, slit lengthwise (I used tiny, Thai variety) + 1 tsp chili powder*
Salt to taste
Small lime sized tamarind (soaked in water or nuked in a microwave along with 1/4 cup of water for about 3 minutes)
Tadka: 2 tsp oil, 1 tsp each mustard seeds and cumin seeds each, asafoetida and few curry leaves
* Only chili powder / green chilis can be used.

Cooking:

• Wash toordal in two exchanges of water. Add toordal, purslane leaves, tomato, turmeric powder, chilis and about 2 cups of water to a container and place it in a pressure cooker. Pressure cook till dal is done. Alternatively, add everything to a saucepan and cook on stovetop till dal reaches fall apart stage. Keep adding water as needed.
• Squeeze the tamarind pulp and extract the thick juice.
• Heat oil in a kadai or a pan. Add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When mustard seeds start to splutter, add curry leaves and asafoetida. Then add the cooked dal mixture, salt, chili powder and tamarind juice. Taste and adjust the ingredients as needed. Bring the dal / pappu to a boil and turn down the heat. Let it simmer for a few minutes more and turn off the heat.

Serve with hot rice / rotis.



This is on it's way to Susan's MLLA - 25th edition being hosted by Siri this month.

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Verdolagas Dal / Payalaku Pappu

'Paayalaku' or 'Goli koora' is one of the greens which are available in our native state, Andhra pradesh. They grow wildly near any water source. They are slightly sour when cooked and are considered very beneficial for nursing mothers.

Recently I came across the same greens sold as Verdolagas, here. After some googling, I came to know that they are native to North America and are also called as purslane. They are used in Indian, Greek, Middle Eastern cuisine.

Back at home, the greens are mostly used to prepare 'Pappu', the Andhra style dal.

Ingredients:

Toordal - 1/2 cup

A bunch of verdolagas

Thick tamarind extract - 4 tbsp or adjust the amount to suit your taste

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Chillie powder

Salt

For tempering:

Oil - 2 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Asafoetida - A few pinches

A few curry leaves

Preparation:

Roughly chop the leaves. Chop the stems finely if they are tender or else discard them. Wash toordal thoroughly once or twice with plenty of water and throw away the water used.

Add the toordal, chopped leaves & stems, turmeric powder and sufficient water to a cooker or a thick bottomed vessel. Cook till you hear 2-3 whistles or till the dal reaches a fall- apart stage. (If using a cooker, 1 to 1.25 cups of water is enough.

Use only the amount of water needed to cook the dal. It should be not watery.)
After the dal is cooked, add tamarind extract, chillie powder and salt according to your taste and let it simmer for a few minutes on medium heat. Then turn off the stove.
Heat oil in a small pan and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafoetida and curry leaves. When the mustard seeds start to splutter, turn off the stove. Add this tempering mixture to the cooked dal / paapu. Stir once and close the lid.
Serve hot with plain rice and a tsp of ghee.

"Verdolagas Dal' - My entry to Nupur's A - Z Indian vegetable cooking series.

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