Pineapple pachadi is a sweet and sour curry popular in South India. Pineapple is cooked with spices and mixed wit ground paste of coconut. Sour yogurt is balances the sweet and spicy flavors and the dish is finished with traditional seasoning spices (tadka)
So here the tadka ( the hot seasoned oil along with the spices ) is being poured over the curry . Just before serving it will be stirred in.
I think I have mentioned it before that I tend to get nostalgic at this time of the year. This year especially as I didn’t not get to meet any of my family. So invariably i tend to make quite a bit of dishes from my childhood and a sweet pachadi is one of them.
Pineapple is called Kaithachakka in Malayalam. If you travel around the hilly regions of Kerala you get to see acres of pineapple farms. It is part of the crop rotation – rubber trees and pineapples. It is not just a cash crop, many households will have a few of these along the fence lines as well. So when I saw the left over pineapple slices in the fridge this was the dish that came to mind.
And here was something else as well – someone had recently informed me that pachadi as the south Indian version of raita ? …
The conversation went somewhat like this –
{YT – (innocent bystander in this case ) yours truly, SS shall remain unnamed }
SS “Oh pachadi,” glances at the phone, “isn’t that raita ? I love raita “.
SS takes a taste and “Hmm I think you got the name wrong”.
YT – “It is pachadi not raita”.
SS “ Oh , but Wikipedia … “
YT rolls eyes “ .. yes ”
SS “In Karnataka , Kerala and Tamil Nadu pachadi is … “.
YT interjects “- IT is Wikipedia ! looks like written by some one who had South Indian Food once, maybe “.
Well SS does not like to be contradicted… and you can guess what happened afterwards !
OK, So what is raita and pachadi ?
Raita is essentially seasoned yogurt with fresh crunchy vegetables or crunchy chickpea balls as in boondi raita. It is fresh and cooling, and as such served along with spicy and rich foods. Onions and cucumber raita happens to be my favorite side for biryani.
South Indian pachadi has yogurt, but in moderation. There is cooked vegetables or fruits , coconut and spices, and the sour yogurt (curd as commonly known ) is added to balance and round out the flavors. Most importantly this is the one dish where mustard flavors play a big part.
What do I need to make pineapple pachadi ?
Pineapples , spices (turmeric,chili powder, mustard seeds, and cumin seeds) ,salt, coconut , curry leaves, whole dry chilies, curd , jaggery or sugar as needed.
Pineapple is cut into small pieces and cooked with a little water , chili powder, salt and turmeric. You could mash the cooked fruits with the back of a spoon if the pieces are big.
Typically in Kerala curries, mustard seeds are used only for tempering. Here a few mustard seeds are ground along with coconut. You can definitely taste it and it is a nice contrast to all the other flavors in the curry.
Some of my friends grind 1 or 2 pearl onions along with coconut and add to the curry . It changes the taste slightly, and I do not add onions when making pineapple pachadi or any other pachadi with fruits.
Mix the ground coconut into the pineapple mix and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes. This step removes any raw tastes from the curry. At this time taste and adjust salt and sweetness . Turn off the heat and stir in the yogurt. All that is left is to make the seasoning (thalikkal in Malayalam).
My preferred oil for seasoning here is coconut oil. When making a seasoning oil like this allow the spices splutter and almost reach the point of burning . It imparts wonderful smoky flavors to the oil and the curry .
This was our vegetarian meal – there is Matta rice , eggplant mezhukkupiratti (similar to a stir fry but much lighter), pineapple pachadi, pickles and pappadam (not in the picture). The yellow drink on the side is Jeeraka Vellam. This is a typical drink , made by boiling water with a pinch cumin seeds.
Pineapple Pachadi
Ingredients
- 1 ½ C Pineapple Ripe, Chopped
- ½ Tsp Chili powder
- ¼ Tsp Turmeric
- Salt To taste
- 2 - 3 C Water
- 1 Tsp Jaggery/ Sugar Optional
- 1/4 - 1/2 C Sour Curd / Yogurt use as needed
To Grind
- ½ C Grated Coconut Fresh or Frozen
- 1/8 Tsp Cumin seeds a pinch
- ¼ Tsp Mustard Seeds
- 2-3 Tbsp Water as needed
For Tempering
- 1 - 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil
- ½ Tsp Mustard Seeds
- 1/8 Tsp Fenugreek Seeds Optional
- 2 Dried Red Chili, Whole
- 1 -2 Sprigs Curry Leaves
Instructions
- If using fresh pineapple remove the skin and core and chop into small pieces.
- Take the pineapple in a thick bottomed pan (stockpot / kadai). Add chili powder, turmeric powder a pinch of salt and 2 C water to it . Bring to boil and let it simmer covered for 10 minutes or until the pineapple is cooked through.
- While the pineapple is cooking , grind together the coconut, cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Add a few tablespoons of water to the mix and grind it into a thick paste.
- Beat the yogurt with a spoon or fork until it is smooth.
- Add the ground coconut to the cooked pineapple. Mix and taste. The curry should be lightly sweet at this point . If needed add a little sugar or jaggery . Adjust salt. If the curry looks dry add a little water.Increase the heat lightly and bring it back to slow simmer . Cover and let it simmer for a few minutes.
- Uncover , taste to make sure that the raw taste does is gone. If needed cook for a few more minutes. Take off the heat and mix in the beaten yogurt as necessary. Taste and adjust salt if needed.
- In a small pan (kadai/mini wok) heat 1- 2 tbsp of coconut oil . When the oil is hot add the mustard seeds followed by the fenugreek seeds. Once it splutters tear the dry red chilies into small pieces and add to the hot oil followed by the curry leaves. Turn off the heat as the chilies begin to smoke and the curry leaves turn crisp.
- Pour the hot oil over the curry along with the seasonings. Stir lightly just before serving.
- Serve with rice .
Notes
- Pearl onions or shallots are ground along with the coconut sometimes. When onions are ground usually sliced onions are fried in the seasoning oil as well.
- Once the coconut paste is added do not bring the curry to rolling boil. Let it slow simmer until the coconut is just cooked through.
- Do not boil the curry after adding yogurt as it tends to split.
Nutrition
Important: Nutrition Values are estimates. Actuals vary based on ingredients and serving size.
