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    Home » Indian recipes » Curries and Lentils

    Thotakura pappu | amaranth leaves dal

    14th January 2022 by bhavana bhatia Leave a Comment

    78 shares
    ↓ Jump to Recipe

    Thotakura pappu or thotakura dal is a dish which brings back so many memories. It is a rich dal recipe which is a powerhouse of proteins and iron.

    What does thotakura mean in English?

    Thotakura meaning in English comes from two words. Thota means garden and kura means curry or sabzi. We call amaranth leaves in telugu as thotakura and taste similar to spinach while the meaning of pappu is lentils.They are a little bitter though. Hence , we cook these with sour agent usually tamarind. It cuts the bitterness of the leafy veggie.

    What are amaranth leaves called?

    We also call thotakura in Hindi as Lal maath, kantha chaulai or Lal cholai bhaji. This red chawli leaf is a powerhouse of nutrients and super tasty. Some people also call it as bayam in Malaysia Other names are callaloo and some people also call it as Chinese spinach. It is called as Kiwicha in Peru and Bolivia. Marathi name is Shravani maath, Cheera in Kerala and Chua in Uttaranchal. Amaranthus means a plant which never dies. (Refer to ingredients for image).

    Seeds are also called as Ramdana or rajgira. It is used to make various gluten-free dishes like rajgira chikki, flour to make rajgira puri or roti.

    thotakura pappu | amaranth dal
    thota kura pappu/ amaranth dal /totakura pappu
    Jump to:
    • Ingredients for thotakura pappu
    • How to make thotakura pappu?
    • Thotakura pappu recipe | Amaranth dal recipe

    Vizag vantillu

    I loved having thotakura stir fry as a kid while growing up in Vizag. Mum was quite particular we eat our greens as stir fry or as a lentil. I missed gongura and thotakura here. I could see familiar leaves but I was not sure if they were the same I ate as a kid. Most vendors would not know their South Indian names as they were Asian. Only recently I realized it was in my market under a different name. Thankful to the new Bangladeshi vendor who is getting us more greens now.

    I cannot tell you how happy I was. Somehow the name I was searching, was not familiar to others. Gongura is called as rosella leaves or sorrel in Australia. Ambadi in Hindi or ambad bhaji. Pulicha keerai in Tamil. Thankfully frozen gongura is available. Fiji has many Telugus too, so I get packets from an Indian store. Yay!

    Have you ever felt this way abroad? Finding something from home an d feeling you got a treasure? Do share your experience if you did.

    PS: Special thanks to my bestie Bhu to ensure I make it perfectly.

    Benefits of amaranth

    • It is good for eyesight as it is rich in vitamin A.
    • Powerhouse of Iron and is low carb.
    • Very good for Vitamin C and Vitamin K.
    • Contains ample amounts of folates, potassium, zinc, magnesium and B-complex.
    • Helps lose belly weight and controls cholesterol.

    Equipment

    • Dutch oven (or just pressure cooker will also do)
    • Pressure cooker
    • Tadka pan / frying pan for tempering
    • Mortar & pestle
    • Masher

    Ingredients for thotakura pappu

    • Amaranth leaves / chawli / thotakura /lal maath
    • Arhar dal/ toor dal/ tuvar dal / kandi pappu(telugu)/ pigeon peas
    • Mustard seeds
    • Curry leaves
    • Oil
    • Dried coriander seeds/dried coriander powder
    • coconut pieces optional
    • Ginger
    • Green chillies
    • Tamarind paste
    amaranth leaves
    amaranth leaves recipes

    See recipe card for quantities.

    How to make thotakura pappu?

    • Heat oil in a Dutch oven or pressure cooker. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves and let it splutter.
    thotakura pappu step 1
    • Add chopped amaranth leaves and cook for a couple of minutes until they wilt.
    thotakura pappu step 2
    • In a mortar & pestle, crush ginger, coriander seeds and green chillies.
    thotakura pappu step 3
    • Add coconut pieces and pound to get an even mixture
    thotakura pappu step 4
    • Add the above mixture to wilted leaves and stir.
    thotakura pappu step 5
    • Meanwhile, boil tuvar dal in pressure cooker and keep it aside.
    thotakura pappu step 6
    • Mash the lentils with a masher and add it to your greens.
    thotakura pappu step 7
    • Add 2 cups water and stir well.
    thotakura pappu step 8
    • Add a spoonful of tamarind paste to daal.
    thotakura pappu step 9
    • In a frying pan, heat oil and add cumin seeds, dried red chilies, mustard seeds and heeng. Let it splutter.
    thotakura pappu step 10
    • Add the tempering to lentils and serve it hot.
    thotakura pappu step 11
    pappu thotakura
    andra pappu with rice
    thotakura pappu - amaranth dal
    Print Recipe
    5 from 3 votes

    Thotakura pappu recipe | Amaranth dal recipe

    Easy dal recipe with leafy amaranth greens make a healthy and nutritious meal look easy even on a weekday. Learn to make this easy thotakura pappu recipe here
    Prep Time5 minutes mins
    Cook Time25 minutes mins
    Total Time30 minutes mins
    Course: Curries and Lentils
    Cuisine: Indian
    Keyword: amaranth dal, amaranth leaf recipes, amaranth leaves daal, amaranthus dal, lal maath cooked with tuvar dal, thotakura curry, thotakura pappu, thotakura recipe
    Servings: 4
    Author: bhavana bhatia

    Equipment

    • Dutch oven optional
    • pressure cooker
    • Masher
    • Frying pan / tadka pan
    • Mortar & pestle

    Ingredients

    • 200 gm fresh amaranth leaves (yields 5 cups chopped thotakura leaves)
    • 2 cups water
    • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
    • 1 tbsp. oil or ghee if not vegan
    • handful curry leaves

    For coconut masala

    • 2 green chillies
    • 1 tbsp ginger
    • ½ tbsp. coriander seeds (or use coriander powder if you do not have seeds)
    • 1 tbsp. coconut pieces optional

    For boiled dal

    • ⅔ cup pigeon peas / tuvar dal/ toor dal / arhar dal
    • 1.5 cups water
    • Pinch turmeric powder
    • salt as per taste
    • 1 tbsp. tamarind paste imli paste

    For tempering

    • oil or ghee if vegetarian
    • mustard seeds
    • cumin seeds
    • Generous pinch of asafoetida or heeng (avoid if gluten-free)
    • dried red chillies optional

    Instructions

    • Heat oil in a Dutch oven or pressure cooker. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves and let it splutter.
    • Add chopped amaranth leaves and cook for a couple of minutes until they wilt.
    • In a mortar & pestle, crush ginger, coriander seeds and green chillies.
    • Add coconut pieces and pound to get an even mixture
    • Add the above mixture to wilted leaves and stir.
    • Boil the dal in pressure cooker along with salt and turmeric powder.
    • Mash the lentils with a masher and add it to your greens.
    • Add 2 cups water and stir well.( Increase or decrease water as per consistency you want)
    • Add a spoonful of tamarind paste to daal.
    • In a frying pan, heat oil and add cumin seeds, dried red chilies, mustard seeds and heeng. Let it splutter.
    • Add the tempering to lentils and serve it hot with rice or roti as per your choice.

    Serving suggestion

    Fried curd chillies taste best with thotakura recipes along with some air fryer fryums and papad. Tamarind is added so that Vitamin C boost helps in iron absorption. You may use a spoonful tamarind chutney if you do not have time to make your own tamarind pulp.

    Substitutions

    You can use any greens if you do not have amaranth available. You can use both red and green amaranth leaves to make the above recipe. Use mustard greens or spinach to make dal palak or palakura pappu. Use fenugreek leaves to make methi dal.

    Variations

    There are two varieties of Amaranth, pinkish crimson and green. Depending on the leaves used color of dal may differ.

    You can add onion and garlic in tempering if you like. You may avoid heeng or asafoetida if gluten-free. Serve it with rice or roti as per your choice. Add extra red chillies if you like it hot and spicy!

    Other ways of using amaranth leaves are by making thotakura pulusu(tamarind stew with amaranth leaves),keerai masial, hulee, majjigay (buttermilk)-hulee and palya.Hulee meaning sambar and palya meaning curry. Apart from this andhra pappu recipe, we also make a thotakura fry recipe where we stir fry these leaves with south Indian tempering and tamarind. Another important amaranth leaf recipes thotakura majjiga pulusu where it is cooked with yogurt.

    Storage

    Although eating fresh is best, you may store totakura pappu in refrigerator for 2-3 days. Reheat and give a fresh tempering if you like.

    To speed up the above recipe, boil extra lentils if you make dhal daily. Store in refrigerator. This helps churn out dishes much faster on weekday. Heat the dal and give a new tempering. Same lentils, new dahl. That is the variety of Indian cuisine.

    Related links

    • Sai bhaji/ Sindhi dal palak
    • Palak paneer
    • Ven pongal/khara pongal
    • Sakkarai pongal/ chakkara pongal
    • Curd rice/Daddojanam/ Thayir sadam
    • Moong dal fry recipe | Peeli dal recipe
    • Indian spinach rice / palak pulao/ palakura rice

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    5 from 3 votes (3 ratings without comment)

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    Hi,I am Bhavana & this is my wonderland of recipes.I have been in IT for 15+ years have always loved writing.My husband Gaurav & I,love to cook, click & host people

    More about me →

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