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.
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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
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.
- 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.
- Meanwhile, boil tuvar dal in pressure cooker and keep it aside.
- Mash the lentils with a masher and add it to your greens.
- Add 2 cups water and stir well.
- 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.
Thotakura pappu recipe | Amaranth dal recipe
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.
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