Strawberry Thokku and Tomato Thokku

The South Indian style of thokkus (pickles) take the taste buds on a tangy and spicy journey to heaven. They are excellent homemade products to make them once and store them for a while. They can be used as substitutes for chutneys and go well with chapati, paratha, rice, idli, dosa and curd rice.

The main benefit about these thokkus is, they have a good shelf life, to make them once in bulk and store for a while. These are handy for busy moms and bachelors.

Let me share a few important tips on how to make tbokkus better. Making these is very easy at home, but preserving it for a long time take some additional steps. So it is important to follow these simple steps.

• Make sure to cook tomatoes and strawberries without any moisture content.

• I used tamrind concentrate (store bought) that helped to save time. If you are using raw tamrind extract, you have to cook it until no water or moisture content in it.

• Make sure to add said measurement of oil. This will help the thokku to stay fresh longer.

• Use dry, clean airtight containers for storing and make sure to cool down completely before storing.

Make these thokkus in large quantities at once and store them in a glass containers in the refrigerator. These are convenient whenever you do not feel like cooking or too busy to cook or tired, and will be a life saving dishes.

Here the recipes are…

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STRAWBERRY THOKKU

INGREDIENTS : (yields nearly 1 cup)

• 1 and 1/2 cup or 25 strawberries finely chopped
• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 and 1/2 tbsp chilli powder
• 1 tbsp powdered jaggery
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tbsp of tamarind concentrate
• A few curry leaves
• A generous pinch of asafoetida
• A pinch of turmeric powder
• Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS :

1. Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan and temper the mustard seeds and add asafoetida, turmeric powder and curry leaves.

2. Then add chopped strawberries. Cook until the strawberries are mushy and a bit dry. Keep stirring and mashing strawberries using a spatula in between to avoid burning. It hardly takes 6 to 8 minutes.

3. Now add tamarind concentrate, jaggery, chilli powder and salt. Mix well. Allow the mixture to cook for 15 to 20 minutes on medium flame. The oil should float on top, it ensures there is no water in the mixture. And this will help the thokku to stay fresh longer.

3. Then turn off the flame, delightful strawberry thokku is ready and allow it to cool completely and store it in refrigerator.

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TOMATO THOKKU

INGREDIENTS : (yields nearly 2 cups)

• 6 big oval shaped tomatoes as they have low moisture content and perfect for pickles…finely chopped
• 2 tbsp of tamarind paste
• 1/2 cup of oil
• 1/4 cup powdered jaggery
• 1/4 cup chilli powder
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp asafoetida
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• A few curry leaves
• Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS :

1. Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan, temper the mustard seeds and add asafoetida, turmeric powder and curry leaves.

2. Then add chopped tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes are mushy and a bit dry.

3. Then add chilli powder, salt, jaggery and tamrind extract. Mix well and cook until the oil floats on top. It takes nearly 15 to 20 minutes. Keep stirring in between.

4. Turn off the flame and allow it to cool completely. And store in refrigerator.

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NOTES :

The measurment of these recipes give you mildly spiced thokkus, you can add more for super spicy thokkus.

Make sure to take oval shaped tomatoes for tomato thokku as they have low moisture content.

Be generous in adding oil, as it will help the thokkus to stay fresh longer.

You can try other thokkus Onion Tokku, Cranberry Thokku, Blueberry Chutney.

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ENJOYYY….

HAPPY COOKING… JYO