Onion and aubergine simmering in a tangy and spicy tamarind sauce. It is used as a side for pongal, idli and dosa.
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Today's recipe is a mix of my mom's and mom in law. Gothsu is another close variety of vatha kuzhambu which is made with lots of onions (and brinjal) in a tamarind gravy as a base. This is a pair of Venpongal which is a very classic combination down South of India. Due to its easy preparation, it has now become a side dish to most of the Tamil tiffin items viz, Dosa and Idli.
As I said, I have combined both my mom's methods. My mom adds toor dahl along with onions & brinjals whereas my Mil does not. But she adds besan which changes the taste of the dish slightly. Since this recipe is made with Tamarind water alone, it needs a thickening agent to give it some body, a base. For this, any recipe for that matter, we use rice flour as the thickening agent. But in my Mil's recipe, she uses besan instead which serves the purpose as same as rice flour but it alters the taste. Since I liked this taste better (hope my mom does not read this post )I have started making it this way.
Apart from this, there are other versions of this recipe as well. My aunt uses mung dahl in this recipe which totally differs in taste from this. As that is also equally tasty, I will post that in my future posts. Unfortunately, I was not able to find out the history or origin of this recipe. But this is a very common side dish that you can find in the Tambrahm households.
Gothsu
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
25 mins
Onion and aubergine simmering in a tangy and spicy tamarind sauce. It is used as a side for pongal, idli and dosa.
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Indian, Tamil Nadu
Servings: 2 persons
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds (kadugu)
- 3-4 curry leaves (karivepillai), torn
- 3 red chillies (vatha mailagai)
- 1 tablespoon bengal grams (channa dhal)
- 1 tablespoon yellow split peas (toor dhal)
- 1 medium-sized onion (vengayam) finely chopped
- 1 medium-sized brinjal (kathirikai) finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons Tamarind paste (puli thanni) mixed in 2 cups water
- Salt to taste
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder (milagai podi)
- 1 tablespoon besan flour (kadalai mavu)
- few coriander leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Heat oil in a Kadai | Pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Then add the curry leaves, red chillies and fry for a second.
Then add both the dhal and fry till they turn golden brown. Then add the chopped onions and sauté until it turns translucent.
Add the brinjal, chilli powder and fry for a second.
- Then add the tamarind water and salt; let it cook for about 7-8 minutes until the raw smell goes off the tamarind.
- Mix the besan in a cup of water and pour it. Boil it for a couple of more minutes and the gravy will start to thick.
- Finally garnish it with coriander leaves and turn off the flame.
Recipe Notes
- You can either use just brinjal or onions or you can mix both as well.
- Do not add besan directly to the boiling gravy. It will form lumps. Mix it well in cold water and then add it. If you do not like the besan taste, use rice flour as the thickening agent.
Awesome combination with pongal. Looks very inviting
Ah perfect combination with idly & pong al! !
Mom adds rice flour paste to thicken the gojju and we also add a bit of jaggery. Your clicks are so tempting.Would love to pair this with Ven Pongal.Yum...
I love to have this gothsu with idlies.. Good one
it's really interesting how same recipe can be made in different ways from house to house - taking the best of all and combining in your own version shows homage to them all I believe...
Such a humble yet beautiful recipe. Complete comfort food. Loved the clicks Nisha!!
Pongal and gothsu nothing beat this combo, fingerlicking gothsu definitely.
lipsmacking.. I agree with suma. Pongal and this yum yum yum
That's a perfect combination with pongal bookmarked because we make it with a slight difference..
When paired with ven pongal, it makes an excellent combo dish. BTW in Andhra, we add jaggery to this kind of preparation and call it otti pulusu.
I make this with pongal now and then. Besan is a new for me in this recipe
I tend to use Besan as it adds a little of protein 🙂 For us Ven pongal is always paired with this tangy gotsu (we call it gojju).
hazhhah..guess there are so many versions of this dish right..my mom adds a mix of toor dal and channa dal...even had it for this mornings breakfast for ven pongal..:)..lovely pictures and must try your versions for a variation..
Wow! I just love this. Any tamarind based gravy tops my fav list...
Altering one ingredient does change the taste of the recipe. Loving the gothsu, looks yummy:)
Pongal with this gothsu is out of this world combination. I love the kathirikkay vengayam gothsu the most.
Replace one ingredient alters the taste a lot and even if your mom reads this post, she might not mind.. 🙂 Lovely pictures and yummy gothsu
I made this once to serve with khichdi and it was absolutely delicious. Your tempting me to try this dish again soon.
I am loving all your mom and MIL recipes.This gothsu looks perfect to pair with rice.