Spice up your Andhra meal

Loved the Andhra food rustled up at your Telugu neighbour’s house and wondering whether you will be able to recreate the same magic in your kitchen? Well, a few simple tips kept in mind can go a long way in helping you get the basics of Andhra cooking right. The trick is to master a few classic curry bases and you will soon be able to cook up a storm.

Sour and spicy are the two flavours that define food from this region — be it Telangana, coastal Andhra or Rayalseema. So your first step should be learning how to get these flavours right, says Padma Reddy, artist and writer. “The right selection of ingredients will go a long way in helping you get the right taste, colour and flavour for your dishes. For instance, tomatoes are an important part of Andhra cuisine. But it’s the small, desi variety that works well and not the Bengalurean variety.”

Since none of the regions except Telangana use masala for flavouring, there are two main ingredients that go into Andhra food other than tomatoes — tamarind and chilli.

If you learn how to make a simple base with these two ingredients, you can rustle pretty much anything in the Andhra cuisine, says Nambi Arooran, executive chef of ITC Kakatiya. “The best part about Andhra dishes is that there are no standardised recipes or hard and fast rules. Every Andhra household has its own unique way of making a dish, so you can use the chilli paste/ powder and tamarind pulp to your liking.”

The final result will depend on how authentic your ingredients are, Padma adds. “The thumb rule is to avoid using processed items like packaged chilli powder. It’s neither very spicy nor will it give your dish the right colour or flavour. Authentic Andhra red chilli powder is made of freshly ground dried red chillies. For about 500 gms of chilli powder, add about 150 gm of dhania powder, 75 gms of chopped, dried garlic pods and 2-3 tsps of methi powder. Mix these well and store in an airtight container.”

Chef Nambi adds, “It’s ideal to use an old-fashioned, flat stone to grind chillies for best results, as the taste is never the same when you grind it in a mixie.”

tamarind pulp is also best when made fresh at home. “Unlike other cuisines, where tangy dishes come with the prefix ‘sour’, Andhra dishes use the word pulusu, which itself denotes the taste. Hence, the importance of tamarind in Andhra cooking can never be underestimated. Remember to use old tamarind as it’s more tangy.” Apart from tamarind, you can also use gongura or tamarind leaves and tomatoes.

CHAPALA PULUSU

Ingredients

• 500 gm fish (cleaned and cut)
• 100 ml gingelly oil
• 5 gm mustard, cumin and fenugreek seeds
• 5 red chillies, whole
• 75 gms onions
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 75 gm tomatoes
• 10 gm green chillies
• 25 gm ginger-garlic paste
• 30 gm chilli-coriander powder
• 50 gm tamarind pulp
• Salt to taste

METHOD:
Heat oil, fry mustard, jeera, methi seeds and whole red chillies. Add onion, green chillies and sauté till brown. Add ginger-garlic paste and cook for some time. Add chilli, turmeric, coriander powder and sauté till the raw smell disappears. Add tomato puree and water to it. Boil till the oil leaves the sides and floats on top. Add fish pieces and simmer till done.