Want to enjoy a sumptuous lunch? then try a bowl of rice with this super simple pachcha thakkali kai paruppu or green tomato dal for lunch. With dal being a staple in India, is there ever such a thing as too much dal? Well no, and this dal or pappu recipe is made with unripe green tomatoes and tur dal and makes for a nice change from the regular sambar.
Whenever I get green tomatoes, other than this pachcha thakkali kai chutney, I make this pachcha thakkali kai paruppu before it starts to ripen.
The onset of spring means a huge batch of tomatoes that we get to harvest, as that is the season start for tomatoes.
I distinctly remember my Grandmother making this dal for lunch from freshly picked tomatoes from her background patch, where she grew a few tomato plants.
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After marriage, my MIL used to make this as she gets these green tomatoes at her place, and she also gets to pick them from her own garden too.
This pachcha thakkali kai paruppu is a combined version of both their recipes that tastes even better than both of theirs.
As there is no coconut added to this dal like in this peerkangai oorpu, this stays well for one whole day without spoiling even during summer.
Ingredients
Pachcha Thakkali Kai: These are nothing but unripe green tomatoes. These green tomatoes are not that sour or taste tangier than when compared to their ripe counterparts.
Other vegetables: onions, green chillies, curry leaves and coriander leaves.
Spices: mustard seeds, urad dal, sambar powder, turmeric powder and whole black peppercorns.
Salt to taste and oil to cook.
Instructions
To make pachcha thakkali kai paruppu,
1. Rinse tur dal, add turmeric powder, and water and place in a pressure cooker.
2. Cook for 4 whistles, mash and set aside.
3. Heat a pan with oil. Temper with mustard seeds and urad dal. Add onions and sauté till pink.
4. Now add the green chillies, curry leaves and stir well.
5. Add green tomatoes, a pinch of salt and cook the tomatoes.
6. After the tomatoes are cooked soft, add tur dal and water.
7. Add salt, sambar powder and mix well. Cover and cook for 5 to 6 mins.
8. Meanwhile, crush the black pepper and add it to the dal.
9. Garnish with coriander leaves, mix well & switch off the stove.
Cover the pan & let it rest for 5 mins for all the flavours to meld well and serve this pachcha thakkali kai paruppu with hot rice.
Recipe Notes
1. If you want a very mildly spiced dal, then either skip the green chillies or reduce the quantity of sambar powder.
2. But do not skip out on the black pepper, as it elevates the dal in both flavour and taste.
3. Though we do use sambar powder in this recipe, this dal is much different from the sambar.
Nutrition Profile
This recipe is
- Dairy-Free
- Diabetic-Friendly
- Egg-Free
- Gluten-Free
- High Fibre
- High Protein
- Low Calorie
- Low Carb
- Nut Free
- Soy-Free
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
Substitutions
Do not have green tomatoes? No issues. You can use any vegetable that is rich in water to work well in this recipe.
Instead of green tomatoes, you can use chayote (chow-chow), bottle gourd, malabar cucumber (dosakkai), watermelon rind and ridge gourd to go well in this paruppu.
Variations
You can use a mix of dals instead of using only tur dal. Use equal quantities of yellow moong dal and tur dal or masoor dal and yellow moong dal.
Rinse and pressure cook just like tur dal and proceed with the recipe.
FAQ’s
It is best if you consume this pachcha thakkali kai paruppu on the same day that you cooked. The dal tastes way too tangier & sour the next day, even when it is refrigerated, as the tomatoes get to rest in the dal for a longer period. So I would suggest that you make only the required quantity.
You can serve this as a kulambu or dal to mix with freshly steamed rice with a liberal dose of ghee and serve it with a vegetable curry or appalams.
If you wish to serve this as a kootu or side dish with any kulambu rice, you can do that as well. But you need to reduce the water added to adjust the consistency and cook it a bit thick.
You can also serve this as a side dish with chapathis or rotis.
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Recipe
Pachcha Thakkali Kai Paruppu - Green Tomato Dal
Ingredients
- 1 cup pachcha thakkali kai or raw green tomatoes finely chopped
- ¼ cup tur dal
- ¼ cup onions finely chopped
- 1 green chilli chopped
- 2 teaspoon sambar powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon whole black pepper coarsely crushed
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon urad dal
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 1 tablespoon coriander leaves chopped
- rock salt to taste
- 2 teaspoon oil
Instructions
- Take tur dal in a bowl. Add water and rinse it 2 to 3 times and drain the water.
- Add turmeric powder, and 1 cup of water & place the bowl in the pressure cooker.
- Cook for 4 whistles over medium flame & switch off the stove.
- After the pressure is released, open the lid, mash tur dal and set it aside.
- Heat a pan with oil. When warm, add mustard seeds and wait for them to splutter. Add urad dal and fry till golden brown.
- Add onions and sauté till the onions turn pink.
- Now add the green chillies, curry leaves and stir well.
- Add green tomatoes, a pinch of salt and sauté till the tomatoes become a bit soft. This should take 2 to 3 mins.
- Add mashed tur dal, enough water to the consistency you prefer the dal to be (½ to ¾ cup approx.,) sambar powder, salt and mix well.
- Cover the pan with a lid and cook over medium flame for 5-6 mins or till the raw smell disappears. Mix occasionally to prevent the dal from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Finally, add crushed black pepper, coriander leaves, mix well and cook for 1 more min & switch off the stove.
- Close the pan with the lid and let it rest for 5 mins for the pepper flavour to meld with the dal.
- Serve this pachcha thakkali kai paruppu with hot rice.
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Maayeka
nice ,healthy and delicious..next time i will surely pick green tomatoes to make this:)
Now Serving
the taste of green tomatoes is quite different from the regular reds - dal looks fab Radhika 🙂
Neha
Dal looks very yummy...
sangee vijay
i love tomato dal a lot but never tried with green tomato...looks inviting!!
divya
Lovely recipe. Yummy !!
Roshni
radhika, you will not believe. I have never tasted or made anything with green tomatoes. I am going to give your dal a try after buying some
Suja
Tangy and yummy dal..tempting dish
Sravs
Simple and delicious dal !! love to have with chapati's!!
Sandhya Hariharan
Super inviting Tomato dal.... Nice way of recreating the dish made in your family..
Uma
Advantage of being in chennai 🙂 I love thakkalikkai and pick from my farm everyweek and make pickle. I never know we can make dal too from this. I am loving this.
Hamaree Rasoi
Delicious and inviting recipe. Looks simply yummy.
Roxana GreenGirl {A little bit of everything}
I love green tomatoes and always buy some from the farmers market during the summer. I adore them roasted or pickled.
Your dal sounds delicious, thanks for sharing
S.Menaga
தக்காளி பருப்பு பார்க்கும் போதே சாப்பிட தோனுது,நல்லாயிருக்கு!!
Prathima Rao
I love the taste of raw tomatoes!!! Another yummy dish to add to its category 😉 Looks delish!!
Prathima Rao
Prats Corner
Priya
Yum yum,wat a great looking dal, love this green tomatoes..
Vimitha Anand
Simple and yummy curry. Never tried green tomatoes...
Kaveri
Raw tomatoes are a rarity...but would love to try this if I find some..My Mil also keeps telling about this dal.
Fathima
Great Clicks. Raw tomatoes will be more tangy than ripe tomatoes right? I think if I can get green tomatoes here in Rabigh, I will surely try out this recipe.
Chandrani
Dal looks so healthy and yummy..
???
Is it tomatillo or pacha thakkali? Either case, paruppu looks yummy! 😛
Vardhini
One of my favorite dals .. love the flavor of green tomatoes. Waiting for summer. 🙂
Vardhini
Hari Chandana
Simple and delicious dal. healthy too.. thanks for sharing 🙂