Mint Thokku
- 36 min
- medium
- Serves 4
Mint thokku, a Tamil Nadu relish of mint, red chilli, ginger and tamarind cooked in gingelly oil. Medium-spicy, vegetarian, serves 4, 35 minutes plus soaking.
Ingredients
Tamarind, Soaked10 grams
Water, For Soaking40 ml
Dry Red Chilli, De-stemmed6 grams
Mint Leaves, Cleaned50 grams
Ginger, Peeled10 grams
Gingelly Oil4 tbsp
Mustard Seeds5 grams
Urad Dal (split)1 tsp
Curry leaves, Cleaned5 grams
Asafoetida1 grams
Onion, Finely Chopped1
Turmeric Powder1 grams
Salt1 tsp
Jaggery, Powdered5 grams
Contains: wheat, sesame.
Nutrition
Per 1 person, and for all 4 people. Worked out from the ingredients, so treat it as a close guide.
| Nutrient | Per 1 person | All 4 people |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 189kcal | 756kcal |
| Protein | 1.7g | 6.8g |
| Carbohydrate | 9.4g | 38g |
| Fat | 17g | 66g |
| Fibre | 2.5g | 10g |
| Sugar | 3.8g | 15g |
Cookd masalas for mint leaves
Method
Wash the mint leaves and curry leaves, and drain them well. Peel and chop the ginger, chop the onion, remove the dry chilli stems and powder the jaggery. Soak the tamarind in 40 ml water for 10 minutes. Squeeze it into the soaking water and discard the fibre and seeds; keep the thick pulp ready.
Heat 1 tsp of the gingelly oil in a kadai on low flame and fry the dry red chillies for 1 minute until crisp. Add them to a mixie jar with the mint leaves, ginger and tamarind pulp. Grind to a slightly coarse paste. Do not add extra water.
Heat oil in a kadai on medium flame for 1 minute. Add mustard seeds and fry for 1 minute until they splutter. Add urad dal, curry leaves and asafoetida, and fry for 1 minute until the dal is light golden.
Add the chopped onion and turmeric powder. Fry on medium flame for 4 to 5 minutes until the onion is soft and light golden.
Add the ground mint paste, salt and jaggery. Mix well and cook on low flame for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring often, until the raw smell goes and the thokku becomes thick.
Add gingelly oil and cook on low flame for 1 minute until the thokku looks glossy and oil shows at the sides. Switch off the flame and serve. Cool completely before storing.
Before you start
- How long does Mint Thokku take?
- 36 minutes from start to finish. That is 15 minutes of preparation and 21 minutes of cooking.
- How many people does Mint Thokku serve?
- 4. The ingredient quantities on this page rescale if you are cooking for a different number.
- Is Mint Thokku vegetarian?
- Yes. No meat, no fish and no egg.
- Is Mint Thokku spicy?
- It is medium: 2 on our scale of 3. Chilli scales gently when you change the servings, so doubling the recipe does not double the heat.
- What do I need to make Mint Thokku?
- 50 grams Mint Leaves, 10 grams Tamarind, 5 grams Jaggery, 1 tsp Urad Dal (split), 6 grams Dry Red Chilli, 10 grams Ginger, and a few more listed on this page.
- Do I need a pressure cooker for Mint Thokku?
- No, it is cooked in an open pot.
- How many calories are in Mint Thokku?
- About 189 a serving. The full nutrition table is on this page, per serving and for the whole batch.
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