Chundakkai is very bitter in taste. The fresh ones can be used to make tamarind based gravies. Usually, chundakkai is preferred to make vathals, so that it can be stored for later use. It is mainly used for the preparation of vathalkuzhambu or can be deep fried and used as sides too.
Chundakkai - 2 cups
Buttermilk - 1 cup
Urad dal - 2 tblspn
Red Chilly - 3 nos
Salt to taste
Soak urad dal and red chilly for an hour.Grind it to a smooth paste.
Wash and slightly crush the berries. Crushing helps to remove the bitterness when later soaked in buttermilk mixture.
Add buttermilk, ground paste and salt to the crushed chundakkai. Mix well.
Leave it for a day.
Drain the chundakkais and dry it under sun. After each day of drying, continue to soak
them in the leftover buttermilk mixture till it is completely absorbed.
them in the leftover buttermilk mixture till it is completely absorbed.
Dry the chundakkais for a day after no liquid mixture is left in the vessel.
Store in airtight containers. It will stay good for more than a year.
Shall post the recipe for vathakuzhambu soon.
