Quick and easy bendekai gojju, not-so-spicy tamarind-based okra, and shallots gravy with a tiny hint of sweetness! A perfect rice accompaniment!
Today, I will share an easy rice accompaniment that you can make in less than 30 minutes! It’s the bendekai gojju. Bendekai means okra in Kannada, and gojju is a tamarind-based gravy/stew. I have already shared a tomato gojju without any onions and garlic. Here is another one with subtle differences.
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As I have mentioned in my other posts, I grew up eating a mix of Kannada ad Tamil cuisine food, and this gojju is like vathal kuzhambu but with a tiny hint of sweetness. You can make gojju in different ways, and this is how my mom always makes it, and I am sharing the same.
So what makes this dish so delicious? We add slit green chili and toor dal while tempering to enhance the flavor. Also, we add extra tamarind, sambar powder, and jaggery to balance it. It’s spicy, slightly sour, and sweet too! This gojju will tingle your taste buds.
It’s a very straightforward recipe and let’s get straight into the ingredients and procedure.
Ingredients
Okra and shallots: Use tender okra. Shallots add a nice flavor to this gojju, but you can make it without it.
To Temper: I highly recommend using Indian sesame oil or gingelly oil for this recipe. We need mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida, and toor dal for tempering. Also, we add slit green chili while making gojju. Depending upon your taste preference, you can adjust the green chilies.
Note about fenugreek seeds – I usually add little extra fenugreek seeds. Given the health benefits of fenugreek seeds, I add more to my sambar and kuzhambu varieties. Instead of 1 tsp of fenugreek seeds, you can add ½ tsp.
Tamarind paste: I used my homemade tamarind paste for this recipe. I mixed 2 tsp of tamarind with 1 cup of water. I included some ground turmeric with this mix.
Sambar powder: I used my homemade sambar powder. You can use a mix of sambar powder and rasam powder. Mixing the sambar powder in water avoids lumps. But you can add directly too.
Jaggery: Yet another key ingredient in the gojju. We are adding both green chili and sambar powder. To balance the spice, add some jaggery. I have added 15 grams of jaggery here, adjusting to taste.
Rice flour: To thicken the gojju, we add rice flour slurry. Depending upon consistency preference, adjust the rice flour and water measure. If you want a thin consistency gojju, skip the rice flour, add that ½ cup of water, and simmer the gojju.
Last but not least, the secret ingredient is ground fenugreek and turmeric powder. You need ¼ tsp of this powder, and you add this towards the end and simmer just for 2 minutes.
How to make this powder – roast 1 tbsp of fenugreek seeds until it turns deep golden brown and let it cool. Grind it with 1 tsp of turmeric powder and store it in an air-tight container. You can add this powder to vathal kuzhambu, pulikachal, pickles, thokku for added flavor.
We also need curry leaves, salt, and water from these ingredients. Please see the recipe card for detailed measurements.
Dietary specifications
This bendekayi gojju or okra curry is vegan and nut-free naturally. Use gluten-free asafoetida for a gluten-free version.
This gojju stays suitable for two days even without refrigeration and for up to 5 days when refrigerated. You can serve this with plain steamed rice and any dry curry/poriyal or kootu or serve it with ven pongal.
Without any further ado, let’s see how to make this okra gojju.
Okra gojju recipe with step-wise pictures
- Heat a saucepan or kadai. I used my clay pot. Add the sesame oil. Add the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, toor dal, and asafoetida when the oil is hot. Let the mustard seeds splutter, and mustard seeds turn color. Add the curry leaves, chopped shallots, and okra. Saute until the shallots turn soft.
- Mix 2 tsp of tamarind paste with 1 cup of water. Add the ground turmeric, and salt too and mix well. Now add this to the okra and shallots.
- Bring this mixture to a boil.
- Parallelly, mix the sambar powder with ½ cup of water without lumps. Add this to the gojju and the jaggery too.
- Simmer this mixture for 5 to 7 minutes.
- At this stage, add the rice flour slurry (mix rice flour with ½ cup water) simmer it for 3 to 4 minutes. The rice flour mix helps the gojju to thicken a bit.
- Simmer for 2 minutes, and turn off the heat. Serve hot with rice or with ven pongal.
Recipe notes
- Adjust the salt and spices to taste.
- I won’t recommend skipping green chilies and toor dal. They both enhance the flavor for sure.
- If you can’t source curry leaves, skip it—no need to add cilantro.
- You can add a mix of sambar powder and rasam powder instead of sambar powder alone.
- Shallots are optional. Instead of shallots, you can add ¼ cup of chopped red or yellow onions.
Explore other okra recipes
PS: If you try this okra tamarind stew/bendekai gojju, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it ASAP. Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more recipe updates! You can also sign-up for my newsletter for weekly updates.
📖 Recipe
Bendekai Gojju | Tamarind-Based Okra Gravy
Equipment
- Clay pot or sauce pot
Ingredients
Measurement Details: 1 cup = 240ml; 1 tbsp = 15ml; 1 tsp = 5ml;
- 5 okra 75 grams, edges trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces.
- 5 shallots 25 grams, peeled and cut into half
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1 tsp toor dal
- ¼ tsp asafoetida
- 1 green chili slit
- 5 curry leaves
- 2 tsp tamarind paste
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
- 15 grams jaggery
- 1.5 tbsp sambar powder
- 2 cups water divided
- 1.75 tsp salt
- 1.5 tsp rice flour
Instructions
- Heat a saucepan or kadai. I used my clay pot. Add the sesame oil. Add the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, toor dal, and asafoetida when the oil is hot. Let the mustard seeds splutter, and mustard seeds turn color. Add the curry leaves, chopped shallots, and okra. Saute until the shallots turn soft.
- Mix 2 tsp of tamarind paste with 1 cup of water. Add the ground turmeric, and salt too and mix well. Now add this to the okra and shallots.
- Bring this mixture to a boil.
- Parallelly, mix the sambar powder with ½ cup of water without lumps. Add this to the gojju and the jaggery too.
- Simmer this mixture for 5 to 7 minutes.
- At this stage, add the rice flour slurry (mix rice flour with ½ cup water) simmer it for 3 to 4 minutes. The rice flour mix helps the gojju to thicken a bit.
- Finally, add the ¼ tsp of fenugreek and turmeric powder, simmer for 2 minutes, and turn off the heat. Serve hot with rice or with ven pongal.
Notes
- Adjust the salt and spices to taste.
- I won’t recommend skipping green chilies and toor dal. They both enhance the flavor for sure.
- If you can’t source curry leaves, skip it—no need to add cilantro.
- You can add a mix of sambar powder and rasam powder instead of sambar powder alone.
- Shallots are optional. Instead of shallots, you can add ¼ cup of chopped red or yellow onions.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
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