Inju Curry/ Special Inji Curry/ Inji Puli

Inji Curry is a traditional Kerala dish served especially during Kerala Sadhya. Inji curry is basically a sweet and sour Ginger Pickle, also known as Inji Puli or Puli Inji. It is an indispensable dish for festive occasions and is often served with heavy meals like Sadhya. Ginger also has medicinal properties and aids in digestion. The star ingredient Ginger and the tamarind adds to the tartness and the Jaggery proffers the sweetness to this special Inji curry. The sweet and tangy flavor makes it so special and delicious and also takes good care of your bloated tummy!! 🙂

I was always intrigued about the different names for Inji curry; Puli Inji, Inji puli, Inji theeyal. There are different versions prevalent in different regions. While Inji Puli is little runny, Inji curry is much thicker.  I loved my mom’s Inji curry very much as it tasted different from the Inji puli that was served during Sadhyas. My mom always added roasted coconut, like in Pavakka theeyal or Ulli theeyal and that made all the difference! Adding coconut makes it thicker and balances the acidic factor, making it more appealing and tasty. It is easy to prepare and can be stored in refrigerator for two to three weeks. This Onam, I am happy to share my Mom’s special Inji Curry recipe with you all. Also, check my other special recipes for Onam like Koottu Erissery, Avial, Olan, Pineapple pachadi, parippu curry, Kalan, Papaya Pulissery, Aviyal  kadumanga pickle, Mathanga Aval Payasam, Parippu Pradhaman,Palada Payasam, Pazham Pradhaman etc. Enjoy!!

Ingredients:

Method:

Soak the Tamarind in half glass water for some time.  Squeeze the pulp and filter the extract to get the juice. Set aside. Peel, wash and drain ginger. Using a pestle, crush the ginger and squeeze/ extract all juice and collect in a cup.

Heat 1 tbsp. Coconut oil in a pan and fry the crushed Ginger till slightly brown. Drain and keep aside. In the same pan, fry/ roast the coconut till brown. Add Chili Powder and Turmeric Powder and switch off the flame.

When this mixture cools, grind it coarsely, together with the fried ginger to make a grainy paste. The oil will ooze out from the paste. Pour this to a pan, mix with Tamarind juice and bring to a boil. Now add the Ginger Juice carefully, leaving the white sediment. Combine well. Add salt and Jaggery to taste. Once it thickens, take off the flame.

Chop the small onions finely and cut the green chilies into rounds. Heat coconut oil in a pan, first add the green chili followed by onions, curry leaves and the red chilies.  Pour it over the Inji curry and mix well.  Have it with other special items for Sadhya and enjoy the royal feast!

Tips:

• Ginger should be crushed with a pestle. However you can also try chopping finely and frying.
• Extracting the juice from Ginger makes it easy to fry.
• Please adjust the spices according to your spice level. Add more Tamarind juice if required to your liking.
• This Inji curry has roast coconut in it and it is special as roasting gives amazing flavors and adds to the thickness of the gravy.

If you like this recipe, please share with your friends using the buttons on the side and let me know through comments. That would really encourage me. God Bless!!