Vengaya Milagu Kuzhambu | Pearl onions in Pepper Gravy

I have a special place for pearl onions.It is slightly sweeter than the regular onions and I love its flavor.Pearl onions are fat and cholesterol free and are a good source of Vitamin C.Pearl onion  is also said to regulate the blood sugar levels and is good to fight against infections and digestive disorders.

Today I have prepared a simple gravy to go with rice using pearl onions for the final post for Blogging Marathon #20, week 2,with the theme – Cooking with onion…

I used:

Pearl onion- 20 numbers
Garlic- 5 pods, peeled
Tomato – 1, ripe, finley chopped
Tamarind paste- 1 1/2 tablespoons,dissolved in 1/2 cup warm water
Mustard seeds- 1 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds- 1/4 teaspoon
Freshly ground pepper powder – 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder- a large pinch
Sambar powder- 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves- a few
Sesame oil- 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste

1. Peal the pearl onion and cut into two  if it is large.[Basically they should be of the same size.]
2. Heat oil in a pan and put in mustard and fenugreek seeds.
3. When it crackles, add the pearl onion, garlic and curry eaves.
4. Saute for a few minutes till the onions turn pink.
5. Put in the tomato and cook till the tomato is mushy.
6. Add the tamarind extract to the pan.
7. Put in the turmeric powder, pepper powder, sambar powder, salt.
8. Mix well and bring to boil on low flame.Keep stirring once once in a while.
9. Do a taste taste, if it is sour, add a little water,else let it simmer till it thickens.
10. Remove from heat and serve as a side dish with steamed rice

Note :

• I added sambar powder for flavor. It is optional.
• Freshly ground pepper powder gives the best taste.
• Similarly, the dish tastes best when prepared with sesame oil. If it is not available, sunflower oil can be used.
• If the gravy is very watery, dissolve a little rice flour in water and add to pan.Boil till it reduces.
• Since the gravy is thick and spicy, a small quantity is sufficient to be mixed with steamed rice. The quantity you see above was for 4 portions.