Thirunelveli Sodhi!

Sodhi is one of the unique and popular dishes in Tirunelveli (South India). Sodhi is normally made for lunch as it is a very heavy dish, but it taste awesome the night it is cooked and goes well with plain idiyappam. It is heavy gravy made of coconut milk and vegetables... a kind of stew. This stew is delicious and yummy!!! 

Ingredients:

Coconut -1/2 grate it and extract 1 cup thick milk, 2 cups thin milk

Ginger grated - 4 tbsp ( If you want it spicy add a little more)

Moong Dhal - 1/2 cup

Green chillies - 3

Carrots - 1 cut in long slices

Drum Stick - 1

Beans - 5 lengthwise cut

potato - 1 cut in cubes

Shallots - 8

Lemon - 1

Cabbage - 1/4 of a medium sized cabbaged cut in large pieces.

To grind:

Grated coconut - 1 tbsp

Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp

Green chilies - 1

Preparation :

Pressure cook moong dal with garlic and green chillies.

Cook the vegetables in water adding little salt. When the vegetables are half done, add the second and third extracted coconut milk. Let them cook in low flame. 

Add the ground mixture to the vegetables. Add the pressure cooked dal (Mash all the garlic and green chillies)also.

Cook in low flame and scrap the bottom side by side. Keep stirring it. 

Now add the third extract coconut milk and cook only for 3 minutes and before switching off, add the grated ginger. Once the stew is cooled off, squeeze the lemon over it. Sodhi is ready !

             Note :If you want, you can tamper with mustard and urad dal and add to it. Try adding a little sour buttermilk and taste the twist in sodhi. Try not to heat the sodhi and have it with piping hot rice.

FACT:

Sodhi is the standard stew of every Tirunelveli weddings. The weddings celebrated there for two days. On the second day, the lunch is organised by the Groom's family. Though the cook has been arranged already from the Bride's side, on the morning of the second day, right after breakfast, Bride & Groom(!) and the Groom's family, invite every single person of the Bride's family for "Great lunch" and Sodhi is one of the dish served and the traditional  menu hasn't changed in years.