Puliyogare gojju
Prepare this at home, and you will stop buying the store made ones!  Another to the list from MIL :)


Preparation Time - 30 mins
Cook Time - 40 mins


Measurements & Ingredients:

• Tamarind - a big lemon size ball, soaked in water for at least 30 mins
• Jaggery - 4 tbsp or per taste
• Rasam powder(saaru pudi) - 4 - 5 tsps
• Salt
• Cumin powder (jeera powder)- 1.5 tsp
• Fenugreek powder(methi powder) - 1 tsp
• Sesame seeds powder( white yellu pudi) - 1.5 tsp
• Oil - 6 tbsp

For tempering:

• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Raw peanuts - 5 tbsp
• Mustard seeds(sasive) - 1.5 tsp
• Bengal gram(channa dal) - 2 tsp
• Black gram(urad dal) - 2 tsp
• Curry leaves - a few
• Asafoetida - a pinch

Method:

 Squeeze all the pulp from the tamarind into a bowl.  Repeat this process by adding little water to the tamarind after squeezing the pulp every time, until you get no more pulp out of it.

 Heat 6 tbsp oil in a pan.  Once it is heated, add the tamarind pulp to the oil and keep the heat to low medium and let it boil until it is half the original quantity.  Stir occasionally.

Now add rasam powder(saarina pudi), jaggery , salt, jeera powder, methi powder, sesame seeds powder, mix well and let it cook for another 10 - 15 mins on the same heat, with occasional stirring.

 Do not add water at any point of time.  It will be done when you can scoop the gravy and drop it back, it will be a thick gravy which will not flow down easily.

 Once it cools down fully, it will get much thicker.  It will be little thicker than idli batter consistency.  But do not make it too thick such that it will be difficult to scoop and drop it back.  If this happens, when it cools down, it will be very hard.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a small ladle.  To this add peanuts and let it get fried half way and then add mustard seeds, urad dal, channa dal, curry leaves and hing.  Mix this tempering with the gojju(gravy) and store it after cooling.
Mix this with plain rice and enjoy the chitranna or puliyogare!


Caution!

• Don't use the tamarind paste instead of the tamarind.  I tried it a couple of times and the dish was spoilt.  Maybe you need to mix water with the paste and then continue with the same process.  But, I'm not sure how it will turn out to be.  If you try, do let me know :)
• If you keep the heat at medium or higher, the water content will evaporate but the gojju will not be done.  If you keep the heat way too low, it will get hardened and will take a very long time.  I suggest keep the heat between low and medium(3 or 4 on a scale of 1-10)