169) LOSUNÉ GOJJU

LOSUNÉ GOJJU

A KONKANI GARLIC CHILI MINI CURRY

Introduction:

          The tradition of preparing garlic gojju started in ancient times when people were poorer and leading simpler lives. With hardly anything but just plain cooked rice or gruel to eat and a large number of mouths to feed, the best option was to prepare some kind of easy pickle-like curry to dip a ball of rice in for gulping it down. The curry therefore had to be essentially tasty, simple and inexpensive. All the different mouthwatering gojjus of Konkani cuisine evolved out of this need.

          The present day Konkani person, no matter how rich or well-travelled or gourmet he or she may be, at the end of the day, in his/her heart of hearts craves not for the five star dinner or a festive feast, but simply to be back home to have some hot rice or gruel with a little gojju.

          Here, I give you two versions of losuné gojju. The first one is a milder easier version which I often prepare for my family. The second one is the hot, sour traditional version. Try both the versions and choose the one you like best.

MY EASY VERSION

Ingredients:

     1)    Garlic pods – 8 Nos.

     2)    Red hot chili powder – 2 teaspoons

     3)    Tamarind – an olive sized bit.

     4)    Ghee (clarified butter) – 1 tablespoon

     5)    Salt – 1 teaspoon

To Cook:

          Soak the tamarind in 100 ml. of water for 30 minutes. Separate the garlic cloves from their pods and peel them, cutting off the hard base portion if any. Squeeze the tamarind nicely with your fingers. Sieve and collect the tamarind juice.

          Set a small pan on medium heat. Pour in the ghee and tip in the garlic and the salt. Stir till the garlic turns golden brown. Now add the chili powder and mix well. Pour in the sieved tamarind juice together with 100 ml. of water. Taste and add more salt or chili powder to suit your palate. As soon as the curry comes to a boil, switch off the heat.

          Your tasty losuné gojju is ready to serve. You will note that it tastes even better the second day and keeps for 2 days. Losuné gojju has the power to improve your appetite.

THE TRADITIONAL VERSION

Ingredients:

     1)    Garlic pods – 8 Nos.

     2)    Tamarind – a 1 inch cube

     3)    Dry hot red chilies – 12 Nos.

     4)    Ghee (clarified butter) – 1 tablespoon

     5)    Coconut oil – 1 teaspoon

     6)    Salt – 1 teaspoon

To Make:

          Soak the tamarind in 100 ml. of drinking water for 30 minutes (the reason we use pure drinking water is because the traditional losuné gojju is not heated at any stage). Squeeze the tamarind nicely with your fingers. Sieve the tamarind juice and set aside. Break each of the red chilies into 2 pieces.

          Set a small pan on low heat. Pour in the coconut oil and tip in the broken chilies. Stir and roast the chilies for 2 minutes. Pour in the tamarind juice. Switch off the heat and let the chilies soak themselves in the tamarind juice.

          Separate the garlic cloves from their pods and peel them, cutting off the hard base portion if any. Set a small pan on low heat. Pour in the ghee. Tip in the garlic cloves and stir until they are roasted golden brown.

          Switch off the heat and put on a glove (remember, there were no kitchen hand gloves in olden times and the chefs had to weather it out). Squeeze the soaked dry hot red chilies nicely and tip over the contents of the pan into the pan with the roasted garlic. Mix well and taste. Add more salt or water if required. The traditional version of losuné gojju has no keeping quality and needs to be used up quickly.

Enjoy!!!

Note:

The amount of salt required may vary depending on the heat of the chilies used. You can get the perfect dish only by tasting.