Skip to content
FriendsPantry

South Indian · Indian

Gongura pachadi (Andhra sorrel-leaf chutney)

Vegetarian

గోంగూర పచ్చడి · gōṅgūra paccaḍi

Sour gongura leaves wilted in oil and ground with roasted red chillies, garlic and spices, then finished with a tempering. A tart, fiery chutney regarded as the pride of Andhra cooking.

Gongura pachadi (Andhra sorrel-leaf chutney) is a South Indian condiment, ready in about 40 minutes and made with gongura (sorrel / roselle leaves) and dried whole chillies. It serves 10 and is rated intermediate to cook.

Start cooking

No licensed photograph of this dish yet.

Prep
15 min
Cook
15 min
Rest
10 min
Total
40 min
Serves
10
Level
Intermediate
Calories
55

Ingredients

10 servings (about 1 tbsp)

For the tempering

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Heat 1 tsp of the oil and roast the dried chillies, coriander, cumin and fenugreek (opens in a new tab) until the chillies darken and the seeds are fragrant. Tip out and cool.

  2. Step 2

    Add 1 tbsp oil to the pan and cook the gongura leaves (opens in a new tab), stirring, until they wilt completely, darken and turn mushy and the moisture has cooked off.

    • 7 min
    • medium heat

  3. Step 3

    Grind the roasted spices with the salt to a powder, then add half the garlic (opens in a new tab) and the cooled gongura (opens in a new tab) and pulse to a coarse paste (or pound in a mortar for the traditional texture).

    Spices being ground in a mortar and pestle
    How it looks · Photo: https://kaboompics.com/ on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Heat the remaining oil, pop the mustard seeds (opens in a new tab), then add the urad (opens in a new tab) dal, chana dal (opens in a new tab), remaining garlic (opens in a new tab) (crushed), curry leaves (opens in a new tab) and asafoetida (opens in a new tab). When golden, stir the tempering through the pachadi.

    • 3 min
    • medium heat

    Food safety: Hot oil spits when curry leaves and seeds go in; keep your face back and have the lid nearby.

About this dish

Origin
Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, India · Well documentedMore food from India
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Condiments, chutneys & relishes
Cooking method
Sautéed, Blended
Taste
sour, spicy (chilli heat), garlicky, earthy
Diet
Vegan · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Keto-style · Low-carb
All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Keto-style · Low-carb
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Make-ahead
Cook more with
Dried whole chillies · Ground coriander · Cumin seeds · Fenugreek · Garlic · Mustard seeds
Techniques
Sautéing · Tadka (tempering) · Spice roasting (dry-roasting) · Wet grinding · Dry grinding

Allergens

  • May contain: Wheatfrom asafoetida
  • May contain: Glutenfrom asafoetida
  • Contains: Mustardfrom mustard seeds

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

55 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 20 g · recipe makes 10

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 8%
  • Carbohydrate 22%
  • Fat 70%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g
Energy55 kcal273 kcal
Protein1.1 g5.4 g
Carbohydrate3.2 g16 g
Net carbohydrate1.9 g9.4 g
Sugars——
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre1.3 g6.6 g
Fat4.5 g22.7 g
Saturated fat——
Trans fat0 g0.1 g
Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
Sodium236 mg1179 mg
Salt equivalent0.6 g2.9 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
149 mg
Calcium
18 mg
Iron
0.9 mg
Magnesium
27 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
61 µg
Vitamin C
10 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0 µg
Folate (DFE)
7 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • Not counted (tiny amounts or “to taste”): curry leaves, asafoetida.
  • Gongura (sorrel / roselle leaves): Raw dock / sorrel (FDC 170076) used as a stand-in for the sour leaves of Hibiscus cannabinus / sabdariffa; both are tart, oxalic leafy greens.
  • Chana dal (split bengal gram): Whole raw chickpeas / bengal gram (FDC 173756) used as a stand-in for split, skinned desi chickpeas; the composition is very close.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Gongura's sourness varies; red-stemmed leaves are tarter than green ones. Taste and add more chilli or salt to balance.

Common mistakes

  • Leaving water in the leaves — wet gongura makes a watery pachadi that spoils quickly.

Serve with

  • Mix into hot rice with a spoonful of ghee and raw onion slices on the side — the classic Andhra way.

Food safety

  • Contains garlic and cooked leaves under oil; always refrigerate.
  • Store in a scrupulously clean, completely dry jar (sterilise it in boiling water or a low oven and let it dry fully), and always use a dry spoon; moisture is what spoils chutneys and pickles.

Storage

  • Refrigerate in a clean jar for up to 1 week; a layer of oil on top helps it keep.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Goes with

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 2, 3

Make it milder, swap ingredients for your diet, change the batch size or thickness — the original stays as it is.

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

You might also like