Coconut Kadhi With Sichuan Pepper (Teppla Kadhi/ Tirfalachi Kadhi)

Sichuan Pepper (Teppal or Tirfhal) is a widely used spice in vegetarian cooking. I have mostly found them being used in Goan, Konkani and few of Marathi dishes. The spice which has a numbing effect on the palate & offers a unique aroma to curries when added.

My favorite way to use Sichuan Pepper is to intersperse the seeds with a classic Konkani Kadhi combination. In Konkani, this recipe is known as Teppla Kadhi, Teppal refers to Sichuan Pepper here. Primarily on the days when Vegetarian diet is observed, one would make this Kadhi as a complementary broth with white rice. The spice appreciation is very subjective so use less or more based on your preference and taste. By mistake, do not add the Sichuan Pods while grinding, the resultant curry would have lot of heat and may not appeal to everybody.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

Grated Coconut (fresh or frozen) - 1 cup

Red Chillies (Byadgi variety preferred) - 5-6

Tamarind - 1/2 teaspoon

Turmeric powder - 1/3 teaspoon

Sichuan Pepper - 3-4 pods

Garlic (crushed) - 4 Jumbo pods

Salt

Oil

Method:

In a deep pan, roast few red chillies with a spoon of oil. Once roasted for 2 minutes, turn off the flame and allow to cool. Grind this along with grated coconut, turmeric powder and tamarind with little water to a smooth paste.

Bring this mixture to boil and add Sichuan pepper pods at this stage, adjust salt as desired and turn off flame. Once cooked, you will see that the black pods have turned into a creamy cooked mass. In a separate pan, heat a spoon of oil and roast the crushed Garlic. Saute till they are charred. Pour this seasoning on the cooked broth and cover with a lid. Serve hot with Rice.