Azhugal Mangai pachadi

              My grandma, my mom always made meals in the proper combination to elevate the dish to nirvana.Some dishes made out of a set does not get them the accolade they deserve.When poritcha kuzhambu was made, then puli itta keerai or azhugal mangai pachadi and  sutta appalam was the complete meal.Poritcha kuzhambu is a medley of vegetables cooked with coconut gravy without any acidity.Azhugal manga pachadi is the sour(pulippu) part of the meal.

           Azhugal manga means mangoes that are beyond their prime,in other words rotten.Just when mango season starts, the baby mangoes are harvested to make vadu manga (pickle).Vadu manga is doused with chilli powder and soaked in brine.This pickle in made in huge vats and stored in a dark place for use  the whole year.
      It is but natural that some of the baby mangoes at the bottom of the vat gets squished by the weight of the vadus on top.The result is azhagal manga.They are not wasted, but much preferred and made into a delicious accompaniment to a delicious meal.My mom's recipe is going to 7 day recipe countdown marathon conducted by Nupur.

Recipe # 4 Azhugal Mangai Pachadi 

Azhugal mangai 4-5
grated coconut flakes 2 tbsp
green chilli   1
salt as needed
curd  2 cups

Tempering
mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
asafoetida  a pinch
coriander  a few sprigs
or curry leaves 2-3

Method:
1.Select the Azhugal mangai and grind it with coconut,greenchilli  and about three ladlefuls of curd (If the mangai chosen is less spicy add green chilli else the green chilli is optional).
2.Add the ground paste to the rest of the curd .Add salt if needed( since we are using a brined pickle,you can adjust the seasoning accordingly).
3.After the mustard seeds sputter,add the tempering to the pachadi and add sprigs of corainder.

         This Pachadi will go well with Poritcha kuzhambu and hot steamy rice (I will post this recipe later).Susvaad.