This is Part 12 of Flavours of India, our series on India's regional cuisines. Start from Part 1: Chettinad or read the previous part, Part 11: Karnataka.
Andhra Pradesh is home to Guntur, one of the world's largest chilli-growing regions, and its cooking does not hold back on heat. Coastal Andhra adds seafood and tangy gravies, while Rayalaseema is known for its fiery, rustic food. Hyderabad's Nizami cuisine, covered in Part 5, now belongs to neighbouring Telangana.
What makes Andhra cuisine special
- Guntur chillies: bright red and seriously hot.
- Pickles (pachadi): avakaya (raw mango), gongura (sorrel leaves) and many more.
- Tang: tamarind and gongura leaves add sourness to curries.
- The full meal: rice with podi (spice powder) and ghee, pappu (dal), curry, pulusu, rasam and curd.
What is pesarattu?
Pesarattu is a thin, crispy dosa made from whole green moong (pesalu). Unlike regular dosa, the batter needs no fermentation, so it can be made the same morning after soaking. It is high in protein and a classic Andhra breakfast. Served with upma folded inside, it is called MLA pesarattu.
Pesarattu recipe
Makes: 8-10 · Soak: 6-8 hours · Cook: 30 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole green moong dal
- 2 tbsp raw rice (optional, for crispness)
- 1 inch ginger and 2-3 green chillies
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds and salt to taste
- Water as needed
- Oil or ghee for cooking
- Topping: 1 finely chopped onion, chopped green chillies, cumin and coriander
Method
- Wash and soak the moong and rice together for 6-8 hours or overnight.
- Drain and grind with ginger, green chillies, cumin and salt, adding a little water, into a smooth batter similar to dosa batter.
- Heat a cast-iron tawa. Pour a ladle of batter in the centre and spread it thin in circles.
- Sprinkle onion, green chilli, cumin and coriander on top and press lightly.
- Drizzle oil around the edges and cook on medium heat until the base is crisp and golden. Flip briefly if you like, then fold and serve.
Allam pachadi (ginger chutney)
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup peeled, chopped ginger
- 1 tbsp chana dal and 1 tbsp urad dal
- 4-5 dried red chillies
- A small lemon-sized ball of tamarind
- 2 tbsp jaggery and salt to taste
- 2 tbsp oil, plus a tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves and hing
Method
- Heat oil and fry the dals and red chillies until golden. Remove.
- In the same pan, sauté the ginger for 3-4 minutes.
- Grind everything with tamarind, jaggery, salt and a little water into a thick paste.
- Temper with mustard seeds, curry leaves and hing.
Tips
- Keep the batter slightly thicker than dosa batter if you are new to spreading it.
- The sweet, spicy and sour ginger chutney is the perfect match; don't skip it.
- Leftover batter can be made into moong dal cheela-style pancakes with vegetables.
Other Andhra dishes to try
- Gongura pachadi and gongura mutton
- Avakaya: the famous raw mango pickle
- Pulihora: tangy tamarind rice
- Gutti vankaya: stuffed brinjal curry
- Pootharekulu: paper-thin rice sheets filled with sugar and ghee, from Atreyapuram
Next in Flavours of India: Odisha's dalma.
