Nimbe Hannina Gojju - Lime juice gravy

There are some traditional recipes that my MIL makes I can easily say they are her signature recipes. They’re usually the tongue tickling, spicy, tasty ones. When she makes them, they’re surely going to be a hit, every time... When FIL feels his taste buds need some rejuvenation, he often asks her to make one of them.

One such is this one - it is a gravy/chutney using lime juice mainly. it makes an amazing side dish, especially for rice with all the tastes on the higher side, making you crave for more. You’ll definitely end up eating more, as you cannot simply stop!

Coming to the recipe, it has two strange ingredients - at least strange to me. I had not made this myself till now. Every time I had it, it was my MIL who had prepared the dish before I was home, so I would just savor it without bothering on the details. I had assumed that it was the usual gojju, but with lime juice. But this time when she asked me to prepare it, giving the recipe, I was surprised to know that a tablespoon each of milk and curd goes into it, along with lime juice!! I was kind of confused and rechecked with her, when she said that addition of these two items is what gives the dish that unique taste, and sure it did.

When tried without milk and curd, trust me, it did not taste as good. It’s apparently a secret that was passed on to her from her in-law and now to me and of course to you all ;)

Here’s the recipe.... Ensure you make more rice than usual when you make this side dish!

Nimbe hannina gojju - Lime juice, Coconut gravy

Preparation time : 5 min
Cooking time : 5-10 min
Makes : A bowlful of gojju

Ingredients:
Lime - 4-5
Dry red chilies - 10 -12 (I use half of byadagi for color and the other half spicy ones)
Curry leaves - 10 - 15
Fenugreek seeds - ¾ tsp
Black Sesame seeds - 2 tsp
Urad dal - 1 ½ tsp
Coconut - 2 cups, grated
Cooking oil - 1 tsp
Turmeric - a small pinch
Jaggery - 2-3 big marble sized lumps
Salt - 1 tsp, vary acc to taste
Milk - 1 Tbsp
Curd - 1 Tbsp

For tempering:
Cooking oil - 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Black Sesame seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 15-20
Dry red chili - 1

Method:
• Squeeze out all the juice from lime and keep aside till needed
• In a small pan, roast urad dal, fenugreek seeds, red chilies and curry leaves for 1-2 minutes in a tsp of oil till they become aromatic
• Towards the end, add the sesame seeds and let it splutter
• Allow to cool slightly and grind with grated coconut, salt and jaggery, adding water if required
• To the lime juice, add the milk and curd (yeah, it sounds weird, but apparently that adds to the taste!!)
• Transfer the ground paste to the lime milk and curd mixture an mix thoroughly
• Add water if required to maintain gravy/chutney like consistency
For tempering
• Heat oil in a small skillet
• Add mustard seed and allow to splutter
• Add curry leaves and stir till they become crisp
• Add sesame seeds and switch off the flame after a few seconds; Do not allow the sesame to get overly fried
• Transfer this tempering to the gravy prepared
• Serve with rice with a tsp of oil, tastes just amazingly good

Notes:
• Since the quantity of lime is more in this recipe, the jaggery, salt and chilies also need to be higher than in normal gravies to balance the taste
• This can also be served as a side dish for akki rotti or dosa, etc