Some alliteration and tropical flavours that stuck in my head
The first time I had a Sadhya meal was at my wedding. And while it was a delicious feast, there was one thing that stood out from the rest. It was distinct from any other dish on the leaf. My uninitiated Punjabi family asked my in-laws about it, curious to find out about the sweet and comforting yet very familiar thing they had just eaten. It was a Pineapple pachadi. Pachadi that sounded like khichadi to my ears, that were still picking up Malayalam words. But the alliteration helped me remember the name. Pineapple Pachadi! Pineapple Pachadi, I tried to learn the name and to made a mental note to try out the recipe.

Now almost four years later, I am a bit more familiar with recipes from Kerala and this one felt like a breeze.
Pachadi is an accompaniment in the Onam/Vishu Sadhya meal and can be made using different vegetables like beetroot, cucumbers, pineapple and even some gourds.
Yes, there is obviously some coconut there and yogurt makes an appearance too. Remember the ripe mango curry? This is similar.
But Pineapple with coconut and ginger is recipe for a tropical delight! Try it out!

Here’s how you can make yummy Pineapple Pachadi for your Sadhya meals
Ingredients
Ripe pineapple (cut into cubes), 1 cup
Grated coconut, 1 cup
Ginger, 1/2 inch piece
Cumin seeds, 1/2 teaspoon
Green chilli, 1
Water, 1 cup
Turmeric powder, 1/4 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Red chilli powder, 1/2 teaspoon
Sugar or a piece of jaggery, 1-2 teaspoon (optional, if the fruit is not too ripe)
Yogurt, 1/2 cup (or 1/4th cup)
For the tadka:
Sesame/ Coconut Oil, 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds, 1/2 teaspoons
A pinch of Fenugreek (methi) seeds
Curry leaves, 1 sprig
Dried red chillies, 1-2
Method
Preparing the Pachadi
Start by peeling the pineapple and cutting it into small pieces. I was making a small batch so I just used a peeled and pre-cut pineapple.
Now place the pineapple pieces with a cup of water, salt, red chilli powder and turmeric in a small pan.
After this, add the sugar or jaggery (if using) at this stage of the fruit is not too ripe or sweet. Bring this to a boil and let it simmer till the pineapple pieces are softer.
Moving on, in a food processor/blender/mixie jar, place the grated coconut, green chilli, cumin seeds and ginger and process till a smooth paste is formed. You may need to add a bit of water to process this better.
Add this coconut paste to the cooked pineapple and stir. Let this mixture simmer till the coconut is cooked. This should take 5-7 minutes on low heat.
Once this is done, take this mixture off the heat and then add beaten yogurt to this. I used 1/2 cup of yogurt as I wanted it to be a little runny like a curry. You can add 1/4 cup of yogurt of you don’t want a more runny pachadi. You can check the salt at this stage and add more if needed.
Preparing the Tadka for the Pachadi
In a small fry pan, heat coconut or sesame oil. Once it is hot, add the mustard seeds and let them splutter. Once they splutter, add the red chillies, curry leaves, fenugreek seeds and cook for a 10-15 seconds.
Pour this tadka on top of the pachadi and mix.
Serve this Pineapple Pachadi as a side dish on your Sadhya menu with some Thoran, Parripu Dal, steamed rice and Poppadum.



- Ripe pineapple (cut into cubes), 1 cup
- Grated coconut, 1 cup
- Ginger, 1/2 inch piece
- Cumin seeds, 1/2 teaspoon
- Green chilli, 1
- Water, 1 cup
- Turmeric powder, 1/4 teaspoon
- Salt to taste
- Red chilli powder, 1/2 teaspoon
- Sugar or a piece of jaggery, 1-2 teaspoon (optional, if the fruit is not too ripe)
- Yogurt, 1/2 cup (or 1/4th cup)
- Sesame/ Coconut Oil, 2 teaspoons
- Mustard seeds, 1/2 teaspoons
- A pinch of Fenugreek (methi) seeds
- Curry leaves, 1 sprig
- Dried red chillies, 1-2
- Peel the pineapple and cut it into small pieces.
- In a small pan, place the pineapple pieces with a cup of water, salt, red chilli powder and turmeric.
- Add the sugar or jaggery (if using) at this stage of the fruit is not too ripe or sweet. Bring this to a boil and let it simmer till the pineapple pieces are softer.
- In a food processor/blender/mixie jar, place the grated coconut, green chilli, cumin seeds and ginger and process till a smooth paste is formed. You may need to add a bit of water to process this better.
- Add this coconut paste to the cooked pineapple and stir. Let this mixture simmer till the coconut is cooked. This should take 5-7 minutes on low heat.
- Once this is done, take this mixture off the heat and then add beaten yogurt to this. You can check the salt at this stage and add more if needed.
- In a small fry pan, heat coconut or sesame oil. Once it is hot, add the mustard seeds and let them splutter.
- Once they splutter, add the red chillies, curry leaves, fenugreek seeds and cook for a 10-15 seconds.
- Pour this tadka on top of the pachadi and mix.
- Serve the Pineapple Pachadi with the side of steamed rice, poppadum and parippu dal curry.
- I used 1/2 cup of yogurt as I wanted it to be a little runny like a curry. You can add 1/4 cup of yogurt of you don't want a more runny pachadi.
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