Gongura

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Gongura (Hibiscus cannabinus) (Telugu: గోంగూర) is a relative of the Roselle. In Maharashtra markets, it is called Ambaadi (अंबाडी). It is known as Pitwaa in Hindi, Nalitaa Saaga in Oriya, Mestapat in Bengali, Pandi in Kannada and Sorrel Leaves in English. It is a summer crop, and the hotter the place, the more sour the leaf gets.

Gongura pacchadi is quintessentially Andhra cuisine along with aavakaaya pacchadi (chutney or relish). While it has many culinary uses, the most popular is the pickled version. In the Telengana region of Andhra Pradesh, it is known as Puntikura. Gongura is a very rich source of Iron, vitamins, folic acid and anti-oxidants essential for human nutrition^[1]. Similarly, "Gongura" is popular in Tamilnadu as well, which is called "pulichakeerai" in Tamil. The famous combination with "pulichakeerai" is "Ragi Kali/Ragi Mudde", which once used to be a regular food for the people in villages (since these items are easily available in agricultural forms). It is highly recommended for diabetes and heart patients to maintain their diet.

Gongura comes in two varieties, green stemmed leaf and red stemmed. The red stemmed variety is more sour than the green stemmed variety. Gongura is popular in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

Other well known recipes made with Gongura as the main ingredient are Gongura Pappu (Lentils), Gongura mamsam (goat/mutton) and Gongura royyalu (shrimp).

Apart from the curries there are many varieties of pickles made with gongura such as:

1. Pulla Gongura (Gongura + Red Chillies)
2. Pulihara Gongura (Gongura and Tamarind)

Andhra Pradhesh produces the best quality Gongura. Farmers pick Gongura early in the mornings so that the moisture is retained for the longest possible time.

Gongura is called Puntikura in the Telangana dialects of Telugu."Gongura Go Back" was popular slogan in the 1969 Telangana Movement.

Gongura Pachadi in Andhra Cuisine is world famous.

[edit] Notes

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