Pirandai Thuvaiyal Recipe , Adamant Creeper Chutney Recipe

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Pirandai Thuvaiyal Recipe made with Pirandai stems / thandu. This Tamil style Pirandai thuvaiyal / thogayal has a lot of health benefits and used in Ayurveda and Siddha as medicine. Recipe with step by step pictures in English.

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Pirandai is also known as Veldt grape or adamant creeper. Its believed to strengthen the bones and joints in Siddha and Ayurveda. It grows really quickly and is literally a zero maintenance plant. I grow this in my small apartment balcony garden and it grows beautifully. I make this chutney quite often these days. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition an year back and my aunts recommended this as a home remedy. According to me, if there is no harm to try, just do it. Its called as Pirandai Keerai (greens / spinach) in Tamil. Its a stick like vine with small leaves. The leaves are not used in cooking.

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The tender part or the top part (about two feet ) of the vine is what is harvested and used in the kitchen. The bottom segments can be very hard and can cause itchy hands while cutting and itchy tongue while eating. So do not use the bottom parts / segments of the vine even though they look inviting. As the creeper has rough edges, always apply oil to hands while handling it to avoid itchy hands. The edges / the outer strings are removed just like how we would string the beans.

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I make a Pirandai thuvaiyal / chutney that goes well with rice for lunch. Do try this at home. My mom says that Pirandai is available in vegetable markets these days in Tamilnadu. You can buy this plant in a nursery. Its even available online.

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Here is how to make healthy and easy Tamil style Pirandai Thuvaiyal / chutney at home

Harvest only the top segments from the plant. Do not go beyond two feet as the bottom parts are very stringy and can cause itchiness in the tongue. Apply oil to hands as pirandai causes itchiness. Remove all the leaves. Also cut the joints from the segments. The joints are hard and itchy. In folk medicine they say that the joints is just a resemblance of human bone joints.
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After removing the joints, we will remove the rough outer skin. String the Pirandai to remove the outer rough skin.
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It should easily come off.
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This is how it will look after removing the outer skin. If the stem is very tender, then you can leave it as is.
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Heat Indian sesame oil in a pan and add in the chana dal. Roast the chana dal on a low flame. When the chana dal is roasted, add in the dried red chillies. Roast for a few seconds till the chillies fluff up. Do not roast the chillies for long as it will burn and become black. Remove the chana dal and the chillies from the pan and set aside on a plate to cool.

Retain the oil used for roasting the lentils and the chillies. Add in the onions, garlic, ginger, the prepped pirandai, tamarind and curry leaves. Saute for a good 4-5 minutes on medium flame till the onions are soft and the pirandai has shrunk a bit.
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Add in the coconut and the salt. Saute for a minute. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
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Grind with half a cup of water to a smooth paste / chutney like consistency.
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Tempering of Tamil style Pirandai Thuvaiyal / chutney
Heat Indian sesame oil in a pan and add the urad dal. When the urad dal is slightly brown, add in the mustard seeds, green chillies and dry red chillies. The green chillies adds a nice flavour to this thuvaiyal. Let the mustard seeds crackle. Add in the curry leaves.
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Add in the tempering to the chutney.
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Serve the Tamil style Pirandai Thuvaiyal / chutney with rice.
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Pirandai Thuvaiyal Recipe

Pirandai Thuvaiyal Recipe made with Pirandai stems / thandu. This Tamil style Pirandai thuvaiyal / thogayal has a lot of health benefits and used in Ayurveda and Siddha as medicine. Recipe with step by step pictures in English.

    Ingredients

    Scale

    Main Ingredients for Pirandai Thuvaiyal

    • 1/2 cup cleaned pirandai segments
    • 1 tablespoon Indian sesame oil
    • 2 tablespoon chana dal
    • 45 dried red chillies
    • 1/2 cup onions, chopped
    • 10 cloves garlic
    • 1/2 inch piece ginger
    • 1/2 inch piece tamarind
    • 3 sprigs curry leaves
    • 1/3 cup fresh shredded coconut
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1/2 cup water to grind the chutney

    Tempering of Tamil style Pirandai Thuvaiyal / chutney

    • 1 tablespoon Indian sesame oil
    • 1/2 teaspoon urad dal
    • 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
    • 2 green chillies, slit
    • 23 dried red chillies
    • 2 sprigs curry leaves

    Instructions

    • Harvest only the top segments from the plant. Do not go beyond two feet as the bottom parts are very stringy and can cause itchiness in the tongue. Remove all the leaves. Also cut the joints from the segments. The joints are hard and itchy. In folk medicine they say that the joints is just a resemblance of human bone joints. After removing the joints, we will remove the rough outer skin. String the Pirandai to remove the outer rough skin. It should easily come off.
    • Heat Indian sesame oil in a pan and add in the chana dal. Roast the chana dal on a low flame. When the chana dal is roasted, add in the dried red chillies. Roast for a few seconds till the chillies fluff up. Do not roast the chillies for long as it will burn and become black. Remove the chana dal and the chillies from the pan and set aside on a plate to cool.
    • Retain the oil used for roasting the lentils and the chillies. Add in the onions, garlic, ginger, the prepped pirandai, tamarind and curry leaves. Saute for a good 4-5 minutes on medium flame till the onions are soft and the pirandai has shrunk a bit.
    • Add in the coconut and the salt. Saute for a minute. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Grind with half a cup of water to a smooth paste / chutney like consistency.
    • Heat Indian sesame oil in a pan and add the urad dal. When the urad dal is slightly brown, add in the mustard seeds, green chillies and dry red chillies. Let the mustard seeds crackle. Add in the curry leaves. Add in the tempering to the chutney.
    • Serve the Tamil style Pirandai Thuvaiyal / chutney with rice.

     

    • Author: Suguna Vinodh

    2 thoughts on “Pirandai Thuvaiyal Recipe , Adamant Creeper Chutney Recipe”

    1. Gayathri Thiyagarajan

      Hi Suguna, nice variation to add onions to it.. I have so far tried with ginger and garlic and sometimes with cilantro/ coriander greens but not with onions. Also, just a suggestion, the pirandai greens are equally nutritious and are as commonly used as the creeper, both together with the creeper and alone as pirandai ilai thogayal, pirandai ilai oorugai.

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