Tadka, talimpu, baghaar or popu: Eight everyday ways to use tadka ghee

Home-cooked food rarely loses out to restaurant meals when it comes to taste. It only loses when we factor in the fatigue involved in the process. It is the friction of a second pan, the wait for mustard seeds to crackle, the oil splatter when fresh curry leaves hit the flame and the chopping of garlic that gets pushed to the next day on a busy weekday. That last step always seems to get skipped.

That last step is that most important. It is called talimpu or popu in Telugu speaking homes and baghaar in old Hyderabad, thalippu in Tamil Nadu, oggarane in Karnataka, phodni in Maharashtra, vaghar in Gujarat and tadka up north. The vernacular may differ across regions but the longing for that crackling sensation on the tongue is universal.

Hyderabad-based clean label food brand V-Rich has done away with the friction for this essential cooking ritual. Their Instant Tadka Ghee embeds seven tempering ingredients into pure cow ghee without any preservatives or artificial flavoring. That same warmth and crunch of a freshly made tempering is captured in a spoonful of this ready-to-use ghee, sans the effort.

Here are eight different ways to make the most of this kitchen essential, from breakfast to dinner.

Breakfast

1. Upma and Poha, without the ten minute preparation

The tempering is what gives upma and poha their distinctive flavor. Simply warm a spoon of Tadka Ghee in the pan and add your chopped onions and green chillies to the mix. Carry on with the recipe as you usually would. Once ready, the roasted dals in this ghee will give your dish the characteristic crunch of a freshly made oggarane.

2. The hotel style chutney

Add a warm spoon of Tadka Ghee over a simple coconut or tomato chutney to recreate the flavors of a hotel-style chutney. The combination of garlic, crisp curry leaves and chana dal in the ghee is all you need to throw in some much-needed depth and flavor.

3. Two minute podi idli

Toss your leftover idli pieces or mini ones with a warm spoon of Tadka Ghee and some finely chopped podi in a pan over medium heat. This combination is perfect for a busy weekday breakfast, as the ghee binds everything together into a spicy breakfast mix that goes well with the traditional morning tiffin.

Lunchbox

4. Authentic curd rice (Perugu Annam)

Mix curd and rice with a pinch of salt, and top it off with a warm spoon of Tadka Ghee. This is the quintessential tempering-driven dish, and the perfect way to recreate the flavors of home-made curd rice. The addition of chana and urad dal in the ghee also lends it a nice crunch usually missing in lunchbox recipes.

5. Yesterday’s rice, today’s lunch

Warm a spoon of Tadka Ghee in a pan, add last night’s leftover rice and a pinch of turmeric to it and mix well. Once the rice is heated through, finish it off by adding some fresh lime juice. The mustard seeds, chillies, and curry leaves suspended in the ghee do the flavor-enhancing work for a quick and easy lemon rice recipe.

Evening

6. Flavoured Maggi

It is the dish nobody talks about but everyone cooks at some point. A spoon of Tadka Ghee mixed in with your Maggi noodles just before serving is all it takes. This is the easiest way for a single person to whip up a flavorful plate of instant noodles in the comfort of their own kitchen.

7. Instant Sundal and roasted Makhana

Add a warm spoon of Tadka Ghee over boiled chana with salt and lemon juice for a quick and healthy Tamil-style Sundal. For a different kind of snack, toss makhana (fox nuts) with a spoon of ghee in a pan on low flame until it turns golden and crispy.

Dinner

8. The essentials: Dal, sambar, and rasam

Make your favorite dal, sambar, and rasam as you always do, and finish them off with a warm spoon of Tadka Ghee just before serving. This will ensure that the ghee’s characteristic aroma of roasted garlic and cumin stays trapped in the dish.

The value of a tadka is greatly underrated. A simple spoonful can dictate the aroma, texture, and flavor of an otherwise unremarkable meal, and is worth every second of preparation.

“Essentially a tadka is a small part of the cooking process, but it changes the aroma and flavor of the entire meal. We wanted to retain this familiar flavor-boosting ritual while eliminating the additional effort, oil splatter and washing up that comes with it,” says Yogitha Jahnavi, founder and CEO of V-Rich. “The concept of Tadka Ghee is familiar to every Indian home, but we wanted to make it easier for the modern individual to recreate this cherished flavor. Our Instant Tadka Ghee ensures that you can enjoy the much-needed depth and aroma of a traditional tadka, without the extra effort,” she adds.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Askari Jaffer

Askari Jaffer[email protected]

Askari Jaffer, Features Editor, with a longstanding interest in writing a range of stories, has earned herself a place in the field of journalism. With strong values and courage acquired from her father, who served in the Indian Defence, she reflects in her writings. A strong desire to learn about the legal system, she has focused her writing on women's challenges. She writes about the women who became successful in various fields to inspire others. She takes an interest in education, health, lifestyle, fashion and entertainment too.

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