Amaranth grows profusely in my garden with very little TLC every summer, so I am surprised it has taken me so long to blog about it. I grow three varieties of amaranth: green, red and an in-between (see pictures further down). All are amazingly lovely in looks. Equally delicious in taste too.
We call amaranth as thotakura in Telugu. Growing up, thotakura was one of the few greens that was available all season long in our little town. It survives and thrives in extreme heat. This hardy plant needs little to no maintenance. It also self-propagates with seed, and is a backyard farmer’s delight.
When I moved to Dallas, a fellow gardener Sara Cheriyal (check this wonderful Yard-to-Table Beet Leaf Thoran recipe she gave me) shared some of her amaranth saplings with me. Since then I’ve, in turn distributed innumerable saplings and leafy greens to several other backyard gardeners and those that love to cook with these greens. The plant grows fast – the more you trim the amaranth, the faster it seems to regrow!
Thotakura Vellulli Karam
I got this thotakura curry recipe from a fellow gardener Dr. Priya Cherukuru. We had never met before, but were connected on a Whatsapp group due to our mutual love for growing an edible garden. After nearly 1.5 years of chatting online, we got to meet recently and she shared this recipe with me, in exchange for amaranth from my garden! What a great barter!
For me, the wonderful part of the amaranth plant is not just the leaves. It is also the ‘dantu’ – the stem. No wonder this is called dantina soppu in Kannada. The stems, especially when tender, are a sheer delight. To prepare, you can chop the leaves and the stems together, but since the leaves take lot less longer to cook, I prefer to separate the leaves from the stem. Sauté the chopped stems for about 3-4 minutes longer than the chopped leaves to preserve maximum nutrition.
This is a very garlicky curry, and we love it! Don’t say I didn’t warn you! If you want to reduce the amount of garlic, skip some of the raw garlic that you add towards the end.
Whole Amaranth vs. Amaranth Leaves
A short note on the Amaranth Grain vs. Amaranth Leaves. The amaranth grain is a naturally gluten-free, high-protein grain (some say it is not a grain because it is not a member of the Poaceae family, but who cares on technicality when it is so delicious!?), and is making a comeback as a superfood. I use the amaranth seeds in my yummy and healthy Whole Grain Hot Cereal.
Amaranth
The amaranth plant puts out these beautiful plumes of flowers, wherein lies the pseudo seed/grain. Isn’t it amazing that almost the entire plant is edible? I love seeing amaranth plants go into bloom. Hats off to the farmers that extract the “grain” from these blooms. I recently read that 3 of the more than 70 species of amaranth are used to extract grain, and 17 are used for edible leaves.
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- Green Amaranth Blooms
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- Red Amaranth Blooms
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- Peach Amaranth Blooms
Amaranth are the new super greens of the backyard gardener. My research shows me that in parts of the world where there is a nutrition deficit, this hardy plant can supplement diets with high levels of micro and macro nutrients. Eating green leafy vegetables adds cancer preventing antioxidants to your diet.
Andhra Vantalu (Dishes)
Although I am from the state of Karnataka, I spent more than 20 years in Andhra Pradesh (now split into two states). There are several delicious recipes from this state that we feature on our website:
- Andhra Tomato Pappu
- Mango Dal (Mamidikaya Pappu)
- Dosavakaya: Raw Yellow Cucumber Pickle
- Malabar Spinach Chutney (Bachalakura Pacchadi)
- Opo Squash yellow Mung Curry (Aanapakaya Pappu Kura)
- Smoky Eggplant Chutney (Vankaya Iguru Pacchadi)
- Eggplant Potato Spicy Medley (Vankaya Bangaladumpa Mudda Kura)
- Tangy Stuffed Eggplant (Vankaya Ulli Kharam)
- Yellow Mung Detox Soup (Pesarakattu)
- Ridgegourd Curry Powder Sauté (Beerakaya Podi Kura)
- Cucumber Dal (Dosakaya Pappu)
- Raw Dosakaya Salad
- Indian Lime Pickle (Nimmakaya Pachadi)
- Easy Rasam Recipe (Chaaru)
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Garlicky Amaranth Curry (Thotakura Vellulli Karam)
Ingredients
Curry:
- 1 Tablespoon Avocado Oil - Or any high heat oil
- 1/2 Teaspoon Mustard Seeds
- 1/2 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 1 Teaspoon Urad Dal
- 1 Teaspoon Chana Dal
- 2 Sprigs Curry Leaves
- 1 Cup Onion - Chopped fine
- 1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Himalayan Pink Salt - Or to taste
- 1/2 Teaspoon Garlic - Crushed
- 4 Cups Amaranth Leaves - Thotakura/Dantinasoppu. Tender stalks separated from leaves. Chopped separately.
Masala Powder:
- 1 Tablespoon Coriander Seeds
- 1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 2 Tablespoon Sesame Seeds
- 2 Teaspoon Red Chili Powder - Or to taste
- 1 Tablespoon Garlic - Crushed. Increase or decrease as per your taste. This is a garlicy dish!
Instructions
- Heat oil in a thick-bottom pan. Add mustard and cumin seeds and wait until they crackle. Add curry leaves, chana and urad dals.
- Add turmeric and crushed garlic. Sauté until garlic is fragrant.
- Add onions and sauté until onions turn translucent. Add salt.
- Add chopped amaranth stems (dantu). Sauté for 3 minutes.
- Add amaranth leaves and red chili powder. Mix and set the lid for 3 minutes. Stir once every minute to ensure nothing is sticking to the bottom.
Masala Powder
- While the curry is being made, on medium heat, dry roast coriander seeds for 2 minutes, stirring to make sure it does not burn. Add dry red chili, cumin and sesame seeds and continue dry roasting for an additional 2-3 minutes, until fragrant.
- Blend the masala powder. Add fresh garlic (option to omit if you don't like it too garlicky) and blend everything well.
- Add this masala powder to the curry and mix well. Sauté for couple minutes adjust salt per taste and turn off the heat!
Notes
Nutrition
How much read chili powder in the first part? Thanks!
Hi Tina, chili powder is always to your taste. Guntur chillies are lot spicier from Byadige chilis. Kashmiri chilis are a brilliant red but are not all that spicy. So, depending on what type of chili powder you are using, and what your spice tolerance is, use accordingly. Hope this helps.
I accidentally came across this. Thank you.
Hi Thara, I LOVE such ‘accidents’!! Thank you for visiting!!