Madhura Pachadi | Kerala Pineapple, Plantain and Grape Pachadi

Pineapples are ripening at the moment, and along with all of the other magnificent produce in the shops, they are abundant, cheap and delicious. I am not a fan of peeling pineapples with all those eyes to cut out (some have more than others), but the occasional recipe is worth it.  Today we are making a Pachadi – a side dish – from pineapple. This dish from Kerala is quite unusual. Commonly, Pachadis from Tamil Nadu and Kerala  have a yoghurt base for the vegetable component, or include an amount of coconut. This one has some coconut, but it cooks the pineapple, grapes and plantain to the point that it is jammy, almost like a halwa. But don’t be fooled, it is spicy with sweet and sour tastes.  It tastes a little like a pickle, or a cross between a pickle and a pachadi. It is definitely a dish where less is more when serving – a couple of Tblspns along with rice, thorans and other Kerala sadya dishes. It is delicious, I am sure you will come back for seconds.

There are two versions of Madhura Pachadi, this one flavours the pachadi with powdered mustard seeds, and another which cooks the pineapple in tamarind. The recipe today is based on one from Elephants and Coconut Trees. You can chop the pineapple into pieces that are about 1 – 1.5 cm and they will retain a little bite when cooked (yummy) or chop smaller and it will melt into a halwa type consistency (also yummy).

Similar recipes include Bitter Melon Pachadi, Green Tomato Pachadi, and Ginger Pachadi.

Browse all of our Pachadi recipes and all of our Keralite dishes. Or explore our Mid Summer recipes.

The Ultimate Cooler – Pineapple Juice with Strawberries, Coconut and Lime

Our weather this year has seen bees and koalas dying in the heat, and tiny fruit forming drop from the trees. It has been a wicked Summer. For the first time ever I am without coriander leaves as they have burnt to a crisp.

In the heat of the Summer one of our favourite coolers is a pineapple based drink with citrus and strawberries, finished off with cooling coconut milk. I like it in the evenings with a touch of alcohol too. We rarely drink alcohol, it is just our preference, but this is one drink that will tempt me on a 40C+ day.

Similar drinks include Tamarind Summer Cooler, Roasted Green Mango Drink, and Ginger Cooler.

Browse all of our Coolers and all of our Drinks. Or explore our Late Summer recipes.

Cucumber and Pineapple Kachumber

There is nothing better than balmy weather, and pineapples are in the markets! So we bring a slightly tropical feel to the table today with a special salad of cucumbers and pineapple.

Similar recipes include Apple and Yoghurt Salad with Grapes, Kachumber, and Chickpeas and Ginger Kachumber. You might like to see our Collection of Kachumber Salads.

Browse all of our Kachumbers, and our Indian Salads. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Late Spring recipes.

Hawaiian Chilli Pineapple Salad

I went searching for some pineapple in the supermarket the other day, and nearly picked up a tub of chunks of pineapple for over $6 because I thought it might be my only option. It probably contained less than half a pineapple. I don’t often buy fruit and veg in the supermarket (for all sorts of reasons) but when something is less common or slightly out of season, they are more likely to stock it. But then I saw half a fresh pineapple for $2.50, so I grabbed it, pleased that I had saved $4. Later, at my Asian-Owned Green Grocer, they were selling whole pineapples for 99c. The lesson is: look around first! Lesson learned.

I quite like fruits with a sour tang with chilli – green mango, pomelo, pineapple, for example. So our salad today is just that. You can of course just slice the fruit and dip it into salt and chilli, but today we make a chilli vinaigrette for the pineapple.

Similar recipes include Mango and Pineapple Salad, Pineapple Pulissery with Green Peppercorns, and Green Tomato and Pineapple Salsa.

What about Chilli recipes? Try Tofu and Chilli Salad, Deeply Flavoured Chilli Jam, and Chilli and Coriander Lassi.

Please browse all of our Salad recipes though, we have a lot. Check out our Chilli recipes. Or take some time to explore our Mid Autumn dishes.

Mango and Pineapple Salad

In India, on one trip, a travelling companion remarked that India did not have dishes of fresh vegetables and greens, like salads and simply cooked vegetables. It was a surprising statement from a person who was not unused to India, but it does show that the most commonly publicised dishes are not the fresh, uncooked or quickly cooked dishes. I may have been more fortunate that that person, eating in the homes of friends in India and spending time in their kitchens. Salads are eaten all over India – they are different to Western tossed or composed salads, but they are fresh and beautiful.

An Indian salad will contain raw or briefly cooked vegetables, fruits, sprouted lentils, and spices. They can also contain grains such as puffed rice or poha (flattened rice). Cooked lentils and beans can be briefly stir fried with spices, coconut and herbs. Vegetables and fruits can be stirred into yoghurt and dressed with sautéed spices.

Salad dressings are not used per se, but flavours are balanced with spices and coconut.  When fruits are used, or vegetables like cucumber and jicama, it can be simply spiced by mixing with chaat masala, black pepper and some lime juice.

So today, a salad of fruits with spices and peanuts. It is gorgeous, spicy and with a tang of mustard. I came across the recipe somewhere some time ago, and make it when pineapples are sweet and mangoes are available. There are many different types of mangoes in India, pineapples too. Today, I have used a sweet, green mango, but others with firmer flesh and tarter flavour can also be used. It is a great salad to serve with fiery food, or as part of a Summer lunch outside under the gum trees.

Similar dishes include a Collection of Kosumalli Salads, Hesarubela Koshambari, Hawaiian Chilli Pineapple Salad, Longan and Green Mango Salad, Pomelo and Green Mango Salad, Cucumber Pachadi, and Kachumber.

Browse all of our Indian Salads, and all of our Salads. Our Mango dishes are here, and our Pineapple dishes are here. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Mid Summer dishes.

Pineapple Pulissery with Green Peppercorns | Pineapple Curry with Green Peppercorns

In one episode of Master Chef last year, the contestants had a mystery box that contained pineapples and green peppercorns. We were yelling at the TV screen “Kerala Pineapple Curry!!!”. Sadly, they could not hear, and I don’t recall that anyone paired them together. Kerala uses pineapple a lot in savoury ways, and this is one of them. So, Master Chef contestants, here is how you enhance the flavour of pineapples with chillies, coconut and green peppercorns.

Similar recipes include Pineapple Pulissery, Kerala Cooking, and Green Mango in Coconut Milk.

Browse all of our Kerala dishes and all of our Pineapple recipes. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Mid Summer dishes.

Green Tomato and Pineapple Salsa

Is this a salad, salsa or relish? I am not sure, but this dish has to be made as it is delicious. There is something about green tomatoes that is addictive.

I am lucky that my green grocer has green tomatoes, and also we have some (not many this year) from our vegetable garden. Failing this, talk to your green grocer and see whether he can get some in for you.

The crunch of the tomatoes with the sweetness of the pineapple and the freshness of the herbs is so Summery! Think hot days, and picnics in the park. Perfect. It is also wonderful as an accompaniment in sandwiches and wraps.

Similar recipes include Avocado Salsa, Green Tomato Bhajji, Green Tomato Pachadi, Mango and Pineapple Salad, Hawaiian Chilli Pineapple Salad, Green Tomato and Mozzarella Salad, Green Tomato Salsa with Chilli and Coriander, Cucumber and Apple Salsa, and Green Guava Salsa.

Browse all of our Green Tomato dishes and our Pineapple recipes. Our Salsas are here and Relishes here. Or explore our Mid Summer recipes.

Pineapple Pulissery | Pineapple in a Spicy Yoghurt Sauce from Kerala

This is another recipe from my cooking session in Kovalam in Kerala. My scribbled notes have recently come to light again – Chef cooked and I helped and observed and tried desperately to copy down the recipes.

This recipe can be made with okra, Indian cucumber, green mango and plantain (green banana), but today we use pineapple. It is easy to make, and so very delicious – I am sure that you will love it.

Pineapple Pulissery is a delicate dish with aromatic flavours of mustard seed, cumin seed and curry leaves with chilli and black pepper. It is from Kerala, that beautiful tropical state on the West Coast of India.  Pineapple curry is also a traditional dish from the Sri Lankan cuisine, and there it is also a delightful sweet and spicy curry.

Are you looking for other Pineapple dishes? We don’t cook with it very often so don’t have anything to offer you right now. But check back here in the future – I am sure there will be more.

Would you like more Pulissery dishes? Try Plantain Poriyal, Plain Pulissery, Pineapple Pulissery with Green Peppercorns, and  Mambazha Pulissery – a sweet and sour Mango dish. Why not also try Crispy Okra in Yoghurt (Pachadi).

Our other Kerala dishes include Green Mango in Coconut Milk, Simple Cabbage Thoran, Olan and Avial. Or try Mango and Pineapple Salad.

Similar dishes include Bhindi Raita.

Browse all of our Pineapple dishes, Pulissery recipes, Kerala dishes and all of our Indian recipes. Our Indian Essentials are here. Or if you would rather, explore our Late Autumn dishes.