Pulihora

Soak tamarind in 200 ml warm water for 20 minutes. Squeeze and extract thick tamarind pulp, discarding the fibres and seeds.

Dry roast sesame seeds in a pan over low heat until they turn golden and start to pop. Cool and grind to a coarse powder. Set aside.

Dry roast peanuts in the same pan until the skins blister and the nuts are golden. Cool, rub off the skins, and set aside.

Heat sesame oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add chana dal and urad dal and fry until golden.

Add dried red chillies, green chillies, curry leaves, and asafoetida. Fry for 30 seconds until fragrant.

Add the tamarind extract, turmeric powder, jaggery, and salt. Stir well and cook on medium heat for 8–10 minutes until the mixture thickens and the raw tamarind smell disappears. The paste should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Add the roasted peanuts to the tamarind paste and mix well.

Spread the cooled cooked rice in a wide bowl. Pour the tamarind paste over the rice in batches, mixing gently with your hands or a spatula to coat every grain without breaking the rice.

Add the ground sesame powder and mix again. Taste and adjust salt and tamarind.

Let the pulihora rest for 10 minutes before serving so the flavours absorb into the rice.