Pandhi Curry / Pork Curry ( Coorg / Kodava Cuisine )

Coorg / Kodag is a district of Karnataka state in South India. Kodavas - or Coorgis - are good looking people with a huge appetite for life. They eat well and love feeding others too.The cuisine reflects the unique geographical location as well as the changing vocations of the Kodavas. The rare vegetarian delights included tender bamboo, wild mushrooms, colacasia leaves or raw jack fruit - all typically forest produce. The meat of the wild animals that were hunted down, such as deer, wild fowl and wild boar, would be dried, smoked and preserved. The preserved meat was soaked in hot water, pounded and cooked with green masala and the distinctive puli.This culinary heritage survived even as the Kodavas evolved into agriculturists.

1 kg pork
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 teaspoon red chilli powder
2 teaspoon kachi puli ( or tamarind paste )
Salt to taste

1.5 - inch ginger piece
25 cloves garlic ( 1 big pod )
4 large onions
20 green chillies
1 bunch coriander leaves

For dry masala, roast the following on a low heat till almost brown and then powder

10 peppercorns
1.5 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 teaspoon cumin ( jeera ) seeds
A pinch mustard seeds

Clean the pork and mix with salt, turmeric powder and chilli powder and cook on a low heat without adding water, until all the fat from the pork dries out.

Now add the wet masala to the pork, add sufficient water and allow the pork to cook until it is tender.

Add kachi puli ( or tamarind paste ) and dry roasted masala powder, stirring constantly until dry. Serve with Kadambuttu ( steamed rice balls).