Spicy Cranberry Sauce with Curry Leaves ‘Tarka’

by | Nov 24, 2020

Hot shimmering oil or ‘tarka’ in Urdu always goes great with spiced lentil dishes. In my recipe, I use it with my special extra hot cranberry sauce. This spicy sauce tastes incredibly awesome. It can accompany baked turkey on Thanksgiving.

Ingredients: 

  • 1 cup fresh cranberries
  • ½ cup of sugar
  • 5-6 garlic cloves
  • 6-8 whole dried chili
  • ½ cup orange juice
  • Lemon zest
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon cumin seeds, plus more for ‘tarka’
  • 5-6 curry leaves
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Sea salt as needed

Method: 

In a bowl, add whole red chili, lemon zest, and cumin seeds. Stir in 2 tablespoons boiling water. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes.

Heat a medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add cranberries, sugar, and orange juice. Cook for about 5-6 minutes until the cranberries burst.  Turn off the heat, cover, and allow to cool.

In a food processor, add prepared cranberries mixture, garlic, socked whole red chili mixture, lemon juice, and sea salt.  Blend to form a smooth sauce.

Transfer the sauce to a serving bowl. Heat olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is shimmering, add curry leaves and cumin seeds. Fry until golden brown. Pour on the cranberry sauce. Serve.