Spicy and lip-smacking thakkali thokku or tomato relish without any onion or garlic! A perfect side for idli, dosa, roti, and yogurt rice. Check out how to make this thokku and different ways to serve it.
It’s raining tomatoes in our backyard. I have three different varieties – cherry tomatoes, big beef tomatoes, early girl tomatoes, and I making something or the other with our tomatoes every day. Also, I am blanching them and freezing the puree. I will share those details soon.
Indian cuisine is known for its pickles and chutneys and relishes. Earlier this summer, I shared an onion-tomato relish made in Instant Pot. Now it’s time for the exclusive tomato thokku.
What is thokku-
I have explained what thokku is in my mango thokku post. But let me share it again. Thokku refers to the grated/chopped and cooked pickles. We cook the main ingredients to become mushy, unlike the pickles, where we don’t cook them. Thokku is instant, and we can relish them right away. But as it stays, it tastes better.
Shelf life-
Be it cherry thokku or mango thokku or this tomato thokku, it stays well outside for 4 to 5 days, and it pairs well with idli, dosa, chapati. That’s why it is a popular travel food.
Every year, I make this tomato thokku, and I usually keep it for 4 to 6 weeks in the fridge, and it has stayed good without any issues.
The shelf-life of thokku is comparatively less than pickles (pickles stay well for years), but when refrigerated, it stays well.
Making the thokku is very simple. We chop the tomatoes and cook it along with spices until all the moisture is absorbed. That’s the critical thing for the longer shelf life. You need to simmer it over medium-low heat for 30 to 35 minutes. I know that’s a lot of time. But that slow cooking helps the flavors to blend in nicely and trust me, folks, the thokku will taste amazingly good.
How to serve thakkali thokku-
✔ As a side dish – You can serve this with idli, dosa, chapati, paratha, and yogurt rice. As a sandwich spread – You can even smear it on bread and make a spicy sandwich.
✔ Thokku rice – Mix it with hot rice with a dollop of ghee and serve it with raita or papad and make a quick meal of pickle rice.
✔ Thokku paratha – Mix/stuff the pickle with atta and make spicy thokku paratha.
The possibilities are endless, and you can use it in different ways. :-)
Other tomato recipes from blog-
- Tomato rice
- No onion no garlic tomato chutney
- Onion-tomato relish
- Thakkali kurma
- Tomato raita
- Instant Pot tomato soup
Now let me share how to make this thakkali thokku/tomato thokku with detailed step-wise pictures-
Roast and grind fenugreek seeds-
- Heat a pan and roast the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds over medium heat until the mustard seeds turn reddish-brown or for about three to four minutes—no need to add any oil while roasting.
- Allow it to cool and grind into a coarse powder.
Prepare the thokku/pickle-
- Heat a heavy-bottom pan or kadai and heat ¼ cup of gingelly oil.
- When the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds and hing. Allow the mustard seeds to splutter. Gingelly oil will become frothy as well.
- Now add the chopped tomato, turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt, and the ground fenugreek-mustard powder.
- Mix them all thoroughly, reduce the heat to medium-low (on a number scale, 4).
- Cook until all the moisture is absorbed and oil oozes out on the top. It usually takes about 30 to 35 minutes. Keep mixing the thokku for every five minutes so that it doesn’t stick to the pan’s bottom.
Here is how it looks at different timings.
Right after adding spices-
After 12 minutes of cooking-
After 24 minutes of cooking-
And here is the thokku after 30 minutes of cooking-
Allow the thokku to cool and store it in a clean air-tight container. Make sure you use clean spoons for each serving.
Recipe Notes-
- If you have store-bought mustard seed powder and fenugreek powder, you can use ¼ tsp of mustard seed powder and ¾ to 1 tsp of fenugreek powder. You can skip the roasting and grinding the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds.
- I have tried making this with Roma tomatoes and sour tomato varieties. I personally like sour tomato variety for this thokku.
- Depending upon the sourness of the tomatoes, adjust the salt and spice.
- I did not add any jaggery, but a tsp or two would add a tinge of sweetness.
- I highly recommend gingelly oil for this thokku, but if you can’t source it, you can use any other oil.
- Cook well until the moisture is absorbed. That helps in the longer shelf life.
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📖 Recipe
Tomato Thokku | Thakkali Thokku
Equipment
- Saucepan or kadai
- Spice grinder/ mixer jar
Ingredients
Measurement Details: 1 cup=240ml; 1 tbsp=15ml; 1tsp=5ml;
To roast-
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- 1.5 tsp fenugreek seeds
For the pickle/thokku-
- ¼ cup gingelly oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp hing
- 1 kg tomato chopped (I used my homegrown cherry tomatoes)
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp red chili powder or to taste
- 2.5 tsp salt or to taste
Instructions
Roast and grind fenugreek seeds-
- Heat a pan and roast the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds over medium heat until the mustard seeds turn reddish-brown or for about three to four minutes—no need to add any oil while roasting.
- Allow it to cool and grind into a coarse powder.
Prepare the thokku/pickle-
- Heat a heavy-bottom pan or kadai and heat ¼ cup of gingelly oil.
- When the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds and hing. Allow the mustard seeds to splutter. Gingelly oil will become frothy as well.
- Now add the chopped tomato, turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt, and the ground fenugreek-mustard powder.
- Mix them all thoroughly, reduce the heat to medium-low (on a number scale, 4).
- Cook until all the moisture is absorbed and oil oozes out on the top. It usually takes about 30 to 35 minutes. Keep mixing the thokku for every five minutes so that it doesn't stick to the pan's bottom.
- Allow the thokku to cool and store it in a clean air-tight container. Make sure you use clean spoons for each serving.
Notes
I have tried making this with Roma tomatoes and sour tomato varieties. I personally like sour tomato variety for this thokku.
Depending upon the sourness of the tomatoes, adjust the salt and spice.
I did not add any jaggery, but a tsp or two would add a tinge of sweetness.
I highly recommend gingelly oil for this thokku, but if you can't source it, you can use any other oil.
Cook well until the moisture is absorbed. That helps in the longer shelf life.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
Update Notes: This recipe was originally posted in 2014 but now updated with new pics, and recipe cards.
That sounds delicious.