5 Telugu Non-Vegetarian Dishes That Go Beyond Hyderabadi Biryani

The common perception of Telugu food has been primarily about vegetarian meals or thalis. But if you are assuming so, recheck your culinary knowledge. Telugu cuisine has a decadent spread of traditional non-vegetarian delicacies. Especially with a long coastline, it is only natural for Andhra cuisine to have a dominant of seafood culinary fares. Equally interesting are the fiery, tangy, and flavoursome vepudu, kura, pulusu, and iguru preparations of meat.   

Mungakaya Mamsam
1 / 5

Mungakaya Mamsam

It is perhaps one of the most unique mutton dishes in the country, which uses drumsticks. Munagakaya Mamsam is a spicy and flavorful traditional meat recipe. Munagakaya means drumstick in Telugu and Mamsam stands for mutton. This curry is best made with lamb meat. However, goat meat can also be used. Mutton pieces are coupled with juicy drumstick pieces in this recipe and cooked in a luscious creamy coconut stew.

Chepala Vepudu
2 / 5

Chepala Vepudu

Chepala Vepudu translates as fish fry.  This flavorful Telugu delicacy is frequently eaten as a side dish with rice, rasam, sambar, or any pappu. This Andhra fish fry is a crowd-pleaser due to its few ingredients and simple cooking techniques. The most popular fishes used for this dish are Catla (bocha), Ragindii, Murrel (koramenu), Vanjaram, Konam, Hilsa (pulasa), etc. It can be made with any meaty fish and either shallow or deep-fried.

Gongura Kodi Kura
3 / 5

Gongura Kodi Kura

The non-vegetarian menu of Telugu cuisine can't be imagined without Gongura kodi Kura. It is an Andhra-style curry of kodi which means chicken in the local language, cooked with gongura, which is sorrel leaves. The dish's base has a tangy taste infused with gongura leaves. The other spices, such as red chillies, coriander seeds and roasted fenugreek, balance the flavours adding a unique taste. It pairs best with plain steamed rice.

Kodi Guddu Pulusu
4 / 5

Kodi Guddu Pulusu

In Telugu, Kodi Guddu means chicken eggs, and pulusu is a stew. The primary ingredient in this recipe is boiled eggs. It is one of the easiest preparation, and the gravy or stew is the star of this Telugu dish. The boiled eggs are steeped in a tamarind gravy known as pulusu. It tastes best with steaming hot plain rice.

Royyala Iguru
5 / 5

Royyala Iguru

Royyala Iguru takes one to the heart of coastal Andhra cuisine. Royyala means prawns, and iguru translates to a dish in between stir-fry and semi-gravy preparation. This recipe calls for fresh prawns or shrimp slow-cooking in a simmer. And in this process, the shrimp absorb all the spices and flavours. It's best devoured with steamed rice. 

Next Story

Looking for Recipes?

Download the free Slurrp app.

imageimage