Kerala
Kerala Vegetable Stew
- Duration: 30 minutes
- Serves: 10 people
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Spice Level: Medium
Authenticity Slice
To get an authentic Kerala Vegetable Stew, kaju paste mixed with coconut milk is used as an additional ingredient to add thickness and richness to the stew.
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Trivia Tadka
Vegetable Stew is a favourite staple for breakfast and dinner in the state. Kerala being the 'Coconut Republic of the World', its vegetable stew is cooked with freshly made coconut milk of varied consistencies. That’s what sets it apart from all other curries. The stew is, perhaps, the only dish indigenous to Kerala in which most of the spices grown in the area are used.
Ingredients
- Carrot (gajar), cubed (1)
- Potato, peeled and cubed (1)
- Onion, sliced finely (1)
- Green chillies (Hari mirch), slit vertically (4)
- Ginger (Adrak), crushed (1 tbsp)
- Black peppercorns (Kali mirch) (½ tsp)
- Cinnamon (Dalchini) (1 inch piece)
- Cloves (Laung) (3)
- Green cardamom (Hari elaichi) (3)
- Thin coconut milk (1½ cup)
- Thick coconut milk (¾ cup)
- Curry leaves (Kadipatta) (5-6)
- Salt (to taste)
- Coconut oil (2 tbsp)
- Green peas (½ cup)
- Garlic (Lahsun), crushed (1 tbsp)
Method
- Heat oil in a deep-bottomed pan and add the spices.
- Once the spices begin to splutter, add the onion, crushed adrak and lahsun, kadipatta, and hari mirch and stir-fry till the onion turns just transparent. (Make sure the onions don’t turn brown.)
- Then add the cubed vegetables and green peas into the pan and mix well.
- Pour the thin coconut milk and salt and bring the concoction to a boil. (To get the coconut milk just right, check GET IT RIGHT)
- Reduce the flame and simmer till the vegetables are tender. This takes around 10 minutes.
- Add the thick coconut milk and simmer for another 5 minutes.
- At this point, you may stir in a paste made of about 6-10 cashews and some coconut milk to add more richness.
- Remove the pan from the flame.
- In a smaller pan, heat the remaining coconut oil and fry the kadipatta for 10 seconds. Pour this over the vegetable stew and cover the dish for a few minutes for the flavours to seep in.
- Serve hot with appams.
