Category: Curries

Kodava Avare Kuru (Double Beans ) Curry

The Double Beans or the Avare Kuru as we call it in Kodagu is a versatile bean that tastes great in a Pulav or in a curry. Once upon a time, they were grown in most homes in Kodagu or Coorg. Since this vegetable is seasonal, after using the fresh beans to make curries, the rest would be dried and carefully stocked for use during the rest of the year.

Like all beans, these Double beans are an excellent source of protein, fibre and minerals. Hence, they are a great inclusion in any diet. Additionally, they are low in fat, cholesterol and sodium.

It feels amazing to pick fresh vegetables from the garden and cook with them. These beans come in various colors and are a pleasure to grow. I love picking the fresh beans, shelling them, and making this delicious curry which is creamy, with earthy flavors. It is best enjoyed with hot Akki Vottis and a generous spoon of butter or ghee (clarified butter).

Here is a recipe to make a delicious Avare Kuru Curry. Hope you enjoy making it. Do share your comments.

You’ll need the following ingredients to make Avare Kuru Curry:

Ingredients (To make curry for 2)

100 gms fresh Red Double Beans, peeled and shelled

1 medium Potato, peeled and cut into small pieces the size of the beans

½ tsp Coriander powder

½ tsp Cumin powder

½ tsp Chilli powder

¼ tsp Turmeric powder

1 medium Onion, diced

1 medium Tomato, diced

½ cup grated Coconut, ground to a fine paste

1tsp Tamarind juice

Salt to taste

½ tsp sugar

A handful of coriander leaves, finely chopped

For the tempering:

1tbsp cooking oil

¼ tsp Mustard seeds

10-12 Curry leaves

4-6 small cloves of Garlic, crushed

Method

  1. In a pressure cooker, cook the beans and the potatoes in enough water to which salt has been added. Add turmeric, chilli, cumin and coriander powders and mix well. It will require 3 whistles.
  2. In a pan, heat oil. When it is hot, add mustard seeds and let it sputter. Add crushed garlic and fry for a few seconds. Add the onions and fry till it turns brown.Next, add the curry leaves and fry for a few seconds.
  3. Now add the tomato and let it cook well. When it leaves the sides, add the cooked beans and potatoes.  Boil till the raw smell goes.
  4. Next, add the coconut paste and sugar. Mix well.
  5. Finally, add the tamarind juice and mix well. Adjust the salt if necessary. Turn off the flame.
  6. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Delicious Avare Kuru curry is ready to serve! This curry is best served with hot Akki Vottis and a dollop of ghee.

Enjoy!

Notes:

If you are using dried double beans, make sure that you soak the seeds overnight.

Drumstick Curry

As the pandemic rages on, it is important more than ever before to eat healthy. Here is a recipe that uses the super food Drumstick!

Drumstick is a great vegetable whose health benefits are well known to all of us in India as it a part of our regular diet. Drumstick or Moringa Oleifera is considered as a super food. Every part of this plant from leaves, flowers, fruits and root are used to prepare various dishes and have medicinal value. Traditionally, it has been used as a remedy for conditions such as diabetes, fungal infections, joint pain, heart health and cancer. 

(Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drumsticks_or_Moringa.jpg)Drumsticks_or_MoringaDrumstick is full of vitamins and minerals. The leaves are high in Vitamin C (7 times more than oranges) and potassium (15 times more than bananas) in addition to calcium and iron.  It contains antioxidants and helps to boost our immunity (Source:www.webmd.com).

Here’s how to make a curry.

Ingredients

3 Drumsticks, cut into 2” pieces

¼ cup Toor Dal washed and soaked in water for 10 minutes

¼ cup grated Coconut

1 big Tomato, sliced fine

1 big Onion, sliced fine

2 Tsps. Coriander seeds

4 Red Chillies (This can be varied as per taste. We use the less spicy Byadgi variety.)

½ Tsp. Urad Dal

½ Tsp. Bengal Gram Dal

¼ Tsp. Fenugreek seeds

½ Tsp. Jeera

1.5 tsp Tamarind juice

For the seasoning:

3 Tbsps. Oil

1/4 Tsp. Mustard seeds

¼ Tsp. Hing or Asafoetida

10-12 Curry leaves

Method

  1. Cook the soaked Toor dal till done.
  2. While the Toor dal is cooking, heat 1/2 tsp oil in a pan. When hot, add coriander seeds, red chillies, jeera and fenugreek and fry for a few seconds. Remove from fire and set it aside.
  3. To the same pan, add urad dal and bengal gram dal. Fry for a few seconds and remove.
  4. Add 1 tsp oil to the same pan. When hot add the sliced onion and fry. When the onion turns pink, add the sliced tomatoes. Fry for a few minutes. Add the coconut and fry for a few seconds. Remove from fire.
  5. Now grind all the fried ingredients to a fine paste.
  6. To the cooked Toor dal, add the drumstick pieces and boil till the drumstick is cooked.
  7. Now add the ground masala, the tamarind juice and salt to taste. Boil till the raw smells are dispelled.
  8. Heat 1.5 tsps of oil. Add mustard seeds and allow it to sputter. Add curry leaves and hing. Turn off the flame.
  9. Pour this over the curry. Mix well.

Drumstick curry is ready to be served.

Take a portion of steamed rice on your plate. Add a ladle full of Drumstick curry on it. Don’t forget to add a generous helping of ghee or clarified butter to enhance the taste of your meal. This tastes best when mixed and eaten with your hand! Don’t forget to eat the marrow in each piece of the drumstick.

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Radish Curry (Moolengi Curry) From Kodagu

Radish, a great vegetable! It is one of those vegetables that can be consumed from ‘Root to Leaf’. In two earlier posts, I had shared a recipe each for Radish Leaves Fry and Radish Fry, the way we Kodavas from Kodagu make it. In this post, let’s learn a simple way of making a tasty Radish curry.

This again is a favorite at our table, not only for its nutrition and health benefits, but also for its sheer taste. It is a great accompaniment with steamed rice, Akki Vottis or Chapathies.

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Ingredients

3 medium sized Radishes

¼ cup Toor Dal

1 big Tomato, pureed

½ tsp. Coriander powder

¼ tsp. Chili powder

½ tsp Cumin powder

½ tsp. Turmeric powder

1/2 cup grated Coconut, ground to a fine paste

½ tsp. Tamarind juice

1 tbsp. chopped Coriander leaves

Salt to taste

½ tsp. Sugar

2 tbsps. Oil

½ tsp Mustard seeds

4 cloves of Garlic, peeled and crushed

10 Curry leaves

Method

IMG_4876

  1. Wash and peel the Radish and cut as shown in the image. Soak in salt water for 10 minutes.
  2. Wash and soak the Toor dal for 10 minutes.
  3. In a pan, cook the Toor dal with 1 cup of water, ¼ tsp oil and ¼ tsp. turmeric powder till done.
  4. Add radish to the cooked Toor dal. Add salt as per taste.
  5. Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds and let it sputter. Next, add crushed garlic and curry leaves. Fry for a few seconds. Add the tomato puree and cook till the oil separates.
  6. Add the cooked dal and radish. Add tamarind juice and sugar. Reduce the flame and allow this mixture to boil. Stir occasionally. Allow to boil well and thicken. Add coriander leaves just before taking the curry off the flame.

Tasty and nutritious Radish curry is ready!  It is a great accompaniment with steamed rice, chapathies or akki vottis. Enjoy!

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Potato Curry

Potatoes are a very versatile tuber that can be cooked in so many different ways. Many of us, like me, would love potatoes made any which way!

Potatoes are healthy when baked or boiled. They are very rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

I always like to make this curry, which my mother used to make whenever we had Steamed Rice Balls or Kadambuttus for breakfast.

Potato Curry and Steamed Rice Balls (Kadambuttus from Kodagu)

It is a very simple curry and it is very easy to make.

Here’s how to make it.

Ingredients

4 medium sized Potatoes

1 medium sized Onion, chopped fine

1 big Tomato, chopped fine

½ cup grated coconut, ground to a fine paste

¼ tsp Turmeric powder

½ tsp. Chilli powder

½ tsp Coriander powder

¼ tsp Jeera powder

10-12 Curry leaves, chopped

2 tbsp. Oil

½ cup water

1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Salt to taste

Method

  1. Boil the potatoes in their jackets. Once they cool down, peel and mash them coarsely as shown in the image.
  2. In a thick bottomed pan, heat the oil. Add the mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds begin to sputter, add the onions and stir till it becomes transparent. Next, add the curry leaves and fry for a few seconds.
  3. Add the tomatoes and the salt. Once the tomatoes become soft, add all the powders. Stir well and add a little water to deglaze the pan. Let the tomatoes cook well.
  4. Now add the potatoes and mix well. Add ½ cup of water and reduce the flame. Allow the mixture to boil well, stirring from time to time. Adjust the salt as required.
  5. Add the coconut paste and stir well. Allow the mixture to boil. Finally, add the coriander leaves and switch off the flame.

Potato curry is ready to be served.

This curry can be served with Kadambuttus, Akki Vottis or even Chapathis.

Mushroom (Kummu) Curry From Coorg

Coorg in Southern India, receives heavy rainfall. The rains bring with it great cheer. During this season, the forests and the plantations come alive with wild mushrooms, crabs, fish, bamboo shoots and bracken ferns, all of which are a delicacy! Ask anyone from Coorg and they will tell you!

IMG_0345
Wild Mushrooms

The wild mushrooms are used to make a delicious curry. To find these mushrooms, people would walk through the jungles and estates early in the morning. There was a time when these mushrooms used to be collected in gunny bags. Today they are rare to find.

Here is a recipe to make Mushroom curry with button mushrooms which are easily available.

Ingredients

1/2 kg Mushrooms

1 tsp. Chili powder

½ tsp. Turmeric powder

2 tsp. Coriander powder

1 tsp. Cumin powder

Salt to taste

1/4 tsp. Kachumpuli (Coorg Vinegar)

To be ground to a paste:

½ fresh large coconut; 1/2 tsp. Cumin seeds

For the seasoning:

2 tbsp. oil; ¼ tsp. mustard seeds; 1 medium sized onion, chopped fine, 10-15 curry leaves

IMG_4306
Sliced Button Mushrooms

Method

  1. Wash and clean mushrooms and slice as shown in the picture.
  2. Mix in chili, coriander, cumin, turmeric powders and salt into the mushrooms and keep aside for 10 minutes.
  3. Heat oil in a pan. When hot, put in mustard seeds and let it sputter. Add chopped onions and fry till it turns pink. Add the curry leaves and fry for a minute. Add mushrooms and stir. Add 1 cup of water. Cook on low heat till mushrooms are tender.
  4. Add the ground coconut paste and mix well. Cook on low heat till the gravy thickens.
  5. Finally, add kachumpuli, stir and remove from fire. Add fresh coriander leaves before serving.

Mushroom curry is ready!

IMG_4312
Mushroom Curry From Coorg

Serve hot with rice or akki votti.

Notes:

  1. This curry can be made with any mushroom. While the distinct flavors of the wild mushrooms cannot be recreated, it still is a tasty curry.
  2. If you do not have access to Kachumpuli, you can use lime juice. Though it does not give the same taste or color, it still will serve the purpose of adding sourness to the dish.

 

Wild Mango Curry (Kaad Maange Curry) From Coorg

A delectable wild mango curry from Coorg

It is the season for mangoes of all shapes and sizes! In India, we are blessed to have a large variety of mangoes. Of these, there is a special mango that grows in the forests of Kodagu or Coorg in Southern India. This mango is a wild variety and has a very different taste. It is sweet and sour and has a peppery tang, which is very unique. Like all other mangoes, these mangoes are rich in fibre and are packed with nutrition.

Wild Mangoes From Coorg

In this post, I’ll share a recipe for a delectable curry that we make using these wild mangoes. It is a dish we absolutely love and the flavors are unparalleled. It is always a pleasure to see everyone eat this curry with delight, enjoying every morsel. The best part of this dish is getting to eat a mango kernel and sucking it of all the juices it has absorbed!

WildMangoCurry
Wild Mango Curry From Coorg

Let us see how to make wild mango curry.

 

Ingredients

6 semi-ripe wild mangoes

1/2 tsp. red chili powder

1 tsp. Turmeric powder

½ tsp. Coriander powder

¼ tsp. Cumin powder

Salt to taste

2 tbsp grated Jaggery, dissolved in ¼ cup water and strained

Grind to a powder:

1 tsp. Coriander seeds; ¼ tsp. Cumin seeds; ¼ tsp. Mustard seeds, a pinch of Fenugreek seeds

For the seasoning, you’ll need:

1 tbsp. oil

¼ tsp. Mustard seeds

1-2 dry Red chilies, broken and deseeded

6-8 Curry leaves

2-3 cloves of Garlic, crushed

1 medium-sized Onion, chopped

1-2 green chillies, slit and deseeded

Method

  1. Wash the mangoes and slice each mango on either sides of the seed so that you get three slices including the seed. Place the cut mangoes in a bowl. Add chily powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and salt. Mix well. Set it aside for 10 minutes.
  2. Heat a tawa or frying pan and on a slow flame roast the corainder seeds, the cumin, the mustard and the fenugreek for a few seconds each, one at a time. Stir constantly to avoid burning. Cool and grind to a fine powder. This should give you a black masala.
  3. Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds to it and when it sputters, add the onion. When the onions soften, add the broken red chilies, garlic, curry leaves and the green chilies. Fry for a minute.
  4. Now, add the marinated mangoes. Add 1 cup of water and cook the mangoes on a slow flame till done (would take 5-7 minutes). Make sure that you keep stirring the dish every few minutes.
  5. Next, add the powdered masala and jaggery. Mix well. Cook till the gravy thickens.

Wild Mango curry is ready. This is best served with hot rice or Akki Vottis.

Notes:

  1. You can remove the skin and use the whole mango without slicing it. I prefer to leave the skin on and slice it. You can choose to make it your way.
  2. If you do not have access to these mangoes, don’t be disheartened! You can make  this curry with locally available mangoes. In such a case, use semi-ripe mangoes and cut them into small pieces. Though the same flavors cannot be recreated, it still tastes good.

Mixed Vegetable Curry-1 (Kootu Curry From Coorg)

Mixed Vegetable Curry From Corgi

Here’s a delicious curry from Coorg. This curry is made using more than one vegetable like beans, potatoes and carrots. It has a coconut based gravy infused with spices and is a great accompaniment for akki vottis, chapatis and rice.

Here’s what you’ll need to make this curry.

Ingredients

French Beans, a handful

Small Potatoes, 2

Carrot, 1

Toor Dal, 3 tbsps.

½ cup grated Coconut and 1/2 tsp. Cumin seeds ground to a fine paste

½ tsp. Cumin powder

1 tbsp. Coriander powder

1/2 tsp. red chilly powder

Salt to taste

1 tsp. Tamarind juice

1 small Tomato, chopped fine

2 cups water

For the seasoning:

1 tbsp. oil

¼ tsp. Mustard seeds

10-12 Curry leaves

4-5 cloves of Garlic, crushed

Cut vegetables

Method

  1. Wash, peel and cut the vegetables as shown in the picture.
  2. Wash the Toor dal and let it soak in water for 5 minutes. Add a dash of turmeric powder and a few drops of cooking oil and cook the Toor dal till done.
  3. To the cooked dal, add the vegetables, the spice powders and the chopped tomatoes and cook till the vegetables are cooked. Ensure that the vegetables are firm and not mushy.
  4. Next, add the coconut paste, tamarind juice and salt. Mix well and boil for 1-2 minutes.
  5. In a pan or degchi, heat oil. Add the mustard seeds, the curry leaves and the garlic and fry till it turns golden. Add this to the curry and mix well.

Our mixed vegetable curry or Kootu curry is ready!

Notes:

For this curry, you can use beans, carrots, potatoes, peas and other similar vegetables.

 

 

Black Chickpeas Curry

IMG_1487

Here is a simple recipe for black chickpeas curry. This dish is a great favorite at home and is loved by all.  This dish is very tasty and nutritious. In our home, it is generally served with rice, rice rotis or Akki Votti and Paputtu. It also goes very well with puris, chapathis and dosas too.

Let’s learn how to make it.

Ingredients

1 cup black chickpeas (whole bengal gram) soaked overnight

2 medium sized tomatoes, finely chopped

1 medium sized onion, finely chopped

½ tsp fennel (saunf)

½ tsp coriander seeds

A few sprigs of coriander, finely chopped

¼ cup oil

Grind to a fine paste

4 tbsp grated coconut

1/4” ginger

3 cloves of garlic

1/2” piece of cinnamon

2 cloves

½ tsp fennel

½ tsp coriander seeds

1/2 tsp chilli power

¼ tsp turmeric powder

Few sprigs of coriander, finely chopped

Few sprigs of mint, finely chopped

Method

  1. Cook the black chickpeas with ½ tsp fennel, ½ tsp whole coriander seeds and 2 cups of water till well cooked. Set aside.
  2. In a pan, heat the oil. Add the onions. When it turns transparent, add the ground masala and fry it till the oil separates (4-5 minutes). Now reduce the flame.
  3. Add the tomatoes and salt. Keep stirring till the tomatoes are well cooked.
  4. To this, add the cooked black chickpeas with its water (1/4 cup). Let the mixture boil well. Keep stirring till the gravy thickens.
  5. Adjust the seasoning and garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot with puris, chapathis, dosas or rice.

Notes:

  1. If you want a thick gravy, you can limit the water added.
  2. This curry can be made in advance and stored in the fridge for 2-3 days. But, it is best when served fresh.