Wednesday

Going green - Mixed vegetable curry

Here is the vegetable curry I mentioned in my post on shrimp pulao a few days back. It uses the same green masala, give or take a few ingredients. This is one of the more uncommon dishes I know, because it uses fennel (a spice that is more popular as a mouth freshner in my kitchen!), is a refreshing green in color and doesn't have a tarka; nope, not even a tiny sizzle of cumin.

What it does have is an aromatic mix of cloves, cinnamon and cardamom. I call the powder semi garam masala because it has 3 of the 6 spices used in garam masala! It works really well in milder gravies (green as opposed to red) and pulaos.

cloves

This curry is actually called 'kurma' in our home but I hesitate to use that word because it is so synonymous with greasy, overly spiced restaurant dishes. This is more like an aromatic stew in comparison.

mixedvegcurry

MIXED VEGETABLE CURRY (Vegetable Kurma)
(serves 2-3)
about 3 cups of mixed vegetables , fresh or frozen (beans, peas, corn, carrots, cauliflower, potatoes etc.)
2 medium size onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup of thin coconut milk (canned or freshly made from 1/3 cup of grated coconut)
salt to taste
1-2 tbsp oil
For the paste -
2 medium size onions, quartered
10-12 stalks of cilantro
3-4 green chillies
1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)
For the powder -
2 sticks of cinnamon (about 1.5 - 2cms each)
2 black cardamoms (badi elaichi) or use green cardamom
3-4 cloves

Prepare the vegetables (thaw or cut them). Heat a griddle and lightly toast the cloves, cinnamon and cardamom on moderate heat until aromatic. Let cool then grind to a fine powder.

Blend onions, cilantro, chillies and fennel into a fine paste using a little water. Keep aside. Heat a pan with oil. When hot add sliced onions and saute till they turn golden brown. Next add cilantro paste. Stir for 2-3 minutes until it loses moisture.

Add vegetables and mix until they are well coated. Sprinkle spice powder and stir again. Season with salt then add 1 cup of water to get desired consistency.

Cover and let cook. When vegetables are done, add coconut milk and bring to a gentle boil. Serve hot with rotis.

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24 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Looks delicious and sounds super easy !

I usually make the watery kind(more gravy). We do use fennel seeds, love the idea of adding badi elaichi and lots of onions. Can't wait to try it !!!

11:03 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

That looks yummy ashwini..thanks for sharing..

11:07 AM  
Blogger KA said...

Great pictures Ashwini!

12:24 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My late aunt used to make something similar. I don't know if she used fennel seeds though. She used to call it 'American kurma', like American diamonds i.e. not the real thing...get it?!

3:17 PM  
Blogger Vaishali said...

A very different recipe, Ashwini. Great that it can be made with frozen veggies. Makes it quicker to prepare. Btw, I love that black bowl. It makes the perfect background for the colourful veggies.

4:15 PM  
Blogger Menu Today said...

Hi Ashwini,
Thanks for sharing a lovely recipe..

7:09 PM  
Blogger Krithika said...

Lovely pics and recipe. Very similar to south india kurma except the badi elaichi. Thanks for sharing

7:42 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I make it with more gravy too. With all those spices, it should have tasted heavenly.

8:18 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ashwini-- nice dish-- this goes great with chapathis:) I make similar to yours-- ingredients are same-- I grind coconut with paste and powder all together-- will try yours:)

9:34 PM  
Blogger Prema Sundar said...

Hi Ashwini ,
vegetable curry looks very nice. easy and quick to make too. The picture looks wonderful.

7:57 AM  
Blogger FH said...

Looks almost like Mysore saagu!! I love the color and your pictures.I have try this recipe, can't wait!!
Thanks!!

8:39 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

this is similar to our veg stew except that we make it with lots of gravy for idiappam, appam etc.

9:37 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Ashwini,
I just love this dish with Phulka's hot off the stove. I make a similar one too, learnt it from my mom, we call it stew. It goes well with pulao too...ummm...u have made my mouth water now :-P

10:54 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yummy looking picture & a super easy dish.My side dish for chapathi next time !!! Thnx.

12:40 PM  
Blogger Manjusha Nimbalkar said...

Hey Ashwiwni,

Lovely veggie dish.
Happy Cooking !!

9:22 PM  
Blogger Ashwini said...

Priya - let me know if you do
Sudhav, KA, Vaishali, MT, Krithika - thanks
Manisha - haha! Thats a good pun
RP - you are right, the spices taste heavenly!
Prema, Asha, Shaheen, VD, Manju - thanks
Priya - it goes perfectly with hot phulkas doesnt it?!

9:48 AM  
Blogger Ramya said...

hi ashwini..
loved ur dishes.. for this dish, can u tell me a substitute for the onion,chilli,cilantro paste..can i add corn flour to thicken..morning i hv to cook it for my huby's lunch.. might get delayed.. for the paste, raw onions?? will the raw smell go soon when sauted

7:45 AM  
Blogger Ashwini said...

Ramya - the onion-cilantro paste is actually the base of the kurma. So pretty much essential for flavor (not just thickening). You know an easy way to save time? Grind the 3 together and freeze in ice trays. Use as much as needed.
The onion does get cooked in the curry so its no too oniony in smell. But that's just my opinion. Hope this helps. Good luck.

9:57 AM  
Blogger Ramya said...

thanks ashwini.. still i havent tried the dish..dreamt cooking it.. my 5 month old son s taking most of my time...so i make some easy chutney or jam for roti..

5:19 AM  
Blogger Ramya said...

this freezing idea s cool.. i do it for peas

5:20 AM  
Blogger Ashwini said...

Ramya - take your time :-) Reduce the chillies and serve it to your son when he starts eating solids!

11:05 AM  
Blogger Ramya said...

yeah i ll do tat.. ur site s lovely..n the pics r awesome..

10:30 PM  
Blogger DD said...

Very nice photos...

2:15 PM  
Anonymous Rashee said...

This is the first time reading your blog. I am liking all your recpies. Need to try them now.

9:06 PM  

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