29 - Kuttukari - Onam Special

Yesterday was the festival of Onam! And like every Malayali in the world, we celebrated it with a grand Sadya (feast) and our very own pookalam. :) This year, its extra special. Our first Onam in our new home, and our last as a family of 3! We are soon going to be 4! :)

We celebrated it with my parents this year, and my mom did most of the yummy cooking. I added my touch to the feast with 2 curries -  Kuttukari and Olan. 

Here is the first recipe .. 

Ingredients 

Black chickpeas - 1/2 cup, soaked overnight

Raw plantain - 1, chopped

Ash Gourd (Winter Melon) - 1 cup, chopped

Black pepper powder - 1 1/2 tbsp 

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Curry leaves

Mustard seeds - 1 tbsp

Dried red chilli - 3

Coconut - grated - 1 1/2 cups

Cumin seed - 1 tbsp

Coconut oil - 1 tbsp

Salt - to taste

Preparation

Cook the chick peas in the pressure cooker. It should be well cooked.

Add the chopped plantain, ash gourd, pepper, turmeric powder and salt to the cooked chick peas. Boil till the vegetables are well cooked and the curry is almost dry.

Blend 1/2 cup grated coconut with the cumin seeds in a blender. Add this to the curry and mix well. Cook for a few minutes. 

Heat the oil in a pan. Once hot, add the mustard seeds. Once they begin to crackle, add the red chillis and the curry leaves. Saute for a minute. Add the rest of the grated coconut to this and fry till the coconut turns brown. 

Add this to the curry and mix well. Let it cook on low flame for 2 minutes.( If you are using a non-stick pan, keep stirring so that the curry doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan and burn. )

Serve and Enjoy! :)