ONAM SPECIAL

TODAY IS ONAM:
Here are a few onam recipes which are easy to make and are very tasty too.

1 AVIAL:

Pointers:
1.vegetables used must be cut into pieces of length 2 inchs and width of about 0.5 cm.
2. They turn out best when the following vegetables are used- ash gourd, yellow pumpkin, carrots, beans, potato, yam(Chenai) and Drum stick.
3. If the drum stick is too hard or mature, the avial doesn’t turn out as expected.
4. The use of coconut oil is the key to success when making avial
5. Do not cook for a very long time after adding the ground coconut.
6. Optionally you can use Bottle gourd(Suraikai or Dudhi), Chow Chow(Merokkai),
Cucumber (both Malabar and normal varieties), Avaraikai, Cluster beans (Kothavarangai) and Colacasia (Cheppankizhangu)

INGREDIENTS :
1. 1Cup each : Ashgourd,pumpkin, yam
2. ½ Cup :Carrot, Potato, beans and Drumstick
3. Grated/Dessicated coconut : 2 cups
4. Green chillies : 3 or 4
5. Jeera/cumin seed : 1 tsp
6. Coconut oil : 3 to 4tsp
7. Curry leaves (Fresh) : 2 sprigs
8. Curd (beaten) : 1 cup
9. Turmeric optional
10. Salt to taste

Method:

Boil vegetables with salt till it is cooked but does not lose the colour. Grind Coconut, Jeera and Green Chillies (not to fine paste) and add the ground mixture to the boiled vegetables and cook for 5-8 minutes. Add beaten curd and remove from fire (if kept for long curd might curdle). Add coconut oil and curry leaves.

(If curds are not sour enough add chopped Mangoes. Avial can be cooked with Tamarind juice also if curd is not available. In this case grind the coconut mixture with 1 or 2 small onions /shallots which will give added zest to the avail)

OLAN:

INGREDIENTS:

1. Ash gourd : 1 Cup
2. soaked and cooked Karamani/black eyed bean) : ½ Cup
3. Coconut : 1 Cup
4. slit green Chillies : 2 or 3
5. coconut oil : 2tsp
6. salt to taste
7. Curry leaves : 1 sprig

Method

Extract the coconut milk by grinding the coconut with water. Keep aside the first extract and add more water and take the second and third extract and cook the ash gourd and slit green chillies in this milk with salt. Then add cooked beans. Finally add the first extract and remove from fire else the coconut will curdle. Add Coconut oil and curry leaves.