HOW TO MAKE KATHIRIKAI THEEYAL?
KATHIRIKAI THEEYAL- A DELICIOUS EGGPLANT &COCONUT GRAVY FROM KERALA. ONAM SADHYA RECIPE WITH VIDEO.
When i first discovered the flavor bomb called Kathirikai Theeyal, i became a fan of Kerala food for life. This dish that is called Kathirikai theeyal has all my favorite things- eggplants, coconut, shallots and coconut oil. While i wont call it a simple recipe in terms of the procedure, it is a very simple dish when it comes to the ingredients.
The concept of theeyal revolves around roasting the coconut to a light golden brown on a slow flame and grinding this along with other spices to a paste. Now, like any Indian recipe, the kathirikai theeyal has its own number of versions. But the central idea is pretty much one- roast the coconut! The theeyal is another dish that is a part of the 7 course meal that is served on the festival of Onam. A good sadhya must definitely have a good theeyal and if it has eggplants, well, i guess i m bowled over. You can find more Onam recipes here.
This is a video recipe and hence i did not bother taking step by step shots. If you liked this video, then go and subscribe to my youtube channel here-My YouTube Channel
Recipe For Kathirikai Theeyal
Kathirikai Theeyal
Ingredients
- Purple eggplants 8-10 quartered
- Shallots 8-10 peeled
- Curry leaves a handful
- Coconut oil 2 tbsp divided
- Turmeric powder ½ tsp
- Salt to taste
- Tamarind extract from a small marble size tamarind ball 1 c
- Mustard seeds 1 tsp
- To roast and grind:
- Freshly grated coconut ½ cup
- Coriander seeds 1 tbsp
- Whole black pepper corns 5
- Dry red chilies 3-4
Instructions
- Heat 1 tsp of coconut oil in a pan.
- Keep the flame at the lowest, add the coconut and roast till light golden brown. Make sure you do not leave this unattended at any time as coconut burns quickly.
- Once done, transfer to a blender.
- Add a few drops more oil to the same pan and roast the coriander seeds, pepper and dry red chilies till aromatic. Again do this on low flame.
- Once done, transfer to the blender, let cool and grind to a smooth paste adding little water.
- Heat 1 tbsp coconut oil in a pan.
- Splutter the mustard seeds and add shallots and curry leaves.
- Once shallots turn light brown, add eggplants and fry for a min or two.
- Add the tamarind extract along with salt and turmeric powder.
- Mix well and let simmer till raw smell of tamarind goes away and the eggplants are fork tender.
- Once done, add the ground paste and mix well.
- Simmer for another 5 mins.
- Finish with a drizzle of coconut oil and a sprinkle of curry leaves in the end.
- Serve hot with rice and thoran of your choice.
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