Vegetable Kurma-South Indian Restaurant style

This vegetable kurma is my favorite as it mimics the taste of those kurma which you get along with maida parathas in Tamil Nadu restaurants. If you have eaten those parathas (parottas) then I m sure by now I would have tapped out the craving for those parathas and kurma.
Well! It’s time to make them at home. It was my mom who cracked it after having a secret peek in one of the hotel’s kitchen. Now I m to blog it, for some might have the same craving like me.

Ingredients:

Onion-2 big, sliced

Tomatoes-2, chopped

Mixed vegetables-2 cups (beans+carrots+potatoes+beets+cauliflower) cubed & pressure cooked for 7 minutes

Ginger& Garlic Paste- 1tbsp

Turmeric Powder-1/2 tsp

Red Chili Powder-1 tsp

Coriander Powder

Lemon Juice-1 tsp

Coriander leaves- to garnish

To Grind:

Fresh coconut-1/4 cup

Roasted gram/Pottu kadalai-2 tbsp

Fennel seeds-1 tsp

Poppy seeds- 1tsp

Cashews-5

Green chilies-2

Cloves-3

Cinnamon-1 inch piece

Cardamom-1

Add a little water and grind to a smooth paste.

To Temper:

Vegetable oil-1 tbsp

Bay leaf-1

Maze/Javitri-1

Mint leaves-1/2 cup

Curry leaves-1 sprig (optional)

How it Happened:

1. Heat oil in a kadai, add the ingredients given under ’to temper’ list. When they pop, add the onions and fry until they are glassy.

2. Add ginger garlic paste until the raw smell goes off in medium flame.

3. Add chopped tomatoes and a pinch of salt and cook covered in simmer for 3 minutes/ until they become soft and mushy.

4. Then add the turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder and salt. Mix well and cook for 2 minutes/ until the raw smell goes off.

5. Add the ground coconut paste and ½ cup water and cook until they start bubbling in simmer.

6. Now add the pressure cooked vegetables and add more water if needed.

7. Mix well and cover and cook for 10 minutes. Stir now and then.

8. When the mixture has boiled for a couple of minutes, switch off the flame garnish with coriander leaves and serve with phulkas/rotis.

Notes:

* Cut the vegetables into fairly large cubes (see picture), so that they maintain the crunch even after pressure cooking. If they are cubed small, they may become soft or may even mash up which isn't good.

*Use fresh ginger garlic paste as they elevate the flavors to a whole new level.

*Add/skip any veggies of your choice.

* Beets add a great colour to the dish. So if you skip beets the color may differ.

*Adjust chili powder and chilies as per your taste. But keep in mind that you use both.

* Do not add more than mentioned spices for grinding else they may turn out bitter.

* Keep stirring the mixture now and then as they tend to get burned easily.

*As the ground paste has quite a few thickening ingredients like coconut, poppy seeds and cashews the kurma thickens easily. So adjust the consistency by adding water.

* Do not boil the mixture for a long time as they may curdle.