Aviyal

I can safely say that this is one of my most favorite recipes. I could just eat aviyal out of the bowl... the texture, the taste, the creaminess... Yum!!

Avial is kind of a stew, where you put in vegetables (mostly starchy ones) in a thick coconut gravy. Unlike other Indian recipes, especially South Indian, there is no tempering. It is plain boiled veggies in a coconut gravy. Am I mad  to like plain boiled vegetables? You have got to try this recipe to believe me. :-)

Ingredients

• 2 raw bananas sliced into several pieces
• 1 large potato chopped into large pieces
• 4 small brinjals chopped
• 1 carrot chopped
• You can also add any other veggies you have like french beans, or drumsticks
• 1 cup fresh grated coconut
• 2 tbsp rice flour
• 1 cup butter milk or 1/2 cup curds (yoghurt)
• 4 to 5 green chillies
• 1 large tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 8 to 10 curry leaves
• 2 tsp coconut oil
• salt to taste

Boil the veggies in two cups of water with curry leaves and salt, till they are soft and cooked.

Grind together the  coconut, yoghurt, rice flour, green chillies, cumin seeds and turmeric to form a paste. Pour this coconut paste into the boiled vegetables and boil the curry once again. Bring the heat down to a simmer and cook for another five to ten minutes.

Once the vegetables and the gravy are completely cooked, drizzle two teaspoons of coconut oil (no, any other oil will not give you the authentic taste. So if you don't have coconut oil, you would be better off not putting any!)

Serve hot with rice.

Happy Cooking!!!