Aviyal

Have you ever noticed that your food taste changes over the years.I remember being a very picky eater as a kid.I'd rather starve than eat food that I didn't favour,and the list of foods that I didn't like was pretty long.But over the years,call it maturity or ageing, I started eating most of these stuff,partly because I realised the health benefits they offer or I just started liking them.I still don't like certain varieties of Spinach though ,and I still try to swallow them with a cup of water :) Aviyal was probably the last thing on my list as a kid,it was synonymous with my grand mom's place.My mom hails  from a small town in the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala,and everything in the town from the food habits to culture is so similar to Kerala ,that I sometime wonder why the town is still a part of Tamil Nadu. Coconuts,fish and Aviyals are a part of day to day cooking.I started liking Aviyal mainly during my pregnancy,it's such a nutritious dish with so many vegetables and involves absolutely no sauteing.This dish really helps,when your heightened sense of smell and tiredness makes cooking difficult during pregnancy.This is not an authentic version of it,but I tweak it to fit whatever I find in my kitchen :)It pairs up well with rice ,So off to the recipe.....

You'll Need:

Drumstick - 1/2 a long one(cleaned and chopped into 2" pieces)

Carrot - 1 medium(cleaned and chopped)

Potato or yam - a small one(cleaned ,peeled and chopped)

Raw Banana - 1 big(cleaned ,peeled and chopped)
Curd - 2 - 3 tbsp
Turmeric Powder - a pinch
salt as needed
To Grind:

Green Chilli - 1 to 2

Coconut- 2 tbsp(grated)

Cumin Seeds -  1/2 tsp

Whole Pepper Corns - 1/4 tsp

To temper:

Coconut oil - 2 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Curry Leaves - leaves from a sprig

Method:

-In a vessel add the chopped carrot,potato,yam,raw banana and drumstick.

-Add about 1/2 a cup of water,a pinch of turmeric and salt as needed and mix well.

-On a medium flame let it cook until the vegetables are 3/4th cooked,they should hold their shape and not turn mushy.

-Add the ground coconut paste and mix well.Let it cook further for another 4 -5 minutes until it loses its raw flavour.

-Now remove it from the stove and add the curd and mix well.

-In a small pan heat the coconut oil and splutter the curry leaves and mustard.

-Add the tempering to the cooked Aviyal and gently mix.Done !

Thanks for stopping by ! Have a nice day !