South Indian Recipes from the Land of Coconuts

Kerala Parippu Curry (South Indian Lentil and Coconut Dish)

(Serves 6)

Fresh curry leaves and frozen shredded coconut can be found at most Indian grocery stores. Fresh shredded coconut may be used as well. Serve this dish warm with parboiled rice.

Lentils

• 2 1/2 cups of water
• 1 cup raw lentils

Boil 2 1/2 cups of water in a pot. Add the lentils and cook for 20 minutes or until soft.

Curry Mixture

• 2 Tablespoons fresh/frozen shredded coconut
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 whole dried red chilies
• 2 teaspoons minced yellow onion
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 cup water
• Salt to taste

To create the curry, blend the coconut, garlic, chilies, onions, turmeric, cumin, and 1/2 cup of water in a blender. Grind until the mixture becomes smooth but still retains some chunkiness. Pour this mixture into the pot of cooked lentils and cook for a few minutes until the lentils begin to slightly steam. Stir occasionally throughout the cooking process, and make sure the lentils are not boiling. Add salt to the lentils to taste. Remove the lentils from the stovetop.

To Crack Mustard Seeds

• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 2 teaspoons minced yellow onion
• 2 sprigs curry leaves

Heat the coconut oil in a small pan. When the oil heats up, add mustard seeds, cover pan, and heat until they crack. Add the onions and sauté until they become brown. Add the curry leaves, pour the oil mixture on the lentils, and stir.

Total calories per serving: 161	Fat: 5 grams
Carbohydrates: 20 grams	Protein: 8 grams
Sodium: 2 milligrams	Fiber: 10 grams

Sambar and Dosa (South Indian Lentil and Vegetable Stew with a Sourdough Crepe)

(Serves 5)

Frozen vegetable drumsticks or moringa (see: https://www.asianfoodcentre.com/5187-thickbox_default/deep-premium-indian-vegetable-drumsticks.jpg), asafetida powder, and black gram are available at Asian and Indian grocery stores. Please note, once the drumsticks are cooked, they become soft on the inside and break apart easily. The outer green skin is quite hard and not fun to chew. Only the drumsticks' "insides," which contain large soft edible seeds, are supposed to be eaten. Most people in South India just scrape/run the separated pieces of the drumstick against their teeth to eat the insides and then throw the pod out. Drumsticks are actually considered to be 'pods,' and that's why there are seeds in it.

Also, make sure the pan for cooking dosa is flat and does not have edges. Do not use a traditional frying pan.

Sambar

• 6 vegetable drumsticks (moringa)
• 1 carrot
• 1 potato
• 1 tomato
• 1/2 cup whole broccoli (including stems)
• 1/2 cup raw spinach
• 1/2 yellow onion
• 1/2 cup yellow lentils (dal)
• 2-3 sprigs curry leaves
• 2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 2 teaspoon asafetida powder
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder

Chop the drumsticks, carrot, potato, tomato, broccoli, and spinach into medium-sized pieces. Chop the onion into fairly large pieces.

Cook the drumsticks, onions, lentils, and curry leaves together in water over medium heat. Once the lentils and vegetables are about half cooked (approximately 10-15 minutes), add the carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, broccoli, and spinach. Make sure the level of the water is right above the vegetables; add more water if needed.

On a small heated pan, lightly toast the fennel seeds. Crush in a mortar until the seeds become a fine powder. Add the fennel seed powder, asafetida powder, and red chili powder into the lentil-vegetable mixture. Cook until the mixture becomes thick in texture.

To Crack Mustard Seeds

• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 2 teaspoon minced yellow onion

Heat the coconut oil in a small pan. When the oil heats up, add mustard seeds, cover pan, and heat until they crack. Add the onions and sauté until they become brown. Pour this mixture on top of sambar and stir. Allow to cool and serve with dosa or rice.

Dosa

• 2 cups long-grain rice
• 1/4 cup parboiled rice
• 1 cup black gram (urad dal)
• 1/2 cup water
• Salt to taste
• Cooking spray

Soak long-grain rice, parboiled rice, and black gram for a minimum of four hours. Strain and wash the ingredients thoroughly.

In a blender, add the rices and black gram one at a time along with slowly adding the water and blend until the consistency is not too watery or too thick. Once the blended ingredients form a batter, add salt to taste. Put the batter in a pot and cover. Allow the mixture to sit overnight at room temperature, allowing it to ferment. The next day the batter should have risen and appear fluffy.

To cook the dosa, spray a flat, nonstick pan with cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Pour 1 1/2 ladles of the batter into the pan. Use the bottom of the ladle to create a circular-shaped dosa after pouring the batter. Once small holes appear on top of the dosa, use a spatula to turn it over and cook the other side. Make sure both sides are both light to medium brown in color. Allow to cool and then serve with sambar or coconut chutney.

Total calories per serving: 508	Fat: 7 grams
Carbohydrates: 98 grams	Protein: 15 grams
Sodium: 27 milligrams	Fiber: 7 grams

Masala Dosa (South Indian Potato and Vegetable-Filled Crepes)

(Serves 5)

Filling

• 2 potatoes
• 4-5 green beans
• 1 yellow onion
• 1 carrot
• Water as needed
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/4 teaspoon red chili powder or 1 green chili
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 2 cups raw spinach
• Salt to taste
• 1 sprig curry leaves

Cut the potatoes, green beans, onion, and carrot into small pieces and cook them in boiling water. Pour enough water to cover all of the chopped vegetables. Once the vegetables are soft (approximately 20-25 minutes), add the turmeric and red chili powder or green chili. Allow the vegetables to cook for a few more minutes and then drain the vegetables.

Heat the coconut oil in a small pan. When the oil heats up, add mustard seeds, cover pan, and heat until they crack.

Sauté the cooked vegetables in the oil and add the spinach and salt to taste. Finally, add the curry leaves to the oil. The cooked vegetable mixture will turn into a soft filling.

Dosa

• 2 cups long-grain rice
• 1/4 cup parboiled rice
• 1 cup black gram (urad dal)
• 1 cup water
• Salt to taste
• Cooking spray

Soak long-grain rice, parboiled rice, and black gram for a minimum of four hours. Strain and wash the ingredients thoroughly.

In a blender, add the rices and black gram one at a time along with slowly adding the water and blend until the consistency is not too watery or too thick. Once the blended ingredients form a batter, add salt to taste. Put the batter in a pot and cover. Allow the mixture to sit overnight at room temperature, allowing it to ferment. The next day the batter should have risen and appear fluffy.

To cook the dosa, spray a flat, nonstick pan with cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Take 1-1 1/2 ladles of batter to make a thin circle on the pan. Cook the dosa until the top is dry and make sure not to flip it. Add two heaping tablespoons of the filling in the middle of the dosa, then flip both the left and right sides of the dosa over the filling. Serve with coconut chutney or sambar.

Total calories per serving: 360	Fat: 7 grams
Carbohydrates: 66 grams	Protein: 8 grams
Sodium: 31 milligrams	Fiber: 5 grams

Thenga Chammanthi (South Indian Coconut Chutney)

(Serves 5)

Fresh curry leaves and frozen shredded coconut can be found at most Indian grocery stores. Fresh shredded coconut may be used as well.

Chutney

• 1/2 pound frozen coconut, thawed to room temperature
• 2 dried whole red chilies or 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1-inch piece of fresh ginger
• 2 heaping Tablespoons minced yellow onion
• Water as needed

Blend the coconut, chili or chili powder, ginger, and onions in the blender. Be sure to add enough water to keep the blender going. The mixture should be fairly thick but not paste like.

To Crack Mustard Seeds

• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard seed
• 1 heaping Tablespoon minced yellow onion
• 2 sprigs curry leaves

Heat the coconut oil in a small pan. When the oil heats up, add mustard seeds, cover pan, and heat until they crack. Add the onions and sauté them until they become brown. Add the curry leaves and coconut chutney mixture, while consistency stirring. Add water if the mixture is too thick. Keep stirring until the mixture stops steaming; be sure not to boil it. Serve at room temperature with dosa.

Total calories per serving: 212	Fat: 21 grams
Carbohydrates: 8 grams	Protein: 2 grams
Sodium: 10 milligrams	Fiber: 4 grams

Note: Dosa is not included in this analysis.

Cherupayar Ularthiyathu (Kerala Mung Bean Stir-Fry)

(Serves 5)

Serve this dish at room temperature with parboiled rice.

Mung Beans

• 1 cup mung beans
• 2 cups water

Cook the mung beans in boiling water for approximately 30 minutes or until they become soft. Strain the water from the cooked beans.

Oil Mixture

• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 small yellow onion, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoon crushed black peppercorn
• 2 sprigs curry leaves
• Salt to taste

Heat the coconut oil in a small pan and sauté the onions until they shrink slightly in size. Be sure not to overcook the onions to the point where they brown. Add the black peppercorn to the onion mixture, sauté them for a few seconds, and add curry leaves. Put the mung beans into the pan and stir into mixture. Add salt to taste and allow stir-fry to cool before serving.

Total calories per serving: 196	Fat: 6 grams
Carbohydrates: 27 grams	Protein: 10 grams
Sodium: 7 milligrams	Fiber: 7 grams