Lifestyle / Recipe: Avial, A Veggie Medley

Recipe: Avial, A Veggie Medley

Lifestyle Mar 14, 2015

by Manju Nair

Avial — A Veggie Medley Cooked In Seasoned Coconut Paste and A Keralite Delight!

Avial (pronounced avi-yal) is a very popular Keralite vegetarian dish. Avial, in Kerala's native language, Malayalam, means "mixture" and avial is a mixture of veggies cooked in a seasoned and slightly tangy coconut paste. It's definitely a must-try!

You'll see avial on any Kerala sadhya menu, and it's a staple dish cooked in most households. The dish is very healthy due to the abundance of veggies, and it's very quick to prepare. The only significant time you need for this dish is to prep the veggies.

The traditional way to prepare veggies for avial is to cut them into 2-inch julienned strips. Watching my mom be very particular about the way her veggies are cut for avial over the years has rubbed off on me. The tradition is also to coarsely grind the coconut mixture while adding some water to help make a smooth paste. The textures from the ground and julienned ingredients are different, but together, they taste great!

At the colourful onset of spring, opt for this colourful veggie dish when it comes to deciding what to feed your family next. Note that avial is best served with rice.

You'll Need

For the base:
5 cups vegetables, julienned into 2-inch pieces (any medley of veggies — like carrots, snake gourd, raw banana, drumsticks, pumpkin, cucumber, french beans, and yam)
1 medium red onion , sliced
1 medium tomato, sliced
½ a raw green mango, julienned into 2-inch pieces
2–3 green chillies, slit lengthwise
8–10 curry leaves
1 tsp red chilli powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
½ cup water
salt to taste

To grind:
1½ cups fresh grated coconut
3–4 shallots
2 green chillies
1 tsp cumin seeds
3–4 curry leaves
water, enough to grind to a paste

To garnish:
2 tablespoons coconut oil

Directions

1. In a large pot or pan, add all the chopped veggies, raw mango, tomato, onions, green chillies, curry leaves, red chilli powder and turmeric powder with a little water and salt to taste. Cover and cook until the veggies are tender.
2. Grind together fresh-grated coconut, shallots, green chillies, and cumin seeds with enough water to form a paste. Add this paste to the veggie medley and cook on low heat for 2–3 minutes.
3. Garnish on top with coconut oil and serve hot with rice.

Notes

1. Raw mango is added to get a slight tangy flavour. You can substitute 2 tablespoons tamarind pulp or ½ cup sour yogurt. If using yogurt, add it at the end after turning off the heat or else it'll curdle.
2. The veggies should ideally be cooked well and have an al-dente consistency, retaining their julienned shape.
3. Ideally, you should add the tomato at the end.

^{_{Photos Courtesy Of: Manju Nair}}

Manju Nair

Author

Manju Nair is a Quality Analyst by profession but a home chef and cake designer by heart. A true South-Indian, born and raised in Dubai, her interest in all kinds of cuisine developed at an early age. Her passion is baking and designing theme cakes. She shares her culinary and cake adventures in her...

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