Have you ever asked a non Malayali, what’s the first thing that comes to their mind when they think about Kerala cooking? I’m sure the majority of answers leads to one ingredient – coconut! If you ask me, Kerala cooking will kinda lose it’s identity, if you take away coconut from us. Our love for coconut know no bounds. Don't you think so?
Though we tend to use coconut on a regular basis, it wasn't considered very healthy until a few years ago. Now, you see more and more people using coconut and advocating to use it more. I for one, love coconut in any form.
One of the staple dishes of Kerala cooking is Thoran (Stir Fry With Coconut). I guess whenever we are introduced to a new vegetable, the first thing that we will make is a Thoran ;)
Having said that, I never associated Potato with thoran. Whenever I cooked Potato, I ended up making Potato Roast. Adding coconut never even occurred to me. It reminds me, sometimes our minds are set in such a way that we cannot even think about doing certain things differently. Does it happen to you too?
Anyways, when I came across this recipe, I found it interesting. It’s a very simple recipe but quite different from what I usually make. It’s so easy that even your kids can try making it ;)
Hope you enjoy this simple and tasty potato dish.
Here is the recipe…
Heat oil in a wide pan. Add the ingredients for tempering in the given order (from mustard seeds – curry leaves)…
When mustard seeds crackle, add turmeric powder, chilli powder & salt. Fry for a min…
Add cooked potatoes. Gently stir and make sure the potatoes are coated well with the spices. Cook for 2-3 mins…
Add grated coconut and mix till it's combined. Drizzle some oil…
Recipe adapted from “Simply South” by Chandra Padmanabhan
Ingredients
- 2 big Potatoes (500 gms approx, cut into small-medium size cubes)
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1 tsp Chilli powder
- Salt
- 4 tbsp Grated Coconut
For tempering
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
- 1 tsp Cumin / Jeera
- 1 tsp Urad dal / Husked Black Gram
- 1 tsp Chana dal / Husked Bengal Gram
- 1/2 tsp Asafoetida powder / kayam / hing
- 1-2 Dried red chilli
- Curry leaves
- Salt
- Oil ( I used coconut oil)
Instructions
- Boil potatoes till it becomes tender, but not mushy (refer notes). Drain and keep aside.
- Heat oil in a wise pan. Add the ingredients for tempering in the given order (from mustard seeds - curry leaves).
- When mustard seeds crackle, add turmeric powder, chilli powder & salt. Fry for a min. Add cooked potatoes. Gently stir and make sure the potatoes are coated well with the spices. Cook for 2-3 mins.
- Add grated coconut and mix till it's combined. Drizzle some oil.
- Serve hot with rice.
Notes
If you want, you can use ghee instead of oil to cook this dish.
