Mathenga Vanpayar Erissery

Just done with Onam shopping. The crowd at Lulu, here in Dubai was beyond compare. Brands - Nirapara, Eastern, Brahmins, Double Horse setting up their own counters with special Onam discounts and goodies. Phew!! That was one hell of a time wading through alleys with the pushcart avoiding getting hit and making sure you don't hit anyone. I guess that is the joy of this festival.

Onam is that festival that brings together malayalees irrespective of religion. Onakkodi, Pookalam, Payasam, Sadya and all malayalees together whether in India or outside - that is Onam.

Today's post is my mother - in - laws recipe. A dish that I really love - Erissery made with mathenga and vanpayar.

Here is the recipe -

Ingredients

Onion - 1 small sliced
Garlic - 2 pods sliced lengthwise
Green Chilly - 2-3
Coconut - 1 cup grated
Jeera/ Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Mathenga/ Pumpkin - 1/4 kg diced
Vanpayar - a handful
salt to taste

For tempering

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Shallots - 2 sliced
Grated coconut - 2 tsp
Red chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
Curry Leaf - 1 sprig

Method

Pressure cook vanpayar with a little salt and keep it aside.

Toss in mathenga, onion, garlic and green chilly into a heavy bottomed pan. Add sufficient amount of water and bring it to boil on high flame. Reduce the flame and let it simmer till the mathenga is cooked. Mash this with a spoon to form a paste.

Wet grind the grated coconut, cumin seeds and turmeric powder and add this to the mashed gravy. Pour in water if necessary and let it cook for another 10 minutes.

Add vanpayar and season it with sufficient salt.

In a skillet heat coconut oil - toss in the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Add shallots and grated coconut and fry till the color changes to brown. Add the chilly powder and curry leaves and pour over the erissery.

Serve over rice with a dash of ghee for Onam.

Comments

Traversing the Deutschland-Frankfurt on foot

No better way to explore a new place than on foot - soaking in the ethereal rays of the sun and the gentle breeze setting the tone for the late afternoon, we set out to explore the pristine town of Frankfurt along River Main. Half a day in Frankfurt was all we had, nevertheless, we managed to comfortably traverse the city and all we wanted to see and do in 6 hours. Given that we visited Frankfurt in the end of April, the weather ranged from 6 to 20 degree, warm clothing is always recommended. Setting out from the B&B Hotel in Frankfurt, we headed in the direction of the river. A city along the banks of a river, gives the place a special charm, atleast that what I think! Every travel brings about new revelations. I come from a place where there is no dearth for sunlight and hence, probably do not value it enough and here I was at a place where the glorious sun presents itself in its full glory once a while. The green pastures along the banks of the river had people sleeping shirtles...

Thukpa - Noodle Soup

I had never heard of this dish until a year before, when I had it for the first time from a small Tibetan restaurant in Viveknagar, Bangalore and more recently heard of it on Roti, Rasta aur India's Ladakh leg of the show. My husband spoke highly of Thukpa. This is what he had to say - light yet a wholesome meal, wonderful for cold and fever. I can't agree better. It is definitely light but quite filling and what more -it is the best and delicious way to consume the healthy vegetables which you might normally loathe. For all the mothers, it may be a really good way to get your kids to eat some vegetables. My husband swears on the health benefits of the soup. Apparently, he used to have thukpa when he was down with cold and it gave him a lot of relief as the soup found its way down the throat through the food pipe clearing the throat. I have always brought packets of Knor or Maggie soup but never attempted to make one. That is when I thought about beginning my ...

Rava Uthappam

Quite a few friends have requested for some vegetarian recipes to be posted in my blog else they say they would " unlike" the page on facebook :) I have been trying to recollect the vegan recipe that I love the most and that is when Rava Uthappam clicked! A quick uthappam recipe that does not require the batter to stand over night. So here goes the history. This recipe dates to those days when I had just moved out of college into corporate life. A few of us classmates moved in together after college beginning to bask in the glory of the newly found financial independence. After a hectic day at work, we would gather in the kitchen to cook ourselves a decent dinner. All we had was three or four utensils, an over packed small refrigerator shared by nine maybe ten of us, a double burner stove(one burner which hardly worked) and our inadequate cooking skills. We were always on the lookout for simple and quick recipes. None of us had the time or the energy for elabo...

Wanderberry Tales

Search This Blog