Tag Archives: Coconut

Cabbage Thoren

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Cabbage ThorenCabbage “thoran” is a dish my mom made often. It is a Kerala specialty and the main ingredients are shredded cabbage and grated coconut. Thoran means dry vegetable dish, in that it does not have a gravy. I am sharing with you a basic thoran recipe. You can switch the star ingredient, cabbage, for French green beans, carrots, or spinach.

My mom was my favorite chef and I loved the food she made for my family. During dinner, she would often tout the health benefits of the vegetables she cooked. When we had cabbage thoran, her lecture would go something like this: “Did you know that the cheap, humble looking cabbage can do wonders for our bodies? It has more vitamin C than oranges. It helps to repair the wear and tear of our bodies and also treats ulcers and certain cancers, while strengthening our immune system.” I am sure my brothers and sister can hear my mom’s voice right now. I catch myself doing the same thing at my table with my children!

My daughter-in-law, Dharti, likes this dish so I find myself buying cabbage more often than I used to. Shredding cabbage is easy to do with a mandoline. In India we used a small stone mortar and pestle to crush the ingredients required for this recipe, but you can use a blender or food processor to do the same job.

Cabbage Thoren
1 small cabbage, finely shredded (about 6-8 cups loosely packed)
1 teaspoons red chilli seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 cloves garlic, grated
2 tablespoons chopped shallots
1 cup grated fresh coconut (or grated frozen coconut)
1½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
2 tablespoons coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
½ teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon black gram dal
6 tablespoons sliced shallots
1 sprig curry leaves
2 green chillies (optional)

Coarsely grind the chilli seeds, cumin seeds, finely grated garlic and 2 tablespoons sliced shallots in a food processor. Two or three pulses should do. Add coconut and turmeric and pulse again so that all the ingredients are coarsely ground.

Wash the shredded cabbage, drain well and put it in a saucepan over medium high heat. Make a well in the center of the cabbage and add the ground ingredients. Cover the ground ingredients it with a little cabbage and put the lid on the pan. Cook for about six minutes. Stir well and if there is water, remove the lid and let the water evaporate. Remove from heat.

Heat oil in a small pan over medium high heat. Add mustard seeds and when they splutter, add the black gram dal and let them brown lightly. Then add the curry leaves and chopped shallots. When the shallots turn light brown pour the seasoning is ready. Pour it over the cooked cabbage. Stir well, garnish with fresh green chillies and serve.

Coconut Ice

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Coconut IceI wonder how many of my Indian readers remember buying coconut sweets from little shops in India. They were kept in large glass jars – looking very tempting. During my high school days, my friends and I would use spare change from our allowances to buy a couple to share.

For those who have never tried these, I highly recommend them. They are similar in texture to coconut macaroons with a dash of exotic flavor. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did all those years ago.

Coconut Ice
1½ cups sugar
½ cup water
½ cup cream
2 cups unsweetened desiccated coconut
1 tablespoon ground cashew nut
1 teaspoon ghee
1 drop of red food color

Using parchment paper, line an 8×8 inch square baking pan.

Add sugar and water to a large heavy bottomed saucepan and cook over medium heat until the mixture reaches 235 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Or until the sugar and water mixture reaches one thread consistency. Being very careful, add the cream, desiccated coconut, ground cashew nut, ghee, red food color, and mix well. The color of the coconut ice should be light pink so add only a drop of red food coloring.

Immediately spread the mixture into the parchment lined pan. Press firmly and allow it to cool completely. Cut the coconut ice into squares or diamond shapes.

Meen Pattichathu (Kerala Style Tilapia with Coconut)

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MeenThis is a typical Kerala delicacy, but done my way. Meen Pattichathu is a coconut based, tangy, fish dish that is cooked in a clay pot. It does not have gravy and the pieces of fish are wrapped with crushed grated coconut, chillies, ginger, garlic, curry leaves, and cilantro. If I was back home in India, I would use a grinding stone to crush all the ingredients, but I am using a food processor to do the same. Crushing the ingredients in the food processor infuses the flavor of the chillies, and ginger into the grated coconut. So about five or six short pulses in the food processor will do the job.

I know a lot of readers will want to know about the Malabar tamarind (puli). The botanical name for this ingredient is Garcinia Cambogia. If I am wrong, I will definitely hear from my brother, the botany expert in the family! If you cannot find this ingredient, you can substitute it by using tamarind. It will, however, compromise the flavor of the dish. Malabar tamarind is used to add sourness to the Meen Pattichathu, and then it is discarded before serving the dish. In the picture, you will see Malabar tamarind.

Once in two years, I visit my family in India. My sister-in-law, Lissie Ammama, faithfully gives me a stash of puli to bring back with me to the U.S. Thanks, Lissie Ammama, for all the years you’ve shared puli with me. Needless to say, I think of you when I make Meen Pattichathu.

I hope you will try this dish, and send me your comments.

Meen Pattichathu

2 lbs Tilapia, cut into one inch pieces
3 cups grated coconut, fresh or frozen (12 oz)
5 dry red chillies, broken in halves
2 tablespoons finely diced ginger
10 green chillies, slit in halves (adjust the # of chillies to your taste)
2 tablespoons finely diced garlic
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 sprigs of curry leaves
3 pieces Malabar tamarind (kudum puli in Malayalam), washed and soaked in warm water
¼ cup finely chopped shallots
Salt to taste
¼ cup coconut oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
¼ cup finely chopped coriander

Add fresh coconut, dry chillies, ginger and green chillies into a blender or food processor and crush. Five or six pulses in a food processor will crush the ingredients. Mix the crushed ingredients, garlic, turmeric, one sprig of curry leaves, Malabar tamarind, which is torn into small segments, half the shallots, fish, two tablespoons oil and salt. Add water so it comes up to the level of the mixture in the pan. Cook on medium-high heat for ten minutes and then turn the heat to low. Cook until the water in the pan evaporates, tilting the pan once in a while to make sure that the fish and coconut are not sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Heat two tablespoons of coconut oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Add mustard seeds and when they sputter add the remaining shallots. When the shallots turn light brown add the sprig of curry leaves, and cilantro. Remove from heat and pour over the Meen Pattichathu. Cover and let stand for at least 30 minutes before serving. This dish tastes best the next day when the tartness from the kudum puli permeates the fish.

Vegetable Biriyani

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This is a simple, flavorful rice dish that I learned to make when I lived with my family in Manipal, India. I tasted it for the first time in Dr. Meera Baliga’s home. She shared her recipe with me, and I started making it for my family for weekend lunches. It pairs well with raita – a salad made with yogurt, tomato, cucumber, and onion.

Many times when I cooked this dish in Manipal, students from the nearby university would drop by and linger way past lunch time, until we were all so hungry, that I would have to invite them to join us for lunch! I soon learned that I would need to make a huge batch, because every time I cooked it, the heavenly smell wafted all the way down the street and into the dorms! So, this recipe is for those young, talented students that made me feel like I was the best cook on earth! See, what you turned me into – a blogger and foodie for life! I love each one of you and think of you often.

For the masala mix

2 teaspoons coconut oil
5 cardamoms
5 cloves
2 1-inch piece of cinnamon
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
½ cup chopped onion
½ cup grated coconut
½ cup chopped cilantro

Heat coconut oil in a small pan over medium-high heat. Add the cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon. Fry for a minute, remove from heat, and cool. Add the fried ingredients, onion, coconut and cilantro to a blender, and purée.

For the rice

½ cup coconut oil
½ cup cubed potatoes
½ cup cubed carrots
6 French beans, cut into diagonal pieces
½ cup fresh green peas
½ cup chopped tomatoes
3 finely chopped green chillies
½ cup grated coconut
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups Basmathi rice, washed and drained
4 cups water
Salt to taste

Heat coconut oil in a large pan. Add the masala mix and fry for five minutes. Add the vegetables, tomatoes, chillies, grated coconut, turmeric, rice, and salt, and fry for another five minutes. Add water, and bring to boil. Once it boils, turn heat as low as possible. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. Fluff up rice, and vegetables gently with a fork, and serve piping hot.

Amma’s Chicken Curry

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Amma’s chicken curry calls for a lot of ingredients, but this recipe never fails to impress. Don’t let the long list of ingredients frighten you. The process is not difficult once you get all the ingredients together. I sometimes add a couple of quartered potatoes to this chicken curry. The fennel, mace petals and star anise gives this dish a very distinctive South Indian flare.

My brothers and sister. I’m on the tricycle!

 

This dish brings back a lot of childhood memories that I cherish. It reminds me of sitting around the dining table with my parents, brothers and sister, and celebrating birthdays, and other special occasions. I hope it will help build some memories for you too!

 

 

3 lbs chicken, remove skin and cut into large pieces
10 dry red chillies
1 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 1-inch piece cinnamon
4 cloves
4 green cardamom
2 teaspoons whole black pepper
½ of one star anise
2 mace petals
1 bay leaf
½ cup grated coconut
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
3 chopped green chillies
¼ cup plus 1 teaspoon oil
1 teaspoon mustards seeds
1 sprig curry leaf
2 cups finely chopped red onion
Coarse salt, to taste
1 cup finely chopped tomato
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

Heat one teaspoon oil in a heavy bottomed pan over medium heat and roast the dry red chillies, poppy seeds, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cinnamon, cloves, green cardamom, whole black pepper, star anise, mace, bay leaf, and grated coconut until it smells fragrant and the coconut turns light brown. Add chopped ginger, garlic, chillies and remove from heat. Cool completely and then grind in a blender, with about half a cup of water, to a smooth paste.

Heat ¼ cup oil in a heavy bottomed dish and add the mustard seeds. When they sputter add the curry leaves, onion and salt. Fry until the onion turns golden. Add the ground paste, tomatoes, and turmeric and sauté for two minutes. Add chicken and mix well so the chicken pieces are well coated with the onion and spice mix. Add two cups of water, cover and cook on medium-high heat until the chicken is done. Add lemon juice and garnish with coriander leaves.

Coconut Rice

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Coconut rice is a dish that’s very easy to make these days. This is a recipe I’ve shared with a number of my friends who wanted an easy but exotic rice recipe from Indian. My colleague and friend, Elizabeth Oloo, likes this recipe and makes better coconut rice than I do!

Many years ago, when I made coconut rice in India, just extracting the coconut milk was a cumbersome task. I had to first get a fresh coconut, grate it, extract the milk, strain it, and then start the process of making coconut rice. I only made it on special occasions – when I had plenty of time to spend in the kitchen. Now-a-days you can get coconut milk in a can. Oh, the joy of modern cooking!

Coconut Rice

2 cups Basmati rice
2 tablespoons ghee or vegetable oil
1 1-inch piece of cinnamon
2 green cardamoms, bruised
¼ cup diced onions
½ teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons salt
1 can coconut milk
2 cups of water
2 tablespoons fried cashew nuts

In a heavy bottomed pan add ghee. When it shimmers add the cinnamon, cardamoms, and diced onions. Sauté for a minute and when onions are transparent add the washed and drained basmati rice, turmeric and salt. Fry for two minutes. Add the coconut milk and two cups of water.

Bring the rice to a boil then turn heat to low, cover the dish and let it cook for 15 minutes. Do not open the dish or stir during the 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and keep the rice covered until you are ready to serve. Fluff rice gently with a fork. Garnish with fried cashew nuts and serve.

Fresh Coconut-Carrot Cake

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My ancestors are natives of Kerala, a state in India often called, “God’s own country”. Kerala is located on the Malabar Coast of south-west India. Many words come to mind when I think about Kerala – beaches, forests, waterfalls, backwaters, houseboats, paddy fields, fish, coconuts, pineapples, cashew nuts, jackfruit, mangoes, bananas, festivals, grandparents, and Amma and Papa. Tucked away in my heart are numerous delightful memories of family vacations in Kerala. My parents grew up in Kerala and later moved further north to Pune, where I was born.

Today, I am sharing with you a recipe for fresh coconut-carrot cake, as an ode to Kerala. The carrots help to keep the cake moist. Other ingredients include pineapple, walnuts, cinnamon, and cream cheese. I have not tasted a better coconut-carrot cake, if I do say so myself. The combination of flavors and textures is absolutely scrumptious!

For the Fresh Coconut-carrot Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
4 eggs
¾ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup buttermilk
1 ¾ cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 ½ cups freshly grated coconut
1 cup finely chopped canned pineapple, drained
1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
2 cups grated carrot

Grease and flour a 13”x 9” baking pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat eggs. Add oil, buttermilk, sugar, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Add flour mixture, coconut, pineapple, walnuts and carrot. Mix on low speed for one minute. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 55-60 minutes until cake tester comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes and then invert the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting

¼ lb butter (1 stick), room temperature
1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, room temperature
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

In a large bowl of an electric mixer add butter, cream cheese, and beat until fluffy. Add confectioners’ sugar, one cup at a time, and mix on low speed until smooth. Stir in vanilla. Frost cake and decorate with walnuts. Refrigerate until the frosting sets.