A Kerala specialty mixed vegetable side dish…
“Avial” in Malayalam means “mixture”. Exactly, that’s what avial is all about, you get to enjoy a variety of veggies in one dish. This is a popular vegetarian dish in Kerala and is also one of the prominent side dishes in Sadya. I’ve already posted the recipe for making avial in my Sadya blog post, for making that I’ve added yogurt and tamarind to impart the sourness.
However, in this recipe, I’ve added raw mango instead of yogurt and tamarind. Mixed veggies along with raw mango and coconut, a very simple, humble yet delicious vegetarian side dish to enjoy with rice.
Avial with Raw Mango
Ingredients:
- Carrot, cut into thin 3-inch wedges- 2, large
- Cucumber, deseeded and cut into thin 3-inch wedges-1
- Eggplant, diced- 1, small
- Ash gourd, cut into thin wedges- Half of 1 ash gourd
- Raw plantain, cut into thin 3-inch wedges- 1
- Drumstick, 3 inch long- 10 pieces
- Green chilies halved vertically- 2
- Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp
- Curry leaves- 1 sprig
- Water- 1/2 cup
- Raw mango, diced- 1/2 of the mango (or depending on the sourness of the mango)
To Grind:
- Coconut grated- 1 cup
- Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
- Small onions, chopped- 6
- Curry leaves- 1 sprig
Other Ingredients:
- Coconut oil- 2 tbsp
Instruction
- In a deep saucepan or clay pan, cook all the above-mentioned veggies except raw mango along with green chilies, turmeric powder, and curry leaves in 1/2 cup water, until the veggies just turn slightly soft. Don’t overcook the veggies.
- Now, add the diced raw mango and cook for a few minutes.
- Grind the above-mentioned ingredients ‘to grind’ to a coarse mixture and keep it aside.
- After the veggies have turned soft but not overly cooked, add the ground coconut mixture and mix well, cook for a few minutes till the raw smell of the coconut goes away.
- Drizzle coconut oil over the avial and close the saucepan with a lid. Keep it aside for sometime.
- The raw mango I used was very sour, so half of the raw mango was enough. If the mango you are using is not that sour, you have to add more mango or add little tamarind juice towards the end.
- This dish is not too sour, it’s only mildly sour, so don’t end up adding too much raw mango or tamarind.
- Carrot, cut into thin 3-inch wedges- 2, large
- Cucumber, deseeded and cut into thin 3-inch wedges-1
- Eggplant, diced- 1, small
- Ash gourd, cut into thin wedges- Half of 1 ash gourd
- Raw plantain, cut into thin 3-inch wedges- 1
- Drumstick, 3-inch long- 10 pieces
- Green chilies, halved vertically- 2
- Turmeric powder- ½ tsp
- Curry leaves- 1 sprig
- Water- ½ cup
- Raw mango, diced- ½ of the mango (or depending on the sourness of the mango)
- Coconut grated- 1 cup
- Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
- Small onions, chopped- 6
- Curry leaves- 1 sprig
- Coconut oil- 2 tbsp
- In a wide saucepan or clay pan, cook all the above-mentioned veggies except raw mango along with green chilies, turmeric powder and curry leaves in ½ cup water, until the veggies just turn soft. Don't overcook the veggies.
- Now, add the diced raw mango and cook for a few minutes.
- Grind the above-mentioned ingredients ‘to grind’ to a coarse mixture and keep aside.
- After the veggies have turned soft but not overly cooked, add the ground coconut mixture and mix well, cook for a few minutes till the raw smell of the coconut goes away.
- Drizzle the coconut oil over the avial.
- Close the saucepan with the lid, and keep it aside for some time.
- Enjoy with rice.
This dish is not too sour, it's only mildly sour, so don't end up adding too much raw mango or tamarind.