Puttu<\/a>+Kadala Curry= Irresistible!<\/p>\nThere are certain foods in Kerala that have unbeatable taste. For instance: fish curries, spicy mutton chops, kadala curry or Chickpeas curry, Kappa…well, I do have a long list. For Keralites, puttu (steamed rice balls) tastes best when it’s served along with kadala curry and this has been one of the famous breakfast dishes. I’m not a huge fan of puttu, but when it’s served with kadala curry I can hardly resist it.<\/p>\n
In my attempt to try different cuisines in my kitchen, I don’t often make the same kinds of Kerala food over and over. However, after a few days or weeks of trying different cuisines, I will be hit by the intense craving for the food that I had while growing up. Without a doubt, Kerala food is my comfort food and when I cook my mom’s or grandmom’s speciality dishes I feel an eternal joy. Lately, I had been getting constant cravings for Puttu and Kadala curry. When I get the craving I have only one choice, succumb to it!<\/p>\n
Last night, I made kadala curry or chickpeas curry in a different way. Usually, I just cook the chickpeas and onions combined with all the spice powders in a pressure cooker and would finish it off with coconut milk. But this time, I added roasted coconut paste to the chickpeas and cooked it. The addition of roasted coconut paste made this chickpea curry very flavorful and aromatic. I highly prefer curries made with roasted coconut, especially fish curries. I also made puttu using red rice flour which I had bought from the Indian store.<\/p>\n
The taste of this curry will linger in your mouth for a long time…<\/p>\n
Chickpeas Curry or Kadala Curry<\/strong><\/p>\nIngredients<\/strong><\/p>\nFor roasting coconut<\/strong><\/p>\n\nCoconut Oil- 2 tbsp<\/li>\n Mustard seeds- 1 tsp<\/li>\n Dry red chili, whole- 3<\/li>\n Coriander powder- 1 tbsp<\/li>\n Coconut, grated- 1 1\/2 cups<\/li>\n Curry leaves- 1 sprig (optional)<\/li>\n Water- 3\/4 cup<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nFor making curry<\/strong><\/p>\n\nCoconut oil- 1 tbsp<\/li>\n Onion, chopped- 2<\/li>\n Potatoes, diced- 3 medium<\/li>\n Chickpeas or Kadala, white or brown, cooked canned- 2 cups<\/li>\n Chili powder- 1 tsp, (I used Kashmiri red chili powder)<\/li>\n Salt- 1 1\/2 tsp<\/li>\n Water- 1 1\/2 cups<\/li>\n Cilantro, chopped- 2 tbsp<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nInstruction<\/strong><\/p>\nRoasting coconut<\/strong><\/p>\n\nPlace a non-stick pan over medium heat, add oil, let the oil turn hot.<\/li>\n Add mustard seeds and let splutter.<\/li>\n Add dried red chilies.<\/li>\n Add coconut, curry leaves if using, and roast till the coconut turns golden brown in color. Add coriander powder, combine well.<\/li>\n After the coconut has roasted well, remove the pan from the heat. Let cool down.<\/li>\n Transfer to a blender jar along with water and grind to a smooth consistency, keep it aside.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\nMaking the curry<\/strong><\/p>\n\nI’ve used cooked canned chickpeas (rinse the chickpeas before cooking).<\/li>\n If you are using uncooked chickpeas, soak them in water for 4 hours and pressure cook till they turn soft.<\/li>\n I’ve used a pressure cooker to cook the curry. If you don’t have one, use a large non-stick pan.<\/li>\n Place the pressure cooker over medium heat, add coconut oil.<\/li>\n Add chopped onions, season with 1 tsp salt, saute for a few minutes.<\/li>\n Add potatoes, chickpeas, and ground coconut paste.<\/li>\n Add Kashmiri chili powder, combine well. Kashmiri red chili powder gives a vibrant red color to the curry and is mild. For more heat add regular chili powder.<\/li>\n Add water to thin down the gravy.<\/li>\n Add salt and close the pressure cooker.<\/li>\n Cook for 10 to 15 minutes.<\/li>\n Remove the pressure cooker from the heat.<\/li>\n After the pressure has subsided, open the cooker and add cilantro. Taste and add more salt or chili powder if needed.<\/li>\n Serve hot with puttu, chapati<\/a>, appam<\/a> etc<\/li>\nHere is the recipe for making puttu<\/a>, you could use red rice flour or white rice flour.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\nTips:<\/strong><\/p>\n\nYou could skip the potatoes.<\/li>\n Since I’ve added cooked chickpeas, I didn’t cook it in the pressure cooker for too long, just wanted the potatoes to turn soft.<\/li>\n If cooking in a saucepan, after combining all the ingredients cover the pan with its lid and cook till potatoes & chickpeas turn soft.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n <\/p>\n
\n
\t
\n
Chickpeas in Roasted Coconut Gravy or Kadala Curry – Kerala Style<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Recipe Type<\/span>: Main<\/span><\/div>\nCuisine:
Indian<\/span><\/div>\nAuthor:
Thasneen<\/span><\/div>\n\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.thasneen.com\/cooking\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/chick-peas-curry.jpg\" "\\"Chick")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.thasneen.com\/cooking\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/chick-peas-in-roasted-coconut-gravy.jpg\" "\\"Chick")
<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.thasneen.com\/cooking\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/roasting-coconut.jpg\" "\\"roasting")
<\/li>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.thasneen.com\/cooking\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/making-chick-pea-curry.jpg\" "\\"making")
<\/li>\n