Kerala Style Red Cowpea and Pumpkin Curry (Mathanga Erissery)

This lock down has triggered all of the emotions we ever had, we laugh, we panic, we cry, we bounce back. As we juggle through these emotions & deal with the constant mind chatter, we must understand that all that a human mind needs is certainty & a feeling of well being which is no where around us now.

Just tell yourself that this need for certainty is not necessary now. It is only a thought or feeling. Don’t believe everything your mind tells you. Thoughts are not statements of facts. They are just thoughts.”. Also practise gratitude and happiness in everything that you do, it will have a ripple effect on the rest of the family.

One of my favourite quotes has been "What does not kill you makes you stronger". I am sure mankind has seen many such unprecedented situations and we are built to evolve and conquer. 

This recipe is a traditional kerala recipe, Kerala is the southernmost state in India & this dish is usually prepared during festivals. One of my all time favourite vegetarian dish, the merger between the sweetness of the pumpkin, creaminess of cowpea & the fragrance of coconut takes your taste buds to a different level.  I have had different versions of this curry, my favourite used to be the one prepared by my childhood friend's mother. She made the bestest version of this Erissery, I could eat bowls of it for all 3 meals & never get bored.

Whenever my mother made this dish, she would cook the cowpea with just salt & give me a bowlful with Jaggery & coconut. This tradition is not lost :D

As I relive those amazing childhood memories, here is the recipe(my version) 

Ingredients

Red Cowpea (Karamani) - 1 cup (Soaked overnight)

Pumpkin - 2 cups (Cubed)

Raw Banana (medium size) - 1 (Peeled, Cubed) Optional

Salt - 1 teaspoon

Turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon

Chilli powder - 1 teaspoon

Grind

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Shallots - 4

Garlic pods - 2

Green chilli - 4

Cumin - 1 teaspoon

Seasoning

Mustard seeds 1 teaspoon

Curry leaves 2 spring

Dry red chilli 3 

Grated coconut 1/2 cup

Coconut oil / Any cooking oil

Cooking Method

Cook the soaked red cowpea, salt, turmeric & chilli powder in a pressure cooker, Open the cooker after the first whistle and add the pumpkin/banana & cook for 1 more whistle. Alternatively if your cooking on a stove top, you can cook the cowpea & the vegetables separately and add them together once done.

Grind together, coconut, shallots, garlic pods, chilli & cumin. Add the ground coconut mix to the cowpea/vegetable, Let it boil. Switch off the stove.

Heat 2 tsp oil in another thick bottomed pan. Splutter mustard seeds. Add dried red chilli and curry leaves. Once sauteed, add grated coconut. Fry the coconut until brown. Make sure you don't burn the coconut.

Add fried coconut mix to the cowpea gravy. Mix it well. Serve with rice / chapati 

Vazhapoo Vadai (Banana Blossom Fritters)

Life has almost come to a standstill after the lockdown announced by the governments. 

We slept in one world and woke up into another. 

We all go back to sleep each day hoping we wake up into a day where we can walk into a grocery store and pick that packet of pulses without wearing a mask & a glove. Eat from that favourite Cafe and walk that park just one more time. 

Each evening as I look back at those beautiful days, I try to create something special for our evening tea time, just a balm for our aching hearts & sinking spirits.

As we traverse through these painful days, may we never forget to preen our feathers, flex our muscles & stretch our wings for when we have to fly again, Let's make it the best flight ever.

More Power to all of you !

Let's get to the dish of the day. As South Indians we consider it as a sin to waste any part of the plantain tree, from ripe plantains to its stem we make the best use of every part of the tree :) This vada (Fritter) is made everytime we get a harvest from our plantain tree and its truly worth the pain it takes to make the VADAI. These Vadai's are crispy, spicy and a perfect snack with your evening tea.

This is how a Vazhapoo (banana blossom) looks like. The pinkish part of it is not edible and hence its to be discarded. Inside the pink covering is the flowers which should have turned into lovely banana's, these flowers are the edible part.

This is how the flower looks like.

Take each flower remove the hard stamen and the little plastic like thing below it and discard it.

                           The remaining part of the flower has to be washed and finely chopped.

As you keep peeling the flowers layer by layer you will find a white portion, this part is difficult to peel and can be chopped as it is.

Ingredients

Vazha Poo (Banana Blossom) - 1 (Cleaned and chopped)

Onion - 1 (Finely Chopped)

Chana Dal - 2 cup (Soak for 3hrs)

Green chilli - 3+1 (3 finely chopped)

Ginger - 2" (Finely Chopped)

Garlic - 6 pods (Big, Finely Chopped)

Curry Leaves - 10 (Finely Chopped)

Coriander Leaves - Small bunch (Finely, Chopped)

Onions - 3 (Finely chopped)

Jeera Powder - 1tsp

Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

Salt

Cooking Method

Step 1

Finely Chop : Vazha Poo, Onion, Green chilli, Ginger, Garlic, Curry Leaves, Coriander Leaves and Onions.

Step 2

Grind 11/2 cup chana dal with 1 green chilli, jeera powder and asafoetida in to coarse paste. (Reserve 1/2 cup chana dal seperately)

Step 3

In a large mixing bowl, Add all the finely chopped ingredients along with the ground chana dal and 1/2 cup whole dal, Mix it well along with salt.

Set it aside for 20 minutes.

Heat oil in a deep thick bottom vessel, make small vadai's from the dough and deep fry till golden brown.

Serve it hot with a hot cup of tea.

Cooking Time : 20 minutes (excluding marination time)

Serves : Makes around 30 vada's (Depending on the size)