Kadalai curry

Kadalai   (Channa ) is a  good source of protein so its a good food to start your day. Kadai curry along with puttu is a kerala's famous dish. All credits to my neighbor who use to share this dish with us which inspired me to learn this well. Puttu being a light food just with salt and no other taste this spicy side dish will complement it very well, it also goes well with soft idly's too. My son doesn't like sweet food for main course. So, we always do puttu with koosmalli.

(https://akilasdeliciousdelicacies.blogspot.com/2020/05/koosmali.html) 

Nowadays, this combination with kadalai curry is liked by every one at home.  Hope you like this too. Here goes the recipe.

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Serves - 4

Ingredients:

Kadalai /  black channa - 1

Onion 1 big

Tomato - 1 big

Green chili - 1

red chili - 1

Curry leaves- 1 sprig

Ginger garlic paste -  tbsp

Red chili powder- 1 tbsp

Garam masala powder - 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Oil - 3 tbsp

Coriander leaves - for garnish

To grind:

Pepper - 1 table spoon

Jeera - 1 table spoon

Sauf - 1 table spoon

Coriander seeds- 1 table spoon

Cinnamon - 1 inch piece

Cloves - 2 nos.

Pearl onions - 10 nos.

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Coconut - 1/2 cup shredded

For seasoning:

Jeera - 1/4 tea spoon

Sauf - 1/4 tea spoon

Pepper- 1/2 tea spoon

Procedure:

Wash and soak the channa for 8 hours (over night).

Pressure cook it with enough water (including the soaked water), salt and ginger garlic paste for 4 whistles and keep it aside.

In a kadai,  pour 1/2 table spoon oil , when its hot and ready, roast the ingredients to grind in the given order. Allow it to cool and grind it to a smooth paste adding water.

Wash and finely chop the onion, tomatoes and slit the green chili, make the red chili into pieces and keep it ready along with the curry leaves. 

Take a heavy bottom vessel, heat the remaining oil, when its hot reduce it to medium flame and add the seasoning and turmeric powder, when it splutters add the onion and fry till they are translucent, then add the tomatoes and chilies and curry leaves and cook till the tomatoes are mushy.

Now, add the chili powder and saute for a few minutes until the raw smell goes off then add garam masala powder and mix well.

Then, add the paste that we grinded earlier and mix thoroughly.

Allow this mixture to cook covered in low flame for 8 to 10 minutes till the oil separates.

Open and add the cooked channa into this gravy and add enough salt keeping in mind that we have already added some while cooking the channa. Add enough water to adjust the consistency.

Allow this to cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally. But, now do not cover with the lid.

Once it becomes homogeneous gravy you can switch off the stove, transfer it to serving bowl and garnish it with coriander leaves and your spicy kadalai curry is ready to be enjoyed.

Notes:

Its good to use black channa because it has more fiber and nutrients than the regular white channa.

Number of whistle to pressure cook differs based on the quality of the channa. Check if its fully cooked otherwise cook for few more whistle.

We add ginger garlic while boiling the channa than while frying because it removes the gastric problem associated with it.

We add onions while grinding to give texture to the gravy. If you want a thicker gravy, you can add few cooked channa while grinding.

Try it out and post your comments too.