Chammanthi Curry..(kerala)

Now, this is an everyday curry from Kerala, that goes with some breakfast foods. Its the side dish/curry for Dosa or Idli, which are breakfast items in the Southern states of India as you all may be aware of already. I love this simple curry, as it goes very well with hot- from the- pan- Dosa. Reminds me so much of my mom and childhood and my native place. This is loved by my kids too. So, here goes.


1: Shredded fresh/ frozen Coconut                                              -            1 cup

2: Red chilly                                                                                - 6-7 nos.

3: Shallots( small red onions)                                                       -2

4. Curry leaves                                                                           - 1 sprig

5: Cumin                                                                                    - 1 tbsp

6: Salt                                                                                         - required

Grind all the above ingredients adding a little water, into a fine paste and keep aside.


For Garnish:

1: Mustard seeds                                                                       - 1 tsp

2: Curry leaves                                                                           - 1 sprig

3: Red chilly                                                                               - 1 (pieced)

4: Shallot                                                                                    - 1-2 cut into small pieces

Now, heat a pan with  2 tbsp of cooking oil. (Coconut oil would be perfect). Into the heated oil put the mustard seeds and let them splutter. Then add the pieces of shallots, red chilly and curry leaves and let them fry a bit. Into this, pour the ground mixture of coconut (chutney/chammanthi). Add a little water and get it into the flowing consistency of the curry. Do not dilute it too much. Remember to add enough salt and turn off the heat before the Chammanthi curry/ chutney starts boiling. Use it with dosa or idli. Enjoy!

Crab Curry...

I made some Crab Masala/curry a few weeks' backs and had meant to post the pictures and recipe but just got too busy with other stuff going on. Now here goes the recipe for you to try, maybe. I used blue crabs, you can try with any type that is edible.

Ingredients:-

1:  Blue Crabs                                                                         -    4-5 no.s

2: Red large onion                                                                    -  2  no.s

3: Green Chilly (split)                                                               -  3- 4

4: Tomato                                                                                - 2 large

5: Garam Masala/ meat masala                                                -  1 tsp

6: Turmeric Powder                                                                 - 1 tsp

7: Chilly Powder                                                                     - 1- 1 1/2 tbsp( depending on the
                                                                                                                  degree of spiciness reqd)

8: Coriander Powder                                                               - 1 tbsp

9: Ginger n garlic or
    ginger garlic paste                                                               -  1 tbsp

10: Curry Leaves:                                                                   - 1-2 sprigs

11: Salt                                                                                  - to taste

Prep:

Wash and clean the crab and cut them into medium pieces, discarding the end part of the legs. Break the legs into small pieces and smash the big hard parts of legs a little so that its easy to get at the meat after cooking. Slice the onions and keep them aside.

To cook: 

Place a pan on the stove and add olive/ any cooking oil to it. Once the oil is hot, add the ginger/garlic paste. Stir it around until the raw smell of the paste diminishes. Then, add the onion slices and stir it around until its almost translucent. To this, add all the powders- the turmeric, chilly, coriander, and garam masala/ meat masala and stir some more until the powders are cooked a bit along with the onion mixture. Add the green chilies and tomatoes to the mixture and soon add the crab to it along with the needed amount of salt.

 Stir the whole thing around a bit and then close the pan and let the crab cook well .The crab turns a orangish color as its well cooked. Depending on the consistency of the curry/ masala you need, turn off the stove and garnish the crab curry with coriander and curry leaves and serve it hot with rice.If you think you need more curry you can grind some fresh coconut and add the mixture to the crab and let it simmer a while before garnishing the curry. Hope you enjoy the crab curry.