How to make Avial
Avial recipe
Avial is a very popular dish from south India and is widely made by people in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Udipi. Avial can be made into gravy or be made into a semi-solid side dish. It is a major accompaniment in Kerala Onam Sadya.
Ingredients
Elephant Yam (Chena) – 100 grams
Drumstick – 1
Ash Gourd (Kumblanga) – 100 grams
Plantain (raw) – 1
Carrot – 1
Snake Gourd – 50 grams
Yard Beans (Achinga) – 6 to 7
Raw mango – about 5 to 6 pieces
Grated coconut – 1 cup
Cumin seeds – 1 teaspoon
Green chilli – 2
Red chilli powder – ½ teaspoon
Turmeric powder – ½ teaspoon
Coconut oil – 2 tablespoon
Curry leaves – 8 to 10 leaves
Salt to taste
Peel the skin of all the vegetables cut it into equal size of 1 inch length each. Drumstick should be cut at approximately 2 inches length.
Method of preparation
Coarsely grind the coconut (grated) along with cumin seeds and green chilies.
Half cook Elephant yam with water. When half cooked, add the rest of the vegetables (plantain, ash gourd, drumstick, carrot, snake gourd, beans) in the same cooking vessel with very little water and salt to taste. Also add turmeric powder and red chilli powder to your liking. Once the vegetables are half cooked, add raw mango and cook the vegetables fully.
Make a ‘well’ with the cooked vegetables and add the ground coconut paste & curry leaves in the middle and cover it up with the cooked vegetables itself. Close with a lid and allow it to cook for 3 minutes. Remove it from the flame. Top it up with coconut oil and mix it well.
Lip smacking Avial is ready to go into your stomach along with steaming, hot rice or Adai.
If the sourness from the raw mango is not enough, add sour curd after removing it from the flame (to balance the taste) and mix well.
Note:
Adjust the salt as per your taste.
Instead of raw mango, sour curd or tamarind extract can also be added for sourness.
Use less water to cook the vegetables.
