Tomato and Coconut Kurma

Ingredients:
1 kg tomatoes
500 gm potatoes
1 large onion, thinly sliced
4 green chillies, slit
1 small piece ginger, chopped
handful of chopped coriander
1 cup shelled peas (optional)
1 large coconut, grated
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 cloves
1/2 tsp cumin sees
2 cinnamon sticks
2 cardamoms
3 tbsl ghee
salt to taste
Method:
1. Boil the potatoes and peas. Cut the potatoes into thick pieces, tomatoes into fours and set aside.
2. Add one cup of boiling water to the grated coconut and take out thick milk by squeezing the gratings and straining the resultant mixture. Set aside. Add some more water and extract as much thin milk as you can. Strain. Keep the 'milks' separate.
3. Heat the ghee, and add the whole spices, mustard and cumin seeds, then the slit chillies, ginger and onions. Fry till the onions turn light brown in colour. Do not allow to brown too much.
4. Add the tomatoes and fry until they turn soft. Add the potato pieces and fry for some time. Now add the turmeric powder.
5. Add the thin milk, salt and cook for 3-5 minutes or until the gravy is thick. Then add the thick milk, peas, some of the chopped coriander, and cook for a minute or two. Remove from fire.
6. Serve garnished with the rest of the chopped coriander.

Red Kurma

Ingredients:
Onions - 2 large
Tomatoes - 3
Carrots - 4 (medium)
Beetroot - 1
Fresh peas shelled - 1/4 cup
Potatoes - 2
Red Cabbage - 1/2
Oil - 2 tbl sps
Coriander, Curry Leaves - to garnish
Thick Coconut Extract - 1/2 cupGrind together:
Grated fresh coconut - 1/2 cup
Poppy seeds - 1 tbl sp
Cashewnuts - 10
Roasted gram - 1 1/2 tbl sp
Green chillies - 3
Red chillies - 6
Dhania - 1 tbl sp
Salt - as required
Method:
1. Peel and chop onions finely. Cut all the vegetables into fine pieces.
2. Pour just enough water to cook the vegetables (except tomatoes) and pressure cook till one whistle.
3. Heat oil in a deep pan and fry onions till golden brown.
4. Add chopped tomatoes and stir till it turns pulpy.
5. Mix ground paste with this and stir for few minutes.
6. Strain water from cooked vegetables (use it for soup or for grinding the masala)
7. Add the vegetables to the fried paste and stir for few minutes.
8. Pour coconut extract and cook till boiling point. Remove from fire.
9. Garnish with coriander and curry leaves. Serve hot with idlies or pulkas.

Kurma for Idiyappam

Ingredients for Idiyappam
Big onions - 3
Tomatoes - 4
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Dhania powder - 1 1/2 tsps
Diced mixed vegetables - 3 cups (carrots, cauliflower, cabbage, potatoes etc...)
Cooked green peas - 1/4 cup (fresh or dry)

Chilli powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Fresh thick curds - 1 cup
Milk - 1/2 cup
Green chillies - 2
Salt - as required
Oil - 3 tbl sps
Cardamom, Cinnamom, Cloves - fewGrind together:
Grated fresh coconut - 3 tbl sps
Cashewnuts - 10
Poppy seeds- 2 tsps
Method:
1. Slice chillies lengthwise, cut onions and tomatoes finely.
2. Steam cook all the vegetables.
3. Heat oil in a frying pan.
4. Add cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, green chillies and then onions.
5. Fry till golden and then add chopped tomatoes.
6. Stir till it becomes puply. Add dhania powder and fry for a minute.
7. Add ground paste, cooked vegetables, salt, turmeric powder and chilli powder.
8. Cook till it becomes thick.
9. Add whipped curds at the end.
10. Boil for a minute and remove from fire. Mix 1/2 cup milk with this.
11. Garnish with chopped coriander and serve with idiyappam.