Spicy Vegetable Stew

Stew… A common dish made all over the world but primed and presented with different guidelines and treatment in one’s cuisine. And rightly enough, the stew prepared in Kerala households comes no way near to those from other countries…whether it is the taste or the aroma or even the final appearance it emanates on the dining table. A colorful and attractive combination of cooked assorted veggies and coconut milk along with a few mild spices certainly fits as a right combination with any Indian bread whether it be roti or poori or parotta or even for our own Kerala appams.

A small brief on the origin of this particular recipe…When I had eventually learnt to make appams, my next venture was to find a good and easy accompaniment for those appams. And Veg Stew, being the most popularly used side dish, I was tempted to give it a try which eventually prompted me to google for a simple and yummy recipe for Veg stew. And to my dismay, I found myself in the midst of the overwhelming quantity of stew recipes in the web world. And I was left to make a choice which was rather awfully difficult. So, to make things simpler, I took up a rather sensible decision and decided to assimilate the basic ingredients and steps of a stew recipe and give it a few variations of mine. And to be honest enough, I wasn’t disappointed with the ultimate result I got…and thankfully, I wasn’t the only one who had the same opinion as even my family loved this…

And again to be honest with you guys, I didn’t give a lot of variations that others might have made as I made this after keeping a lot of things in mind. Firstly, I wanted to make this stew very simple as to the ingredients and the procedure. Secondly, I wanted to make something which could be made instantaneously… don’t want to stand near the kitchen stove and spent an hour or two making a stew. Finally, something that was healthy, had fewer calories and didn’t take up too much cholesterol.

And so friends, here’s how my own version of a Veg stew goes.

You’d require
2 Potatoes (cut into small pieces)
2 Carrots (cut into small pieces)
8 – 10 nos Beans (cut into small pieces)
A handful of Cauliflower florets (optional)
1 large Onion (cut into small pieces)
2 – 3 Green chillies (slit lengthwise)
A few Curry leaves
Salt – As required
A cup of Thick coconut milk
Whole Spices:-
2 - 3 Cardamoms
2 – 3 Cloves
1 - 2 pieces of Cinnamon
A pinch of crushed Fennel seeds
1 tsp of Peppercorns

Method:-
1)Since we are talking about saving time in cooking, better pressure-cook the chopped veggies after adding enough water and salt, upto 1 whistle. You can also cook in an open vessel….though better go for pressure-cooking to save time and energy.
2)After opening the lid, add the whole spices and cook, till all the water gets evaporated. You can also add cooked green peas at this stage.
3)Reduce the flame and add the thick coconut milk.
4)Do not boil. Just heat it through.
5)Check the level of salt and add more if required.
6)Add curry leaves and remove from fire.
7)Serve warm with hot appams.

If this is not spicy enough for you, you can also add a tsp of Garam masala powder and mix well. So you get a whole stew dish in 5 simple steps. The only additional time u might need would be to extract coconut milk, which too could be prepared by mixing instant coconut powder. So there you go… within minutes, a veg stew ready on your table to be served with hot appams or rotis….Another good thing is that it is highly relished by kids too thx to its striking color combo combined with its mild hotness and spiciness. And now for those whose taste buds are not completely satisfied with my version of this mildly spiced stew…Coming up for u a simple and easy Masala stew recipe which doesn’t completely compromise on the spice factor. Again innovated keeping in mind those above factors….:)


You’d require
2 Potatoes (diced)
2 Carrots (diced)
A cup of Thick coconut milk
Salt – As required
½ tsp of turmeric powder
1 ½ tbsp of Eastern chicken masala powder
1 tsp of Coconut oil
1 tsp of Mustard seeds
1 – 2 broken Dry red chillies
A few Curry leaves

Method:-
1)Place the cubed potatoes and carrots in a pan along with sufficient water.
2)Add turmeric powder and salt and allow it to cook.
3)When it’s done, add the masala powder and mix well.
4)Reduce the flame.
5)Add the thick coconut milk and stir well.
6)Do not boil after adding the coconut milk. Just heat it through.
7)Heat a tsp of oil in another small pan and splutter mustard seeds followed by sautéing red chilies and curry leaves.
8)Add the above tempering into the curry and mix well.

This particular masala stew indeed goes very well with appams, rotis and even pooris. And wht’s more, it requires only a few ingredients and can be made in minutes making it extremely suitable for cooking novices and bachelors…. Can sure save a lot of time n energy to make an instant breakfast….especially in the present scenario, where time plays a key part in day-to-day lives. As the saying goes, time is precious as it waits for none….but again he who knows the value of time and who makes the clock hands tick for him is wise and surely would go on to make history. So, be the first one to do that!!!!

So, on that timely note, happy cooking!!!!!