Description
An easy kadala curry recipe made Kerala-style.
Scale
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked black chana (kadala)
- Salt to taste
For the spice paste:
- 1/2 cup grated coconut (fresh or frozen, thawed)
- 3 tbsp coriander powder
- 3–4 shallots, peeled and sliced
- 2 flakes of garlic, sliced
- A small piece of ginger
- A few curry leaves
- 1/2 tsp red chilli powder (or to taste)
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
For tempering:
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1/2 cup sliced onions
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
- A few curry leaves
Instructions
- Soak the chickpeas overnight in water.
- Pressure cook for 15 minutes or 4-5 whistles with little salt. Set aside.
- Dry roast the coconut until a very dark brown. T
- Then add the coriander powder and continue to roast well for another 6-8 minutes
- Now add the shallots, garlic, curry leaves, and ginger. Saute for 2-3 minutes until they wilt a bit
- Finally add the turmeric, chilli powder, and cumin powder. Turn off flame and mix well in the remaining heat. This is to ensure that the red chilli powder doesn’t burn
- Cool and grind to a fine paste with enough water
- Heat oil for tempering and add the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the sliced onions and curry leaves
- Roast until golden brown
- Then add the ground paste and mix well
- Top up with the chickpeas and the water it cooked in
- Mix well, adjust salt, and bring to a boil
- If the curry is too watery, boil a while longer until it reaches the desired consistency. If too thick, just add more water slowly and boil
- Serve this easy kadala curry with appam, puttu, etc
Notes
- The usual mistake most people make in this easy kadala curry recipe is not frying the coconut and coriander enough. Make sure you take about 8-10 mins in a low flame and continuously roast the coconut without burning
- You can add a few drops of oil when roasting the coconut-coriander mixture if you feel it’s too dry and starting to burn
- The curry leaves are important, try not to skip them
- You can also use white chickpeas in this easy kadala curry recipe
- A pinch of sugar will enhance the flavour so add some if you’d like to try that tip 🙂