Avial recipe Kerala-style
Avial or Aviyal is a dish with a medley of various vegetables cooked together in a mildly spiced ground coconut mixture. Popular in Kerala, it's an essential ingredient in a sadya, an elaborate meal served during Onam and weddings on banana leaves.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup of carrots strips
- 1/2 cup of snake gourd strips
- 1/2 cup of brinjal strips
- 1/2 cup of raw banana strips
- 1/2 cup of jackfruit seeds quartered lengthwise
- 1/2 cup of elephant yam strips
- 1/2 cup of old cucumber strips
- 6 3 " long drumstick pieces
- 1/2 cup of raw mango strips
- 2 cups of grated coconut
- 1 tsp of powdered jeera cumin, jeerakam
- 1 tsp of red chilli powder
- 2-3 green chillies
- 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
- 2 tbsp of coconut oil
- A few curry leaves
Instructions
- Add all the cut vegetables except mangoes to a large cooking pot (we use the traditional kal chatti or stone pot to make avial at home).
- Top off with half the turmeric powder, cumin, curry leaves, and chilli powder.
- Add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup water and mix well.
- Cook covered on a low flame for about 10-12 mins or until the vegetables are cooked yet hold their shape.
- Take care not to cook them to a mush, I would suggest checking every 5 mins to confirm this.
- Meanwhile, grind together - coconut + green chillies + remaining turmeric + some more curry leaves to a coarse paste without adding water.
- Check that your vegetables are almost cooked.
- They would have let out a fair amount of water while cooking and this is good.
- Add the ground coconut mixture on top along with requirement amount of salt and the mango strips.
- Without mixing, cook covered for another 3-4 mins.
- Almost done! Mix the coconut mixture in gently and remove from heat.
- The avial will be a bit watery still but it will dry up as the vegetables absorb it as they sit.
- Drizzle the coconut oil on top and mix gently.
- Set aside covered loosely for an hour before serving.