
With dussehra a lot many of us were into fasting, some didn’t take non vegetarian food and few like me wanted to take food without onion and garlic.
Not only for dussehra but also for certain auspicious days we tend to avoid adding onion and garlic to food. In South India, typically during the month of Purattasi ( mid September to mid October) people generally give up non vegetarian food cause of devotion to Lord Narayana and it’s an auspicious month.
These ten days during dussehra, I avoided added any onion and garlic to food and didn’t consume any outside food.
Dinner options were getting very limited. For lunch I planned to make the neivedhyam ( offering) for the day , which would become our lunch as well. A variety rice paired with boiled and tempered lentils also known as Sundal in the south. This would be offered to the God and kolu at homes.
But dinner for a big headache. For a person like me who tries including if not garlic but onion in most dishes, cooking during these days was challenging. That is when I started whipping out recipes without onion and garlic. Believe me they tasted equally good. I’m here giving you a recipe of a kurma that has no onion and garlic, but had lipsmacking taste. This goes well with rotis, phulkas, plain rice and even pulaos.
Ingredients
- Cow peas – 100 GM’s
- Tomato – 2 chopped into chunks roughly
- Red chilli whole – as per your spice level
- Potatoes – boiled, peeled and cubed
- Cloves -2
- Cinnamon -1′ piece
- Cardamom -2 pods
- Ginger – 1/2′ piece
- Turmeric powder -1 tbsp
- Shredded coconut – 4 tbsp
- Salt – as per taste
- Oil for tempering and sautéing
- Cumin seeds -1 tbsp
- Bay leaf -1
- Saunf / fennel seeds -1 tbsp
- Cashew – 4-5 pieces
- Coriander leaves for garnishing
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
Method
- Soak cashew , cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, bay leaf, saunf in hot water for 20 minutes.
- In a pan add oil saute tomato chunks, red chilli and ginger piece.
- Once cooked until mushy ,cool it.
- Once cooled add mushy tomatoes, soaked ingredients, shredded coconut and turmeric powder to blender and blend them smooth.
- Dry roast cow peas in pan for about 3-4 minutes until you get slightly roasted aroma.
- Boil it in pressure cooker with water and salt for about 5 whistles.
- Release steam, cool drain and keep aside.
- In a pan temper cumin seeds and add tomato masala paste.
- Saute for a while add little salt.
- Give it a light boil.
- Add cooked cow peas and potato.
- Mix it with the gravy, adjust consistency with water.
- Boil for 5 minutes in simmer until you get kurma consistency.
- Adjust salt.
- Turn off gas ,add lemon juice ,mix and serve garnished with coriander leaves.
The quantity of ingredients mentioned above is for two people. You can scale up as per need.
The kurma is spicy cause of red chilli and ginger, with a light tinge of tanginess fro the lemon juice.
The kurma is a great side to rotis, phulkas, plain rice and pulaos. Do try out and let me know.
Cooking without onion and garlic is not difficult and there are lipsmacking recipes that taste equally good. I will be sharing a couple more if such recipes.
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