Kerala Vegetable Stew with Coconut Milk / Ishtew Recipe
Vegetable Stew is one of the most popular traditional Kerala recipe made with mixed vegetables and coconut milk. It is served as breakfast (side dish) with Puttu, Idiyappam or Appams. It is also enjoyed with piping hot rice, Parottas or chapatis.
Servings 2 people
Ingredients
- 1 cup Mixed Vegetables (carrots, peas, French beans and potatoes) 1 cup is 200 ml (use a heaped cup of vegetables)
- 1/4 cup Sliced Shallots (Madras Onions / Pearl Onions) Use White Onions in place of shallots
- 1 cup Coconut Milk Check the instructions below on how to add the milk
- 2 tsp Coconut Oil
- 1 tsp Grated Ginger
- 4-5 nos Cloves
- 1/2 inch Cinnamon Stick
- 1 no Bay leaf
- 8 nos Black Peppercorns
- 1 no Star Anise
- Few curry leaves
- 1/2 cup water to cook the vegetables
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Prep the Vegetables (cubed potatoes, thick chunks of carrots, french beans cut into 1 inch length pieces) wash, drain and keep aside
- Peel and finely slice the shallots or pearl onions. In case you don’t have the pearl onions,add the white ones instead of red as they have mild taste.
- Heat a kadhai or a non stick pan and add coconut oil followed by the whole spices like pepper, bay leaf, star anise, cinnamon and cloves.
- Now add the onions, curry leaves and grated ginger. Saute this mixture for a few minutes until the onions turn translucent.
- Add the mixed vegetables, some water and salt. Close the pan with the lid and allow the vegetables to cook.
- Once the vegetables have cooked (they should retain their texture and not turn mushy),add the thin coconut milk.
- Stir well and let it simmer for few seconds (without a lid).
- Now add the ½cup of thick coconut milk and stir the mixture well.
- After you add the thick extract, you should not cook the vegetables for long else it will split. So stir once and switch off the flame.
- Serve the stew piping hot with idiappam or string hoppers, dosas, appam or even with chapatis or rotis.
Notes
- If you are using readymade coconut milk, cook the vegetables in water and add the coconut milk directly towards the end. Let it cook for a couple of seconds and then switch off the flame.
- Traditionally stew is cooked using coconut oil. However, if you find the aroma too strong, then use veg oil.