Cashews, Pearl Onions and Drumsticks Simmered in an Aromatic Roasted Coconut Gravy… Cashew Theeyal, the Soul Food from the Hearts of every Malayalee…!!!
The memories of this dish go all the way back to my hometown days when my amma (mom) used to make this theeyal with a beautiful aroma of roasted coconut filling the entire kitchen, accompanied by the bubbling sound of the boiling curry! The lip-smacking taste of her theeyal is something which has stuck to my taste buds forever. Being fish lovers, me and my brother always preferred fish curry dishes daily. We were fortunate enough to live in a town where the local fishermen would ride their bicycles to your doorsteps selling their fresh morning catch, and so fish has been a staple all throughout my life. Some days based on the weather or the season, you may not get fresh ones and so you compromise on the fish but with the next choice being a dish as close to a fish masala recipe. And that’s when amma would pull off a life saver; Theeyal…!
Theeyal is a traditional & authentic vegetarian side dish of Kerala, made of roasted coconut and spices simmered in a rich gravy along with vegetables. It is also served in some places as a side dish in a Sadya (the biggest vegetarian feast of Kerala). A non-vegetarian version with shrimp which is called as Konju Theeyal is also quite popular in Kerala. You can add your choice of vegetables or try out the simplest version with pearl onions.
Talking about the complexity of this dish, it was pretty hard initially for me to replicate my amma’s theeyal with the right flavor and consistency. The tricky part was in dry roasting the coconut to perfection which I always failed at. I would either over roast it or under do it. And how did I identify my mistake? While grinding! If you have perfectly roasted the coconut, it would release its oil when grinding to form a thick oily paste (as shown in the above picture). So, ensure to grate the coconut evenly and roast perfectly on a low flame!
I have to thank my sis-in-law for introducing me to this cashew version of this recipe, which has now become one of my favorite dishes!
Enjoy this delicious piping hot theeyal with steamed rice…Happy Cooking…!
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Cashews, Pearl Onions and Drumsticks Simmered in an Aromatic Roasted Coconut Gravy…!
- 1 cup grated coconut
- 3 small onions
- 1 tbsp chili powder (add more if you like it hot)
- 1 tbsp coriander powder
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 15-20 pearl onions (sliced)
- 2 green chilies (split)
- 2 large drumsticks (slit and cut into pieces, frozen also works)
- ¼ cup unsalted cashews
- Pinch of fenugreek powder
- Tamarind (lemon sized, soaked in water)
- 2 cups water
- 2 sprigs of curry leaves
- 2 dry red chilies
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 2 tbsp diced coconut bites (optional)
- Salt (as required)
- Oil (as required)
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Heat a pan and dry roast grated coconut and pearl onions on a low to medium flame until it starts turning lightly golden brown.
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When you start seeing a golden / light brown color, add the spices; chili, coriander and turmeric powder. Stir on a low flame for another 2-3 minutes until roasted well, be careful not to overdo nor turn dark brown. Turn off the flame and allow it to cool. If you are using whole spices, you need to roast them from the beginning along with the coconut at step 1.
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Once cooled, grind all the roasted ingredients into a smooth oily paste. While grinding, the roasted coconut will release its oil as shown in the picture above, indicating that you roasted it perfectly.
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Soak cashews in warm water for 10 mins. Keep aside.
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Heat a pan with oil on a medium flame. Sauté the curry leaves, pearl onions, green chilies, and soaked cashews for 4-5 minutes until the onions become translucent. Add drumsticks and saute for 2 minutes.
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Meanwhile, squeeze the juice of the tamarind and keep aside.
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To the pan, add the grounded coconut paste, tamarind juice, fenugreek powder, salt, and water, bring it to a boil.
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Once it starts boiling, reduce the flame and let it simmer for 10 minutes or until your desired consistency is reached. Check for the seasoning of the curry and adjust salt according to your taste.
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Prepare the tempering by heating oil in a separate pan and splutter mustard seeds. Add curry leaves and dry red chilies.
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Add the tempering into the curry, close the lid and switch off the flame. Let it rest for 10 minutes before serving. Serve hot with steamed rice.
- You can choose from a variety of vegetables for this dish; Potato, Ivy gourd, Yam, Eggplant, Okra etc.
- For the sourness, tomatoes can also be used in addition to / instead of tamarind.
- Coconut oil is recommended for all authentic Kerala recipes.
It seems very aromatic and so yummy! Do you think there is something else I could use instead of drumsticks, curry leaves and tamarind? (I know it won’t be the same, but it’s difficult to find those ingredients in Greece) 🙂
You can either skip drumsticks or substitute with potatoes, eggplant or okra. Unfortunately there is no alternative to curry leaves, so skipping is the only option. Tamarind can be replaced with tomatoes. Hope this helps:-)
Made this curry last week and it is absolutely delicious and the plate was licked clean. Please keep posting.
Thank you.
Thank You so much Indhu for trying out my recipe and posting your feedback. Glad you liked it 🙂
Hello
While grinding the coconut, di we add water or will it naturally turn oily cos of the coconut…?
Hi, you do not add any water while grinding, the oil comes out naturally if property roasted.
Your version of cashew recipe is very interesting will try some day. I got little upset when I saw drumsticks. I am not a fan of that product. However, when I read you actually did not add drumstick in your curry explanation part I was happy again, seemed like you forgot about it . But when I saw the picture it mysteriously landed in again.. don’t know how and when it managed to squeeze in. 🙁
Jokes apart awesome cooking Akhila!!! Keep going.
Thank You Toji for pointing out my mistake. I have updated the recipe and added drumsticks into the instructions. If you don’t like drumsticks, you can skip it and add other vegetables which I mentioned in the Notes section.
I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions!
oh this looks very intriguing. I’m looking for an alternate way to sambar to use the drumsticks in my freezer. gonna try this soon.