Kitchen Corner-Try It

Padavalanga Parippu Thoran Padavalanga/ snake gourd is common vegetable in Kerala. Back home it was always grown in the backyard garden and mom makes many endless varieties of curries with this veggie. Here I rarely find fresh padavalanga. So when I got some fresh ones I made this padavalanga kadalaparippu thoran.Thoran is a simple and easy side dish which goes well with rice. It is  stir fry recipe of vegetables with coconut. Ingredients Padavalanga/snake gourd- 3 cups chopped Kadala parippu/split channa dal cooked - 3/4 cup Onion- medium finely chopped Coconut- 1/2 cup Green chilly-3-4 Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp Cumin - 1/3 tsp Chilly powder- a pinch Garlic - 2 pods Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp Curry leaves- 2 springs salt to taste Coconut oil- 2 tbs   Cook kadala or gram until it becomes soft but not mushy and keep it aside. Chop the padavalanga/snake gourd into small pieces. In a food processor lightly crush coconut, cumin, red chilly powder( o...

Papaya/ Kappalanga Thoran Thoran is Kerala's version of a quick vegetable stir fry with coconut and spices. The heat is from green chilly, and the bright appealing color of thoran is from turmeric powder. Thoran is usually made with any vegetable, and today's vegetable is raw papaya/ papaya/ kappalanga. Papaya is a delicious tropical fruit and has good health benefits. The green raw papaya has equal health benefits as the ripe ones.    If you have tasted dishes with raw unripe papaya, you might have noticed it has a mild taste and is crisp and crunchy. It is widely used in Asian cuisine to make salads, curries, and pickles. The raw papaya has a slight bitterness to it, and the addition of coconut brings a delicious balance in taste and flavor. And to make a thoran, use a generous amount of coconut. Papaya thoran is a delicious and healthy vegan/vegetarian dish . It is heartwarming homey food that you can enjoy with steamed rice.    To make the thoran, papa...