Wednesday, October 24, 2018

MATHANGA ERISSERY

MATHANGA ERISSERY

Today's dish is made with Yellow Pumpkin which is nutrient rich and is an excellent source of Vitamin A as per this article in Mayo Clinic Health System.

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes using Pumpkin such as Red Pumpkin Soup, Yellow Pumpkin Kootu, and Mathanga Pulinkari.

In today's dish which is called Mathanga Erissery,  we make use of pumpkin, (which is called Mathanga in Malayalam) and Red Cowpeas (which are called Van Payar in Malayalam and Alasande in Kannada. We call this chawli in Konkani/Marathi.)

In Kerala cuisine, erissery is a thick side dish which is served as an accompaniment to rice. It is recommended that we use coconut oil as that is used in authentic Kerala cooking.

I have adapted this dish from Mathanga (Pumpkin) Van Payar Erissery from the Kothiyavunu blog.

We had this as a side dish with rice and enjoyed it immensely.



Ingredients:







  • Mathanga (Yellow Pumpkin), chopped, 1 cup 
  • Red Cowpeas, 1/2 cup
  • Turmeric Powder, 1/4 tsp
  • Chilli Powder, 1 tsp
  • Salt, to taste
To Make A Ground Paste :
  • Fresh Coconut Gratings, 1/2 cup 
  • Cumin Seeds (Jeera), 1 tsp
  • Green Chillies, 3-4
  • Small Onions, 2

For Seasoning:-
  • Mustard Seeds, 1 tsp
  • Red Chilli, broken into half
  • Curry Leaves, a few
  • Coconut Oil, 2 tsp
For Garnishing :-
  • Grated Coconut, 1/4 cup  
  • Coconut Oil, 1 tsp 

Method:-

Wash and soak the red cowpeas for 6-7 hours or overnight
Drain out the water 
Pressure cook the red cowpeas with adequate water and a little salt for 2-3 whistles or till they get cooked. However, do ensure they do not get mushy or overcooked. Once the cooker cools, remove the cooked red cowpeas, drain the water and keep aside. 

Wash and peel the pumpkin, remove the core and seeds and chop the pumpkin

In a mixer, grind together the fresh coconut gratings, green chillies, cumin seeds and small onions to a smooth paste, adding just the required amount of water. Keep this ground paste aside. 

Cook the pumpkin pieces in adequate water in a pan along with turmeric powder, chilli powder, and salt till it is done
To this,  add the cooked red cowpeas and mash everything lightly
Next add the ground paste and mix thoroughly
Check for salt and bring to a boil

Heat 2 tsp of oil in a small pan and when it gets hot add the mustard seeds on medium heat
When the mustard seeds splutter, add the broken red chilli and curry leaves and saute for a few seconds
Add this seasoning to the mathanga erissery

Heat 1 tsp of oil in the pan and fry the grated coconut till it becomes golden brown
Garnish the mathanga erissery with this fried coconut gratings




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