Vegetable Stew in Coconut Milk

Summer time is generally the toughest for me to come up with new recipes. I always end up in a state where I don't want to eat a lot of spicy food, nor oily, nor hot....which eliminates most of the regular Indian recipes we make at home. I know, I am spoilt....and my hubby will agree with this 100% ;). So, on one such summery evening, when the temperatures were soaring high, I took out all the vegetables that were chilling out in the refrigerator and made this simple yet tasty Vegetable stew. The basic idea for the stew came from a dear friend and her hubby. I skipped a lot of the spices they normally use and added some of my own. It was just one of those days I did not want to use too many masalas, and this also gave me an opportunity to use my favorite ingredient -coconut milk.

This Vegetable stew is also going to the Curry Mela hosted by Srivalli of Cooking 4 All Seasons.


Ingredients: (serves 2-3)
1 medium cauliflower cut into florets
1 Zucchini
1/2 cup carrots, corn and green beans mix ( I used a frozen mix)
1/2 onion chopped lengthwise
2-3 Kokum/amsul
1/2 tsp crushed black peppercorns (you can adjust to your taste)
1 Dried red chilli
1 tsp ghee
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
2-3 Curry leaves
1 small can coconut milk
Salt to taste
Method:
Wash and cut all the veggies. In a pan, heat the ghee and then add the cumin seeds to it. Once they start sizzling, add the dried red chillies and fry for a minute. To this, add the curry leaves and then the crushed black pepper powder and fry. Next, add the chopped onions and once they turn translucent, add the kokum. The kokum can also be soaked in a little warm water and the water can then be added to the gravy. Now, add the chopped veggies and mix well. Add a little salt, cover the pan and let the vegetables cook. Once they are cooked, add the can of coconut milk. Mix, cover and cook for a few more minutes. Check for taste and adjust the salt accordingly. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with rice, chapatis or appams!

This is not a very spicy gravy but it is packed with flavor. You can add/modify this recipe easily as per your mood and cravings ;)