Curried Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients :

Red Pumpkin – 500 Gms.

Leek – 1 Nos.

Red Onion – 1 Nos.

Green Chilli – 1 Nos. (Hot, any variety according to taste)

Garlic – 1 Clove

Cumin + Coriander Powder – 1/4 Tsp.

Garam Masala Powder – 1/4 Tsp.

Olive Oil – 1 Tbsp.

Fresh Cream – 2 Tbsp.

Fresh Coriander – 1/2 Tbsp.

Salt / Sugar – To Taste

Method :

Discard the green part of the leek and slice the white part of the leek. Slice the onion. Mince the green chilli and garlic. Chop the coriander. Cut the pumpkin into 1/2 inch cubes.

In a heavy bottomed pan, heat olive oil. Add the onion, leek, garlic, chilli and saute till translucent. Add the powder masalas and saute but make sure not to burn the masala powders. Now add the pumpkin and saute. Now add about a liter of water (veg/chicken stock can be used but it must be light, like a broth). Cover and cook till the pumpkin can be smashed with the back of a spoon.

Puree and strain the mixture and then pour back into the pan. Season to taste and add the fresh cream. Let it simmer but don’t let it boil. Now add the chopped coriander after 5 minutes and remove.

Serve hot.

P.S. Instead of using coriander and cumin powder and garam masala powder, you can use 1/2 tsp. curry powder.

 

Avial ( A vegetarian specialty dish from Kerala in Southern India)

Ingredients :

Potato : 1 Large

Suran (Elephant foot yam – Amorphophallus paeoniifolius) : 300 Gms.

Red Pumpkin or  Bottle Gourd (Dudhi Bhopla) : 300 Gms.

Raw Banana : 1 no.

Carrot : 1 Large

French Beans : 200 Gms.

Green Peas : 100 Gms.

Drumsticks – Moringa oleifera (Soavagyaacyaa SoMagaa fruit) : 2 Nos.

Freshly Grated Coconut : 1 ½ Cups

Green Chillies : 5-6 Nos.

Cumin Seeds : 1 Tsp.

Curd : 1 Cup

Coconut Oil : 2 Tbsp.

Curry Leaves : 12 Nos.

Method :

Cut the vegetables into 1” inch cubes. Peel and cut the banana into cubes as well.

Cook the Elephant foot yam separately in salted water and when almost done,  discard the water. Cook the rest of the vegetables together in salted water with half the curry leaves. The water should just be enough to cook the vegetables. When the vegetables are 9/10th cooked add the cooked yam to them.

Make a paste of coconut, green chillies and cumin seeds. Then mix with the curd to make a smooth paste.

Add the paste to the vegetables and adjust the salt and the consistency of the gravy. Remove after one boil.

N.B. : There are some who prefer a tadka and some who don’t. I like to heat the oil and add the curry leaves to it and give this tadka to the avial. Some people prefer to add all the curry leaves while cooking the vegetables . When you have added the paste and removed it after one boil, they add the raw coconut oil into the avail and mix well.

Best served with boiled rice.