Yams with ground coconut (Chena Erissari) - Indian curry series 2

This recipe originates from the small Suriani community in Kerala, one of the oldest Christian communities in the world, with a rich and detailed history of the community available here. This community has developed a unique cuisine that is quite well known today.

An erissari (or erissary) is a traditional curry from Kerala, where a vegetable, lentil, or meat is cooked with spices and ground fresh coconut, and then finished with roasted coconut. This curry is quintessentially Keralite, and the variations are numerous. These curries are usually quite thick, coating the vegetable or meat heavily, and well-flavoured. The use of coconut in two different forms —fresh, wet coconut and roasted, dry coconut —highlights the importance of the coconut tree to this culture.

In tis recipe, I used purple yams (aka kandh or ratalu) a delicious slightly sweet tuber. You can substitute any root vegetable, plantains, or any type of pumpkin or squash in this recipe. The recipe will take on the flavours of the vegetable you use, and will always be delicious.

This cookbook specialises in the cuisine of Syrian Christians in Kerala. This community traces its ancestry back to the supposed arrival of St. Thomas the Apostle to Kerala in the 1st century. The cuisine has a distinct Anglo-Indian influence from the Portuguese influence and cooking techniques. It is very meat-heavy, with duck, beef and mutton taking centre stage. The cuisine is rich and bursting with flavours, loaded with heavy spices. This book is packed with traditional recipes that define this cuisine. This cookbook is for those who want to experience this fabulous cuisine at home.

For more recipes from this cookbook, click here.

Ingredients:

1 lb yams, plantains, root vegetables, or pumpkins of your choice

1 cup water

Salt to taste

For the spice paste:

1/2 cup grated fresh coconut, frozen okay

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1-2 green chiles

1 teaspoon ground cumin

For tempering:

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

6 small shallots, finely diced

1 tablespoon grated fresh coconut

6-8 curry leaves

2 dried red chiles

2-3 teaspoons oil

Add the yams, water, oil, and salt to a pot and cook till the vegetables are soft and tender. Gently mash some of the vegetables with the back of the spatula.

Meanwhile, make the spice paste by adding all ingredients to a small blender and blitzing to a smooth puree. Add this puree to the cooked yams and simmer for an additional 5 minutes on a gentle heat. At this stage, you should have a relatively thick curry, one that clings heavily to the vegetables.

In a very small pot, heat the oil and add all the ingredients. Cook on a medium flame until the onions turn golden and begin to caramelise, about 3-5 minutes. Pour this over the cooked yams and mix in well—taste for salt and spice. Serve immediately.