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Vegetable stew recipe, Appam side dish

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vegetable-stew

Vegetable stew recipe is side dish for appam and idiyappam. It is a coconut milk base, mild spiced flavourful dish. 

we eat aapam with sweetened(with jaggery) coconut milk.  But when we had our dinner last month in ‘Mango tree’ restaurant here in SG, for aapam we ordered ‘Vegetable Ishtu’ from their menu. Till then I have not tasted any stew. It was so simple, plain, pure white, with veggies and only the ginger flavour that wafted from the stew. For me it was smelling like the potato masala we make for poori,but with the richness of coconut milk and onion, it was just tasting and smelling divinely.

So I tried at home,with recipe adapted from Divya’s blog slightly,also keeping in mind of what I had in the restaurant. I could not get the pure white they had,but tasted the same.vegetable-stew

vegetable-stew
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Vegetable stew recipe

Vegetable stew recipe is side dish for appam and idiyappam. It is a coconut milk base, mild spiced flavourful dish. 
Course Breakfast, Side Dish
Cuisine Indian, South Indian
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 2
Cup measurements

Ingredients

  • Coconut gratings - scrapped from 1 coconut
  • Carrot - 1
  • Potato - 1
  • Beans - 8
  • Cauliflower florets - 8 small bite size pieces
  • Ginger - 1 tbsp grated
  • Green chilli - 2
  • Curry leaves - 1 sprig
  • Salt - As needed
  • Oil - 2 tsp

Instructions

  • First grind the coconut with 1/2 – 3/4 cup water and grind till smooth and extract the thick milk using a strainer.
  • Again add 1 cup warm water to the coconut gratings and grind for a minute and take the thin extract from the coconut.
  • Cut the veggies to thin stripes (I used baby beans) as shown in the picture. Slit the green chillies and onion. Heat pan with oil add ginger,green chillies ,curry leaves,followed by onion.( I tried adding bay leaf and cardamom, but took it off in the middle as it dominated the other flavors. So I omitted in the ingredients)
  • Cook in medium flame,taking care, not to turn the onion colour. It should just be transparent. Boil the veggies with salt and the thin coconut milk along with this fried onion.
  • Let the veggies cook (without turning the veggies mushy),then add the thick coconut milk,just keep in low flame for a minute and put of the stove.

Notes

  • My hubby said they had tempered with whole black pepper corns and no green chillies were there. So you may try that too. That way i thought the greenish shade in the stew can also be avoided.
  • Try not to change the colour of onion as it will change the stew colour too…
    I added the veggies that I saw in the restaurant…

Vegetable stew method:

    1. First grind the coconut with 1/2 – 3/4 cup water and grind till smooth and extract the thick milk using a strainer.coconut ground
    2. Again add 1 cup warm water to the coconut gratings and grind for a minute.grind
    3. Collect thin coconut milk from the above.coconut milk
    4. Cut the veggies to thin stripes (I used baby beans) as shown in the picture. Slit the green chillies and onion. Heat pan with oil add ginger,green chillies ,curry leaves,followed by onion.( I tried adding bay leaf and cardamom, but took it off in the middle as it dominated the other flavors. So I omitted in the ingredients)onion
    5. Cook in medium flame,taking care, not to turn the onion colour. It should just be transparent. Boil the veggies with salt and the thin coconut milk along with this fried onion.simmer
    6. Let the veggies cook (without turning the veggies mushy),then add the thick coconut milk.
    7. just keep in low flame for a minute and put of the stove.ready

Stew is ready to enjoy with aapam! The onion,ginger and curry leaves along with coconut milk makes the stew smell divinely!

vegetable-stew-recipe

Reader Interactions

Comments

  8. Nags

    each time i see that corningware pathram of yours, i feel like buying one too.

    my dad's sis makes the best stew ever! i should get her recipe too. she doesn't add veg though, only potatoes 🙂

    Reply

  9. Divya

    Hi Raji… we often make ishtu in our home only with potatoes as we all love it a lot… i normally boil onion, ginger, potato & just one green chilly together in thin coconut milk till everything gets cooked. finally i will add the thick coconut milk & a pinch of pepper powder and even before it starts boiling will switch off the stove. then add curry leaves & coconut oil, stir it & close the lid. i never used to saute or temper any of the items for ishtu… this way the color wil remain white throughout… Yours look colorful with different veggies… need to try your way…

    Reply

  14. lata raja

    White or not, you have one fabulous looking ishtu here Raks. I always tell friends that I can never get the colour that my friend Princy makes…so I think, it is okay to not have exactly the same. this one is evry nice too!

    Reply

  18. Cilantro

    Looks flavorful Raks, The green chilli variety adds the color to it try the spicier Thai chilli or the osi milagai one(if you have`nt done so) for more white color. We add just the Potatoand may the carrot does add some color too.

    Reply

  23. Anonymous

    Ooo.. Its one of my fav Kerala dishes 😀 Yumm.. Yours looks yummy.. I mostly make it with potatoes alone though! 🙂

    Reply

  28. Anonymous

    we once had idiyappam with chicken stew in chennai and were simply bowled over by its mere simplicity, loved ur presentation…looks very yummy

    Reply

  37. Bharathy

    The coconutty kerala way of side dish which rocks with appams 🙂
    Looks pretty and colorful, raks 🙂

    * I have a habit of waiting for the first comment after done with a new post 🙂
    Hugs for doing it, Raks 🙂

    off for my afternoon nap 🙂

    Reply

  44. Mahi

    Oru thengala irunthu paal edukkanumaa? remba rich recipe..but still,Wow..the stew looks wonderful Raji! 😛 😛
    All the veggies are in their original colour..nicely done!

    Reply

  45. Happy Cook / Finla

    Wowo i am really surprised to hear that you have not had stew till then, back at home we always had apams with stew or kadal curry etc or aslo like you said with sweetend coconut milk but then with sugar not jaggery, this stew looks super yumm.

    Reply

  52. Rinku Naveen

    Stu looks superb..Its one of the fav at home with appam and puttu. Never thought of adding cauliflower. Mainly potatoes and carrot. Yeah its difficult to get that white colour. Beautiful clicks Raji..

    Reply

  53. Harini

    Hi Raks!

    Just love your blog and the pics ! I was searching for a nice aapam recipe for a long time then saw this stew recipe and your aapam beside the stew in one of the pictures. Then I knew you must have an aapam recipe in your blog and finally found it! Going to try making the aapam along with this delicious looking stew.! Just a suggestion – link the aapam recipe also to this page so it would be easier to find for ppl like me 😉

    Harini – http://hariniscorner.blogspot.com/

    Reply

  57. Vaanisree

    Hi Raji.. i have became a very big fan of u nowadays. I have tried more than 15 – 20 items from ur website. and yesterday i did this veg stew for palappam(bought this ready mix aapam) .. and the combo was great.I did the same as u have mentioned here with the proportions and quantity. it came up delicious and tastier. U believe it or not,i prepared enough quantity and at last i was kept only a small cup of it for taste. The whole bowl of stew was emptied by my kid and hubby . and gave some to my mom for taste. Thanks for sharing all lovely tasty yummy recipes. keep going….

    Vaazhga valamudan

    Reply

  58. RAKS KITCHEN

    Thank you vaani for the feedback and the nice words 🙂
    Harini, thanks 🙂 will post more authentic aapam recipe,mine is the way i make 🙂 So watch out for another aapam recipe, hope you made aapam and stew and liked …

    Reply

  59. Neets

    Hi raks,

    I will be cooking this stew tonight and posting it on my blog hopefully by tomorrow. i've started a new blog called neetustastytreats.blogspot.com. Do chk it out when you're free. You have alovely blog btw! The detailed step by step pics make it so much more easier! Cheers and keep up the good work!

    Reply

  60. saumya

    Dear raks

    I have tried some of ur recipies nd it came out really well. I use to make an easy version of stew. I take a cooker nd add my onion, ginger, green chillie 2 just for smell not for spicy, veg (potatoes, carrot, beans nd forzen peas) and salt nd leaa than half cup of water. Pressure cook this for 1 whistle. After pressure settles add thick coconut milk, pepper powder nd check the consistancy. Switch off the flame nd add curry leaves nd drops of coconut oil. Close the lid till u serve.

    Reply

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