Srilankan style Vendhaya Kuzhambu

This gravy is a very tasty house hold dish in every Srilankan Tamil homes. This is specially prepared among the Jaffna Tamil people. I remember my mother make this every Friday when she piously follows the Viratham (Fast). Daily we used to scrape coconut in the coconut scraper. Our cooking involves a lot of coconut milk & one large coconut we use every day. Another ingredient that we use extensively is baby onions (sambar onions). I helped mother in the kitchen to scrape coconut, extract milk from scraped coconut & to peel plenty of small onions. This recipe needs both small onions & coconut milk.

Ingredients: 

200 gm baby onions

3 green chilies

12 flakes garlic

2 sprigs curry leaves

3 tsp fenugreek seeds

1 tomato

1 lime size ball of tamarind

½ cup thick coconut milk

1 cup thin coconut milk

1½ tbsp all purpose curry powder ( Masala chili powder)

½ cup oil

salt to taste.

Method: Fry sliced garlic and fenugreek in oil. When pale brown add chopped onions, slit green chilies and curry leaves. When nicely fried add chopped tomatoes & fry until dry. Pour squeezed and strained tamarind juice, salt, curry powder and thin coconut milk. Mix well and simmer on gentle flame for 10 to 15 minutes till the gravy thickens. Add thick milk and mix well. Cook for 5 minutes and remove. Serve with steamed rice, idiappam or puttu.

Vendhaya Kuzhambu