Kerala Olan Recipe
Olan is prepared with yellow pumpkin and black-eyed peas in coconut milk.This gluten-free mellow dish is a very mild-tasting, non-spicy stew which is light and flavourful. This simple creamy stew is usually served during the onam and vishu sadya (feast). A Kerala feast is incomplete without Olan.
Equipment
- 1 Pressure Cooker
- 1 Grinder
- 1 Sieve/strainer
- 1 Deep Pan
Ingredients
- ½ cup Black-eyed peas (cooked)
- 300 gms Yellow pumpkin (de skinned and diced)
- ½ cup Coconut milk (first pressed)
- 1 cup Coconut milk (second pressed)
- 1 sprig Curry leaves
- 2 tbsps Coconut oil
- 6-7 nos. Green chillies
- 2-3 tbsps Ginger (juliennes)
- 1 tsp Salt or as per taste
- 2 cups Water for cooking
For Garnishing
- 8-10 nos. Curry leaves
- 1 tsp Coconut oil
Instructions
- Soak black-eyed peas in water for 4 to 5 hrs or overnight. Once soaked, wash and drain water. Add salt, water and pressure cook for 3 to 4 whistles.Do not overcook or it can turn mushy. Discard the water.
For Home-made Coconut Milk
- Grate 1 coconut and make a coarse paste in the mixer-grinder by adding 2 tbsps of water.Use a strainer or sieve and squeeze out 1/2 cup of thick creamy milk. This becomes the first pressed milk.For the second pressed milk, into the same leftover squeezed coconut dregs, add ½ cup of water.Grind again and squeeze out the second milk (1 cup). This will be more watery and diluted. Keep aside.
- Next, heat Coconut oil in a deep pan and add curry leaves, green chillies and ginger juliennes. Stir well.Add in the diced pumpkin pieces into the pan. Pour in the second pressed (light & watery) coconut milk. Add salt.Let the pumpkin pieces simmer and cook in the diluted coconut milk for 10 to 12 minutes.
- Now add in the boiled black eyed peas into the pan. Mix well. Check if salt is sufficient.Add 1 cup of first pressed coconut milk. Simmer till the first boil appears and switch off flame.Do not overcook after adding the first milk as it may curdle.Garnish with fresh curry leaves and drizzle a teaspoon of coconut oil over the curry.
Notes
Olan is also prepared with white pumpkin (ash gourd) and Cowpeas (red lobia).
If making coconut milk is not possible, one can even use canned coconut milk. You will need a can of thick cream and thin cream coconut milk to get the consistency of the stew as both are required for the recipe.