Vegetable stew recipe with step by step photos. This veg stew is easy to make lightly spiced, delicate and aromatic stew made with mixed vegetables, coconut milk and spices. A popular stew from the Kerala cuisine. Gluten-free and vegan.
On some days when I don’t make dosa, I end up making our favorite breakfast appam and Kerala style vegetable stew.
Usually I always have carrots, beans, potatoes and peas at home. So these veggies end up being in the veg stew. When I have to make the stew, I prepare coconut milk a day before and keep in the fridge. Sometimes to make things easy, I use dabur’s coconut milk which is easily available in India. Dabur’s coconut milk works well as a substitute for thick coconut milk. You can also use any other good brand of ready coconut milk as a substitute for thick coconut milk.
Kerala vegetable stew is so easy to prepare. you just need to temper and cook the veggies. If you cannot have it with appams, then just serve the stew with steamed rice. i have used thin coconut milk to cook the vegetables. If you don’t have thin coconut milk, then cook the vegetables in water instead. You can also check this Potato stew recipe.
The veg stew is flavored with warm aromatic spices tempered in coconut oil. What you get are tender cooked vegetables in a delicate, spiced, light, aromatic stew with the flavor and taste of the coconut milk.
How to make vegetable stew
1. heat coconut oil. Add the whole & crushed spices – cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and black pepper. Fry them till fragrant. Then add the ginger, garlic, green chilies, sliced onions and curry leaves. Saute till the onions become translucent. Don’t brown the onions.
2. add the chopped veggies and stir well.
3. add thin coconut milk or water. Cover the pan and cook the veggies.
4. the veggies should be cooked till they are tender and done.
5. add the thick coconut milk. Stir well and simmer for just half a minute.
6. Serve Kerala vegetable stew with appams or steamed rice.
More curry recipes
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Vegetable Stew
Ingredients
- 2 small to medium sized carrots, peeled chopped
- 2 potatoes or 1 large potato or about 150 grams potato, peeled and chopped
- ¾ or 1 cup peas
- 70 to 80 grams french beans
- 1 large onion or 5-6 shallots - thinly sliced
- 3 to 4 garlic - crushed into a paste in a mortar-pestle
- 1 inch ginger, julienned
- 2 to 3 green chilies, slit
- 1.5 inch cinnamon (dalchini)
- 4 to 5 cloves - crushed or kept whole
- 1 teaspoon crushed black pepper
- 3 to 4 green cardamoms - crushed or kept whole (optional)
- 2.5 cups thin coconut milk or water * check notes for pressure cooking the veggies with water
- 1 cup thick coconut milk
- 12 to 15 curry leaves
- 2 to 3 tablespoon coconut oil
- salt as required
- sugar as required (optional)
Instructions
- Heat coconut oil. Add the whole & crushed spices - cinnamon, cardamoms, cloves, black pepper. Saute them till fragrant.
- Then add the ginger, garlic, green chilies, sliced onions and curry leaves. Saute till the onions become translucent. Don't brown the onions.
- Add the chopped veggies and stir well.
- Add thin coconut milk or water. Cover the pan and cook the veggies.
- The veggies should be cooked till they are tender and done.
- Lastly add the thick coconut milk. Stir well and simmer for just half a minute.
- If you want, you can also heat a few teaspoons of oil and fry curry leaves in it till crisp. Then add this curry leaves tempering from the top before serving the veg stew.
- Serve kerala style vegetable stew with appams or steamed rice.
Will this stew taste good with plain paratha???
Yes it will.
I didn’t have peas …so I added raw banana. Did the tempering at the end .and served with plain paratha. It was awesome.
thanks gitanjali for this lovely feedback and for the rating too on veg stew recipe. glad to know. peas can be skipped if you don’t have them. vegetables of one’s choice can be added. thanks again.
Made this today and my ,my taste buds qent to a full 10. The smell reminded me of my childhood with my Chitti. Thank you.
great and thanks for sharing this lovely feedback roopa. happy cooking.
Hi,
I was looking for an authentic Kerala stew recipe and my god this just hit the spot. I have a cafe in Melbourne and wanted to try out something to surprise my customers and this should do it. 5 starts to you my friend.
Thanks
Hey and also great work on working on so many recipes.
Cheers Nathan.
thank you anuveer. wish you all the best with your cafe. happy cooking.
Hi,
I had tasted stew few years back and wanted to make it for my 10 year old daughter. The stew I made following your recipe was very tasty and everyone enjoyed with dosa.
thank you shree harsha. glad to know that everyone enjoyed the stew with dosa.