Kerala Style Avial

Kerala Style Avial Recipe

Kerala Style Avial or Sadya Aviyal is a traditional mixed vegetable curry that is one of the important dishes in Kerala Sadya. It makes use of many seasonal root vegetables and is healthy and flavorful.

Traditional Avial is a tasty and nutritional dish made with seasonal vegetables like snake gourd, yellow cucumber, taro or colocasia, elephant yam, carrot, beans, and drumsticks. We can also add potato, pumpkin, and ivy gourd as well.

Though Avial is popular in Kerala, it is also prepared in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka as well with variations in taste and style. Today we will be making authentic Malabar Avial.

Aviyal is not served only for Sadya but is a favorite side dish for everyday lunch in Kerala households.

The Origin of Avial Recipe

Avial is supposed to be invented by Bhima, one of the five Pandava brothers in Mahabharata. While they were in their 14-year exile, Bhima assumed the role of a cook of King Virata. Sadly though, he didn’t know how to cook. So, he randomly grabbed some vegetables, chopped and boiled them together, made a dish, and topped it with grated coconut. Easy-peasy, don’t you think?

Avial Ingredients | Avial Vegetables List in Malayalam

Kerala Avial Curry is not made with the usual vegetables like peas or cauliflower. Avial is made with some of the best seasonal vegetables available plentiful in South India.

Avial Vegetables:

• 1/8 cup Elephant Yam (ചേന)
• 1/8 cup Taro Root or Colocasia (ചേമ്പ്)
• 10-12 Shallots (ചെറിയ ഉള്ളി)
• 1/8 cup Snake Gourd (പടവലങ്ങാ)
• 1/8 cup Yellow Cucumber (വെള്ളരിക്ക)
• 1 small Raw Plantain or Raw Green Banana (ഏത്തക്കായ)
• 1 small Carrot (കാരറ്റ്)
• 4-5 Beans (ബീൻസ്)
• 2 Drumsticks (മുരിങ്ങക്കായ)

You can also add pumpkin (മത്തങ്ങ), Aubergine or Brinjal (വഴുതനങ്ങ), Ivy gourd (കോവക്ക), and Potato (ഉരുളക്കിഴങ്ങ്).

Other Aviyal Ingredients:

• We also use a souring agent like Tamarind (പുളി) or Curd.
• Grated Coconut
• Cumin (ജീരകം)
• Turmeric powder
• Red Chili powder
• Coconut oil
• Green Chilies
• Curry leaves

Avial Vegetable Cutting

All the vegetables for Avial are chopped lengthwise, like long finger chips. They aren’t sliced thinly but moderately thick, about 2″ (inches) long, in almost equal sizes. This is one of the important features of Aviyal curry.

Cooking Vegetables for Avial

The vegetables used for making Avial have different cooking times. One should always remember to cook the vegetables separately and accordingly. If not, the Avial becomes mushy and the veggies will become a gummy mashed mess.

Elephant yam needs more time to cook. So, it is usually cooked separately until 3/4th done and added later to the other vegetables.

Similarly, taro is added later since it doesn’t take a lot of time to cook it.

There are different varieties of Avial and each region has a unique way of preparing this dish. I am sharing one of the easiest ways of making Avial. Further, you can also make Avial in pressure cooker. Here, all the vegetables are added to the pressure cooker with just enough water and cooked for one whistle. The ground coconut and spices are added later.

The one major concern or disadvantage of cooking Aviyal in pressure cooker is that the vegetables can be overcooked. So, cook in high flame for only a whistle.

Types of Avial

Mutta Aviyal

Mutta Avial or Egg Avial is a popular Avial variation that we prepare in Kerala households. In this variation, we add boiled eggs that are chopped lengthwise along with potatoes.

Cheera Aviyal

Cheera Avial is another popular Kerala-style Avial recipe where Red Amaranth (both leaves and stems) along with raw mango makes up for the main ingredients.

Chicken Aviyal

Shredded, ground, or cubed chicken is cooked with a handful of vegetables to make a delicious Avial.

Tamil Nadu Style Avial

Tamil Brahmin Avial is one of the tastiest varieties of Aviyal. It makes use of slightly sour beaten curd as the souring agent. It is also slightly loose in texture making it a gravy.

Karnataka Style Avial

Avial in Udupi or Mangalore style is even looser or curry-like with the addition of coconut milk. Or else, water is added while grinding coconut making it Avial curry.

Kerala Style Avial Recipe

Here’s a simple Avial recipe for you to try this Onam and always:

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Recipe FAQs

Related Recipes:

1. Mixed Vegetable Thoran
2. Drumstick Thoran
3. Sambar

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