Colocasia leaf curry or alavathi

Ingredients:

A bunch of colocasia leaves along with the stem

1 cup shredded coconut

5-6 red chillies

1 lemon-sized tamarind ball

2-3 slit green chillies

1-inch piece julienned ginger

2 teaspoon oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

Salt to taste

Method:

Clean and cut the colocasia leaves along with the stem. Add a cup of water and the slit green chillies and julienned ginger and cook it in the pressure cooker until it is cooked to a soft consistency.

To give the curry a tangy flavor, in Karwar and Mangalore, we add bimbul or ambado. (Sorry I do not know the English name for these vegetables). Since it is not easily available in Mumbai, I use the tamarind. Now grind the shredded coconut, red chillies, and the tamarind to a paste.

Remove the colocasia leaves from the cooker and add the ground masala and salt and bring it to a boil. Heat oil in a saucepan and add the mustard seeds. Once they start to crackle, season the curry or alavathi with it.

I simply love this dish. When the colocasia leaves are cooked in the coconut gravy, it gives a distinct aroma. Hope you will like this recipe.