Culinary expert and food vlogger Lakshmi Nair shares the easy recipes of cucumber kichadi, beetroot kichadi, and sweet pineapple pachadi, which will make your Onam platter colourful and flavoursome.
Cucumber kichadi
Ingredients
1 cup Indian cucumber (diced)
Salt as required
1 cup grated coconut
2 large green chillies
1 tbsp coriander leaves (finely chopped)
1 cup yogurt
For the tempering
4 tbsp coconut oil
3 tsp mustard seeds
8 dried chillies
Curry leaves
Preparation
Add salt into the diced Indian cucumber and mix well using your fingers
Close it with a lid and keep it aside
This removes the moisture content in the cucumber
Grind the grated coconut with green chillies into fine and smooth paste
Now, squeeze out water from the salted cucumber
Add the coconut paste and chopped coriander leaves into it
Add the beaten yogurt and mix well
Taste for seasoning at this stage
For preparing the tempering, heat coconut oil in a pan and splutter the mustard seeds
Add the dried chillies and curry leaves and roast for a while
Add this tempering into the cucumber kichadi and mix well.
Beetroot kichadi
Ingredients
1 beetroot
3 green chillies
1 cup grated coconut
1 ½ cups yogurt
1 tbsp coriander leaves (finely chopped)
For the tempering
4 tbsp coconut oil
3 tsp mustard seeds
8 dried chillies
Curry leaves
Preparation
Cook the beetroot with some water in a vessel
After the beetroot has cooked well, allow it to cool down
Cut the cooked beetroot into small pieces
Grind the grated coconut along with green chillies into fine paste
Add this coconut paste into the chopped beetroot. Add salt as required
Now add the beaten yogurt and chopped coriander leaves into the beetroot mixture
Mix everything well together
For the tempering, heat coconut oil and splutter mustard seeds
Roast the dried chillies and curry leaves
Add the tempering into the beetroot kichadi and mix well.
Pineapple pachadi
Ingredients
1 cup pineapple (diced)
1 cup water
¼ - ½ tsp turmeric powder
¾ cup grated coconut
3 green chillies
¾ tsp cumin
½ cup sugar
Salt as required
For the tempering
4 tbsp coconut oil
3 tsp mustard seeds
8 dried chillies
Curry leaves
Preparation
Cook the pineapple along with the turmeric powder and water as required, with the lid on
Grind the grated coconut with cumin and green chillies into smooth paste
When the pineapple begins to get cooked, add the sugar and cook
When this begins to thicken up a bit, add the spiced coconut paste. Cook until it gets reduced
You may even add jaggery if you prefer brown colour for your dish
Add salt as required. Continue cooking the dish until the water in it gets reduced
Heat coconut oil and splutter mustard seeds
Roast the dried chillies and curry leaves to prepare the tempering
Add the tempering into the pineapple pachadi and mix well.
