Easy Aviyal Recipe – How to make Avial Curry | Onam Sadya Aviyal Recipe | Vegetable Avial Recipe South Indian Style – A thick coconut & yoghurt based mixed vegetable subtle yet delicious curry seasoned with coconut oil and curry leaves. If you are looking for an easy Aviyal recipe, you are at the right place! Learn how to make Aviyal at home with step by step instructions!
What is Aviyal or Avial?
Avial means steamed or a mix of many things in Tamil. Aviyal or avial is a unique traditional and popular dish of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. No kerala feast (aka sadya) is complete without aviyal, an important part of Sadya or Sadhya. It’s a feast in which you will only find vegetarian dishes.
With a bunch of readily available ingredients from your pantry, you can make this Aviyal Recipe in less than half an hour! You should try making Aviyal at home because not only it is easy to make but is also super healthy. One interesting fact about Aviyal is that it was developedd by “Bhima”during his exile with his other pandava brothers. But, there are quite a few stories related to aviyal recipe. If you want to know more, click here.
Preparation of this Avial Curry varies from region to region and may have a little different taste as well. For example, if you will look at the way Tamils prepare this dish, loads of grated coconut is used while there is a less usage of yogurt. In some regions of South India, people use mango and tamarind as well instead of yogurt. Some versions have turmeric and some do not. Some use only green chillies for spice and some versions have red chilli powder.
Frequently Asked Questions Easy Avial Recipe
Is Aviyal healthy?
Yes, it is a healthier dish with loads of vegetables and fresh coconut. If you like including coconut in your diet this is definitely a healthy curry.
Can I add coconut milk if freshly grated coconut is not available for this Easy Aviyal Recipe?
Yes, you may use 1/2 cup thick coconut milk and grind the other ingredients along with it. But, the taste & texture of the would be slightly different.
How to make Avial Curry?
- Cook the vegetables in the water with a little salt until soft. Check the drumstick to see if it is soft, if so all other vegetables should be cooked. Drumstick takes the longest to cook. Placing vegetables that take longer to cook at thee bottom of the pan ensures uniform cooking time.
- Grind together the coconut, green chillies & cumin to a coarse or fine paste based on your liking. I like it slightly on the coarser side.
- Add this paste to the cooked vegetables.
- Garnish/season with the coconut oil, cumin seeds, green chillies and curry leaves.
Steps to follow for
Easy Aviyal Recipe
- Peel the required vegetables & chop them all uniformly into 2 inch long strips. Add raw banana to water after cutting to prevent browning.
- To a blender, add in grated coconut, green chillies & cumin seeds. Add water required and grind to a slightly coarse or smooth paste based on your liking. I like it slightly on the coarser side.
- In a wide pan or Kadai, add in all the cut vegetables of your choice. Make sure to place the vegetables that take more time to cook at the bottom of the pan. Placing vegetables that take longer to cook at thee bottom of the pan ensures uniform cooking time.
- Add required salt and 2 cups water.
- Cover and cook the veggies for 7 minutes. Cooking time may vary depending on the type of vegetables & the size you cut them. So, adjust accordingly. If you wish, you can add each vegetable one after the other at different stages to adjust cooking time.
- Now, add prepared coconut masala paste and boil for another 5 minutes.
- Turn off the heat. Now, add yoghurt and a few curry leaves. Mix well. You can add yoghurt now or later just before serving. If you are living in hoot climatic conditions, adding it later is recommended as the curry with become very sour. But, for cold climatic conditions, either way is fine.
- Now, prepare the tempering.
- Heat coconut oil in a pan. Once hot, add in cumin seeds, 2 slit green chillies and curry leaves. Allow to splutter.
- Pour the tempering to the Avial. Cover and rest for 15 minutes.
- Mix well & serve with hot rice or Adai. Adai Avial is a very popular combination especially in Tamil Nadu.
How to make Aviyal in Instant Pot?
- If you have chopped vegetables and ground coconut paste ready, you can easily make Aviyal in instant pot in 20 minutes. Rinse, peel and chop the vegetables for Avial Curry.
- Place the steel insert inside your instant pot and turn it on. Press sauté and once it turns hot, add 1 tsp oil. To this, add 1/2 tsp cumin seeds and few curry leaves. Fry for a minute.
- Next, add in the chopped vegetables, ground coconut paste and salt to taste. Mix and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
- Add 1 cup water (adjust to desired consistency) and mix.
- Cancel sauté and close the instant pot. Press pressure cooker (High) or manual button and set timer for 6 minutes. Position pressure valve to sealing position.
- Once the IP beeps, let pressure settle down naturally for about 5 minutes. Then, release any residual pressure carefully. Turn off the IP and add the whisked yoghurt. Mix well & serve as desired.
PRO TIPS:
Vegetables– You can choose three or more of varieties of vegetables from what I used. More the better. You can use other vegetables like the small eggplant, cucumber, taro root, other squashes or melons etc. While chopping vegetables, make sure not to dice the veggies very finely, they may turn mushy as you cook. Next while cooking the vegetables you have cook them until they are tender but retain shape. You may also steam the vegetables & make curry.
FrozenCoconut- If using frozen coconut, microwave the frozen grated coconut for 30 secs. This way the coconut grinds better without having fat solids stuck in the mixer/food processor.
Ground spice paste– The ground coconut paste is the only source of flavour for this curry. You can totally vary the amount of green chilies and cumin seeds here. We like it spicy, so I’m using around 6 green chilies for the paste & 2 for tempering.
Souring Agent- Yogurt is used as the souring agent in this recipe. In certain parts of Kerala, tamarind or sour raw green mango is used as the souring agent instead. If using tamarind, use a lime sized ball, soak in water and take out the pulp. Add this to the vegetables when they are cooking. If using raw green mango, use it like any of the other vegetables in the curry. Add curd only at the time of serving if living in hot climatic conditions.
Coconut oil- For tempering gives the best flavour, so try not to skip it. Add more or less to your liking.
Ingredients
- 2 Cups Mixed Vegetables – Drumstick, Raw Plantain, White Pumpkin, Carrot, French Beans, Potato (I have used Sweet Potato), all cut into 2 inch long strips (peel the required vegetables & cut)
- 2 tbsp Yoghurt Lightly sour, beaten (to be added at the end)
- 2 Cups Water For the gravy (Adjust for desired consistency)
For the Paste:
- 1 Cup Coconut Grated
- 5 Green Chillies Slit
- 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
For the Seasoning:
- 1 tsp Coconut Oil
- 1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 2 Green Chillies Slit
- 1 Sprig Curry Leaves
Instructions
- Peel the required vegetables & chop them all uniformly into 2 inch long strips. Add raw banana pieces to water to prevent browning.
- To a blender, add in grated coconut, green chillies & cumin seeds. Add required water and grind to a paste.
- To a wide pan/kadai, add in all the vegetables. Make sure to place the vegetables that take More time to cook at the bottom of the pan.
- Add required salt and 2 cups water.
- Cover and cook the veggies for 7 minutes or till they are cooked well.
- Now, add prepared coconut masala paste and boil for 5 minutes.
- Turn off the heat. Now, add yoghurt and a few curry leaves. Mix well.
Let’s prepare the tempering.
- Heat coconut oil in a pan. Once hot, add in cumin seeds, 2 slit green chillies and curry leaves. Allow to splutter.
- Pour the tempering to the Avial. Cover and rest for 15 minutes.
- Mix well & serve with hot rice or Adai.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Cut vegetables uniformly. At the same time, make sure not to dice the veggies very finely, they may turn mushy as you cook.
- If using frozen coconut, microwave the frozen grated coconut for 30 secs. This way the coconut grinds better without having fat solids stuck in the mixer/food processor. Adjust the amount of green chilies to suit your spice levels.
- Add curd only at the time of serving if living in hot climatic conditions.
- For tempering gives the best flavour, so try not to skip it.
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Many more to come!!…..STAY TUNED!!
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Happy Cooking 
Cheers!!
Padma.
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