Ivy gourd and coconut stir fry

 Another vegetable that tastes great with coconut is kovakka.

The building blocks of Mom's delightful stir fry...

Ivy gourd - 250g

For the grind,

Coconut, grated - 1/2 cup

Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp

Turmeric powder - a tad

Chili powder - 1/4 tsp

Shallots - 3

Salt - 1/4 tsp

For the tempering,

Vegetable oil - 2 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Curry leaf - a sprig

Raw rice - 1/4 tsp

The technique...

Wash the vegetable well and cut into small pieces. Add in the melange of coconut, cumin seeds, turmeric powder, chili powder, salt and shallots in a blender jar and grind for 2 seconds.

Heat a deep-bottomed pan and dribble oil. Throw in mustard seeds, curry leaves and raw rice. When the mustard starts crackling, cast in the chopped vegetable. Stir and cover with a lid so that it cooks in the steam. After a few minutes, prepare a well in the center of the ivy gourd by pushing most of it to the sides of the pan. Add in the coconut potpourri in the middle and cover with the ivy gourd. The coconut mishmash will cook in the steam produced as the vegetable dry up. Stir after a few minutes to intermingle everything. Set out the thoran along with chapati. Enjoy!