Erissery / Kerala style pumpkin and black-eyed beans

Erissery - Another of those dishes that features on the Onam Sadya - a traditional festive spread in Kerala. This is a homely comforting dish with red pumpkin and black eyed beans in a coconut curry with a slight hint of spice.



Red pumpkin is used in almost all states in India, with so many variations. Anything with coconut spells homely food to me and my son likes the mildly sweet taste of this dish. Its a healthy option with the black-eyed beans and goes well with rice and rasam.

This recipe is from 'Flavours of the Spice Coast' by Mrs K M Mathew, which I got as a giveaway from Sig, who seems to be missing from the blog world for some time now. I really miss reading her posts. You may also want to try this theeyal, another great recipe from this book.

Erissery
Recipe adapted from Flavours of the Spice Coast by Mrs K M Mathew

What you need -

1/4 cup black eyed beans (soaked in water for at least 2-3 hours)
2 cups water
2 cups chopped pumpkin
1/2 cup grated coconut
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp chilli powder
2-3 cloves of garlic
salt to taste
For seasoning -
1 tsp oil (Use coconut oil for a more authentic taste)
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp chopped onion
a few curry leaves
2 red chillies, broken in half
1 tsp grated coconut

What you do with it -

Pressure cook the black eyed beans. Should get done in two whistles.
Steam cook the pumpkin pieces alng with a little turmeric
Combine the pumpkin and black eyed beans in a pan
Coarsely grind the grated coconut, turmeric powder, garlic cloves and chilli powder
Add this to the pumpkin and beans, along with a little salt
Bring to a slow boil, so the spice paste blends well and turn off the heat
Heat oil in a small pan and splutter the mustard seeds
Add the chopped onions, red chillies and curry leaves
Add grated coconut and sauté till the coconut turns slightly brown
Pour this seasoning into the pan
Serve hot with rice and sambar or rasam