Growing up in the state of Tamilnadu, I was always a fan of their curries and kurmas! My favorite is this Tamil style vegetable kurma and Tomato Sambar or Thakkali Sambar! But the one dish I used to crave for along with vegetable kurma was the vegetable salna that they normally serve with parottas or flaky, layered flour parathas! When Swaty Malik of this amazing food blog called “Foodtrails25.com” (where you can find awesome bakes and cuisines highlighted in her stories) suggested festive curries as the theme for our current bimonthly food adventure in our Facebook group “Healthy Wellthy Cuisines” I was ecstatic as this south Indian delight Vegetable Salna fitted perfectly into the theme! Dipping those flaky bits of parottas in spicy salna is to die for! Traditionally, they use some fresh coconut which is blended with some typical spices like fennel seeds, mace, cloves etc. but as a quicker and easier option, I have used canned coconut milk!
To make for a more interesting twist in flavor, I have used an aromatic Bengali spice mix called “Panch Phoran”, a mixture of 5 spices – cumin, fennel, mustard, onion seeds and fenugreek seeds, typically used in Bengali cuisine. You could make your own Panch Phoran by mixing equal amount of these 5 spices! Like I do while making most of my curries, I reached out to my favorite kitchen helpers, the Indian pressure cooker and my electric instant pot! I love the whole process of cooking; the blending, sauteing, frying etc. but sometimes, I just want something quick, yet delicious without too much time spent slaving over a hot stove! That is when I decide to just dump all the ingredients in one pan (my pressure pan) and let all the spices, flavors and veggies do their magic!
So, to make this sumptuous and divine curry, all you have to do is layer the ingredients mentioned into the pressure cooker/instant pot and cook for just about 5 minutes! That is it! I could not believe that slaving over a hot stove for 30 to 40 minutes is sometimes all that necessary! Do try my method of making this curry and I am sure you will agree too! Enjoy and Happy Cooking!
Here are some more easy one-pot pressure cooker dishes you may like:
Pressure Cooker Sambar Sadam/Rice Pressure Cooker Chole Masala Pressure Cooker Aloo Gobi Pressure Cooker Matar Paneer Masala
Check out how to make this lip-smacking, one-pot Pressure Cooker Vegetable Salna:
STEP-WISE INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE PRESSURE COOKER VEGETABLE SALNA:
Mix spices to make Panch Phoran mix. Cook Time: 5 minutes
SPICE MIX (to be powdered): 3 cloves 2 cardamoms 1 tsp Bengali Panch Phoran/5-spice powder – recipe below ½ inch cinnamon 2 small pieces of mace OTHER INGREDIENTS: 15 almonds, powdered with skin (or use cashews) 2 tbsp oil (coconut or any other cooking oil) 1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds 1 medium onion, sliced 1 green chilli/jalapeno/Serrano, slit into 2 lengthwise 1 tsp ginger, grated 1 tsp garlic grated 2 small tomatoes, finely chopped 1 tbsp coriander powder ½ tsp haldi/turmeric powder 1 to 2 tsp red chilli powder (Kashmiri powder or any mild flavored chilli powder) 3 tbsp chopped coriander leaves/cilantro 1 tsp mint leaves (optional) 2 cups chopped veggies – peas, carrots, green beans, potatoes etc. 1 ½ cups coconut milk 1 cup water 1 tsp salt FOR PANCH PHORAN MIX: 1 tsp mustard seeds 1 tsp Nigella seeds (kalonji or onion seeds) 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp fennel seeds/saunf ½ to 1 tsp methi/fenugreek seeds GARNISH: Freshly chopped coriander leaves/cilantro
Instructions Notes You can add any vegetable you like. Instead of coconut milk, you could blend the spices with some grated coconut and then use. Chop vegetables, powder spice mix (mentioned under ingredients) and almonds (separately); set aside. INSTANT POT METHOD: Turn the instant pot to saute mode and add oil. Start layering the ingredients: Add the spices (jeera, spice mix), green chilies and curry leaves. Spread the sliced onions on top of this mixture and then top with grated ginger and garlic.
Gently top with chopped tomatoes and chopped cilantro. Then sprinkle the spice powders on top: coriander, red chili and haldi powders.
Place the chopped vegetables on top (spread evenly) and then pour the coconut milk over the whole mixture. If needed, add some water. Add salt to taste and the powdered almonds,
Once all the ingredients have been added, ; give it a good mix to combine well.
Cancel the saute button. Close the lid, adjust to seal and then pressure cook on low pressure for 5 minutes. Quick Release pressure and open the pot. Do a taste test and adjust seasonings if needed. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with parathas, parottas, naan, roti or even enjoy with some jeera/cumin rice, pulao, biryani or even plain rice! The color of the kurma will depend upon the color of the red chili used; so sometimes they will be deep red and sometimes mildly colored.
PRESSURE COOKER METHOD: Heat the pressure pan on medium to medium low heat. Add oil and start layering the ingredients as mentioned above. I have added 2 tsp of Kashmiri red chili powder here instead of 1 tsp as in above. Close the lid of the pressure pan and cook on medium heat for 2 whistles. Remove from stove and let pressure drop naturally. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with parathas, parottas, naan, roti or even enjoy with some jeera rice or even plain rice!
Make it in a regular pressure cooker or in an electric pressure cooker, the instant pot, either way, you are in a for a lip smacking and mouthwatering treat! Enjoy and Happy Eating!
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I am sharing this with our Facebook Gourmet group “Healthy Wellthy Cuisines” where the theme this time is “Festive Curries”! Do check out these other festive curries shared by other members of the gourmet team:
Stuffed Parwal Curry by Sasmita Paneer Do Pyaaza by Shalu Shahi Paneer Kofta Curry by Swaty Vathal Kuzhumbu by Narmada
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