Arbi Curry

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.
~ Marcel Proust

Some of the dishes are an accidental discovery, they tend to be the best recipes. Arbi (aka taro root/colocasia) has a texture similar to potatoes, but sticky when cooked. It has a very sweet smell. I rarely cook arbi. Have been following one recipe for a long time now, where I marinate the cooked pieces in a masala paste for few mins and fry them in lil oil. Once while making this curry, I was pre occupied and didn’t pay attention to what I was doing with arbi. I did not marinate the arbi and cooked it by sprinkling the powders used for marinating. This made the curry very dry. So I came up with the recipe to use up the cooked arbi and turned it into a curry. This tastes tangy and spicy. Since then this dish has replaced the dry curry in my kitchen.

 

Ingredients

arbi/taro root 5
oil 4 tsp + 2 tsp
jeera 1 tsp
mustard seeds 1 tsp
methi seeds 1/4 tsp
kadhipatha/curry leaves 10
onion 1, cut into thin long slices
garlic 5 pods, finely chopped
green chili 2, slit
tomato 1, finely cut
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
coriander/dhaniya powder 1 1/2 tsp
red chilli powder 3/4 tsp
salt to taste
yogurt 1/2 cup (plain/greek)
water 1 cup or more

Method

Cook arbi in water for 6 mins with the skin in microwave oven.
Let it cool, peel the skin and cut into pieces.
Optional step:Heat 2 tsp oil in a pan, add the arbi/taro pieces, sprinkle 1/2 tsp red chili powder, 1/2 tsp coriander/dhaniya powder and toast it for 4-5 mins. Set aside.
Heat oil in a pan, add the jeera and mustard seeds.
As it splutters, add the methi seeds and curry leaves.
Add the onions, garlic and sauté till onion is translucent.
Add the slit green chili, turmeric powder, chopped tomato, dhaniya powder, salt and red chili powder.
Cook for 5 mins or till tomatoes are slightly mushy.
Stir in the yogurt, add the pieces of arbi.
Mix well and let boil on medium flame for 5-8 mins. If the curry looks dry add some water and stir.
Note: arbi tends to absorb a lot of the liquid we don’t need to add any thickening agent.
Serve hot with roti or rice.

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