Poriyal is a South Indian delicacy which is a side dish to rice. Rice is the main food of Southern India, and Poriyal is prepared by boiling roasted coconut with a sauce of tamarind, clarified, and sesame seeds in a partially covered banana leaf. The basic ingredients required for preparing a portal are coconut meat, clarified coconut oil, tamarind sauce, and sesame seeds. These ingredients are easily available in a local store or you can also prepare this dish at home.
Many people prefer to prepare this dish at home because of its nutritious and delicious ingredients. This is also one of the most popular dishes in the South Indian cuisine. It can be prepared for two persons, or it can be cooked for many people depending on your choice. The amount of spice to be added in this dish will depend on your taste buds.
To make this dish, you will require washed coconut, one inch thick, cut into uniform pieces. Using a kitchen strainer, separate the meat from the skin. Add the coconut meat to the steamer, which is filled with water. Place this steamer over medium heat so that the steam permeates through all the parts of the portal. Once the portal begins to boil, add in the clarified coconut oil and wait until its contents start to boil again.
While the ingredients are cooking, you can prepare the rest of the ingredients required for making the delicious side dish. Once the ingredients are boil, add in the rice and mix them properly. While the ingredients are cooking, ensure that the lid is placed over the steamer. Once the ingredients are completely cooked, remove the lid and add in the sugar and fried shallots.
Poriyal can be prepared with or without fried onions. The Fried onions give a different taste to the portal but not as much as those that you would get if you have eaten the peeled or chopped onions. To enhance the flavor even more, you can sprinkle generous amounts of the clarified chutney over the finished Poriyal. It not only enhances the flavor but also adds a lot of zing to the portal.
You will not be able to replicate the delicious flavor of this portal once you have made it at home. It needs to be tasted to be enjoyed and so make sure that you take enough time to experiment. Remember that Poriyal is one of the must try recipes in your new Indian curries recipe book.