Egg Drop Curry with Coconut Milk

A quick and simple curry with coconut milk and eggs dropped in the curry and simmered and cooked. We usually either hard boil the eggs and add it to the curry or just add the raw eggs into the curry. I prefer the second version as the white of the yolk which cooks in the gravy imparts a more flavorful curry.

Ingredients:

Eggs – 3 or 4

Bay leaf – 2 pieces

Garlic – 8 cloves sliced lengthwise

Tomatoes – 2 medium

Green chillie – 1

Curry leaf – 1/2 sprig

Onion – 1 1/2 chopped

Coriander leaves – 1 tbsp

Coriander Powder – 1 tsp

Red chillie powder – 1 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp

Thin coconut milk – 1 1/2 cups

Thick coconut milk – 1 cup

Lime juice – 1/2 tsp (optional)

Oil – 1tbsp

Salt – to taste

Making Coconut Milk

  1. Coarsely grind 2 1/2 cups grated coconut with 1 cup lukewarm water in a mixer. Pass the ground mixture through a strainer and squeeze out the milk. 1 cup thick coconut milk can be extracted from this. Luke warm water helps you to extract coconut milk well.

2. Grind the same 2 1/2 cups coconut with 1 1/2 cup luke warm water. Pass the ground coconut mixture through a strainer and squeeze out the water. One and a half cup thin/medium thick coconut milk can be prepared from this.

3. I have used the coconut milk powder available in the market and mixed it with water for the thick and thin consistency. You would need 3 tbsp of powder for 1 cup of water for thick milk and 2 tbsp of coconut milk powder for 1 1/2 cups of water for think milk consistency).

Preparation:

Heat oil in a pan. When it becomes hot, add the bay leaves and the chopped garlic and onions and let it become slightly golden in colour. Then, add the tomatoes, curry leaves and the green chillie and saute for 2 minutes. Next, begin by adding chillie powder, coriander powder followed by turmeric powder. Sprinkle a little water and saute well until the raw smell goes away. Next add, the thin coconut milk and boil on low flame for 4-5 minutes. Keeping the flame on low, add salt to the curry. Take an egg and break it and drop it into the curry gently. Break the remaining eggs into two and drop all the eggs into the curry gently and do not stir. Close the lid and let it boil.

If you like it fully cooked, close and keep for 3 -4 minutes. If you want it soft boiled, cook it for only a minute.

Lastly, add the thick coconut milk to the curry and gently stir it so as to not break the eggs. Boil it just once and put off the flame. Add coriander leaves and serve. If you wish, you may add a few drops of lime juice at the end.

Palak Paneer

A spinach and cottage cheese curry which pairs well with naan, parathas, chappatis or rice. You can also substitute paneer with tofu, if one is allergic to diary products.

Ingredients:

Spinach/Palak chopped- 2 bunches

Onion – 2 finely chopped

Ginger – 1 inch piece

Garlic -3 cloves

Tomato – 2 big

Green chillies chopped- 2

Jeera – 1 tsp

Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp

Red chillie power – 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp

Garam masala powder – less than 1/4 tsp

Cottage cheese or paneer (cubed) – 250 gms

Cream – 2 tbsp (optional)

Oil – 1 tbsp

Butter – 1 tsp

Preparation:

Clean the palak, drain it in a colander and chop it. In a big vessel, add the chopped palak with tender stems and green chillies, just about 2 tbsp of water and close the lid and cook it. Take it off the fire when it is almost 3/4 cooked. Do not let the greens change its bright green colour. Cool it and grind it in a blender coarsely. Make sure it is not a very fine paste.

In another pan, melt the butter and saute the paneer until it starts to turn golden brown. Keep it aside.

In the same pan, add little oil. When hot, add jeera, finely chopped ginger and the finely chopped garlic, finely chopped onions and saute well. In goes the tomatoes next, followed by the red chillie powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder and the turmeric powder.

Saute well for 2 minutes and then add the paneer to it, followed by the ground palak mixture. Add salt and let it boil for 10 minutes. You may add cream and mix it or skip it, if you do not want it.