Kerala Veg Stew

This Kerala Vegetable Stew is a simple and hearty recipe that’s made with an assortment of veggies, coconut milk, ariomatics and spices. Serve this the classic way along with appams or pour it over a bowl of steamed rice – it’s going to be delicious either way. 

Love South Indian food? Check out my South Indian Style Egg Curry, Mushroom Pepper Fry, Chutneys for Idli & Dosa, and Millet Mysore Masala Dosa recipes!

This feel-good Kerala Vegetable Stew takes no more than 25 minutes to come together and can be made with whatever veggies you have on hand. It is the vegetarian version of my Kerala Mutton Stew (Ishtu), and is a fragrant, nutty stew made with tender braised vegetables. Because of the classic combination of appam and stew, we also call this dish Appam Stew – and it makes for a greatttt Sunday breakfast if you ask me! 

The best part about this veg stew is that you could make it for lunch or dinner and it’s still a pretty perfect meal. Serve it along with rice, idiyappams, or even malabar parotta; basically anything that you can use to soak up that coconut-rich broth!

Ingredients You'll Need To Make Kerala Vegetable Stew

Frequently Asked Questions

What vegetables are good in stew?

I find that any mild-flavoured veggie works best in a Kerala Veg Stew. Carrots, peas, potatoes, beans, baby corn etc are great additions. You could honestly add whatever veggies you have on hand. But note that some vegetables have a stronger flavor of their own which can overpower the delicate notes of this dish. 

What is the difference between Veg Korma, Veg Kurma, and Veg Stew?

Veg Korma is a North Indian curry that’s made with veggies and a thick yogurt base. Where as veg kurma is a South Indian curry from Chennai and is made with a thick masala of grated coconut, cashew nuts, and poppy seeds. 
Veg Stew, on the other hand, originates in Kerala and is a vegetable curry that’s braised with thick and thin coconut milk. It is lighter in consistency – drinkable and soakable rather than scoopable like Veg Korma and Kurma. 

How to thicken veg stew? 

Adding thick coconut milk and allowing it to stew towards the end of this recipe is an important step. It helps achieve a nice thickness that can be perfectly soaked up with appams. 

Can I use frozen vegetables for this recipe?

Absolutely! This recipe is very forgiving and both fresh and frozen veggies work beautifully.

Richa’s Top Tricks To Make The Best Kerala Veg Stew

1. Coconut Milk
   1. This recipe calls for 1 ¼ cup thick coconut milk, out of which we dilute a portion to make thin coconut milk. Both thick and thin coconut milk are used in this recipe. 
   2. If you are making coconut milk at home, the first extract will be thick coconut milk. The second and third extracts will be thin coconut milk. For store-bought coconut milk or cream, thin it out by diluting it with water (outlined in the recipe card). 
   3. Cooking the veggies in thin coconut milk adds an authentic flavor to this dish, and would definitely recommend it.
2. Oil
   1. I’ve used coconut oil for this recipe which is key for this Veg Stew recipe – don’t sub this for any neutral-flavored oil. 

This Kerala Style Veg Stew will make a routine feature to your Sunday morning brunches once you try it. It’s mild, it’s light, it’s fragrant – it’s everything you’d want in a comfort meal. If you make this, do send me your recreations over on my IG!

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Kerala Veg Stew

This Kerala Veg Stew is comfort in a bowl. It's a super simple yet delicious recipe that's mildly spiced and the perfect vehicle to dip dosas and appams in. It's usually served as breakfast, but can be eaten for lunch as well as dinner.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Diet Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 239kcal

Author Richa

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons coconut oil divided
• 5 whole peppercorns
• 2 green chillies slit
• 1 ” ginger julienned or thinly sliced lenghtwise
• ⅓ cup sliced onions
• ½ cup cubed potatoes approx ½ inch
• ¼ cup cubed carrots approx ½ inch
• ¼ cup cut beans approx ½ inch
• ¼ cup shelled peas fresh or frozen
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ¼ cup thick coconut milk
• 10 curry leaves
• ¾ cup water
• 1" cinnamon stick

Instructions

• Heat 1 teaspoon of coconut oil in a heavy bottomed pot. Add cinnamon & pepper corns and saute for 30 seconds.
  2 teaspoons coconut oil, 5 whole peppercorns, 1" cinnamon stick
• Add green chillies & ginger. Saute for another 30 seconds.
  2 green chillies, 1 ” ginger
• Add onions & saute till onions soften and turn translucent.
  ⅓ cup sliced onions
• Add all the vegetables, salt & cook for 2 minutes.
  ½ cup cubed potatoes, ¼ cup cubed carrots, ¼ cup cut beans, ¼ cup shelled peas, ½ teaspoon salt
• Add ¼ cup coconut milk & ¾ cup of water and bring this to a boil. Then turn down the flame and simmer for 12-15 minutes till the veggies are tender.
  1 ¼ cup thick coconut milk, ¾ cup water
• Add the remaining thick coconut milk and curry leaves & bring to a quick boil.
  10 curry leaves
• Turn off the heat & top it up with the remaining 1 teaspoon of coconut oil. Serve hot with Appam.

Notes

1. This recipe works well with frozen vegetables also if fresh vegetables are not available.
2. Cut all the vegetable to the same size so they cook evenly.
3. Use the best quality coconut milk that's available to you. It's where all the flavour is. 

Nutrition

Calories: 239kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 388mg | Potassium: 402mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1552IU | Vitamin C: 66mg | Calcium: 47mg | Iron: 2mg

More South Indian Dishes To Check Out

• Andhra Chilli Chicken
• Stuffed Brinjal Curry
• Kerala Style Prawn Green Curry
• South Indian Style Egg Curry
• Mushroom Pepper Fry

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