Kovakka Mezhukkupuratti / Tindora Fry

I never had Kovakka from home. My mom and aunts used to have raw kovakka directly pluck from the garden and I used to run away when they asked me to taste one. But I started loving it after I had it from the Andra Restaurant in Kochi – Chillies. Their recipe was same as what my mom did at home. But they had a spicy preparation, well fried in excess oil. They even had a combination of kovakka with green peas. I used to go there with my friend every other Saturday, just to have this side dish. I just tried my mom’s recipe making it a bit spicy but sacrificed the excess oil thinking about the healthy side of it. I shall update the post once I try the combination with green peas.

Ingredients:

Kovakka                                 --    250 gm

Shallots                                    --    2 small ones

Onion                                      --    ¼ of a small one

Turmeric powder                 --   ¼ tsp

Chilly powder                        --   ½ tsp

Pepper powder                     --   ¼ tsp

Mustard seeds                       --    ½ tsp

Red chillies                             --    2

Curry Leaves                         --   few

Oil                                            --   3 tbsp

Salt                                          --   to taste 

Preparation of Mezhukkupuratti:

Chop the kovakka into required size. Heat the oil in a pan. Add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Add the red chillies broken into small pieces. Then add the chopped onions, shallots, green chillies and curry leaves. Once the onions become translucent, add turmeric powder and chilly powder. Fry it for 2 minutes. Now add the chopped kovakka and mix it well. Close the pan and let it cook for another 5 -6 min. Open the lid and sauté it at every 1 minute interval and make sure that it doesn’t burn. Once it is cooked well, add pepper powder and fry for few more minutes.

Recipe Courtesy: Amma