Did you know that coconut palms are probably the most productive plantation crop in the world? Almost every part of the plant is used - leaves and wood for building; husks as fuel, insulating material and fertilizer; sap for producing alcoholic drinks (toddy, fenni, arak); oil for cooking, making cosmetics and in various industrial processes; and of course the flesh and milk from the nut is used in so many tasty sweet and savoury dishes. Here's one of mine.
This recipe has a heavy Goan influence - it tastes and smells very exotic.
Ingredients
1 medium cauliflower, leaves discarded, cut into florets
A handful of fresh green beans (chopped) or green peas (shelled)
1 small onion finely chopped
A few chopped almonds (optional)
2 medium tomatoes chopped
1 or 2 green chillies finely chopped
2 cm piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and chopped
1 tsp. Whole coriander seeds
3/4 tsp. Whole mustard seeds (black preferably but yellow is okay)
1/2 tsp. Turmeric powder
1 cup of thick coconut milk
Vegetable oil for frying
A pinch of salt
Use a big, deep frying pan for this so that everything fits into it and stays there until it's cooked. If you don't have a lid, find something - a plate for example - which will cover the pan.
Heat a little oil in the pan until and when it's hot, throw in the seeds. A few seconds later, add the ginger, chillies, almonds and onion and stir. Lift the pan off the heat if it seems a bit too hot. After a few minutes of cooking, add the cauliflower florets and stir till they're covered in oil, seeds etc. Fry for a further five minutes or so until the cauliflower has a few brown patches here and there, then add the tomatoes, green beans (or peas), turmeric and salt. Stir and cover the pan. Turn the heat down a little and cook until the cauliflower is soft enough to stick a fork in but not falling apart. (You may have to add a little water during the cooking but do so sparingly). When you have reached this stage, it's time to add the coconut milk. Pour it in, stir it around and take the pan off the heat as soon as the sauce starts to bubble - it's ready.
Garnish with a little chopped green coriander, if you have it, and serve with rice or bread.