Vegetable Curry with Coconut Milk, popularly known as valval, is a Konkani dish from Mangalore prepared using a mixture of seasonal vegetables and coconut milk. This tastes best when served with steamed rice and konkani dalithoy.
About the recipe
Valval is a simple and easy-to-make recipe from Konkani cuisine where the mixture of seasonal vegetables is cooked in coconut milk, and then basic tempering is added. The final outcome is an aromatic curry with combined flavors from the sweetness of coconut milk and a mixture of veggies.
This vegetable dish is vegan, gluten-free, and has no onion and no garlic. Thus it is popularly prepared during the gowri ganesh chaturthi festival and Navratri vrat days.
Valval vs. Vegetable Stew
- Valval and Vegetable stew are both popular South Indian coconut milk-based curries with few differences.
- Valval is a Konkani Managlorean-style curry, while the vegetable stew is a Kerala-style curry.
- The type of vegetables that we add to the stew is different from that of Valval.
- Valval is prepared with minimal tempering, while whole garam masala spices are used to make vegetable stew.
Ingredients
To make this vegetable curry with coconut milk, you need seasonal vegetables, coconut milk, flour, and Indian standard tempering.
Vegetables: This konkani dish tastes the best with more veggies you add. Some traditional vegetables that are added include pumpkin(dudde), sweet potato (kananaga), potato, ash gourd (gardudde), ivy gourd (tendle), Mangalore cucumber(magge), long beans (alsando), green beans, capsicum (donnemirsanga), Indian yam (surnu), raw banana (kele).
Coconut milk: Fresh homemade coconut milk tastes the best. But you can even use the store-bought ones.
Flour: It is used to make it thick and creamy. If you want to avoid flour completely, then blend the cashew with coconut milk and add it to the gravy.
Tempering: Traditionally, coconut oil is used along with cumin seeds, mustard, curry leaves, and red chilies.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Step-by-step instructions
Cut the vegetables
- I have used pumpkin, potatoes, sweet potato, ivy gourd (tendle), carrot, pumpkin, yellow cucumber (magge), and capsicum in my recipe today.
- Wash and chop the vegetables to the desired shape. I have chopped all the vegetables in cubes except the carrot, which is chopped into circles.
How to make vegetables in coconut milk
- Add the chopped pumpkin, sweet potato, potato, carrot, cashews, and water so that the vegetables are just covered, and bring it to a nice boil for about 5 minutes.
- Add ivy gourd, yellow cucumber, green chilies, capsicum, and 1 ½ cups of coconut milk, and bring this again to a nice boil and cook on low flame until the vegetables become soft and are cooked through. We are adding vegetables that take a longer time to cook first.
- Add all-purpose flour to the remaining coconut milk in a bowl and whisk to avoid lumps.
- Add this to the gravy and salt to taste, bring it to a nice boil, and simmer for another 2 to 3 minutes. Keep stirring it to avoid it burning from the bottom.
Make the tempering
Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the red chile and curry leaves. Switch off the flame. Add this tempering to the gravy.
Serve valval or vegetable curry in coconut milk with dalitoy and steamed rice for a complete Konkani vegetarian meal.
Tips
- Flour is added so that the curry has a thick and creamy consistency, and it blends everything well. To skip flour, I sometimes grind 5 to 6 cashews with coconut milk to make a rich and thick paste and add it to the gravy. Make sure all the veggies are evenly cooked.
- Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for two days—just reheat before serving. And believe me, this vegetable curry is one of them that tastes good the day after it is prepared as the flavor of vegetables gets infused with coconut milk.
- Because of the addition of coconut milk, I would not recommend freezing this dish.
- The heat in this vegetable curry with coconut milk comes from green chilies. Add based on how spicy you like the dish.
Recipe FAQs
Fresh coconut milk will give you the best and most authentic flavor. But if you are not able to make it at home canned thick coconut milk can be used to make any curry.
You can adjust the spiciness of the dish based on the amount of green chilies you add.
The best combination would be with steamed rice for a complete vegetarian meal, But feel free to serve with any flatbreads like naan, roti, chapati.
More Coconut Milk based recipes
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Recipe card
Vegetable Curry with Coconut Milk | Konkani Valval Recipe
Equipment
- Pot
Ingredients
6 cups Vegetables any combination of your choice from the list given below taste the best (Adjust the amount based on vegetables available)
- Pumpkin dudde
- Carrot
- Capsicum bell peppers
- Potatoes batato
- Long beans alsando
- Beans
- Sweet Potatoes kananga
- Ash gourd kuvale
- Ivy gourd tendli
- Mangalore cucumber magge
- Raw banana kele
- Indian yam surnu
Other Ingredients
- 10 to 15 Cashews, slit
- 3 to 4 Green chilies, slit
- 3 cups Coconut milk divided
- 1 tablespoon All-purpose flour / Maida Use rice flour for the gluten-free version or read tips for alternative
- Salt to taste
Tempering
- 1 tablespoon Coconut oil use any cooking oil, ghee or butter
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 1 sprig Curry leaves
- 2 Dried red chile
Instructions
Cut the vegetables
- I have used pumpkin, potatoes, sweet potato, ivy gourd (tendle), carrot, pumpkin, yellow cucumber (magge), and capsicum in my recipe today.Pumpkin, Carrot, Capsicum, Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Ivy gourd, Mangalore cucumber
- Wash and chop the vegetables to the desired shape. I have chopped all the vegetables in cubes except the carrot, which is chopped into circles.
How to make vegetables in coconut milk?
- Add the chopped pumpkin, sweet potato, potato, carrot, cashews, and water so that the vegetables are just covered, and bring it to a nice boil for about 5 minutes.10 to 15 Cashews, slit
- Add ivy gourd, yellow cucumber, green chilies, capsicum, and 1 ½ cups of coconut milk, and bring this again to a nice boil and cook on low flame until the vegetables become soft and are cooked through. We are adding vegetables that take a longer time to cook first.3 to 4 Green chilies, slit, 3 cups Coconut milk
- Add all-purpose flour to the remaining coconut milk in a bowl and whisk to avoid lumps.3 cups Coconut milk, 1 tablespoon All-purpose flour / Maida
- Add this to the gravy and salt to taste, bring it to a nice boil, and simmer for another 2 to 3 minutes. Keep stirring it to avoid it burning from the bottom.Salt to taste
Make the tempering
- Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the red chile and curry leaves. Switch off the flame. Add this tempering to the gravy.1 tablespoon Coconut oil, 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds, 1 sprig Curry leaves, 2 Dried red chile
- Serve valval or vegetable curry in coconut milk with dalitoy and steamed rice for a complete Konkani vegetarian meal.
Notes
- Flour is added so that the curry has a thick and creamy consistency, and it blends everything well. To skip flour, I sometimes grind 5 to 6 cashews with coconut milk to make a rich and thick paste and add it to the gravy. Make sure all the veggies are evenly cooked.
- Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for two days—just reheat before serving. And believe me, this vegetable curry is one of them that tastes good the day after it is prepared as the flavor of vegetables gets infused with coconut milk.
- Because of the addition of coconut milk, I would not recommend freezing this dish.
- The heat in this vegetable curry with coconut milk comes from green chilies. Add based on how spicy you like the dish.
Nutrition
Note: We originally posted this recipe in Oct 2015. It has now been modified in July 2023 with Expert Chef Tips, FAQs, calories, Recipe Maker, Storage Instructions, etc.
Puneet
Love the recipe kushi!!
I love anything with coconut and this looks so delicious!!
Kushi
Thank you Puneet 🙂
Traditionallymodernfood
Coconut based dishes r always winner in our home.. This looks like Aviyal..yum yym
Kushi
Thank you Vidya 🙂
Nalini Somayaji
Good combination of vegetables and coconut milk ..looks yummy...
Kushi
Thank you Nalini 🙂
Spiceindiaonline
Vegetable stew looks comforting, and slurrrrrp will vanish with a bowl of hot rice!
Kushi
Thank you dear 🙂
Abida
Hi Kushi, love the look of this warming veggie dish. Perfect for our current weather! I have featured this recipe on my weekly round up here http://www.theredlychee.com/weekly-round-up-4/
Kushi
Thank you so much dear 🙂