veg kolhapuri recipe, how to make veg kolhapuri recipe

veg kolhapuri – step by step recipe of spicy vegetable kolhapuri.

this vegetable based dish has its origin in kolhapur, a historical city in south maharashtra. kolhapuri cuisine is known for its hot, spicy and pungent flavors. however, not all the food from the kolhapuri cuisine is spicy & robust.

i have been to kolhapur many times and have got the opportunity to savor the authentic vegetarian kolhapuri cuisine. from the spicy vada pav on the roadside to chili pitla (spicy gram flour based dish) and the famous & fiery kolhapuri misal (sprouted moth beans curry). we have also had kolhapuri dal and it was a spicy dal. one of the best lentil dishes, i had was whole masoor (called as aakha masoor). on occasions we even had kolhapuri thalis there.

last time, on a visit there, i got the kolhapuri kanda lasun masala (onion-garlic masala). this spice blend is so good that it simply perks up the flavor of the recipe in which it is added. i have added it many times to vegetables and dal (lentils) dishes.

in kolhapur, i never came across vegetable kolhapuri. at least in the restaurants and hotels we stayed and went, there was never a mention of this particular dish. though i have seen it in north indian restaurants.

this recipe of veg kolhapuri is inspired from one of the dishes from the kolhapuri cuisine – tambda rassa. tambda means 'red' and rassa means 'thin curry or gravy'. tambda rassa is actually a non vegetarian dish which make use of the bold and fiery kolhapuri masala. one of the ingredients of the authentic kolhapuri masala is red chili powder made from lavangi chilies. these chilies are small, but very hot.

for this recipe, i have toned down the fieriness by not using lavangi mirchi. instead i have added byadagi chilies, which give a deep color and are low in heat. you can also add kashmiri red chilies. so depending on the type of red chili added, you can increase or decrease the heat and spice in this dish.

the kolhapuri masala is freshly made for the curry. so you don't need to have ready made store bought kolhapuri masala. though, if you have it, i have mentioned the amount in the recipe details, towards the end of the post. for the kolhapuri masala, i referred to some of the cookbooks, which i got from kolhapur

add any veggies of your choice. vegetable kolhapuri is best served with chapatis, phulkas and even parathas. we even had it with bread. the recipe is spicy and has some heat which most indians can tolerate. but if you do not prefer spicy food, then cut down on the dry red chilies.

on a side note, whenever you visit kolhapur, do make a point to visit the most revered mahalakshmi temple, which is one of the shaktipeethas in maharashtra. you can also visit siddhagiri or kaneri math, kopeshwar (lord shiva temple), narsobawadi (lord dattatreya temple on the confluence of rivers krishna & panchganga), jyotiba temple and rankala lake. we visited all except kopeshwar.

please note that some of the pics are taken in tungsten lighting in the kitchen. hence you will see a yellow hue on some pics.

lets start step by step veg kolhapuri recipe:

1. first rinse, peel and cut the veggies in thick strips or batons. place them in a steamer pan.

2. then steam the veggies in an electric cooker, steamer or pressure cooker.

3. the veggies have to be completely cooked and yet retain their shape.

4. when the veggies are steaming, gather all the ingredients required for making kolhapuri masala. listed below all the ingredients for pictorial purpose. please note if you don't have stone flower (patthar phool) and cobra's saffron (nagkesar) then its fine. you can also skip poppy seeds (khus khus) as its not available in some countries.

5. heat a pan and dry roast the spices first – cinnamon, cloves, black peppers, coriander, cumin, stone flower, tej patta, nagkesar (c0bra's saffron), red chilies, nutmeg powder, green cardamoms and black cardamom seeds.

ingredients for kolhapuri masala

6. once the spices become fragrant, then add poppy seeds, sesame seeds and desiccated coconut.

roast spices to make kolhapuri masala

7. stir continuously and dry roast till the coconut gets golden.

8. once the spices mixture cools, then take them in a dry grinder or coffee grinder.

9. grind to a fine powder. a slight semi fine powder is also fine. the sesame seeds & coconut will release oil while grinding. so you have to scrape the sides of the masala and grind. if difficult to grind, then add some water and make a fine paste.

10. heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions.

11. saute the onions till they are light golden or golden.

12. add ginger and garlic paste.

13. stir and then add chopped coriander leaves. stir and saute till the raw aroma of the ginger garlic goes away.

14. next add chopped tomatoes. saute till the tomatoes soften and you see oil leaving the sides.

15. add turmeric powder, red chili powder and asafoetida.

16. stir and then add chopped bell pepper/caspiscum. you can also skip capsicum if you prefer.

17. stir and saute till the capsicum is about cooked and yet having a slight crunch.

18. add the ground kolhapuri masala.

19. stir and then add water. season with salt.

20. bring the curry to a simmer.

21. when you see some oil floating on top, add the steamed veggies.

22. stir and simmer for a minute. the consistency of the curry is slightly thin. check the taste and add more salt if required. if there is less salt, the flavor and taste of the spices does not come through.

23. lastly add chopped coriander leaves and give a final stir. you can also garnish veg kolhapuri with the coriander leaves.

24. serve vegetable kolhapuri with soft phulkas or parathas. you can also serve this spicy veg curry with bread and steamed rice.

if you are looking for more veg curry recipes then do check goan vegetable curry, vegetable korma, potato peas korma, tomato curry and mushroom matar makhani recipe.

step by step veg kolhapuri recipe below:

veg kolhapuri recipe

Total time

1 hour 20 mins

veg kolhapuri recipe - spicy mix vegetable curry from kolhapuri cuisine.

Author: dassana

Recipe type: main

Cuisine: mahrashtrian

Serves: 4

Ingredients (american measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)

for kolhapuri masala:

1 tsp white sesame seeds/safed til
½ tsp poppy seeds/khus khus
2 tbsp desiccated coconut/nariyal ka boora
4 to 5 black pepper/kali mirch
1 tsp coriander seeds/dhania
½ tsp cumin seeds/jeera
1 inch cinnamon/dalchini
2 cloves/lavang
2 single strands of mace/javitri
4 to 5 fenugreek seeds/methi dana
a pinch grated nutmeg/jaiphal
1 small stone flower/patthar phool/dadad phool (optional)
1 nagkesar/cobra's saffron (optional)
1 green cardamom/hari elaichi
seeds of 1 black cardamom/badi elaichi
3 byadagi/bedgi red chilies or kashmiri red chilies
1 medium indian bay leaf/tej patta

other ingredients:

½ cup potato sticks or batons, 1 medium potato/aloo
¼ cup french beans batons, 8 to 10 french beans
⅓ cup chopped cauliflower florets/gobi
⅓ cup green peas/matar
⅓ third cup carrot sticks or batons. 2 small carrots or 1 medium carrot/gajar
⅓ third cup sliced bell pepper/shimla mirch, 1 medium bell pepper/capsicum (green or yellow or red)
1 medium tomato, ¼ cup finely chopped tomatoes/tamatar
1 large onion, ½ cup finely chopped onions/pyaz
5 garlic + 1 inch ginger, crushed to paste in a mortar-pestle, about ¾ tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves/dhania ke patte
½ tsp red chilli powder/lal mirch powder
¼ tsp turmeric powder/haldi powder
a pinch of asafoetida/hing
1 to 1.25 cups water
2 to 2.5 tbsp oil
some coriander leaves for garnishing
salt as required

Instructions

prepping up:

first rinse, peel and cut the veggies in thick strips or batons. place them in a steamer pan.
then steam in an electric cooker, steamer or pressure cooker.
the veggies have to be completely cooked and yet retain their shape.
when the veggies are steaming, gather all the ingredients required for making kolhapuri masala.
heat a pan and on a low flame dry roast the spices - cinnamon, cloves, black peppers, coriander, cumin, stone flower, pinch of nutmeg powder, tej patta, nagkesar (cobra's saffron), red chilies, green cardamoms and black cardamom seeds. skip stone flower, nagkesar and poppy seeds, if you don't have these.
once the spices become fragrant, then add poppy seeds, sesame seeds and desiccated coconut.
stir continuously and dry roast till the desiccated coconut gets golden.
once the spice mixture cools, then take them in a dry grinder or coffee grinder.
grind to a fine powder. a slight semi fine powder is also fine. the sesame seeds & coconut will release oil while grinding. so you have to scrape the sides of the masala and grind. if difficult to grind, then add some water and make a fine paste.

preparing veg kolhapuri:

heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions.
saute the onions till they are light golden or golden.
add ginger and garlic paste.
stir and then add chopped coriander leaves. stir and saute till the raw aroma of the ginger garlic goes away.
next add chopped tomatoes.
saute till the tomatoes soften and you see oil leaving the sides.
add turmeric powder, red chili powder and asafoetida.
stir and then add chopped bell pepper/capsicum. you can also skip capsicum if you prefer.
stir and saute till the capsicum is half cooked and yet having a slight crunch. about 5 to 6 minutes on a low flame.
add the ground kolhapuri masala.
stir and saute for some seconds.
then add water. season with salt.
bring the curry to a simmer.
when you see some oil floating on top, add the steamed veggies.
stir and simmer for about 2 minutes.
lastly add chopped coriander leaves and give a final stir. you can also garnish veg kolhapuri with the coriander leaves.
serve veg kolhapuri with soft chapatis, phulkas or parathas. you can also serve this spicy veg curry with bread and steamed rice.