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Lady's Finger Coconut Milk Curry - Okra/Bhindi Curry - Curry Recipes

Lady's finger coconut milk curry - recently we got fresh lady's finger from our friend's garden. I usually prepare poriyal or pachadi with lady's finger. But this time, instead of trying routine recipes, I made a delicious curry with a combination of spices and coconut milk. It tastes awesome with dosa, chapathi and even with rice. 


Lady's finger is the one vegetable which is best when consumed young and fresh. This vegetable has a very short shelf life, so it is best to use it as soon as possible. After refrigeration, the lady's finger turns fibrous, and it doesn't cook well. Fresh young ladys finger tastes delicious whether it is in the poriyal, sambar or pachadi. The curry base is made with a specific spice blend to produce a unique flavour. This time Madhav gave me the ideas for the curry base. Now let's see how to prepare Lady's finger coconut milk curry in detail. 

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Here is the video link for Lady’s Finger Coconut Milk Curry 



Lady's Finger Coconut Milk Curry Recipe Details

Prep time : 15 minutes
Cook time : 40 minutes
Serves : 4
Category : side dish

Ingredients 

  • 10 to 12 lady's finger
  • 1/2 cup onion cubes
  • 1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste
  • 1 tbsp tamarind 
  • 1 cup grated coconut 
  • 1 tsp jaggery
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped coriander leaves 
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil 
  • salt to taste

For curry paste

  • 5 red chillies 
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp peppercorns 
  • 1 tbsp coriander seeds 
  • 2 tbsp coconut 
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric powder 
  • 1.5 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder 
  • half onion
  • 1 tomato 


How to make Lady's finger coconut milk curry

Coconut milk 

Grate 1 cup coconut and extract coconut milk with medium thickness. Mostly when making curries, I mix the 1st and 2nd coconut milk. 

Take 1 cup fresh coconut in a mixer jar. Add 1/2 cup water and grind till the coconut is ground well. Pour the ground coconut in a fine strainer or white cloth. Squeeze well so that all the milk is strained. Put back the squeezed coconut in the mixer jar. Add 1/4 cup water and grind again. Again strain the ground coconut using the same strainer. Now our coconut milk is ready. Store the coconut milk in the refrigerator if you are going to prepare the curry after a few hours. 

Tamarind Juice 

Soak 1 tbsp tamarind in hot water for 20 minutes and extract tamarind juice with 1 cup water. If you are using readymade tamarind paste, mix 1/2 tbsp tamarind with 1 cup water. 

How to make curry paste

Gather the following spices - 5 red chillies, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp pepper and 1 tbsp coriander. Add these  spices in a mixer jar along with 2 tbsp grated coconut, 1/4 tsp turmeric powder and 2 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder. Powder these ingredients coarsely. 


Next add a few onions and 1 tomato. Add 2 tbsp water and grind to a fine paste. A smooth paste will give a flavourful curry and a smooth texture. 



Saute Lady's Finger 

The first step is to wash the lady's finger and wipe them very well without any moisture. Chop off both the ends. Then cut them crosswise. 

Heat 2 tbsp coconut oil in a heavy bottomed kadai. Add chopped lady's finger and saute them well for 5 to 7 minutes on medium heat. Keep stirring often to fry them uniformly. When the sticky substance has gone from the lady's finger transfer them to a plate. 



Cook Lady's Finger Curry

Heat another 2 tbsp coconut oil. When the oil turns hot, add 1/2 cup onion cubes. When the onions turn soft, add 1/2  tsp fresh ginger garlic paste. Saute well on medium heat. 


Add the ground curry paste. Saute well until it becomes thick, comes together and smells good. 

Now pour 1/2 cup water and mix well. Add required salt and cook this masala for a few minutes and add the tamarind extract. Close and cook the curry on low heat for 10 to 15 minutes. 




Add fried ladys finger. Add jaggery powder and mix everything well. When the oil specks on the top of the gravy, add the coconut milk. After a gentle boil, add finely chopped coriander leaves and turn off the heat. 




Most gravies require a final touch at the end due to differences in flavour of ingredients used. As we are adding tamarind in this gravy, it will be a little sour in the initial stage. Don't worry it will be perfect after sometime when the gravy cools down naturally. You can always add more spiciness at the end using red chilli powder but can't reduce the spiciness. 




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