Erissery

Erissery is an essential component of the Kerala Onam Sadhya — the grand vegetarian feast served on banana leaves during the harvest festival. This thick, lightly spiced curry combines pumpkin or raw banana with black-eyed peas in a turmeric-coconut gravy, finished with a fragrant tempering of coconut oil, mustard seeds and dried red chilli. It is the definition of Kerala vegetarian comfort food.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 400g (14 oz) pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled and cut into 3cm (1-inch) cubes
• 200g (7 oz) dried black-eyed peas, soaked 4 hours and drained
• 1/2 tsp (2g) turmeric
• 1 tsp (5g) fine salt
• 400ml (14 fl oz) water

For the coconut paste:

• 80g (3 oz) fresh grated coconut or desiccated coconut rehydrated
• 2 dried red chillies
• 1 tsp (5g) cumin, whole
• 1/4 tsp (1g) turmeric

For the tempering:

• 2 tbsp (30ml) coconut oil
• 1/2 tsp (2g) black mustard seeds
• 1 dried red chilli, broken
• 10 fresh curry leaves
• 3 tbsp (25g) fresh grated coconut

Instructions

1. Cook black-eyed peas in a pot with water, turmeric and salt over medium heat for 25–30 minutes until just tender. Add pumpkin and cook a further 10–12 minutes until soft. Do not drain — the liquid becomes the gravy.
2. Grind the coconut paste ingredients with 3 tbsp water in a blender or food processor to a coarse paste.
3. Add the coconut paste to the pumpkin and pea mixture. Stir well and simmer on low heat for 8–10 minutes until the curry thickens and turns a rich gold. Mash a few pumpkin pieces lightly to thicken further.
4. For the tempering: heat coconut oil in a small pan over medium-high heat. Add mustard seeds; when they pop (30 seconds), add dried chilli and curry leaves. Sizzle 10 seconds. Add grated coconut and fry, stirring, for 2–3 minutes until golden brown.
5. Pour the tempering over the curry and stir through gently.
6. Serve with steamed rice as part of a Kerala meal.

Cook's Notes: The browned coconut tempering is what makes erissery unique — do not rush this step. Fresh coconut gives the best flavour, but good-quality desiccated coconut rehydrated in warm water works well. This dish is traditionally made without any water-gravy consistency; it should be thick and almost dry.