My Food Story: ‘Valval Yogi Ratna’ is a cherished part of traditional Goud Saraswat festive cuisine

This dish has been passed down through generations from my maternal grandma (Mamuma) to my mother (Amma) and now to me. It is an authentic Goud Saraswat Brahmin recipe from Mangaluru, enjoyed any time of the year but often prepared during festivals. The dish is colourful, rich in taste, and healthy, loved by people of all ages. Made with fresh coconut milk and finished with a tadka (seasoning) of asafoetida, cumin, and coconut oil, it becomes even more flavourful and exotic. A complete meal, packed with a variety of vegetables available throughout the year, and is a cherished part of our traditional festive cuisine.

Valval Yogi Ratna

Ingredients

Potato

Elephant foot yam (Suran)

Pumpkin

Cowpea (Alsande)

Ivy gourd (Tendle)

Fresh cashew

Ridge gourd (Ghosale)

Bottle gourd (Dudde)

Malabar cucumber (Mage)

Method

To prepare the coconut milk, take three cups (250 gm) of grated coconut and grind it into a paste in a mixer jar, adding a little water if needed. Place a small piece of cloth over a bowl and pour the ground coconut on it, then squeeze to extract the milk and set it aside. For the Valval, pressure cook the vegetables along with three vertically slit green chilies for one whistle, adding 10-12 raw cashews. Pour in the coconut milk, adjust the salt, close the lid, and simmer for five more minutes. For the tempering, heat two tablespoons of coconut oil in a small pan, add 1/2 tablespoon cumin seeds and let them splutter. Add 10-12 curry leaves and stir well; the cumin and tadka of asafoetida water with coconut oil are key to the flavour. Pour this over the Valval, and your creamy, delicious dish is ready to serve with rice or roti.

My Food Story is a collection of stories and recipes that celebrate India’s traditional plant-based ingredients sourced from local biodiversity. You can see these recipes on our interactive dashboard (https://www.cseindia.org/page/myfoodstory).

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Veena Sahana Padiyar is a homemaker from Karnataka