Erissery is a staple in Kerala feasts, whether it's for festivals like Onam and Vishu or weddings. This versatile dish can be made with various vegetables like yam, pumpkin, and plantain, with the basic recipe remaining the same. I’ve prepared it with yam (chena) this time, but you can also add raw banana or red gram (vanpayar). Yam is a nutritious choice, rich in protein.
Chena Erissery is a traditional side dish in Onam and Vishu Sadya, and the flavor primarily comes from the spice paste made with coconut, green chili, pepper, and cumin seeds. Preparing Chena Erissery is straightforward: once the yam is cooked, the dish comes together quickly. Try this yam-based Erissery for the upcoming Onam—it pairs perfectly with rice. The yam is simmered in a paste of coconut, shallots, cumin, green chili, turmeric powder, and pepper powder, with a final tempering step that adds immense flavor and aroma. Don’t skip the tempering for the best results!
Prep time – 10 minutes
Cooking time – 15 minutes
Servings – 5
Calories – 177 / 150 grams
Author: Seena
Ingredients for Chena Erissery:
Chena / elephant yam - 2 ½ cups, cubed
Grated Coconut – ¾ cup + 2 tbsp.
Shallots – 5, divided
Green Chilli – 2 chopped
Dry Red Chilli – 1
Turmeric Powder – 1 tsp.
Black Pepper Powder – 1 tsp.
Mustard Seeds – 1 tsp.
Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp.
Curry Leaves – 1 sprig
Coconut Oil – 2 tbsp.
Salt – to taste
How to Make Chena Erissery:
Clean and chop yam in to small pieces. Grind coconut with cumin seeds, green chilli, four shallots, turmeric powder and black pepper powder to a smooth paste. Keep it aside.
In a pan take the diced elephant yam and add 1 cup water, salt and cook on medium heat till the chena is done. The water should dry up completely. Make a small well in the centre of the cooked chana and add the ground coconut paste. Cover the coconut paste with some cooked chana. Then cover the pan with its lid and cook on low flame for about 3 minutes. Uncover the pan and mix and mash the cooked chana and coconut mix slightly.
Next do the tempering. For this take another small pan and add 2 tbsp. of coconut oil. Fry 2 tbsp. grated coconut till it turns golden brown. Remove from the pan and keep aside. Next, add mustard seeds and splutter it. Add the dry red chilli, sliced shallots and curry leaves. Fry till the onion turns golden brown in colour. Pour the seasoning along with the fried grated coconut to the cooked yam / chena.
Your Chena Erisseri is now ready to be served. Serve hot with rice.
My Recipe Notes and Tips on Chena Erisseri:
- Make sure you get good quality Chena, sometimes if the water content is high in Chena, the 2. flavour will not be there.
- You can pressure cook the yam if you feel they may not cook by boiling in a pan, but the yam pieces should not get mushy.
- You can add black pepper powder in the end too. While tempering you can add 1 tsp. Urad Dal too.
- This dish has a dry texture, however if you prefer, you can add some hot water and make it semi dry. While reheating, add 1 or 2 tbsp. of hot water to prevent the dish from drying out.
- For those who prefer no onion no garlic, avoid shallots while grinding and tempering. That’s all.
Happy Cooking..
Cheers
Seena.
PICTORIAL:
ചേന എരിശ്ശേരി റെസിപ്പി.
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