Spiced green peas and coconut curry
Serves: 3-4
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Toby Scott
Spiced green peas and coconut curry
‘If there is one recipe from my community in Mumbai that has been a part of our home for decades, it’s this one,' says chef Maunika. 'As a young girl, I wasn’t always keen on vegetarian curries but I always loved this green pea one, called maharashtrian ambat vatana rassa. Served with plain rice, this is still my go-to comfort food.'
Serves: 3-4
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
400Kcal
Fat
23gr
Saturates
17gr
Carbs
35gr
Sugars
5gr
Fibre
10gr
Protein
9gr
Salt
0gr
Maunika Gowardhan
Born and raised in Mumbai, chef and food writer Maunika is known for her authentic yet accessible approach to Indian cooking. She has written two cookbooks, Indian Kitchen and Thali.
See more of Maunika Gowardhan’s recipes
Maunika Gowardhan
Born and raised in Mumbai, chef and food writer Maunika is known for her authentic yet accessible approach to Indian cooking. She has written two cookbooks, Indian Kitchen and Thali.
See more of Maunika Gowardhan’s recipes
Ingredients
- 375g potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil (or ghee*)
- 12 fresh curry leaves
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 300g frozen peas
- 1 tsp Inspired to Cook tamarind paste
- small handful of coriander leaves, to garnish
- cooked basmati rice, to serve
For the coconut paste
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder (this is milder and fruitier than regular chilli powder)
- 120g fresh coconut chunks
Step by step
Get ahead
Make the coconut paste a few hours ahead. It can also be frozen if you want to make a larger batch.
- Cook the potatoes in boiling salted water for 8-10 minutes, or until just tender. Drain in a colander and set aside for now.
- To make the paste, place the coriander seeds, peppercorns, chilli powder and coconut chunks in a high-powered blender or small food processor and blend until finely chopped. Add 125ml water and blend again to a paste.
-
Heat the oil or ghee over a medium heat in a large heavy-based saucepan. Add the curry leaves and the coconut paste. Fry for 2 minutes, stirring. Add the turmeric and fry for a further minute. Add 250ml water and simmer for 2 minutes. Lower the heat and add the peas along with the potato chunks. Stir in the tamarind paste, season with salt and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Garnish with coriander and serve with rice.
*Use vegetable or coconut oil, not ghee, if vegan.
