Keralites enjoy almost all the dishes made using tapioca. From simple boiled tapioca to Asiad aka tapioca cooked with beef, a variety of dishes can be prepared using this ingredient.
Paal kappa or tapioca cooked in rich coconut milk is the latest entrant in the world of viral food items. Social media is raving about the silky smooth texture and the incredible taste of this dish.
Most of the noted food vloggers in Kerala have become fans of paal kappa.
Tapioca is cooked in thick and sweet coconut milk to achieve the splendid creamy texture. It is not a task to find its recipes as you may find hundreds of videos and reels on the social media. Interestingly, paal kappa has found a place in the menus of both five star hotels and way-side eateries.
Besides, most hotels come up with their own spin on the recipes or try their signature paal kappa combos too. Here's a simple recipe to make the yummy dish.
Ingredients
1 kg tapioca (boil the tapioca nicely; strain and keep aside)
6 – 10 shallots
6 garlic cloves
4 green chilies
Coconut oil
Mustard seeds
Dried chilies
1 -2 sprigs curry leaves
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ coconut (it should be grinded with ¾ cups water in a mixer; add one more cup of water to make 2 cups of coconut milk)
Preparation
Take shallots, cumin, garlic, green chilies and curry leaves in a mixer jar
Crush well
Add this mixture into boiled tapioca
Mix well
Pour the coconut milk
Allow the coconut milk to boil until it thickens
Turn off the flame when the dish reaches a creamy and smooth consistency
Heat coconut oil in a pan
Splutter mustard seeds
Sauté dried chilies, shallots and curry leaves
Add the tempering into the tapioca
Give everything a good mix
Enjoy paal kappa with spicy fish curry or beef curry.