Vellarikka Pachadi: A cool-as-a-cucumber Onam sadya dish

Curd curries, kichadi, salads, raita... cucumber can appear in myriad forms on your Onam sadya leaf. Vellarikka aka cucumber pachadi is a popular favourite dish for many Malayalis to have with their feast. It is made with the yellow-coloured big cucumber that's commonly known as Kerala cucumber. 

Ingredients
½ a peeled cucumber (medium-sized), chopped into pieces
1 cup of grated coconut
1 or two green chillis
½ a teaspoon of mustard
1 cup curd
Salt (as required)
To saute
2 tablespoons of coconut oil
4 dried chilli
2 sprigs of curry leaves

Preparation
Heat a pan and put the cucumber pieces into it
Add just enough water and salt, and boil it
Meanwhile, grind the grated coconut and chillies using a mixer
Add mustard to the mix and crush the same
Add the coconut mixture to the boiled cucumber pieces
Ensure that the water is fully absorbed
Stir it until the raw smell goes away, the mixture should be thick and slightly coarse
After that, whisk curd to make it smooth and creamy, and add it to the curry
Heat it just a bit on low flame, and stir well
Heat another pan, put mustard, dried chilly, and curry leaves until they splutter
Add it to the curry and mix well
Close it with a lid for three to four minutes before serving