Carrot curry is a simple, healthy and delicious dish made with fresh carrots, spices, herbs, onions, tomatoes and coconut or nut milk. In India, we make curry with almost every vegetable including carrots and pumpkins. This carrot curry is a basic version and is made much the same way as any other curry. It goes well with rice, flavored rice, chapathi or with any Indian breads.
In Indian cuisine, there are 2 ways a curry is made. One is the dry version & the other is a gravy. The first one is called sabzi, podi kura, dry curry etc and this is a dry dish without any gravy. Most times the veggies are cooked in their own moisture or with a splash of water.
A lot of people still call this a curry. The second kind mostly uses water, yogurt or coconut milk to make the gravy. A few readers ask me why a dry dish is called a curry so I have just shared that here. For more info please check Wikipedia.
In this post I have shared both the ways. We personally like carrots with peas so I have used them here. You may replace peas with precooked chickpeas or soaked moong dal or skip them completely.
To make this curry, choose carrots that look, smell and taste fresh.
How to make
1.Pour oil to a hot pot. When the oil becomes hot, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds.
2. When the spices splutter, add curry leaves and then fine chopped onions.
3. Stir and saute the onions until golden. Then add ginger, garlic and green chilies. Saute for a minute or until a nice aroma comes out.
4. Add chopped or pureed tomatoes and saute until the tomatoes turn mushy and soft.
5. Then add red chilli powder, garam masala, coriander powder, salt and turmeric.
6. Saute for a few minutes till the masala turns aromatic.
7. Then saute carrots and green peas for 2 mins.
8. Pour water just as needed to partially cover the carrots. I used 1 cup water.
9. Cover and cook on a low heat until carrots turn tender but not mushy. I cooked for 8 mins.
10. Carrot curry is ready at this stage. But I prefer to add kasuri methi. You may skip it if you don’t like.
11. Mix well and pour coconut milk or nut milk. To make nut milk, soak 15 cashews in little hot water for 15 mins and blend with half cup water in a small grinder. Ensure there are no bits of nuts in the milk.
12. Give a good stir and bring it to a boil. Cover and cook for 2 mins. Taste test and add more salt if needed.
Serve this delicious carrot curry with rice, roti or with any Indian breads.
Recipe 2 – Dry carrot curry
This nutritious flavorful carrot stir fry curry is healthy and flavorful. Serve it as a side in a South Indian meal with plain rice, rasam or sambar. This also goes very well as a side with flavored rice like pudina rice, pulihora, lemon rice or even with curd rice.
The unique flavors in this dish comes from my spice powder which I shared it below. If you do not want to make the spice powder, then use idli podi or coconut podi. I use various kinds of podis like curry leaves podi or flax seed podi to sprinkle on my stir fry veggies. You may do the same.
I also make this a lot of times with soaked moong dal instead of green peas.
Ingredients
2 cups carrots chopped small
½ cup green peas or ¼ cup moong dal (optional) (refer notes)
1 green chilies chopped or slit
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
Salt as needed
Tempering
1 tablespoon oil
1 sprig curry leaves
¾ teaspoon ginger fine chopped
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
¼ to ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
1 pinch hing (asafetida) optional
¾ to 1 teaspoon urad dal (optional)
1 teaspoon channa dal (optional)
To roast and powder or use 3 tbsps fresh grated coconut
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 teaspoon chana dal
¾ to 1 teaspon urad dal
1 teaspoon dried coconut (copra)
1 dried red chili
¼ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 small garlic clove
Instructions
1. To make the spice powder, dry roast chana dal and urad dal till slightly golden, off the stove and add coconut, sesame seeds, cumin, garlic and red chili to the hot pan. When the coconut turns aromatic. Transfer to a plate and cool.
2. Next to the same pan, add oil and heat up. Add mustard, cumin, and dal. When the dal turns slightly golden, add ginger and curry leaves. Sprinkle hing. Saute for a min. Do not burn ginger, it gives a bitter taste.
3. Lower the flame. Add carrots, peas, turmeric and salt. Fry for two minutes.
4. Cover and cook till the carrots become tender. Keep stirring in between and put back the lid. If your carrots are not juicy, sprinkle some water as needed.
5. While the carrots cook, powder the roasted ingredients in a blender jar. Sprinkle the spice powder. Adjust salt and stir well. Fry for two minutes till the aroma of the spice powder comes out. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve with rice and rasam or sambar.
Notes: to use moong dal as a substitute to peas, rinse the dal well and soak it for 1 hour or 30 mins in hot water. Later drain the water and add it along with carrots.
Related Recipes
Carrot curry
For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card
Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )
- 2 cups carrots (chopped) (2 medium, about 325 grams)
- ¾ cup green peas (or ¼ cup soaked moong dal)
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 sprig curry leaves (optional)
- ¾ teaspoon ginger (chopped finely)
- ¾ teaspoon garlic (chopped finely, 2 medium cloves)
- 1 green chilies chopped or slit (optional)
- ¾ teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
- 1 large onion (1¼ cup fine chopped)
- 3 medium tomatoes (¾ cup fine chopped or pureed)
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
- 1¼ teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
- 1 teaspoon garam masala (or curry powder as needed)
- 1¼ teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder (optional)
- ¾ to 1 cup water (I used 1 cup)
- ¾ cup coconut milk (read notes)
Instructions
- Heat oil in a pot. Add mustard seeds and cumin seeds.
- When they splutter add curry leaves and onions. Saute them until the onions turn golden in color and lose the raw flavor.
- Add ginger, garlic and green chilies. Saute for a minute until aromatic.
- Next stir in the tomatoes and cook until they breakdown and soften.
- Then stir in the spice powders – red chili powder, turmeric, garam masala, coriander powder and salt. Saute for 2 to 3 mins until it turns aromatic.
- Add carrots and peas. Saute for 2 mins.
- Pour water just enough to partially cover the carrots. I used 1 cup water. Mix and cook covered on a lot heat until carrots turn tender.
- Then add kasuri methi (optional) and coconut milk. Mix and cook covered on a low heat for 2 mins.
- Taste test and add more salt if needed. Serve carrot curry with rice or roti.
Notes
Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.
For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips above the recipe card.
NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)
© Swasthi’s Recipes
Carrot curry recipe originally published in Jan 2015. Republished in Oct 2020.
Trish Stretton says
Sounds really good. I just happen to have carrots in my vegie garden that need a tasty recipe, so I’m going to try the ‘wet’ one. Curry to me is a nice spicy gravy.
one thing i have always wondered, is, what was used before tomatoes arrived?
swasthi says
Thank you!
Hope you enjoy the dish. Before the tomatoes arrived I guess it was mostly the dry curries or may be cooked with water, yogurt or milk.
🙂
shamanth says
i am going to try first way of cooking with photo and enjoy it with plain rice
thank you
swasthi says
You are welcome!
Thanks for rating the recipe. Hope you like it
Sandy says
Swasthi, cooked this while waiting for the mutton curry marinade to complete (again your recipe). I am always searching for additional dishes to add colour and contrasting texture to the meal, and give great return for not alot of effort (given demands of other parts of the meal). I think this fits the bill perfectly even though I have only eaten it by itself. Full trial tonight but sure it will go well.
Just wondering with the chana dal – would a quick soak or dry fry before cooking soften a little. I like the crunch but might challenge some of my older guests.
swasthi says
Hi Sandy,
Yes you can soak them in little hot water for 30 to 45 mins. Or Once the tempering is done (after frying the dal), pour 2 to 4 tablespoons water and cook covered until the lentils soften. You can also skip them completely. Hope you all enjoy the meal.
Have a great day!
🙂
Sudha says
Love your site! Even though I’ve been cooking for 40 years you are my go to girl🙏.
swasthi says
Hello Sudha ji,
You are most welcome!
So glad to hear that.
Thank you so much for leaving a comment.
🙂
FARIDA BANU says
Looks delicious
swasthi says
Thank you
JAG says
All GOOD, just did not know when to put green chillis.
My wife did not stock garlic(negative energy any way) by the way I fried turmeric powder to give richness, and added some at the end for health.
swasthi says
Thanks for trying. You can add green chilies with the carrot and peas. I will update it in the recipe card.
Anu says
Can v use vepudu karam instead of roasting the ingredients mentioned in the recipe . If s how much
swasthi says
Yes Anu
You can use vepudu karam.
1 to 1 1/2 tsps if it is not very hot.
anandh says
Easy To make…..I share with Pudina rice,,,THANKS.
swasthi says
Welcome Anandh,
Thanks for trying
zanele says
Hmm! I like those recipes .I like to see more recipe
swasthi says
thanks
Bunny Rabbit says
One of the few non cliched coconut / onion-tomato-garam masala dishes with carrots . TQ for this .
swasthi says
Welcome Bunny
indu srinivasan says
yummy delicious carrot curry
swasthi says
Thank You Indu,
🙂
Vijidharmaraj says
colorful and healthy stir fry Swasthi… Add of the podi gives unique taste… Lovely
swasthi says
Thanks Viji
🙂
Vasudev Shenoy says
I tried this recipe as quickly i got the mail and everyone in the household, neighbours liked n loved it. Thinking of preparing this recipe for the sabha celebrations and get together..
swasthi says
Hello Vasudev,
Thanks for your time to comment back here. That was a very quick try.
🙂
Iam so glad you liked it. yes, this is so easy to make for get together and i find it so nice.
Have a wonderful day.
🙂