Kerala Egg Curry with Coconut Milk

Kerala Egg Curry is a classic flavor-packed dish of curried eggs cooked with aromatic spices and coconut milk. It’s simple and easy to make staple from the Kerala Cuisine of South India. Also known as mutta curry, it is usually served with appam, idiyappam, matta rice/ brown rice or with dosa. This Egg Curry with coconut milk also goes well with flatbreads like parotta, paratha, roti, chapati or naan.

Kerala Egg Curry is not your everyday curry that’s basic and uses only a few ingredients like onions, tomatoes and basic spices. It’s a special curry you make when you want something nice with little effort. It’s rich, creamy and delicious with plenty of tropical flavors.

Traditionally in India, fresh homemade coconut milk is the gold standard and it is extracted by grinding raw coconut meat with water. However for this recipe I used canned coconut milk for convenience but I’ve given the details to make fresh coconut milk if that’s your preference.

The main difference between the homemade and the canned, is the amount of saturated fats, consistency and creaminess. Canned coconut milk is thicker, creamier and higher in saturated fats for the same quantity. So I often prefer to use the homemade version and reserve the canned for a richer dish, when I’m hosting guests.

Here is what you need

Ingredients you need

• Onions, ginger, garlic and tomatoes form the base of this curry. I use red onions but yellow also work. Since this is not a tomato heavy dish, they are used moderately.
• Coconut oil is the most commonly used in Kerala Cuisine, So I use extra virgin coconut oil. If you can’t use it, the next best option is to use ghee or olive oil.
• Ground spices like red chili powder, coriander powder, fennel, garam masala and black pepper are used.
• Boiled Eggs – I use 8 eggs to serve 4 people. You can use 4 to 8, depending on your preference or other sides you are making with this meal.
• Fresh curry leaves, red chiles and Indian shallots are the 3 ingredients I love to use in the final tempering. This step takes the dish to the next level with little effort. A small piece of red onion can also be used in place of shallots.
• Sour ingredient – I’ve not used a sour ingredient here. But if you want you may add a tablespoon of tamarind paste or 1 tsp concentrate or a soaked kudampuli/ malabar tamarind. If you want to get fancy you can also squeeze in some lemon juice before serving. Including one of these will cut down the flavor of boiled eggs in your curry.

I’ve not used any whole spices except for fennel and opted to use garam masala. But if you want to use whole spices, use 1 inch cinnamon, 2 cardamoms and 2 cloves, to cut down garam masala.

Photo Guide

How to make Kerala Egg Curry (Stepwise Photos)

Make the curry base

1. Heat a pan with 2 tablespoons oil and add half teaspoon crushed fennel seeds and 1.5 cups sliced or roughly chopped onions (about 180 grams from 1 large or 2 medium red onions).

2. Saute for 7 to 8 mins, until golden. Add

• 1 to 2 chopped or slit green chilies / serrano peppers
• 1 inch peeled and grated or crushed ginger / 14 grams
• 4 large crushed or grated garlic cloves/ 14 grams

3. Continue to saute for 3 more mins. Add ¾ to 1 cup tomatoes (135 grams from 1 large pureed or fine chopped) and ¾ to 1 teaspoon sea salt. Saute until they turn completely soft. If your pan is too dry add a splash of water.

4. Stir together

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 to 1½ teaspoons Kashmiri red chili powder (start with 1 tsp & adjust, cut down for low heat)
• ½ to ¾ teaspoon garam masala (lesser the better)
• 2 teaspoons coriander powder

5. Pour 1 cup water and half cup of the canned coconut milk (or only second pressed/extracted thin milk, read expert tips section below).

6. Bring to a gentle boil and simmer for 8 mins.

Frying Eggs

7. This step actually does nothing much but if you prefer fried eggs go ahead. While the curry simmers, heat ½ tablespoon coconut oil in a small pan. Make 4 to 6 slits on each boiled egg and fry them on a medium high heat until blistered. Turn off and sprinkle 2 to 3 pinches of red chili powder over the eggs (not a lot).

8. Gently add the eggs to the curry. Stir in the rest of the coconut milk (or first pressed/extracted). Taste test to adjust salt. Bring to a gentle boil, optionally sprinkle ¼ to ½ teaspoon black pepper, and turn off. (black pepper is used for flavor and heat, so be cautious & use only as needed)

Temper

Make this when you are ready to serve.

9. Wipe the small pan clean to remove chili powder and heat 1 tablespoon oil. Add ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds, 1 to 2 broken red chilies, 3 tablespoons sliced shallots and 1 sprig curry leaves. (pat dry the leaves to avoid splutters)

10. Fry the onions until they turn deep golden/ brown but not burnt.

11. Pour this over the Kerala Egg Curry and keep the pan covered for a while to retain the best flavors.

Serve Kerala Egg Curry with appam, idiyappam, brown rice/ matta rice, dosa or flatbreads like parotta, paratha or chapati. If you want to make a vegetarian side dishe, you may try this Mushroom Pepper Fry, Garlic green beans or Cabbage thoran.

Expert Tips

• To make homemade fresh coconut milk, blend 1¼ cups raw fresh or frozen grated coconut with half cup water.Strain through a cheese/muslin cloth to get first extract/ thick milk. Add back the pulp to the blender with 1 cup water. Grind and extract to get second extract/ thin milk. You should have a little over half cup first extract/ thick coconut milk and around 1¼ cups second extract/thin milk. If it’s less, add more water.
• Frying Eggs is not done traditionally. It’s optional but I found people like that when served immediately. Avoid frying them in lot of oil to prevent splatters and bursting.
• Saute your onions and tomatoes really well. To develop the essential flavors, simmer the curry for a minimum of 8 mins, after bring to a boil.
• If your curry is very thick, you may add hot water to adjust the consistency. I used 1.5 cups water to cook down the curry because I was using canned milk. But if you use homemade, you won’t need any extra water.
• I prefer not to cook too long after adding the eggs because the curry will take over the flavor of boiled eggs. But if you like that. Cover and simmer for a few minutes after adding them to the curry.
• Avoid making this dish with too much chili powder or garam masala. Let the flavor of coconut milk shine through.

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