Veg kurma recipe | Vegetable kurma (Instant pot & stovetop)

Veg kurma recipe – Learn to make delicious South Indian style mix vegetable kurma that’s flavor-packed, amazingly delicious and easy to make. Serve with flavored rice, roti, poori, paratha or naan for a special meal. Korma, also known as kurma is an aromatic Indian gravy dish made with yogurt, nuts, seeds, spices, onions, coconut & a main ingredient like meat or vegetables.

Based on the region, the ingredients used to make a korma recipe are different. In North India it is called as korma and is made with yogurt, seeds, nuts & onion paste made from fried or boiled onions. In South India, it is called as kurma and is made with fresh coconut & seeds paste. Occasionally a small quantity of yogurt is used.

North Indian korma is aromatic, rich & creamy with a velvety texture as nuts & yogurt form the base. South Indian kurma is not creamy or rich but is light as coconut & seeds/nuts form the base.

However both are very fragrant and spiced for flavor but not for heat. So fragrant whole spices like cinnamon and cardamoms are always used as they release a great aroma while the dish is simmered.

About veg kurma

This South Indian Hotel style veg kurma is a one pot vegan dish that is super aromatic, tastes delicious & is easy to make. It needs easily available ingredients like mixed vegetables, spices, coconut, poppy seeds or cashews & herbs.

This hotel style dish is very popular & is loved by most people for its unique aroma & taste. Whether served at family meals or a way to honour guests this delicious dish is a part of every special South Indian meal.

In Tiffin centers & restaurants vegetable kurma is usually served with poori, dosa, plain paratha, simple pulao, rava dosa, ghee rice and many other breakfasts & meal platters.

It also pairs wonderfully well with naan, plain basmati rice, coconut rice, jeera rice or any other variety rice dishes.

The key ingredients to make a flavorful vegetable kurma are the tempering spices like bay leaf, star anise, cardamoms, cloves and cinnamon. These spices along with coconut paste bring in a wonderful aroma to the dish.

There are a few different versions of this South Indian kurma. In some regions it is made only with curd instead of coconut. I have shared that tip as well if you prefer to skip the coconut in this recipe.

Veg kurma is also made to go in a festive meals. So it can also be made without onion & garlic on such occasions.

Though this recipe uses mix vegetable like potatoes, peas, beans and carrots, it can also be made with just one kind of vegetable like potato, cauliflower or peas.

I have shared also shared a few more korma recipes on the blog which are made on the same lines. You may want to check them
Potato kurma
Cauliflower kurma
Paneer kurma
Soya chunks kurma

Veg kurma – step-by-step photos

1. Prepare vegetables – Chop the following:

• 2 medium onions (1 cup finely chopped)
• 2 medium tomatoes (¾ cup fine chopped)
• 1 medium carrot (¾ cup, half inch pieces)
• 2 medium potatoes (1 cup, half inch pieces)
• ¾ cup green peas
• 8 to 10 French beans (¾ cup, half inch pieces)
• ¾ to 1 cup cauliflower florets

2. Make kurma paste: If you do not have a blender to make a paste, then skip this step and just use 3/4 cup thick yogurt. The taste will be different but still good. To a grinder jar, add

• ¼ cup grated coconut (or ¼ cup coconut milk)
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (skip if you don’t like)
• 1 tablespoon roasted gram (optional)
• 12 cashew nuts (or 12 soaked almonds or 2 tbsps poppy seeds)

3. Pour 6 tablespoons water and make a fine paste. We don’t want a coarse paste.

How to make vegetable kurma

4. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pot. Add

• 1 bay leaf
• 2 green cardamoms
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
• 3 cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon piece
• 1 star anise. You can also add a single strand of mace If you like the fragrance.

4. Next add 1 cup very finely chopped onions & 1 slit green chili (optional). Saute until the onions turn pink. The raw smell of the onions has to go away.

5. Add ¾ to 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste. My ginger garlic paste has turmeric in it, so the color. Saute for 1 to 2 mins, until the raw smell of the ginger garlic has gone away.

6. Then add ¾ cup chopped tomatoes and salt.

7. Fry until the tomatoes turn completely soft and mushy.

8. Add 1 teaspoon red chili powder, 1¼ teaspoon garam masala & few coriander leaves (optional).

9. On a medium to low flame, saute for 2 to 3 minutes until the masala begins to smell good. By now the mixture also begins to leave the sides.

10. Add the coconut cashew paste.

11. Mix and fry for 2 to 3 minutes until the coconut smells good.

Add vegetables

12. Lower the flame, add chopped potatoes, beans, carrots, peas and cauliflower.

13. Mix everything well and saute for 2 to 3 minutes without burning.

14. Add water just enough to cover the veggies. I used 1.5 cups water. Add ¾ salt as well and stir.

15. Cook on a medium flame until the veggies are tender. Taste the veg kurma and add more salt if needed. Add coriander leaves and switch off.

Serve veg kurma with rice or chapati.

Instant pot vegetable korma

1. To a small grinder jar, add

• ¼ cup grated coconut
• 10 to 12 cashew nuts
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (skip if you don’t like)
• 1 tablespoon fried gram
• 6 tablespoons water or coconut milk. Blend to a smooth paste.

2. Press SAUTE button on your Instant pot and pour oil to the steel insert. Add the whole spices

• 1 bay leaf
• 1 star anise
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 green cardamoms
• 3 cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon

3. When the spices begin to sizzle add curry leaves. Saute for 30 seconds.

4. Next add 1 cup finely chopped onions and 1 slit green chili (optional).

5. Saute until the onions lose their raw smell, for about 3 mins. Next add ¾ to 1 tablespoon chopped ginger garlic and saute for 30 seconds.

6. Add ¾ cup chopped tomatoes and ¾ teaspoon salt. Saute for 1 minute.

7. Move the onions and tomatoes to one side of the pot. Add the diced potatoes to the other side.

8. Cover with an external lid and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. The cook time of potatoes and other vegetables in this korma is different. So we are precooking the potatoes first so the cook time of all the veggies match at the next step.

9. Saute all of these for 1 to 2 minutes. Add in all the spice powders

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 1 ¼ teaspoon garam masala
• Saute for 30 to 60 seconds.

10. Press CANCEL button and add the coconut paste. Mix well.

11. Add the rest of the veggies – ¾ cup beans, ¾ cup carrots, ¾ to 1 cup cauliflower and ¾ cup green peas.

12. Pour 1 ¾ cup water and deglaze the bottom by scrubbing with a spatula. This releases bits of food stuck there & avoids a burn.
Tip: If you are not using coconut paste then simply substitute water with 1¾ cups light coconut milk. If you do not have light coconut milk, use 1 cup regular coconut milk mixed with ¾ cup water.

13. Taste the water and add more salt if needed. Secure the Instant pot with the lid and position the steam release handle/ value to sealing. Press PRESSURE COOK button (high pressure) and set the timer to 1 minute. After the Instant pot beeps, wait for 1 minute. Then release the pressure manually by moving the steam release value from sealing to venting.

14. Give a gentle stir. Vegetable kurma will look runny at this stage but will thicken after it cools down a bit.

This is the consistency after cooling slightly.

Serve vegetable korma with plain basmati rice, dosa, pulao, poori.

Ingredients and substitutes

Vegetables – The veggies that go well in a mixed veg kurma are carrots, peas, beans, cauliflower & potatoes. You can skip any of these if you do not have. Alternately you can substitute any of the 5 mentioned veggies with the other.

Or use only one vegetable like potatoes. But the total quantity of veggies should be the same as mentioned in the recipe.

You can use any other vegetable like red pumpkin or white button mushrooms if you like the flavor & taste. But also note the taste of kurma depends on the veggies used.

Cashew nuts – Cashews can be replaced with poppy seeds or soaked almond seeds. Please note that blending poppy seeds to a fine paste is really hard if you don’t have a good grinder.

Coconut – Coconut is the main ingredient in this South Indian kurma. If you do not have fresh coconut, then simply use ¼ cup thick coconut milk to blend the cashews & fennel seeds.

If you do not have coconut milk as well, then simply use ¾ cup thick yogurt and skip making the paste. To use cashews and yogurt, blend the cashews with little yogurt until smooth.

Whole spices – Whole spices like bay leaf, star anise, cinnamon, cloves and cardamoms slowly release their aroma without overpowering the dish. Your dish won’t have the real flavors if you skip these.

All of these spices are very important to make a South Indian kurma. However you may skip if you personally don’t like the flavour of any of these. If you haven’t tried star anise any time, give it a try. It totally elevates the flavour of your veg korma.

Fennel seeds – You can skip if you don’t like. But it is one of the key ingredients in a hotel style kurma.

Pro tips

1. Kurma paste – Kurma paste is made of coconut, cashews, fried gram & poppy seeds. I do not use poppy seeds as they are banned here in Singapore. You can skip making the paste entirely & just use ¾ cup thick curd or yogurt.

The taste does differ with curd & it tastes slightly tangy. I personally do not prefer to cook with curd so I have not done it here. But I have grown up eating this as it is a common ingredient used in many Telugu speaking homes.

2. Many households blend whole spices along with coconut. But I don’t. Using garam masala works out much better for me as it is easier to adjust the quantities easily.

3. Do not skip or alter the quantity of whole spices as they are the most key ingredients that flavor up the vegetable kurma.

Faqs

For more kurma recipes, do check
Chicken korma
Navratan korma
Egg korma
Potato korma
Paneer kurma

Related Recipes

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This post was first published in October 2015. Updated & republished in January 2021.