Beetroot Thoran is a delicious and traditional side dish from Kerala, India. It is a perfect combination of earthy, sweet, and mildly spicy flavors that will tantalize your taste buds. The dish uses fresh and vibrant pink-red beets, which are sautéed with a simple yet flavorful mix of curry leaves, coconut, and green chilies.
This vegan and gluten-free beet stir fry is healthy and very easy to make – it can be whipped up in less than 30 minutes. This dish is an excellent accompaniment to rice and can quickly become a family favorite.
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Thoran is a popular dry vegetable preparation from Kerala, India. The term “thoran” refers to a stir-fry dish typically made with finely chopped or grated vegetables. Like Poriyals from Tamil Nadu, Thorans are known for their delectable flavors and versatility.
In the traditional Hindu festival Kerala Sadya, Thoran is a special dish often served as part of a large meal consisting of 24 to 28 dishes. This vegetable-based dish can be made with a variety of leafy greens or vegetables. One popular variation of Thoran is Beetroot.
Beetroot Thoran is a quick, mildly spiced, and slightly sweet dish with fresh beetroots and earthy coconut. It is a perfect side dish that can be packed in a tiffin box and served with phulka rotis, plain parathas, or plain rice. If you’re looking for a healthy and delicious way to incorporate more vegetables into your diet, Beetroot Thoran is definitely worth trying!
Ingredients required
Below is the ingredients list and possible substitutions. The exact ingredient amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Beetroot: Choose firm beet and fresh beet.
- Curry leaves: Make sure you use fresh curry leaves.
- Whole Spices: You will need urad dal, mustard seeds and cumin seeds to give the dish a pungent aroma and an earthy flavor.
- Aromatic: Onion and garlic are used as aromatics.
- Green chilies: For the heat. You can skip it if you don’t prefer spicy food.
- Fresh coconut: Fresh coconut is a must in this recipe. Fresh coconut adds to a unique and distinct flavor. But if the fresh coconut is unavailable, you may substitute it with desiccated coconut.
- Oil: I used coconut oil. Feel free to use any cooking oil.
- Other spices: You will need salt and turmeric powder.
- Lemon juice: This is optional but highly recommended.
Step-by-step process
- Wash and peel the beetroots. Take a sharp knife and chop the beetroot into very small cubes. Alternatively, you can grate the beetroot or use food processor to chop/grate the beetroot to save time.
- Now heat coconut oil in a pan. Add urad dal, cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Saute until urad dal turns light brown and cumin-mustard seeds starts to crackle.
- Then add curry leaves, green chilies, garlic and onion. Saute for a minute.
- Now add chopped beetroot, salt and turmeric powder. Stir well, cover and let it cook for 7 to 8 minutes or until tender on a medium to low heat. I have added ¼ cup water in between.
- Now open the lid and stir everything well.
- Add grated coconut and lemon juice. Stir and let it cook for about 2 minutes. Switch off the flame.
- Beetroot thoran is ready. Enjoy with rice, roti or paratha.
Storage
If you have leftover Beetroot Thoran, store it in the fridge for several days. It’s best to consume it within two days while it’s fresh. To enjoy the leftovers, you can microwave them for a minute and relish them while they’re warm.
Expert Tips
- If you don’t have fresh coconut, you can use dry or desiccated coconut as an alternative. Nevertheless, fresh coconut adds a unique flavor to the dish.
- This recipe calls for either grated or finely chopped beetroot. Grated beetroot is the fastest option if you want to speed up the cooking process.
- While cooking, if the moisture dries up and the thoran looks dry, sprinkle some water to prevent it from drying out.
- Covering the beetroot while cooking helps it cook faster and ensures that it retains its moisture.
- Generally, Thoran is not supposed to be spicy. However, if you want to increase the spice factor in the dish, feel free to add more green chilies.
- To make your beetroot thoran flavorful, try cooking it in coconut oil. Coconut oil has a unique flavor and aroma that complements the coconut in the dish.
- A sprinkle of lemon juice added to balance the sweet flavors.
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Beetroot Thoran
Ingredients
- 330 grams beetroot 2 medium size
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- ½ cup finely grated fresh coconut
- 1 teaspoon grated garlic
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon urad dal
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 5 curry leaves
- 2 green chilis slit from the middle
- 2 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Wash and peel the beetroots. Using a sharp knife, chop the beetroot into very small cubes. To save time, you can grate the beetroot or use a food processor to chop/grate it.
- Now heat coconut oil in a pan. Add urad dal, cumin seeds, and mustard seeds. Saute until the urad dal turns light brown and the cumin-mustard seeds start to crackle.
- Then add curry leaves, green chilies, garlic and onion. Saute for a minute.
- Now add chopped beetroot, salt, and turmeric powder. Stir well, cover, and let it cook for 7 to 8 minutes or until tender on medium to low heat. I added ¼ cups of water in between.
- Now open the lid and stir everything well.
- Add grated coconut and lemon juice. Stir and let it cook for about 2 minutes. Switch off the flame.
- Beetroot thoran is ready. Enjoy with rice, roti or paratha.
Notes
- If you don’t have fresh coconut, you can use dry or desiccated coconut as an alternative. Nevertheless, fresh coconut adds a unique flavor to the dish.
- This recipe calls for either grated or finely chopped beetroot. Grated beetroot is the fastest option if you want to speed up the cooking process.
- While cooking, if the moisture dries up and the thoran looks dry, sprinkle some water to prevent it from drying out.
- Covering the beetroot while cooking helps it cook faster and ensures that it retains its moisture.
- Generally, Thoran is not supposed to be spicy. However, if you want to increase the spice factor in the dish, feel free to add more green chilies.
- To make your beetroot thoran flavorful, try cooking it in coconut oil. Coconut oil has a unique flavor and aroma that complements the coconut in the dish.
- A sprinkle of lemon juice added to balance the sweet flavors.
Nutrition
Warm regards,
Dhwani.
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