This South Indian special dish has hard boiled eggs simmered in a Chettinad spicy masala curry. Made with fresh roasted and ground spices, coconut and cashews, it is a delight to the taste buds.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 15 minutes
  • Cook time: 15 minutes
  • Total time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 3
  • Category: Side
  • Cuisine: Tamil

Ingredients

  • 4 to 6 hard boiled eggs
  • 1 large onion (finely chopped)
  • ¾ cup (2 small) tomatoes (chopped or ½ cup puree)
  • 1 sprig curry leaves
  • 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
  • Salt (as needed)
  • 2½ tablespoons oil ((divided - ½+ 2))
  • ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • ½ to ¾ cup water
  • 2 tablespoons coriander leaves
  • 8 cashews (or 1½ tbsps poppy seeds)
  • ¼ cup raw coconut (chopped or grated)
  • 2 teaspoon coriander seeds (/ dhaniya)
  • ¾ teaspoon fennel seeds (/ saunf)
  • ½ teaspoon cumin (/ jeera)
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • 3 to 5 dried red chilies
  • 2 green cardamoms
  • 3 cloves
  • 1 inch cinnamon stick
  • 1 small portion stone flower (/ dagad phool (omit if you don't have))

Method

Preparation

  1. Heat a pan and dry roast chilies and coriander seeds on a low flame. When they turn crunchy, add cumin, fennel, pepper, cloves, cinnamon, stone flower and cardamoms. Toss and roast on a low heat until aromatic.
  2. Add coconut and roast until a nice aroma comes out. Cool down and grind together with cashews to a smooth paste, adding little water as needed.
  3. Pierce each boiled egg with a fork 2 to 3 times. Add ½ tbsp oil and fry them until golden. Add a bit of chili powder and salt. Remove them to a plate.

Make Chettinad Egg Curry

  1. Heat rest of the oil and add mustard seeds and curry leaves. When the seeds splutter, add onions and saute until golden.
  2. Add ginger garlic paste and saute until the raw smell disappears, for a minute.
  3. Next add tomatoes and cook until they break down and the raw smell has disappeared.
  4. Add the ground paste and pour water as needed to make gravy. Cover and cook on a medium heat until the gravy turns thick and you see traces of oil on top.
  5. Add salt and the roasted eggs. Simmer for 3 to 4 mins and adjust salt to taste. Garnish with coriander leaves.
  6. Serve chettinad egg curry with chapathi or rice.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.