Asparagus thoran is an absolutely delicious and nutritious asparagus recipe stir fried with coconut. I usually make asparagus stir-fry by adding olive oil, pepper powder, garlic and salt but I never thought of making a thoran with it. This thoran looks almost like beans thoran and has a slight crunch to it which I really love. If you do not like it crunchy, you can cover and cook for some more time.
Asparagus is low in calories, contains no cholesterol, is very low in sodium and is a good source of fiber. The stalks of asparagus are used for cooking. It is known as Shatavari in Malayalam. While making asparagus thoran, discard the hard end (lower portion) of the stalk. You can easily break off the tough end of the asparagus with your hands. You can have this thoran with rice.
Ingredients
- 450 gms. Asparagus, washed and cleaned
- ½ cup Grated coconut
- 2 Green chillies, slit
- ¼ tsp. Turmeric powder
- ½ tsp. Cumin seeds
- ½ tsp. Mustard seeds
- 1 clove Garlic
- Curry leaves, a sprig
- 1 Dry red chilli
- Oil, as required
- Salt, to taste
Method
- Clean and chop the asparagus (after discarding their lower hard ends) to thin rounds.
- Crush the grated coconut, garlic, green chillies, cumin seeds, and turmeric powder together to a coarse mixture, either with your hands or pulse it in a mixer.
- In a deep pan, heat the oil, splutter mustard seeds and brown the dry red chilli. Add the chopped asparagus, curry leaves and saute for a minute. Cover with the lid and cook for a few minutes at medium-low heat. Now open the lid and add the coarse coconut mixture. Mix well, close the lid and cook at medium-low heat until the asparagus is almost done (takes about 10 minutes). Open the lid and stir fry at medium heat for a few minutes until the thoran becomes dry. Switch off the flame.
