Split Green Gram Curry | Cherupayar Curry with Coconut

Delicious and hearty Kerala-style cherupayar curry is made with split-green-gram in spiced coconut paste. Served best with rice dishes like puttu, ari dosha, or even chapathi.

This is my mil's "Cherupayar" curry recipe in which she uses Split-green-gram. It is the split version of mung bean aka in Hindi as chilka moong dal. In our home, this curry is served with puttu, rice crepes with coconut or chapati for breakfast or dinner. 

If you don't have split green grams, you can roast the whole mung beans until dark and fragrant. Then pulse in the mixie for a few seconds to break it down. Do this in batches until you have a cup of split green gram.

Ingredients used

• Oil: Coconut oil is the best option. You may use any neutral oil or ghee.
• Green gram: Also called as mung bean or moong bean. The recipe calls for split-mung-bean or split green gram but you may use whole mung bean. If using whole, make sure to soak them for a few hours before cooking with the same process.
• Veggies: You will need red onion, green chillies, tomato and a few curry leaves. Bird's eye chilli for added flavour while serving.
• Ground spices: The Indian cuisine trio - turmeric, coriander and chilli
• Whole spices: You will need fennel seeds, mustard seeds, dried red chilli and f. You may replace fennel seeds with cumin seeds for a different flavour.
• Coconut: I have used fresh grated coconut. You may use frozen or desiccated. The dry coconut will need some water to add moisture.

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Green Gram Curry with Coconut | Cherupayar Curry

Split green gram curry /mung bean / moong bean with coconut and fennel seeds that is best served with rice crepes or rotis or even plain white rice.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time40 mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indian, Kerala, South Indian

Keyword: Cherupayar curry, mung bean curry

Servings: 4 people

Author: Famidha Ashraf

Ingredients

Pressure cook

• 1 cup split green gram dal split mung bean or mung bean, washed and drained
• 2 to 3 cups water
• 1 medium-sized onion diced finely
• 2 to 3 green chillies slit
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 1 medium-sized tomato quartered
• Salt to taste

Grind to paste

• ½ cup grated coconut
• 2 pinches turmeric powder
• ¾ teaspoon fennel seeds
• ½ cup water

Tadka

• 2 tablespoon coconut oil
• ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
• 2 dried red chillies 
• curry leaves
• 2 green chillies Kandari mulagu (or Bird's eye chilli)

Instructions

• Add the split mung beans, onion, green chillies, spice powders, tomato and salt along with enough water into a pressure cooker and cook for 2 to 3 whistles and switch off. Let the pressure cool off on its own.
• Grind to paste the coconut, turmeric and fennel seeds with just enough water into a smooth paste.
• Open the pressure cooker and keep it on a low flame. Stir in the coconut paste, and salt and more water if it is too thick.
• Let it boil for 3 to 4 mins. Here you can decide the consistency you want the curry to be - if you need it thick, then let it simmer for a while. You will have to stir once in a while to prevent the dal from bubbling and splashing out. Switch off when it reaches the desired consistency.
• In another small pan, heat coconut oil, add mustard seeds and let it crackle, then add the dried red chilli and curry leaves. Pour this into the curry and give it a good stir. Close it with a lid for a couple of minutes for the flavour to get incorporated.
• Serve hot with freshly crushed green chillies with the rice crepes shown in the images that we call ari doshas, or chapatis or plain white rice.