This wonderfully warming curry is as tasty as it looks. It’s made with tender strips of pork loin steak and flavoured with fennel, turmeric and coconut milk, with a fresh hit of crunchy green beans.
Once cooked, this pork curry has plenty of rich flavour thanks to the spices and the pork, yet it has a relatively mild heat which can be adapted to your tastes, so it should suit even delicate young palates.
The recipe was created by fabulous Indian chef, Hari Ghotra, who has a real knack for creating delicious, accessible recipes that are easy to cook and perfect for the whole family to enjoy.
Pork is a source of four essential minerals that help the immune system: Vitamins B6 and B12, zinc and selenium. It’s also naturally rich in protein, which helps muscle growth.
What’s more, pork is easy and versatile to cook with, and pork loin steaks are particularly convenient as they cook quickly. In fact, many pork-based recipes take 30 minutes and under, so they’re perfect for mid-week.
Try using pork medallions or loin steaks as an alternative to chicken in your typical mid-week meals, and then go from there.
So, let’s make a delicious, quick, easy Keralan Pandi.
Ingredients
- 750 g (1.7 lb) pork loin steak or fillet room temperature
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil or coconut oil
- 1 tsp fennel seeds leave out, if preferred
- 2 dried red chillies remove, if preferred
- 2 onions finely diced
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 400 g (14.1 oz) tinned tomatoes
- 1 fresh green chilli chopped
- 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
- 2 tsp ground cumin seeds or cumin powder
- 1 tsp ground coriander seeds or coriander powder
- 200 g (7.1 oz) coconut milk low fat, if preferred
- 100 g (3.5 oz) green beans trimmed
- 1 handful fresh coriander leaves chopped
- 1 lime
Equipment
Instructions
Heat a wide pan and add the oil.
Once hot add the whole fennel seeds and red chillies (if you are using them).
Add the onions and sauté until they start to brown.
Then add the garlic.
Remove the fat from the pork and cut into strips.
Season the pork with salt and lots of black pepper and ½ tsp turmeric.
Stir the tinned tomatoes, green chilli, grated ginger into the pan with the onions and stir through.
Once it starts to simmer, add the remaining turmeric, ground cumin and coriander and stir.
Let it reduce and thicken.
Add the meat and stir to coat with the sauce. Reduce the heat and cook for 5-10 minutes.
Pour in the coconut milk and heat through.
Add the trimmed beans and cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the beans are cooked.
When cooked through, check the seasoning and add the coriander leaves, and a squeeze of lime.
Extra tips to help your curry turn out perfectly
Read on to learn how to make sure your Keralan Pandi is perfectly cooked and tastes delicious. You can also learn how to cater to diet restrictions and store safely.
Can I use chicken, shrimp or lamb instead of pork in a Keralan Pandi?
Yes, this Keralan Pandi is very adaptable and works with lots of different meats.
To ensure your curry is both tasty and safe to eat, make sure your meat of choice is cut to an appropriate size and fully cooked through.
Can you reheat a Keralan Pandi and other pork curries?
Yes, as long as it’s been stored correctly (cooled and placed in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer within 2 hours of cooking – see below), then microwaving your pork curry to reheat is should work fine. Heat in blasts of 1-2 minutes, taking a break to stir to ensure the dish heats evenly all the way through.
If you prefer, you can reheat your Keralan Pandi on the hob. Add your pork curry to a saucepan with a tablespoon or two of water, cover with a lid and cook over a low heat until fully heated through. Make sure to stir it occasionally so it doesn’t stick.
Can you refrigerate or freeze the pork curry?
Yes, you can refrigerate this pork curry, as long as it has been cooled and placed in an airtight container in the refrigerator within 2 hours of cooking.
In the fridge, this curry will last up to 3 days. In the freezer, it will last up to 4 months.
This pork curry also freezes quite well, and again you will need to ensure it is placed in an airtight container in the freezer within 2 hours of cooking.
To eat, reheat from frozen.
A curry that has been frozen and defrosted should retain most of its texture and flavour, but you may find it that it loses a little potency of the spices.
Can I make the Kerlan Pandi paste now to use in curries later?
Yes! The base of this curry is a delicious blend of very gently fried onions and spices. If you like, you could make a big batch and freeze into portions.
Then, if you’re planning ahead, you could defrost a portion of the past and cook with tinned tomatoes, green chilli, grated ginger, coconut milk, pork and beans whenever you like.
My pork curry is too spicy and hot, can I make it milder?
If you haven’t made the curry yet, the easiest way to make it milder is to leave out the red chillis.
If you’ve already made the curry, making it milder will prove a little more complicated.
There’s no way to easily take the heat out of a curry other than to dilute it with other, non-spicy ingredients. This will, of course, change the taste and consistency, but with enough coconut milk and extra veg to counteract the spiciness, you should be able to come up with something that milder and still very tasty.
Can I make my pork curry hotter?
You can, of course, add extra chilli on top of the recommended 2 dried red chillies. This will, however, make the whole dish hotter, which might not be ideal if you are sharing with family members who prefer a milder curry.
Adding chopped chilli directly to a finished curry can add flecks of heat, which can be pleasant, although it won’t distribute evenly.
If you want to add heat to just some of the curry once it’s made, I recommend setting it aside in a separate pot, then warming a little oil in a warm pan and adding an additional finely chopped chilli. Fry your chilli for a few minutes, then add to your reserved curry along with the oil it fried in and stir through.
I’m having trouble finding a spice, what’s the best place to find spices?
All of the spices in this pork curry should be readily available in your local supermarket. If you don’t have time to get a particular spice, you could leave it out.
If you’re ever making a curry with more unusal spices and having trouble locating a certain spice, a good tip is to have a quick search on the internet to make sure it doesn’t go by any other names – sometimes you’ll find out it’s actually been easily available all along!
If that doesn’t work local speciality shops or online retailers are your best bet.
How should I store spices?
Once opened, curry spices should be stored separately in dry, airtight containers somewhere cool and out of sunlight.
How can I grind my own spices?
If you only make curries occasionally, you should be able to pick up a small pestle and mortar in the supermarket for a few pounds that will do the job just fine.
If you’re getting really into making your own spice blends and want really fine grind, you might choose to invest in an electric spice/coffee grinder, which works a treat with much less effort – just don’t use the same grinder for coffee and spices!
Is this Keralan Pandi curry gluten-free?
Yes, this pork curry is naturally gluten-free!
Just be aware that some dried spices can contain traces of gluten so, as ever, check the label of all of your ingredients before you start cooking.
What is Kerala cuisine?
Kerala is a state in the south of India famed for lots of dishes, many of which are vegetarian but often also include fish, chicken and red meat.
Kerala has a rich history in trade, which makes for some amazing flavour combinations and the chillies, coconut and turmeric found in this dish are all staples of Kerala cuisine, along with curry leaves, mustard seeds and tamarind.
Visit lovepork.co.uk for more pork recipe inspiration if you’d like to print this coconut-pork curry recipe to try later, just hit PRINT on the recipe card below.
Keralan Pandi – South Indian Coconut-Pork Curry
Ingredients
- 750 g (1.7 lb) pork loin steak or fillet room temperature
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil or coconut oil
- 1 tsp fennel seeds leave out, if preferred
- 2 dried red chillies remove, if preferred
- 2 onions finely diced
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 400 g (14.1 oz) tinned tomatoes
- 1 fresh green chilli chopped
- 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
- 2 tsp ground cumin seeds or cumin powder
- 1 tsp ground coriander seeds or coriander powder
- 200 g (7.1 oz) coconut milk low fat, if preferred
- 100 g (3.5 oz) green beans trimmed
- 1 handful fresh coriander leaves chopped
- 1 lime
Instructions
- Heat a wide pan and add the oil, once hot add the whole fennel seeds and red chillies (if you are using them).
- Add the onions and sauté until they start to brown then add the garlic.
- Remove the fat from the pork and cut into strips. Season the pork with salt and lots of black pepper and ½ tsp turmeric.
- Stir the tinned tomatoes, green chilli, grated ginger into the pan with the onions and stir through.
- Once it starts to simmer, add the remaining turmeric, ground cumin and coriander and stir. Let it reduce and thicken.
- Add the meat and stir to coat with the sauce. Reduce the heat and cook for 5-10 minuets.
- Pour in the coconut milk and heat through then add the trimmed beans and cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the beans are cooked.
- When cooked through, check the seasoning and add the coriander leaves, and a squeeze of lime. Serve with plain rice.
Video
Nutrition
Yum! What do you think of this warming curry?
This is a commissioned post for Love Pork
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John says
Absolutely delicious!
The fennel came through beautifully… It says its optional, but please don’t leave it out!
I didn’t have dried chillies so used a couple of teaspoons of chilli flakes instead.
It took me longer to cook than suggested, I think because my pan was a bit small everything took a bit longer and I had to add the meat in batches. Despite that, it all came together into a beautiful consistency! The whole family loved it. Only I like fresh corriander so I added that on my plate. I don’t think it suffered for that.
I will definitely be cooking this again. It is nice to have a rich, fragrant and tasty curry that doesn’t take too long to prepare!
Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Emily Leary says
Fantastic! Thanks so much for sharing.
John says
No problem. What size pan is yours in the pics? I used a similar one but it is only 26 cm and too small for the quantities in the recipe. Been thinking about upgrading but not sure what size to go for!
Emily Leary says
I tend to use a 30cm casserole dish for this sort of recipe, but it doesn’t need to be a shallow dish – a large, taller saucepan would do the trick.
Jayashree Sengupta says
Wow, great recipe. Looks yummy. To be honest I am not that into pork but I am trying this with chicken, hope there would not be much differences. So all in all I am making a surprise dinner for my family.
Emily Leary says
Yes, Hari Ghotra’s recipe is awesome – this curry tastes so good and it’s not at all difficult to make. Let me know what your family think!
Jordan Nunamaker says
I haven’t had curry in so long! And I’ve definitely never had it in this style before. It looks absolutely scrumptious! I’m excited to try.
Emily Leary says
Oh yes, do give it a go – it’s so tasty.
Yvette says
A very colourful and mouth watering post
Emily Leary says
Thanks very much!