There’s a certain comfort in that first spoonful of Moru Curry – the kind that’s been slowly simmered with coconut, spiced just right, and poured generously over warm rice. Tangy, creamy, and familiar, it’s the kind of curry that doesn’t need an introduction in a Malayali home. It simply belongs – whether it’s Onam, Vishu, or just a quiet lunch on a rainy afternoon.
This is not the plain curd curry you make on a rushed weekday. This version – made with ground coconut, green chilies, cumin, turmeric, and sour curd – is what you’ll find in homemade sadyas, the kind served on banana leaves during festivals and family gatherings. The curd is just sour enough to make your mouth water, and the coconut rounds it out with its soft sweetness. A tempering of mustard seeds, fenugreek, curry leaves, and a few crackled dried red chilies in coconut oil ties it all together – bold, fragrant, and unmistakably festive.
Across Kerala, this curry changes name and texture. In wedding sadyas, it’s often renamed as Kalan. Thicker, sometimes cooked down even further, it becomes Kurukku Kalan – especially in the northern parts of the state, where people prefer it rich and creamy, almost like a thick scoop rather than a pourable curry. But at its heart, it’s still the same – a curd-based coconut curry with a personality led by its sourness and gently layered spices.
What makes Moru Curry so special, even with all its versions, is how quietly it elevates a simple meal. It doesn’t demand attention like sambar or aviyal. It just sits there on the leaf or plate, calm and pale – until it hits your tongue. Then comes that sharp tang, that subtle heat, that familiar fragrance of roasted coconut and curry leaves. And suddenly, the meal feels complete.
For me, Moru Curry is a reminder of home sadyas – not the ones catered or served in halls, but the ones made in busy kitchens, where aunties grind coconut on stone and taste the curd twice to check the sourness. The kind of sadya that doesn’t follow strict rules, but still gets every flavour just right.
Traditional Moru Curry
Ingredients
Instructions
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Grind coconut and cumin seeds in to a paste with required amount of water
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In a bowl boil half cup water, put banana pieces with green chillies
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When it is semi cooked, add chilly powder, turmeric powder and salt
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Lets cook it till the water content become below 30%, add coconut paste and mix well
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When the mixture starts to boil, add buttermilk and mix well.
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Let it cook for few more minute, don't allow it to boil
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In a pan , heat oil crackle mustard seeds , fenugreek, curry leaves, dry chillies (if required you can add 1/2 teaspoon chilly powder)
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Pour it over the curry.l