Pineapple in Spicy Sweet Coconut Curry (Ananas Sasam)

We have been married for quite a few years now, long enough to understand and predict each others tastes, likes and dislikes. Or so I thought, until a routine trip to the grocery proved that I had concluded a bit too soon.

I have a penchant for the sweet taste; he on the other hand steers away from it and even cannot withstand the sweetish taste of vegetables like zucchini, sweet peppers in the cooking. He would rather chew on some hot chillies than ogle at cookies and cakes. But then wait; he loves fruits and does savor some Rasmalai and Puran Poli (Obbattu) on some special occasions, but that’s about it.

So while on a regular trip to the grocery, we were gazing at some good looking pineapples, he startled me when he said that “Pineapple Sasam” was one of his favorite curries. I had never prepared this before and nor had my MIL when she was here. Now “sasam” in Konkani is a coconut based curry that is a combination of sweet, sour, salty and spicy predominantly sweetish taste. Anyway, who knew? I guess, there is some thing new that you learn about a person everyday.

I on my part did not waste any time to try out this new and importantly sweet recipe. I made some quick phone calls to the appropriate personnel (read MIL) and got the recipe right away. She gave me two versions and this is the version that I tried. This is good dish to prepare on special occasions.

Ingredients

• 1 small pineapple (ripe) [3 cups of chopped pineapple]
• Oil
• Mustard seeds
• Asafetida
• curry leaves
• salt

Masala to grind:

• 1 cup shredded coconut fresh/frozen
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• Little tamarind paste (2 tsps)
• 3-4 red chillies [I use byadgi dried chillies, pre-roasted in a drop of oil]
• jaggery for taste

Preparation:

• Grind the ingredients for the masala above by adding water and making a paste.
• Remove the peel from pineapple. Dice the pineapple into bit sized chunks.

Method:

• Heat oil in a thick bottom pan. Add mustard seeds and allow it to splutter.
• Add the curry leaves, then asafetida and mix well.
• Add the chopped diced pineapple and stir until it cooks up. (This does not take a long time, about 5 minutes).
• Add the ground masala paste, salt and cook until the raw smell of the coconut paste is gone. Add little oil if necessary.

This can be served with rotis/phulkas or as an accompaniment with rice.