World Recipes: Kath Katha

22 Feb World Recipes: Kath Katha

Kath Katha is a traditional vegetable curry from Goa, on the south-west coast of India. This region has a strong Portuguese influence in its cuisine, blending bold spices with local ingredients such as coconut and hot chillies. For African cooks and food lovers, this dish feels familiar in spirit, as it combines slow cooking, layered spices and vegetables—very much in line with many African stews and curries.

Ingredients:

• Asafoetida
• 1 cinnamon leaf and 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 cloves
• 2 onions
• Fresh coconut (grated or pulp)
• 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
• Cumin seeds
• Turmeric
• 1 piece of mace
• 4 tablespoons oil
• 10 g black pepper
• 6 hot chillies
• ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 450 g mixed vegetables (carrots, potatoes, broad beans, peas)

Preparation:

• Peel and finely chop one onion; slice the other into thin strips.
• In a kadhai or deep pan, heat some oil and sauté the coconut pulp for about 5 minutes. Add the chillies and coriander seeds and cook for 3 minutes. Then add the cloves, black pepper and cinnamon and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat and blend this mixture with the chopped onion and a little cold water to form a smooth paste.
• In the same pan, heat the remaining oil with mustard seeds, cumin seeds and turmeric. Add the cinnamon leaf and the sliced onion, and cook slowly for about 20 minutes until golden.
• Add the spiced coconut paste and the mace. Cook for another 10 minutes, adding water and salt as needed.
• Add the vegetables according to their cooking time: carrots first, then potatoes, and finally broad beans or peas. Cook until the vegetables are tender but still firm.
• Finish with lime juice and a small pinch of asafoetida before serving.

This rich and aromatic curry is perfect served with rice or flatbread, offering African kitchens a flavourful taste of India with familiar warmth and depth.