Broccoli Thoran (Broccoli and coconut stir-fry)

Broccolis are one vegetable I have always had a hard time incorporating in our diets in a way that I really like. Sure, I make a broccoli sabji that I enjoy and I add broccoli to noodles and stir-frys, but I felt I hadn't still hit 'the' broccoli preparation. Something that is super fast, super easy, super healthy and super tasty - afterall broccoli is a super food, right!

Then once while I was visiting my brother we went to an Indian restaurant for lunch (thanksgiving day, everything else was closed). The buffet was quite the regular fare with the usual suspects like this paneer and that curry and so on; but right there between aalo palak and chili paneer was hidden a large bowl of shredded broccoli with some coconut pieces lurking around. The dish was named broccoli thoran. To be honest, that was my first encounter with a thoran. It being a broccoli dish I was cautious and took a small sample. My husband however loves broccoli in any form and he pretty much emptied the entire bowl! 

Both of us really loved this thoran and I decided to recreate the flavor at home. It had some chana daal which I skipped as I was out of it. In essence it is merely a stir-fry of broccoli and coconut. I purposefully kept the spices at bare minimum to let the broccoli be the star of the dish. I usually serve this as a mild soothing side dish to some spicy curry. 

I am sending this to Preeti's Green Gourmet event celebrating the healthy green foods.

Recipe:

Ingredients:

3C chopped broccoli florets

2Tbsp frozen grated coconut (or fresh!)

1Tbsp vegetable oil

1/4tsp mustard seeds

3 small green Thai chilis (more or less based on your heat tolerance)

1/2inch piece of ginger (chopped into smaller pieces)

salt & black pepper

Recipe:
** Since this was my first time cooking thoran can't really say that this is an authentic recipe; I just tried to replicate the original taste from restaurant minus chana daal ofcourse.

1. Steam the broccoli florets for 5minutes (depending on the size of the florets) until they are tender.
2. Remove from steamer and let cool for 5-10mins. Then chop/shred the florets very finely into many small pieces.
3. Heat oil in a wide stir-fry pan. When hot, temper with mustard seeds.
4. Add green chilis and ginger and sauté for a couple of minutes.
5. Add shredded broccoli and stir fry for a couple of minutes on high heat.
6. Add coconut, salt & pepper and stir-fry for few more minutes.
7. Remove from heat and adjust the seasonings. Serve with roti and any spicy curries.