Brussels Sprouts Stir Fry with Coconut (Thoran)

A quick veggie stir-fry (Thoran) that is delicious as well as super healthy!  

After a nice vacation in India, I always end up terribly missing Kerala meals for lunch, with the myriad variety of Thorans, curries and Mezhukkupuratti. In order to satiate such a recent craving, I bought some Brussels Sprouts the other day and decided to try out a thoran / stir fry with it. It came out as a very simple, tasty preparation that I thought was worthy of sharing.  

Brussels Sprout belongs to a family of wild leafy green vegetables such as cabbage, collard greens, kale etc. , grown for its edible buds and is named after the capital of Belgium since a few historians believe that the plant may have its origins there. They are considered good sources for vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, dietary fiber and even potent anti-cancer nutrients. Moreover, steaming or stir-frying does not result in a loss of these cancer fighting properties, unlike boiling. 

Today was my daughter's first official full day at school and she did quite well except that she didn't eat or drink anything from school. She did fare a lot better than I expected and I guess I found it harder to cope with the loneliness at home when she was away. I terribly missed her but I am glad she had a nice day at school. This morning my husband dropped her at school rather than me so I guess it will be better that her dad drops her on a regular basis :) 
Anyway, by the time we were back home, she had a voracious appetite and had a nice warm Kerala-style meal, and I must say, she seemed to enjoy this thoran a lot ! 

Serves 6-8 

Ingredients
1 Lb - Brussels Sprout 

1/2 Cup - Grated coconut or desiccated coconut
1/2 Tsp - Turmeric powder
1/4 Tsp - Jeera powder
3 - Dry Red Chilly
1/2 Inch - Fresh ginger
1 - Garlic clove
1 Tsp - Mustard Seeds
Curry Leaves 
Oil
Salt

Directions

• Wash and clean the Brussels sprout and cut it into halves. Pulse in a food processor.
• Take the shredded Brussels sprouts out into a large bowl and add coconut, salt, turmeric powder, jeera powder.
• Using mortar and pestle, crush the Ginger, garlic and add to the Brussels sprouts.
• Mix all ingredients well with hands
• In a pan, heat some oil and add the mustard seeds. When they start to splutter, add the red chilly and saute it for a minute to infuse the chilly into the oil.
• Now add the Brussels sprout mixture along with curry leaves to the pan and cook until the Brussels sprouts are done.