CHEERA-PARIPPU THOREN

I used to make cheera thoren regularly, but even though I use a lot of spinach, by the time the dish comes together, it's a small amount, tasty though it is, it's not sustainable for a large family. Cheera-parippu thoren is the answer to the above issue. Adding dal to the thoren adds volume to the dish and lasts for a couple more servings.
 INGREDIENTS

1. 1/2 cup cherupayyar parippu
2. 8 cups cheera(spinach) ,chopped(340  gms. )
3. 1 cup shredded coconut 
4. 3  green chilies 
5. onion(125 gms)
6. 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
7. 4 garlic cloves
8. 4 Tbsp. oil
9. curry leaves
10. salt to taste

METHOD

• Soak the cherupayyar parippu for at least 30 minutes or overnight. Cook the cherupayar parippu in 1/4 cup water and salt in a pan. If you like the dal mushy like I do then, cook on high heat for 1 whistle in a pressure cooker. If you have time, plan and do this an hour ahead before adding it to the spinach thoren. Cooking early and allowing the dal to cool down a bit will help it from becoming too mushy. 
  
  
  
• Heat a wide pan on medium-high heat, when warm, add the oil, when the oil is hot, add the onions and saute. Saute till the onions turn translucent. Then add the chilis, curry leaves and  garlic and saute for a few seconds. 
• Then add the turmeric powder and saute. Now add the coconut. At this point, you can turn off the stove and cover it with a lid and keep covered for about 2 minutes. The coconut will cook in the heat retained.  The coconut can be pulsed in the mixie with turmeric, green chili, and curry leaves. That's optional but if the grated coconut is not very fine, then better pulse it.  
• Now turn on the heat to medium-low heat and add a handful of the chopped spinach. Stir well. Do the same, till all the spinach is put into the pan. Adding the spinach handfuls at a time will make it easy to stir and mix well with the coconut and not clump together.
• When the whole spinach is added to the pan, add 1 Tbsp. of water, stir well, then dab the spinach with a spoon, close the pan with a lid, and let the spinach steam cook for a minute. After a minute, open, stir, dab again, and steam cook for a minute again. 
• Open the lid, stir the spinach, and then add salt. When salt is added, the spinach will release water. Sauté, till the water has evaporated. Then turn off the stove. Don't cover the pan fully. Leave the lid halfway open.
• The spinach will still be cooking in the heat retained. After 10 minutes, turn on the stove to medium-low heat and stir fry for about 4 minutes and then turn off the stove and keep the pan half covered. Scatter the spinach around the pan and let cool.
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• When done, add the parippu and stir till the parippu is incorporated well into the spinach. Check for salt. 
  
  
  
  

NOTES

• I like pulsing the coconut with green chilis, it brings out the heat of the chilis.