Nadan Mutta Curry

Country egg curry — hard-boiled eggs (preferably small, deep-yellow-yolked country eggs from free-range hens) scored on the surface and fried briefly in coconut oil until the exterior turns golden, then simmered in a fragrant gravy of fried onion, tomato, ginger-garlic paste, green chilli, red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric, garam masala, and curry leaves, finished with thin coconut milk. The frying of the boiled egg before adding to the gravy — a specifically Kerala technique — firms the white, caramelises the surface, and allows the masala to adhere to the egg during simmering. The nadan (country/native) distinction matters: native eggs have denser, more flavourful yolks that hold their shape better in the curry. Eaten for breakfast with appam, or for lunch with rice and paratha; the everyday egg curry in Travancore.