Yam Zucchini Curry

From time to time, I re-organize my pantry and the cupboards. Even when I do this often, my kid keeps on pulling stuff and misplaces the items in the cupboards. There was such a day this week which made me spend a good 60 minutes going through pantry and the cupboards and placing the items properly. At the back of one of the cupboards sat a can of coconut milk which made me think about what was I cooking that day for lunch. I had yams on the counter, 3 zucchinis in the refrigerator that I was dying to use up. I came up with this side dish which uses coconut milk (not the entire can though), yams and one  large zucchini.

Ingredients:
Yams - 2 medium peeled and chopped into medium chunks
Red Onion - 1 medium chopped into chunks
Zucchini - 1 large peeled and chopped into chunks
Green Chillies - 5 chopped fine
Tomatoes - 2 medium chopped fine
Oil - 3 TBSP
Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp - 3/4 tsp
Poppy Seeds - 1 TBSP
Curry leaves - few
Turmeric - a pinch
Red Chilli powder - 1 tsp or to taste
Coconut milk - 1/2 - 3/4 cup
Salt - to taste
Cilantro - chopped fine about 2 TBSP

Method:
In a pan, heat oil. When hot, add fennel. When they pop, add green chillies, curry leaves. When the green chillies are cooked, add poppy seeds and immediately add onions. Stir the entire mixture. Add some salt and turmeric and let them cook. When Onions are half done, add cut yams and cover with a lid. Let them cook till half done. Now, add the zucchini, tomatoes and stir. Cover with the lid again and let it cook till yams are cooked through and zucchinis are tender. Add red chilli powder, coconut milk, enough water to thin the curry down to your desired consistency. Adjust the salt if needed and let this simmer for 5 - 8 minutes on low heat. Garnish with cilantro and turn off the heat.
Even though we ate this with rotis, when I tried this with rice, it was awesome. Serve with rotis or rice.

Notes:
You can leave out tomatoes and use tamarind instead. You can use any starchy root vegetables in place of yams. Use potatoes or carrots. If you are in a place where you cannot get zucchini, use long squash or doodhi (in Hindi).
If you like garlic and ginger, you could use about 2 pods of crushed garlic and about 1/2" piece of ginger grated. Add it with green chillies.

Enjoy!!