Black chickpeas simmered in a Keralan masala of roasted coconut, fennel, cinnamon, cloves and black pepper until the gravy turns dark and nutty. The Keralan breakfast curry, ladled over appam or red rice. Coconut oil gives it the unmistakable southern lift.

Kadala curry (kala chana in Hindi, kadala parippu in Malayalam) is the Keralan Hindu and Christian household breakfast staple, served with puttu or appam in the morning to set up the day. The black chickpea (a smaller, harder-skinned variety than the more common cream chickpea, with a darker, nuttier flavour) is the regional speciality of South India and Sri Lanka; the dish doesn't translate properly with regular kabuli chana.

The roasted-coconut paste is the structural element. Fresh grated coconut dry-roasted in a pan until deep gold, then ground in a wet grinder with the spices and a splash of water into a thick, brown paste. The roasted coconut adds nuttiness and body; the cooking water from the chickpeas thins the paste into the final gravy.

Coconut oil is the only acceptable oil here. Sourced from Kerala or Sri Lanka, virgin pressed, with that distinctive sweet-coconut fragrance that distinguishes proper South Indian cooking from the broader Indian register. The black pepper is the heat (no chilli powder in this dish); fennel rounds the corners with a soft licorice note. Serve over appam or steamed Kerala red rice. The breakfast that powers a coastal morning.