Mixed Vegetables with Coconut and Tamarind

Put tamarind in a small bowl, add 1⁄2 cup warm water, and use your fingers to help dissolve some of it. Set aside for 5 minutes, then use your fingers to dissolve more of the softened tamarind. Strain through a fine sieve into a small bowl, pressing on any remaining tamarind. Set tamarind juice aside, discarding solids.

Grind coconut, onions, cumin, 1⁄4 tsp. of the turmeric, 1⁄8 tsp. of the cayenne, and about 1⁄2 cup water into a moist paste in the jar of an electric blender, then set aside.

Put potatoes, carrots, eggplant, zucchini, green beans, chile, salt, remaining 1⁄4 tsp. turmeric, remaining 1⁄8 tsp. cayenne, and 1 1⁄4 cups water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and cook until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add cucumbers, peas, and reserved tamarind juice, and cook for 1 minute more.

Add reserved coconut paste to vegetables, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until sauce is thick, about 10 minutes. (Thin sauce with water if it becomes too thick to simmer.) Add curry leaves and coconut oil, and simmer for 1 minute longer.