Kootukal
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Very similar to dhal fry, pachadi and curry, kootu is a tasty side dish as well as a very healthy food. If tamarind is not added, this side dish is called as "poricha kuzhambu".
137. Poricha Kuzhambu With Vegetables/Tubers
Vegetables such as cluster beans, snake gourd, cucumber, ridge gourd, broad beans, raw banana, yellow pumpkin, white pumpkin, drumstick and tubers such as potato and colocasia (treat this to get it remove its itching component following the procedure given in morkuzhambukal section) can be used to make Poricha kuzhambu.
Ingredients :
Any Vegetable or Tuber - 12 palam
Water - ½ padi
Pepper - ¼ palam
Red Chilli - ⅛ palam
Black Gram - 1 palam
Grated Coconut - 1½ palam
Milk - ¼ padi
Salt - ½ palam
Roasted Gram Flour - 1 palam
Curry Leaves - ¼ palam
Ghee - 1 palam
Mustard Seed - ⅛ palam
Black Gram - ¼ palam
Bengal Gram - ¼ palam
Method :
1. Take any vegetable or tuber. Peel off the skin and stalk and cut them into small pieces. Take the water in a lead coated vessel that can hold about 1 padi water and allow to boil.
2. Put the cut vegetables/tubers into the boiling water and cook nicely. Fry pepper, red chilli, black gram and grated coconut adding a little ghee or oil. After frying grind to a smooth paste using little water.
3. Add milk,salt and roasted bengal gram flour into the vessel containing ground paste of coconut etc. Add this mixture to the vegetables/tubers once they are nicely cooked and heat further to cook more.
4. Take a bunch of curry leaves, saute it in fire and add to the kuzhambu(gravy) and mix.
5. Using ghee,mustard, black gram and bengal gram temper by following the 22nd recipe and add to the kuzhambu.If we want we can add ⅛ padi cooked and mashed pigeonpea to the kuzhambu before adding chilli etc.
138. Poricha Kuzhambu With Turnip
Ingredients :
| Turnip | - 24 palam | | Water | - ½ padi | | Red Chilly | - ⅛ palam |
Pepper - ¼ palam
Black Gram - 1½ palam
Grated Coconut - 1½ palam
Milk - ¼ padi
Powdered Salt - ½ palam
Roasted Gram Flour - ½ palam
Curry Leaves - ¼ palam
Ghee - 1 palam
Red Chilly - ⅛ palam
Mustard Seed - ⅛ palam
Black Gram - ¼ palam
Method :
1. Cut each turnip into four pieces, cook them well in water, peel off the skin and cut them into small pieces.
2. Pour water into a lead coated vessel which can hold 1 ½ padi of water and boil. Add the cooked vegetable pieces to it.
3. Fry red chilli,pepper,black gram and grated coconut individually with a little ghee or oil. Cool them and grind into a nice paste using a little water and keep aside.
4. Add the ground paste to milk and pour into the vessel containing the cooked turnip.Add the salt to the poricha kuzhambu and boil to thicken.
5. Mix roasted gram flour with little water and pour into the kuzhambu and boil.
6. Saute curry leaves and add to the kuzhambu. Season using ghee, red chilli and black gram following the 22ⁿᵈ procedure and add to the kuzhambu.
7. If dhal need to be added, follow the procedure given for the previous poricha kuzhambu.
8. Alternatively, beetroot, carrot and yellow pumpkin can be used instead of turnip. Milk can be replaced by water, if needed in these both procedures.