Chow chow kootu with rice
Everyday Tamil kootu: chow chow (chayote) and moong dal cooked soft with a ground paste of coconut, cumin and green chilli, finished with a tadka of mustard seeds and curry leaves, and eaten mixed with rice, often alongside rasam or sambar. Snake gourd, ash gourd, cabbage or keerai are made the same way, and with no onion or garlic it suits Jain homes as it is.
- 40 minTime
- 25 minHands-on
- 4Portions
- 17 gprotein per portion
- 550kcal per portion
Ingredients for 4 portions
- 150 gMoong dal
- ≈ 400 mlWater, for the dal
- 3 mlTurmeric
- 2Chayotes, peeled and cubed
- ≈ 200 mlWater, for the chow chow
- to tasteSalt
- 50 gGrated coconut
- 1 tspCumin, seeds
- 2Green chillies
- 1 tbspCoconut oil
- 1 tspMustard seeds
- 1 tspUrad dal
- 1Dried red chilli
- 1 sprigCurry leaves
- 1 mlHing (asafoetida)
On the side
- 350 gRice, ponni or sona masoori
- ≈ 1 lWater, for the rice
Method
- Wash the rice and the moong dal separately. Put the rice with its water in one container and the dal with its water and half the turmeric in another, and stack them in the pressure cooker with a little water in the bottom.
- Pressure-cook on medium heat for 3 whistles, about 12 minutes, and let the pressure drop by itself.
- Meanwhile, peel the chow chow, remove the soft seed and cut it into small cubes.
- Grind the coconut, cumin seeds and green chillies to a smooth paste with a little water.
- Cook the chow chow, covered, with the water, the rest of the turmeric and salt until just tender, about 10 minutes.
- Mash the dal lightly and stir it into the chow chow with the coconut paste. Simmer, stirring, for 5 minutes until thick but still pourable.
- Heat the coconut oil in a small pan and add the mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the urad dal, dried red chilli, curry leaves and hing. When the dal turns golden, pour the tadka over the kootu.
- Serve the kootu with the hot rice.
