Yellow Pumpkin Kootu | Poosanikai Kootu | Parangikai Kootu - without coconut

Yellow Pumpkin cooked in Mung Dal

Many think that pumpkins, especially the yellow ones, are for Halloween carvings ! It does remind you of the Harry Potter movies & the Hogwarts dining room, na? I know many a friends who do not like it as a veggie. Maybe the sweetness that it imparts is what puts off many to have it as a side dish. But it is said to be a great source of Vitamin A & antioxidant beta carotene. It also seems to decreases the risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes & promotes a healthy complexion & hair. Now that last part would make you feel that including pumpkins in your diet does not sound like a bad idea after all, right? It is also a great substitute for oil & butter in your bakes ! Now I have heard that they even make payasam (kheer) with pumpkins. So many ways to have them..

Yellow pumpkin is one of the favorite veggies of my sis, my mom, me & now Dhruv as well :) I am happy that he likes it & I do not have to run behind him to make him eat them. I was scared that he might not like them coz it's not Deeps' favorite. But this kootu recipe has impressed even Deeps as well & he eats at least 2 spoons of it when I make them (Yes, that's an achievement) Somehow, my mom's recipes do have a very positive impact on his veggie eating habits ! :) So people out there, who do not like pumpkins, do try this recipe for sure, coz it's a breeze to make & a keeper for sure and you are going to start liking them hereafter :)

Other pumpkin recipes:

Vegan Pumpkin Bread
Mathanga Erissery

Recipe Source: Ma

 

I Took: 30 minutes

 

Serves : 2 persons

I Used:

Yellow Pumpkin - 250 gm (A big piece) Moong Dal - ¼ cup Ginger - An inch piece Garlic - 2-3 cloves Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp Salt - As needed

To Temper:

Oil	-	1 tbsp
Mustard	-	½ tsp
Urad Dal	-	1 tsp
Red Chilly	-	4 nos
Curry leaves	-	A sprig
Asafoetida	-	2 pinch

The Way:

1. Rinse moong dal thoroughly in water. Then soak the dal in water (I took 1.5 cups) for 20-30 minutes

2. Remove the skin of the pumpkin (and also the middle mushy part with seeds) and dice it and keep aside

3. Add salt & turmeric powder to the soaked dal and boil it till it is 3/4 done. Check in between if water is required and add accordingly

4. Once the dal is 3/4th cooked, add the diced pumpkin pieces

5. Crush the ginger & garlic and also add them along with the pumpkin pieces

6. Now cover and cook till the pumpkin pieces are cooked and becomes soft and mushy. This should take around 8-10 minutes

7. Now for the tadka/tempering, heat oil in a tadka pan/kadai

8. Add the mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the urd dal. As it slightly turns colour add the remaining ingredients and give a nice stir

9. Add the tadka to the kootu and mix and serve

Tastes awesome with Plain Rice / Rasam Sadam / Kathirikai Kara Kuzhambu / Pavakkai Puli Kuzhambu

Notes:

Instead of boiling the moong dal, you can pressure cook as well. Just about 2 whistles should suffice. As pumpkin gets cooked fast, I would not recommend to pressure cook it.

Cheers,

Chitz