Poricha Kootu

I don't know how this recipe got its name, but I was in love with it the first time I tasted it. My memory fails me as I have forgotten my tryst with this dish in school. The earliest I remember was having it from my colleague M when I was pregnant. Oh Boy, did I love it!!! M, being the kind soul she was ensured she got this for me regularly... this is the nicest part of being pregnant... people are eager to satiate your pregnancy cravings. M got it every other week for me. It's nearly 3 years now since this incident but the taste lingered on.

Recently I decided to ask my best friend G the recipe. I figured since it is a Tamil Brahmin speciality, G would know the recipe too...so what if M was an Iyer and G an Iyengar? The recipe ought to be the same right? G laughed and told me "DO you remember how you used to hog my lunch in school every time my mom packed this dish for me?". My jaw dropped, limbs dragged and the whole body shook!!!! Haha, let me not overdo, but I swear, I really did not remember having this dish earlier. G says she can recall very vividly how I used to exchange the Fried Rice my mom packed for me in exchange for her Poricha Kootu n Rice. I must have forgotten about it in my growing old years, but more than 10 years later, when M brought the dish, I loved it...so I guess the taste was cultivated when I was a 13 or 14 year old teen!

G gave me the recipe which I cross verified online. Fairly simple. So I decided to make it. And relish it!!!!





What you need to make Poricha Kootu

Any of the following veggies (any 2 would suffice)

Chow Chow (I don't know its english name) - 1

Green Brinjal - 5-6 cut lengthwise

Green Capsicum - 1

Kovakkai (Ivy Gourd or Tindora) - 100 gms

White Pumpkin - 100 gms

1. Moong Dal (Siru Parippu) - 1 cup
2. Channa Dal (Kadala Parippu) - 50 gms
3. Coconut - 1/2 shell grated
4. Jeera - 1 tsp
5. Green Chillies - 3-4
6. Peppercorn - 3-4 tblsp
7. Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
8. Sambar Powder - 1 tsp
9. Salt to taste

How to make it:

1. Pressure cook the Moong Dal and Channa Dal for 3-4 whistles.
2. Cut and boil the vegetables in water with turmeric and sambar powder.
3. Grind the coconut, green chilly, peppercorns and jeera into a fine paste.
4. When the veggies are cooked and soft, add the dal and bring to boil.
5. Add salt and mix well.
6. Add the ground coconut-peppercorn paste and cook till the gravy becomes thick.
7. Serve with hot rice and ghee!

This dish requires no oil. Yeah the coconut is a high cholestrol item, but still, NO OIL!!!!

I love this dish and looks like this is going to feature in my weekly timetable for lunch menu from now on since I've learnt to make it.