Kumbalanga Cherupayar parippu Curry / Ash gourd & Moong dal Curry

Here's another signature dish from God's own country!

As the name says this is a curry made with Kumbalanga/ash gourd and cherupayar parippu / moong dal in Kerala, a mildly spiced comfort dish I make often with phulkas or plain rice that serves fine at any time of the day!

The simple intro part is over ;)

errr..

...and can I proceed to the recipe directly? ;)

(whew !! it relieves me quite a lot when I do this coz I get much hooked with words and nothing flows in lately)

Get ready with:

Ash gourd- diced- 1 large cup

Moong dal - dry roasted - 1/4 cup

Small onions- finely chopped- 1 tsp

To Grind:

Freshly grated coconut- 1 1/2 tbsps

Garlic- 1 clove

Jeera powder-1/4 tsp

Turmeric powder-1/4 tsp scant

To season:

Coconut oil- 2 tsps

Mustard seeds- 1/4 tsp

Small onions- minced- 2 tsps

Green chilly-1- sliced lengthwise

Red chilly-1- broken into 3 pcs(optional)

Curry leaves- a sprig

A 3 ltr pressure cooker- ;)

How to make :

Transfer the lightly dry roasted moong dal to the cooker, give it a quick rinse, add 1/2 cup of water and bring to a boil. Lower the flame to simmer and cook in open without the lid on) for 2-3 minutes keeping an eye not to let it boil over.

In the meanwhile grind coconut, garlic, jeera and turmeric powders to a smooth paste adding a little water.Stir in to the cooking dal along with the ash gourd pieces and the sliced green chilly and 1 tsp of finely cut onions. Add salt and mix well. The liquid part should NOT be more than 1/2- 3/4 cup at this stage as ash gourd lets out water while cooking. Close the lid and cook till 2-3 whistles.

Open, after the steam vents off. If the curry seems to be a little watery, add a tsp of rice powder or corn starch and bring to a gentle boil. Even otherwise the curry tends to thicken after cooling down a bit!

For the seasoning, heat oil in a kadai, splutter the mustard seeds and next the minced onions. Let the onions get fried to a brown hue and impart the aroma. Throw in the red chilly bits followed by the curry leaves. Pour the seasoning over the curry.

Serve warm with phulkas or steamed rice.

If you find it difficult to get the ash gourd, substitute it with lemon cucumber or vellarikka (malayalam) for a closest taste.This recipe is off to The Kerala Kitchen.

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