Pasalai Keerai Kootu (Spinach with Dal)

Pasalai Keerai Kootu is a good combination of green leaves and lentils. This dish is good for health as it uses less oil and spices.

Serves: Four

Cooking time:

• soaking time: 30 minutes
• cooking time: approximately 20 minutes.

Ingredients

• Spinach leaves chopped – 2 cups
• Split green gram (moong dal) – 1/2 cup
• Cooking oil – 2 tea spoon
• Salt – as per taste
• For grinding
  • Coconut – 1/8 of a coconut
  • Coriander seeds – one tea spoon
  • Red chilly – one
  • Pepper – 1/2 tea spoon
  • Cumin seeds – 1/2 tea spoon
  • Turmeric powder – 1/4 tea spoon
  • Garlic – 2 pods
  • Curry leaves – few
• For seasoning
  • Mustard – 1/2 tea spoon
  • Black gram – 1/2 tea spoon
  • Onion – 1 chopped
  • Tomato – 1 chopped
  • Curry leaves – few
  • Asafetida (hing) – pinch

Method

Step 1

• Soak split green gram for half an hour and drain; pressure cook green gram, chopped spinach with turmeric powder and a few drops of oil.

Step 2

• Fry all items given for grinding with 1/2 tea spoon oil and grind to a fine paste with little water.

• Heat a pan, put remaining oil; add mustard, black gram, asafetida powder, curry leaves and keep till mustard splutter.
• Add chopped onion,fry till light golden colour; add chopped tomato, cook till tomato is soft.
• Add salt, ground paste, boiled green gram with spinach; cook for 2 to 3 minutes.

Serve hot. Suits with Rice, Paratha, Chapatti.

Tips:

• as split green gram is soaked, one whistle is sufficient to pressure cook.