Koottu (meaning ‘adding’) is a quintessential Tamil vegetable lentil stew, and may have been named as such because vegetables are added to a lentil base. Even today, the TamBram version of this utilizes only native vegetables and spices, except for the use of red chilies. My speculation is that this dish may have been cooked with pepper at one time, and was replaced by red chilies only recently. The Palghat version is a very popular dish and is aptly named as ‘mulagoottal,’ which translates to ‘adding pepper.’
The recipe below is a mashup and I use ‘English’ vegetables, and red chilies. Taking a cue from the ‘arachu vitta koottu’ (meaning ‘blend and mix’ variety), I added a combination of pepper, coriander and fenugreek seeds to get some additional kick to this otherwise humble dish.
Traditionally it is cooked with a neutral base, meaning there is no acidic element to this. But I wanted to add a bit of sour taste by including a tiny bit of yogurt in the end to subdue the somewhat overpowering cumin. Finally, the consistency is deliberately kept on the solid side, but if you prefer this to be more liquid, then add an additional cup of water.
This is a very delicate dish, but very simple to cook. You can use cabbage, or spinach or any of the vegetables from the squash or gourds family.
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Potato and Carrot Koottu - Indian Vegetable Lentil Stew
Koottu is a quintessential Tamil vegetable lentil stew. This is a very delicate dish, but very simple to cook. The consistency is deliberately kept on the solid side, but if you prefer this to be more liquid, then add an additional cup of water. You can use cabbage, or spinach or any of the vegetables from the squash or gourds family. It is gluten free and is a vegan dish.
Dice the carrot and potato into small cubes and set them aside.
Add oil (1 tbsp or as needed) to a frying pan and heat the oil on medium heat. Add red red chilies, chana dhal and coriander seeds and fry until the chana dhal becomes somewhat brown.
Add cumin seeds, pepper, fenugreek seeds and fry them all for a few more seconds.
Turn the heat to ‘low,’ add coconut and fry the mixture by continuously stirring it so that it does not get burnt. Fry until the coconut becomes slightly off-white/brown.
Turn the stove off, and allow it to cool.
Using a blender, grind the fried spices into a fine paste, adding just enough (cold) water to achieve a paste consistency. Take extra caution not to heat it up too much during grinding.
Pour the paste into the Inner Pot of the Instant Pot (IP).
Add moong dhal, and the vegetables. Add salt.
Add about 2.0 cups of water.
Close the lid, and cook for 2 min at high pressure. Cool down naturally.
Add ¼ cup of water to the yogurt and mix it thoroughly to form a uniform liquid without any solids.
Open the IP lid when it is cool and when the pressure valve is down. Add the yogurt and mix gently but thoroughly.
Of course, a dish as popular as Sambar must have a real tall tale to showcase its mighty origin! One day, Sambaji (none other than the son of the great Maratha warrior Sivaji), who also happens to be a great cook, finds himself without his favorite ingredients in his cousin’s kingly court kitchen in Tanjore. He magically creates this world-famous dish with local ingredients and aptly names it after himself – Sambar! Whether you relegate this to the great storytelling ability of our people or assign it to historians for further research, it is in general agreed, that the origin of this dish must have been from a modest Tanjore Brahmin’s kitchen and has since spread across South India over time. In doing so, it has incorporated elements of local cuisine, such as adding coconut in Kerala or even jaggery in Karnataka. But the real credit goes to the Udupi hoteliers who popularized their version of Sambar, which is sometimes referred to as ‘Hotel Sambar.’ It is this version that has ‘traveled the world and seven seas’ to become ubiquitous in all Madrasi restaurants and kitchens alike.
Sambar – The Spicy Soul
When my mother heard that I am going abroad for my studies, she immediately made sure that I learned to cook Sambar, and she sent me off with a packet of Sambar powder. Ever since then, I have been evolving my Sambar recipe. Now it contains all the key elements of all the Sambar recipes that I have come across. Try it for yourself…I think you’ll really enjoy it!
It is a pure vegetarian dish and almost a vegan one but for the butter in it. You can also make this dish gluten free, if you avoid the hing. Hing in its pure form is gluten free, but many vendors add wheat flour to reduce the intensity of its flavor.
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Sambar (Vegetable lentil stew)
It is a pure vegetarian dish and almost a vegan one but for the butter in it. You can also make this dish gluten free, if you avoid the hing. Hing in its pure form is gluten free, but many vendors add wheat flour to reduce the intensity of its flavor.
Pour the contents (except the curry leaves) of the dry spices into the Instant Pot Inner Pot (put the spices in one small area of the pan).
Pour the vegetable oil over the spices (just enough to soak the spices plus a little more).
Plug in the Instant Pot, press ‘sauté’ and ‘adjust’ to ensure the digital display is on ‘more.’ This is the high setting for sauté.
When you first hear the sound of the mustard seed "popping," pour the diced green chilies, butter, and ginger/garlic paste into the pan. Add the curry leaves. Stir until the butter melts and chilies and garlic/ginger paste mixes well together.
Adjust the ‘sauté’ temperature down if needed. Sauté for another 1 min.
Add onions to pan. Stir occasionally until the onions are soft, just until they are translucent.
Add salt, sambar powder, and tomatoes. Add 1 cup of water to the pan, mix them well and let them cook together. Ensure you stir periodically for uniform cooking and mixing of spices (just fold it over using a spatula). Bring it to a boil. Adjust the sauté temperature as needed.
Turn off the Instant Pot
Add (1 cup) Dhal to the Inner Pot, add (6 cups of) water
On manual, under high pressure, with vent sealed, cook for 20 min. Let it cool down naturally.
In a bowl, add the tamarind, and add a cup of water and microwave for 2 minutes. Once cool, make a puree by squeezing. Remove all pulp. Dilute the tamarind, if needed, for the right consistency and keep 1 cup of tamarind juice aside.
Add all the ingredients (except the coconut) for the paste to a small frying pan and add 2 tsp of oil. Fry them on medium heat until the lentils become slightly brown.
Grind the fried spices into a fine paste using a grinder and by adding enough water to achieve a paste consistency.
Open the grinder, add the coconut and grind them together for a few seconds. Set aside the paste.
In a small frying pan, add a bit of oil, some salt and gently sauté the cut vegetable until it is about half cooked. Add a small amount of water if necessary.
Add the tamarind juice, and the ground paste to the pan and cook them all together until they come to a boil. Turn off the stove after it has reached a boil.
Once the IP has cooled down, make sure there is no pressure in the cooker and that the (pressure) pin is down. Open the Cooker lid -- be careful, as the dhal will be extremely hot.
Add the cooked ingredients to the inner pot. Add water, if needed, for consistency. Set the IP for ‘slow cook’ high for 30 minutes. Close the lid, with the vent open.
Once done, taste and add salt if necessary. Add Jaggery (optional), if preferred.
Add in fresh cilantro for garnish. Serve hot over rice.
