Ash Gourd Kootu (with Tamarind)

This is a different type of kootu. This dish is more like sambhar but can be had as a side dish for chapati.

Prep Time: 30 mins

Cook Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• 1 cup Cubed ash gourd

• 1/4 cup Peanuts

• Salt, to taste

• 1 lemon sized Tamarind, pulp removed

• 1/4 cup Tur dal

• 1 tsp Turmeric powder

• 1 heaped tbsp Sambhar powder

For tempering

• 1/2 tbsp Coconut oil

• 1 tsp Mustard seeds

• 1 tsp Urad dal

• 5-7 Curry leaves

Roast and grind to a powder

• 1 tsp Coriander seeds

• 1/2 tsp Urad dal

• 1/2 tsp Chana dal

• 4 Red chillies

• 1 tsp Hing

• 1 tbsp Grated coconut

• 1 tsp Ghee

Instructions

1. Cook the tur dal, mash it and keep aside

2. Soak the peanuts for 2 hours and pressure cook for 3 whistles adding little salt and very little water

3. In a pan, add the ingredients for roasting except coconut and sauté well

4. Once the dals are roasted well to a light brown colour, add the coconut and switch off the gas. Powder this mixture.

5. In a cooking pan, take the tamarind pulp, add turmeric powder, sambhar powder, salt and the ash gourd

6. When it is half cooked, add the cooked peanuts and mix well

7. Add the spice powder and mix well

8. Lastly add the cooked tur dal, mix well and switch off the gas

9. In a small pan, take coconut oil, splutter mustard seeds, urad dal and the curry leaves and add this to the kootu