Ezhu Kari Kootu

I asked my husband the other day what would he like to have for Sunday lunch and he said ‘Ezhu kari kootu', which means Kootu made of 7 vegetables. Though its called 7 kari kootu, atleast 10 different kinds of veggies go into this typically. I pulled up my good old ‘Meenakshi ammal’s cook book and checked the recipe. This kootu is especially made on ‘Thiruvadarai’ to go with ‘Kali’. Now I’m not a big fan of kali, I’ve made sambar with tons of veggies before but have never called it ‘7 kari kootu’. So I decided to stick to the recipe and tried to find suggested veggies; I got everything but mochai kottai, after some brainstorming decided to substitute Lima beans for ‘Mochai kottai’. I made it like a Sambar, instead of a thick kootu. With chock full of colorful veggies and lentils, this is not only a healthy dish but absolutely delicious. I served it with hot rice, a dash of ghee and fried appalams on the side, now what more can one ask for on a Sunday afternoon ! Later, I headed to the couch straight after lunch and took a nice well-deserved nap!


Recipe adapted from Meenakshi Ammal’s ‘Samaithu Paaru’.
Assorted vegetables – Beans, Green drumsticks, carrots, Green peppers, Raw Bananas, white Pumpkin, Lima beans, yellow squash, zucchini – chopped, 3 cups.
Toor Daal – ½ cup
Tamarind – ¼ cup, soaked in hot water
Water – 2 cups
Coconut – ½ cup
Dried red chilies – 10
Dhaniya seeds – 1/3 cup
Channa Daal – ¼ cup
Oil – 4 tbl spoon
Curry leaves – 10
Mustard seeds – 1 tspn
Asafoetida, a pinch
Salt, per taste

Grind coconut, Red Chilies, Dhaniya seeds and Channa daal to a fine paste with water. Set aside.
Extract tamarind pulp and set aside.
Cook Toor Daal. While this is cooking, heat 2 tables spoon of oil in a big sauce pan, add veggies and fry for 3 minutes.
Now add the tamarind extract and salt and cook till the raw smell of tamarind is gone(about 20 minutes).
Add the ground paste and cooked/mashed daal. Let the whole thing come to a boil and reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
Heat remaining oil in a small pan and add the mustard seeds and Asafoetida. Once the seeds pop, add curry leaves and give it a quick toss. Pour on top of the Sambar. Serve hot with rice.

What with the lentils, lima beans and a mix of veggies, I’m going to send this over to Sweetnicks, as my entry for ARF-5.

Summer is for Vadam

After a week of heavy rains, sunny days are here to stay now! We decided to make the most of the hot weather and made 'Vadam' !! My mom is visiting and has been wanting to make Vadams since the time she saw the deck in the backyard ! Now I'm sure everyone from India has some vadam/papad making memories. When I was growing up, every summer a week to 10 days would be dedicated to making an annual supply of Vadams; they'd be distributed to busy aunts, neighbours who don’t have the time to make their own. And some would also set up a barter system, making different kinds of vadams and exchanging a batch of one for another. It was always fun for the kids, we'd be asked to help around and guard the vadams from smart, clever crows and other birds, that'd swoop down at the right moment and grab a mouthful and fly away! Wonderful memories there..

I wonder if this tradition still continues. My mom tells me that she doesn’t make as much as she used to when we were growing up. I always get my annual supply from my mom or my mother-in-law. Unfortunately, I never learnt to make Vadams . Its on my ‘things to learn & try’ list. I just hope its not one of those dying art forms, where everyone is busy and nobody has the time to make a batch of Vadam from scratch.