Kootu is a South Indian stew made with vegetables, lentils and a ground coconut paste. It's very healthy, light and mildly spiced dish and we usually serve with spicy and tangy gravies like vatha kuzhambu and puli kuzhambu. It also goes well with rasam and thogayal. There's no such rule kootu can be made with specific vegetables only, you can make with your choice of vegetables and greens.
Cabbage is one vegetable not liked by many, mainly because of its smell. Though I don't hate cabbage, I don't prefer it much. I like it most in the form of cabbage thoran (stir-fry). And this kootu is another way to use up cabbage. I know, a kootu with cabbage sounds boring, but trust me it tastes really good. The addition of ginger and fennel seeds add lot more flavor to the otherwise bland cabbage. It goes well with rice and vatha kuzhambu, or you can have it with roti too. Let's see how to make this simple and healthy cabbage kootu.
Check out other kootu recipes:
- Bottlegourd kootu
- Chow chow kadalai paruppu kootu
- Palak keerai kootu
- Capsicum kadalai paruppu kootu
CABBAGE KOOTU RECIPE
{ South Indian style stew with cabbage, lentil and coconut }Serves 3
Ingredients:
1 ½ cup finely chopped cabbage
¼ cup yellow moong dal
¼ tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
To grind:
⅓ cup grated coconut
3 green chillies
½-inch ginger, chopped
1/8 tsp fennel seeds / perumjeerakam (optional)
½ tsp rice powder
To temper:
2 tsp coconut oil
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp split urad dal
1 dry red chilly, broken
Few curry leaves
Method:
1. Wash the moong dal and soak it for 15 minutes. Add to a pressure cooker with cabbage, turmeric powder, ½ cup water and pressure cook for 2 whistles.
2. Grind coconut, green chillies, ginger, fennel seeds and rice flour to a paste adding little water.
3. Add the ground coconut paste, salt to the cabbage-moong dal and bring everything to boil. Cook for 5-6 minutes.
4. In a pan, heat oil and add mustard seeds. When it crackles, add urad dal, red chilly, curry leaves and pour over kootu.
Notes and Tips
- Do not add more water while cooking the cabbage. The cabbage will release water while cooking.
- I like this kootu little spicy, so added 3 green chillies. You can reduce the chillies according to your spice preference.
- Adding fennel seeds is optional. But I would recommend it as it adds a nice flavor to the kootu. But do not add more as it can be quite overpowering.
