Pongal special Kootu kai curry / mochakai curry

This curry is same as Thiruvathirai Ezhu(7) kari kuzhambu but with extra vegetables &  Legumes. It is usually done during pongal feast. Perfect match for Vellai pongal / Paal pongal!

Ingredients:

Any vegetable -2 cups ( Cubed)
Dry Legumes / frozen Legumes  - 2 cups
Onion - ½ cup ( chopped) Optional
Tomato - ½ cup (Optional)
Ginger garlic Paste - 1 tsp (optional)
kuzhambu milagai thool - 1 ½ tbs or to taste ( check here for kuzhambu-milagai-thool. recipe ) OR
Red chili powder - 1 1/ 2 tsp or to taste & Corainder powder - 1 tsp or to taste
Turmeric powder - A pinch
Water - required
Salt - To taste

For Grinding :

Coconut -5 ~ 7 slice (medium)
Green chili - 1 ~2
Fennel seed / Sombu - 1 tsp

For Seasoning:

Oil - 2tbs
Mustard seed - ½ tsp
Cumin / Jeeragam - ¼ tsp
Fenugreek seed - ¼ tsp
Asafoetida / Hing- ½ tsp
Curry leaves - as required.


Preparation

• Take 1 fistful of all Dry legumes & soak over night & pressure cook with required water for 3 whistle & keep it aside. (I used peas, Mochai/ Indian lima beans, Karamani / black eye beans, Chana / Garbanzos, Thuvarai / red gram)
• Grind all the grinding ingredients into fine paste & keep it aside.
• Cube the vegetables in to big chunks ( I used potatoes, carrots, collacasia, Yam, Broad beans, Turnips, beans, white & yellow pumpkin, drumstick, eggplant - 4 ~ 5 pieces from each vegetable.)

Method 1

• Heat oil in a pan & add mustard seed, let that splutter & then add remaining seasoning ingredients as listed.
• Add Onion & saute it for a 5 minutes, then add ginger garlic paste and saute it for a minute.
• Add chopped tomatoes & saute until it become soft. Then add kuzhambu milagai thool, Turmeric powder, Salt & saute it until oil separates.
• Add cubed vegetables & stir for 2 minute & add cooked legumes with the required water. Can used cooked legumes water with out wasting it.
• When mixture boils or when vegetables become soft add ground paste & low the heat and cook it for another 10 minutes.
• Adjust Salt to taste.

Method 2 ( Avoiding Onion & Garlic)

• In a wide deep bottomed pan, add all cubed vegetables, Cooked legumes with kulambu milagai thool, Turmeric powder, Salt with required water.
• Cover with the lid & allow it to cook in medium heat.
• When mixture starts boils, add ground paste and let it cook in low heat for 10 minutes.
• When mixture thicken, turn off the heat.
• Heat Oil in a pan & add seasoning ingredients listed after mustard seed splutter and add it to curry.