Pudalangai kootu recipe is a traditional south Indian kootu recipe made with snake gourd. Snake gourd is known as pudalangai in Tamil and it is widely used in south .
Snake gourd is a healthy vegetable full of various nutrients and it can be cooked in various ways. This recipe of cooking this vegetable with lentils is our favorite and I make very often to serve with rice.
This is a very flavorful and delicious kootu recipe you can make and serve with rice. Tastes wonderful when served hot. Here is an easy step by step pudalangai kootu recipe for you all to try!
What Is Kootu?
Kootu means mixed or combined in Tamil. It is a basic preparation of mixing one or more vegetables with lentils and cooking to a stew like consistency with various spices.
Kootu recipes are very common in south Indian cuisine. Usually we make this dish to serve with kara kuzhambu, vatha kuzhambu and rasam.
You can make this dish with or without coconut. It is milder and healthier compared to fried or roasted vegetables, so it also one of the preferred food for babies, kids and elders.
When made properly, it is a very delicious, comforting and flavorful dish that could also be a complete meal. It is balanced mix of protein, carbs and vitamins when served with rice.
As it takes very less time to make, kootu is also one of the go to quick fix meals when you want to make something quick in less time.
About This Recipe
Pudalangai kootu or snake gourd kootu recipe is a traditional south Indian kootu recipe made with chopped snake gourd and lentils like toor dal or moong dal.
It is healthy, easy to make quick dish that tastes absolutely delicious as well.
Pudalangai kootu is my first choice to make when I have fresh snake gourd. It is a very easy recipe too as mostly we use a pressure cooker for this.
I usually make pudalangai kootu in two ways.
- No grind kootu with green chilies- The recipe for this kootu is briefly mentioned below.
- Pudalangai kootu with fresh coconut paste- Here I am sharing the recipe for this in detailed steps.
This kootu has a mild flavor and tastes really good with a nice coconut flavor.
Snake gourd kootu is best served hot with rice. For toddlers and kids you can mix rice, kootu and ghee for wholesome and healthy meal.
Do try out and enjoy this easy pudalangai kootu recipe and enjoy. It is
super simple to make
easy one pot recipe
vegan and gluten free
wholesome and healthy
delicious, flavorful
Snake Gourd Kootu Ingredients
Snake gourd– Select fresh and tender snake gourd or pudalngai for best taste and texture. Tender snake gourd is slightly bright in color with visible white patches. Also after removing the pith, tender vegetable snaps easily. If the snake gourd is very mature, it will be very fibrous and will not blend well with the lentils
Lentils– You can use both toor dal or yellow moong dal in this recipe. I usually make it with toor dal if I am making it for lunch and moong dal when making for dinner. Moong dal is more light and easy to digest, so more suited for dinner. Some homes also add a small bit of chana dal in pudalangai kootu for flavor.
Spice paste– This recipe of snake gourd kootu uses a freshly made spice paste with coconut, urad dal and chilies. It is a very flavorful spice blend signature to many south Indian recipes. If you do not want to make this spice paste, you can simply use sambar powder.
Tempering ingredients– We will add a flavorful tempering as finishing to this dish. The ingredients used are mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, curry leaves. I also like to add some peanuts for crunch.
Lemon juice- A small amount of lemon juice is added towards the finishing for some sour taste. As we are not using tamarind in this dish, lemon or lime juice is added to this dish.
How To Make Pudalangai Kootu
Making The Spice Paste
Heat oil in a small pan. Add 1 tablespoon urad dal, 4-6 dried red chillies and fry until dal turns golden brown.
Add grated coconut and fry till golden. Cool and grind to a smooth paste or coarse paste.
Cooking Snake Gourd & Lentils
Clean and cut the snake gourd into two. Now slit each piece vertically and remove the white pith and discard it.
Now chop the pudalangai into small pieces.
Take the chopped pudalangai in a pressure cooker. To that add toor dal and mix well.
Add a pinch of turmeric powder and required water.
Pressure cook for 4 whistles. Once pressure is released mash the cooked snake gourd and cooked dal slightly.
Add the ground paste and required sat.
Mix well and cook for 5-6 minutes.
Tempering Pudalangai Kootu
Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small tadka pan. You can use coconut oil for tempering if you like. Temper with mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal, chana dal, curry leaves. Also add groundnuts if you wish.
Add to the simmering kootu and mix well. Simmer for 2 more minutes.
Serve pudalangai kootu with rice.
No grind Easy Method
This a very simple recipe with less ingredients.
Take cleaned and chopped pudalangai in a pressure cooker. Add toor dal and mix well. Add water, salt,2 tablespoons sambar powder and a pinch of turmeric powder. Pressure cook for up to 4 whistles.
Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal and green chillies. Fry for a minute.
Add to the cooked kootu and mix well. Simmer for 3-4 minutes. Serve hot.
Serving Suggestions
This yummy dish is best served with vatha kuzhambu, rasam or plain hot rice & ghee. You can serve with papad, chips etc.
Variations
You can use moong dal instead of toor dal.
One more popular variation is pudalangai kadalai paruppu kootu. You can add a fistful of chana dal along with moong dal while making kootu.
You can use peppercorns while preparing coconut paste. Just fry them along with urad dal and grind.
If you can’t find snake gourd you can make this recipe with bottle gourd, ridge gourd or cooking variety cucumber too.
Health benefits of Snake Gourd:
- Pudalangai or snake gourd is very good for diabetics. It helps in reducing diabetics.
- It is rich in fibre and helps in digestive problems.
- also it helps in flusing out toxins from the body.
- Low in calories and good for weight loss
Other Kootu Recipes:
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Recipe
Pudalangai Kootu Recipe – Snake Gourd Kootu
1 CUP = 250 ml
Ingredients
For coconut paste
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 1 tablespoon urad dal
- 3-4 dried red chilies
- 3 tablespoons grated coconut
To cook snake gourd
- 250 grams snake gourd chopped
- 1/2 cup toor dal split pigeon peas
- turmeric powder a pinch
- salt to taste
Instructions
To Make Coconut Paste:
- Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small pan. Fry urad dal and dried red chilies well.
- Add grated coconut and fry till golden. Cool and grind to a coarse paste.
To cook snake gourd kootu
- Clean and cut the snake gourd into two. Now slit each piece vertically and remove the white pith and discard it.
- Now cut the pudalangai into small pieces.
- Take the chopped pudalangai in a pressure cooker. To that add toor dal and mix well.
- Add a pinch of turmeric powder and required water.
- Pressure cook for 4 whistles. Once pressure is released mash slightly.
- Add the prepared coconut masala and required sat. Mix well and cook for 5-6 minutes.
Tempering snake gourd kootu
- heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small tadka pan. Temper with mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, curry leaves. Also add groundnuts if you wish.
- Add to the simmering kootu and mix well.
- Serve pudalangai kootu with rice.
Notes
- You can use moong dal instead of toor dal.
- One more popular variation is pudalangai kadalai paruppu kootu. You can add a fistful of chana dal along with moong dal while making kootu.
- You can use peppercorns while preparing coconut paste. Just fry them along with urad dal and grind.
- If you can’t find snake gourd you can make this recipe with bottle gourd, ridge gourd or cooking variety cucumber too.
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