Poricha Kozhambu is a traditional Tirunelveli dish made with mixed vegetables, coconut and toor dal. It is a healthy and wholesome dish prepared using a special podi (powder) made of lentils and spices. Poricha Kozhambu tastes best when had with gooseberry raita (nellika pachidi) or baby mango raita (maavudu pachidi).
⏱️ Preparation time: 15 minutes
🥘 Cooking time: 30 minutes
⏳ Total duration: 45 minutes
Type of meal: Lunch / Dinner
Cuisine: South Indian
🍽️ Serves upto 4 persons
Ingredients for making Poricha Kozhambu:
- Split pigeon peas (Toor dal): 1 cup
- Dessicated coconut: 1/2 cup
- Spinach: 1 bunch
- Sweet potato: 1/4 cup (diced)
- Carrot: 1/4 cup (diced)
- Green peas: 1/4 cup
- Snake gourd: 1/4 cup (diced)
- French beans: 1/4 cup (diced)
- Egg plant (brinjal): 1/4 cup (diced)
- Drumstick: 1
- Asafoetida: 1/2 tsp
- Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
- Salt as per taste
Ingredients for tempering:
- Clarified butter (Ghee): 1 tbsp
- Mustard seeds: 1 tsp
- Cumin seeds: 1 tsp
Ingredients for making the powder:
- Split pigeon peas: 2 tbsp
- Split black gram (Urad dal): 2 tbsp
- Split bengal gram (Chana dal): 2 tbsp
- Black pepper: 1 tbsp
- Red chilli: 5 – 7 (adjust based on your spice levels)
Instructions for making Poricha Kozhambu:
- Wash the toor dal under running water 2 to 3 times and pressure cook it for upto 5 whistles such that it becomes soft and mushy.
- For making the kuzhambu powder,
- In a pan, kept on low flame, dry roast 2 tbsp each of toor dal, urad dal and chana dal separately till you get the aroma. Then, dry roast 1 tbsp of peppercorns and 5 to 7 red chilli.
- After the ingredients cool down, grind them to a fine powder.
- For making the Poricha Kozhambu, in another pressure cooker, add the diced veggies, 1/2 tsp each of turmeric and asafoetida powder, salt as per taste, 1.5 tbsp of the ground kuzhambu powder and 1/2 cup water. Mix well and pressure cook it for about 8 to 10 minutes without whistle.
- Next, once the pressure settles down, open the cooker and taste to check if the veggies have cooked well. Adjust salt as desired. If the veggies are still under cooked, then cook it for a few more minutes. Add water as required so that the veggies don’t stick to the bottom of the cooker.
- Wash the spinach under running water and chop it finely.
- In a wok, add 1/4 cup water and cook the spinach for 4 to 5 minutes. Once done, mash it well using back of the ladle and add it to the cooker containing the veggies.
- Remove the toor daal from the cooker, mash it well and keep it ready.
- Next, grind the dessicated coconut to a fine paste. Add the coconut gravy and cooked toor dal into the cooker and mix well with rest of the ingredients.
- Keep on medium flame and let it come to a boil.
- For tempering, in a tempering ladle, add 1 tbsp ghee and once it becomes hot, add 1 tsp each of mustard seeds and cumin seeds and let it crackle. Add this tempering to the kuzhambu and mix well.
- Delicious and tasty Poricha Kozhambu is ready. Serve it hot with rice, papad and gooseberry raita.
Notes:
- Boil the green peas separately inorder to retain its bright green colour. Add it to the kuzhambu, just before the tempering.
- For making the kuzhambu powder, ensure you dry roast each of the ingredients separately on low flame so that it doesn’t burn.
