Koottu Curry / Koottukari | Black Chickpea, Yam and Raw Banana Mash

A delicious side dish made with black chickpeas, yam and raw banana, finished off with lots of coconut… 

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After the Puli Inji, I am following it up with another favorite of mine in a sadya, for this week’s Blogging Marathon #138 theme of “Festival Specials”. Just like the puli inji, this is another dish I always ask for a second serving. Koottu Kari is a thick mash like dish made with tubers, usually raw bananas and yam, and combined with black chickpeas. Just like majority sadya recipes, this dish is also coconut heavy and includes it two ways, one as a ground paste and then in the tempering.

The Koottu Curry is one of the important dishes on a banana meal in a sadya. Like I mentioned, it usually includes carby vegetables, though sometimes gourds or pumpkin can also be used as one vegetable to reduce its heaviness. If you ask me, I would vouch for the raw banana-yam combination. It makes the curry like a literal meal with the chickpeas and I really don’t mind eating a whole bowl of it, just like a meal. 😉 The first step is to soak the black chickpeas or kadala, and cook it till done. Once the raw bananas and yam is chopped, cook them separately with turmeric and salt. Now the combination of both of these vegetables is totally upto you. I have taken more raw bananas to yam, but you can keep them equal. The yam was another vegetable I got HD to chop for me, just like the ginger, to avoid flared up hands. Hehe… Once the tubers are cooked, add in the cooked kadala, add a few more ingredients and allow it to simmer. Then the ground paste is added and cooked for a little time. The tempering is a must-not miss. The fried coconut adds a beautiful layer of flavor to this delicious dish. You may skip if you do not have time, but if you, then just do it! Off to the recipe…

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5 from 1 vote

Koottu Curry / Koottukari | Black Chickpea, Yam and Raw Banana Mash

Course Afternoon Side

Cuisine Kerala

Prep Time 12 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Servings 8

Author Rafeeda AR

Ingredients

• 1 cup black chickpeas soaked overnight
• Salt to taste
• 450 gm raw banana approx. 2 medium ones
• 300 gm yam
• 2 green chillies slit
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tbsp jaggery
• 1 tbsp black pepper

TO GRIND

• 1/2 cup grated coconut
• 3/4 tsp cumin seeds

FOR TEMPERING

• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 5-6 dried red chillies
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 1/4 cup grated coconut

Instructions

• Cook the soaked black chickpeas with salt till done. Drain and set aside.
• Lightly peel the raw bananas - keep some skin on. Chop into cubes. Wash and drain.
• Remove the skin of the yam and chop into cubes. Wash well and drain.
• Combine raw banana, yam, green chilli, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and salt in a pressure cooker. Add 3/4 cup water and cook till done. The vegetables should be well cooked and really soft.
• Add the drained chickpeas, jaggery and black pepper and mix. Add water if needed. Keep on simmer for around 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust seasoning.
• Grind the coconut and cumin to a coarse mixture. Add into the kottu curry and mix. Cook for another five minutes. Switch off.
• In a fry pan, heat the coconut oil. Splutter the mustard seeds.
• Fry the red chillies, curry leaves and coconut till the coconut turns golden brown.
• Pour onto the top and close the lid. Mix at the time of serving.

Notes

The quantity of raw banana and yam is upto your liking. You can increase or decrease both accordingly. 

You can replace one of the vegetables with ashgourd or pumpkin, though the end result may taste different. 

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