KEERAI MOLAGOOTAL

I am making keerai almost weekly once and that too maximum in the weekends. Since the kids are at home, they will get to eat greens. Here in Houston we almost get palak spinach and other keerai. Rarely I get Thandu keerai in Indian stores. Usually I make keerai kootu, poriyal and masiyal and last week I thought of making Keerai Molagootal which is a Palakkad recipe. I saw this recipe in TV show by one of my favourite Chef. Venkatesh Bhat. It came out very well and it was very good with rice as well with rotis. This is something different from kootu and it was really good. "Amma can you pl make this dish every week"- My kids appreciation after they had this wonderful dish. What else we want! :-)

INGREDIENTS:

Any spinach / keerai - 1 bunch (I used palak - Mulaikeerai will be very good)

Moongdhal - 1/2 cup

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Salt - to taste

Oil / Coconut oil - 1 tsp

To roast & grind:

Coconut oil - 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds / Jeera - 1 tsp

Red chillies - 3 to 4

Grated coconut - 1/4 cup

Rice flour - 3 tsp

To temper:

Oil / Coconut oil - 2 tsp

Cumin seeds / Jeera - 2 tsp

Urad dhal - 1 tsp

Red chillies - 2 break into pieces

Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp

HOW TO MAKE:

Heat oil in a pan / kadai, add cumin seeds and red chillies. Fry well until it turn into brown and add grated coconut and rice flour. Mix well and turn off the stove. Let the kadai be in the hot surface for sometime. Pressure cook the moongdhal with a cup of water and turmeric powder, allow three to four whistles. Mash well and keep aside.

Remove keerai / spinach from stem and wash well. Chop here and there. In a mixie / blender make a fine paste of roasted ingredients by adding little water. Keep aside.

Heat oil in a kadai add cumin seeds and urad dhal. Fry it and add broken red chillies. Add asafoetida. Add grounded paste and stir well to avoid getting the lumps. Add water if it get thickens and not more. Add chopped keerai.