7 Kari Poricha kootu

 7 kari Poricha koottu is made mostly by Tanjore Brahmins during Thiruvathirai as the 7 kari kootu kozhambu is made by them during Pongal which is later converted into Ericha Kuzhambu. 

Ingredients

Mochai Paruppu (Field Beans) - 1 cup

Pumpkin - 1/2 kg

Raw Banana - 1 no.

Brinjal - 1/4 kg

Snake Gourd - 1/2 kg

Yam (Senai Kizhangu) - 1/4 kg

Beans - 1/4 kg

Cluster Beans (Kothavarangaai) - 1/4 kg

Chayote (chow chow) - 1 no

Carrot - 2 nos

Taro root or Colacasia (Cheppankizhangu) - 1/4 kg

Potato - 1/4 kg

Green chillies -12 nos

Moong Dal - 1 cup

Grated Coconut - 1 cup

Oil - 1/4 cup

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 2 tbsp

Asafodeita powder - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Curry Leaves - !/4 cup 2 twigs for garnishing

Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup for grinding 1/4 cup for garnishing

Method:

Grind grated coconut, cumin seeds, 8 green chillies, curry leaves and coriander leaves to a fine paste. 

Pressure cook moong dal and mash well. 

Cut Carrot, pumpkin, raw banana, mochai, Snake gourd, beans, cluster beans, chayote and Yam. Pressure cook for just 1 whistle or cook in the open pan till they become soft. Add just the required salt while cooking the vegetables. 

Cook and peel colocassia and potato and cut them into reasonable size.

 Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a hard bottom pan, add mustard seeds and let it splutter, add the remaining 4 green chillies and curry leaves and when the mustard seeds splutter add asafodeita powder and mix. Add all the cooked vegetables and mix a little. Add 1 tbsp of salt and adjust and add more if needed after tasting it. Add the ground paste and mix well and add a cup of water let it boil. Now add the cooked and mashed moong dal to it and mix well. When everything comes to a boil and mixes well remove from flame. 

Thiruvathirai Recipes

Thiruvathirai festival comes in the Tamil month of Markazhi on the day when the star Thiruvathirai falls. The special dishes that are made are:

* Thiruvathirai Kali
* 7 curry kuzhambu (7 Vegetable Gravy)
* 7 curry poricha kootu (This is mostly made in Tanjore Brahmin families)

7 Kari Kuzhambu

This is normally made on Thiruvadirai or on Pongal. As the name suggests, this Kuzhambu is made using minimum 7 different vegetables. More number of vegetables is used normally.

Ingredients:
Mochai Paruppu (Field Beans) - 1 cup
Pumpkin - 1/2 kg
Red Pumpkin - 1/4 kg
Sweet Potato - 1/4 kg
Raw Banana - 1 no.
Brinjal - 1/4 kg
Snake Gourd - 1/2 kg
Yam (Senai Kizhangu) - 1/4 kg
Beans - 1/4 kg
Cluster Beans (Kothavarangaai) - 1/4 kg
Chayote (chow chow) - 1 no
Carrot - 2 nos
Taro root or Colacasia (Cheppankizhangu) - 1/4 kg
Potato - 1/4 kg
Green chillies - 8 nos
Thuvar Dal - 1 cup
Red chillies - 12 nos
Coriander Seeds (Dhaniya) - 1/4 cup
Bengal gram dal - 1/5 cup
Grated Coconut - 1 cup
Tamarind Paste - 4 tbsp
Oil - 1/4 cup
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Methi seeds - 1 tbsp
Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp
Solid Asafodeita - 1 inch piece
Asafodeita powder - 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Method:
In a pan add 2 tbsp of oil and fry coriander seeds, bengal gram dal, red chillies and grated coconut. Grind them to a very fine paste.

Wash peel and dice yam into big pieces. Peel potatoes and cut it into bigger pieces. Pressure cook yam, potatoes, Sweet potato and Taro root. Peel the Taro root, Sweet Potato and cut it into 2 pieces. Peel white and red pumpin and cut it into bigger pieces. Peel the carrot, chayote and cut them too into bigger pieces. Destring the beans and cut them to reasonably sized pieces. Cut the cluster beans into two.

Heat oil in a pan and add cluster beans and saute them for a while. Add field beans to it, and cook it in 1/2 cup of water for some time. Add all the other vegetables (except potato, yam etc), turmeric powder and rock salt (just for vegetables) and cook for about 5 mins keeping the vessel closed. Turn the vegetables without mashing them. Add the potato, yam etc along with 4 slit green chillies. Cook till all the vegetables become 1/2 cooked.

Add 1 cup of water to the tamarind paste and add it to the boiling vegetables. When it boils add the ground paste. In the mean time pressure cook Thuvar Dal and mash well. Add that too to the boiling liquid. When it boils well remove from flame and add finely chopped curry leaves and coriander leaves.

Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a seasoning laddle add mustard seeds, bengal gram dal, urad dal and 4 red chillies and add it to the sambar.

Mixed vegetables poricha kuzhambu

Ingredients:
Moong Dal - 1/4 cup
Drumstick - 1
Brinjal - 2
Chow chow - 1/2
Yam - small piece
Potato - 2 nos
Turmeric powder - 1 pinch
Salt to taste
Poricha Kulzhambu powder - 4 tbsp
Grated coconut - 1/4 cup
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Green chilly - 1 no
Curry leaves - 1/2 cup
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Broken Urad dal - 1/2 tsp

Method:
Cut into cubes all the vegetables. Cut the drumsticks into 1 inch pieces. Pressure cook yam and potatoes. Pressure cook moong dal separately. Cook other vegetables in 1 cup of water along with turmeric powder and little salt. Mix the poricha kootu powder in 1 cup of water and make it a fine paste.

In a pan add oil and when hot add the mustard seeds, urad dal and half of the curry leaves. Once the urad dal turns pink in colour add the cooked vegetables, yam and potatoes. Add the powder paste to it and bring it to boil. Grind coconut, cumin seeds and green chillies to a fine paste. Add it to the vegetables and reduce the flame. After 5 minutes add the cooked moong dal and mix it thoroughly. If the kuzhambu is thick add enough water (one cup).

How to make Thiruvathirai Kali

Thiruvathirai also known as Arudra Darisanam is celebrated in Tamilnadu. It falls in the month of Margazhi on the Thiruvathirai star day. The main neivedhyam is Thiruvathirai Kali and 7 kai kootu.

Ingredients to make Thiruvathirai Kali:
Raw rice - 1 1/2 cups
Moong Dal - 1/2 cup
Bengal gram dal - 1/4 cup
Jaggery - 1 cup
Grated coconut - 1/2 cup
Cashew nuts - 10 to 12 nos
Cardamom - 6 nos
Ghee - 1/4  cup
Water - 3 cups (Add 1 to 1 1/2 cups while cooking if needed)

Method:
Fry rice till it becomes golden brown in colour. Fry both the dals separately till they become golden brown. Grind them together till they reach rawa consistency (this can be done at home in mixer itself). (The dals can be powdered to a fine powder consistency too).

Fry the cashew nuts in a tbsp of ghee and set aside. Grind the cardamom to fine powder and keep it ready. In a hard bottom pan add 1 cup of water and when it boils add the jaggery and let it mix well to form a syrup. Drain the jaggery so that all impurities get cleared.

Wash the pan and add the jaggery water to it and bring it to boil. Add the grated coconut and cardamom powder to it and when it boils add 2 cups of water and  the rice and dal mixture and mix it thoroughly without forming any lumps. Mash lumps if there are any. Close the pan with a lid and reduce the flame. Keep mixing it in between so that it doesnot get settled at the bottom of the pan. While stirring add ghee to it slowly. When the rice gets cooked add the fried cashew nuts and mix thoroughly.

Remove from flame and after neivedhyam serve it with 7 kai kootu.