Poosanikai Kootu Kari / Pumpkin & Cowpeas Curry / Pumpkin & Cowpeas Cooked in Spicy Coconut Sauce

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Hope everyone is enjoying a warm monday. I am still in my mum’s place. Hubby will be returning tomorrow, i am so excited to see him back. I will start cooking and i should get back to my routine life.

Todays recipe is gonna be a yummy pumpkin curry. Before that i have to tell you this little secret of mine. When i was little, pumpkin is a hated veggie of mine. I never used to touch it, i dont know why. But i hated it a lot. After being a food blogger and got married, i started cooking and consuming a lot of it. I am realizing the real taste of pumpkin right now. Now it has become one of my favorite veggie and i cooking once a week with it.

I made this a week back, everyone loved it a lot. It has a intense coconut flavour from the coconut and coconut oil which you add which really makes this dish. I added cowpeas in this, but amma told that she will add split channa dal in it. I have to try that too soon.

The sweetness of the pumpkin gets balanced with the spicyness of the coconut masala which taste so yum. We had it with pulikulambu and a fried samosa and loved the meal.

Soaking Time : 8 hours or overnight for cowpeas
Preparation Time : 20 mins (Cooking cowpeas)
Cooking Time : 30 – 35 mins
Serves – 4 to 5

Ingredients:

Pumpkin – 4 cup cubed

Cowpeas/Vanpayar/Thatta Payir/Karamani/PerumPayir – 1 cup

Green Chilli – 1 slit

Salt to taste

For Grinding:

Coconut – 1 cup grated

Dry Red Chillies – 5

Turmeric Powder / Manjal podi – 1 tsp

Garlic – 4 cloves

Cumin Seeds / Jeerakam – 1 tsp

Coriander powder – 1 tblspn

For Seasoning:

Coconut Oil – 2 tblspn

Mustard Seeds / Kaduku – 1tsp

Cumin Seeds / Jeerakam – 1 tsp

Method:

Wash and soak cowpeas overnight. Take cowpeas in a pressure cooker and cover with water. Pressure cook it for 3 whistle and simmer for 5 mins. Switch off the flame and let the steam go all by itself. Now cow peas are done.

Take all the ingredients given for grinding in a mixer and add some water to it and make into smooth paste. Set this aside till use.

Take pumpkin, green chilli and salt in a kadai. Cover with water and bring it to a boil. Cover the pan and let it simmer for 10 mins till the pumpkin is half cooked.

When the pumpkin is half cooked, add the cooked cowpeas and mix well. Simmer for 5 more mins.

Now add in the grinded coconut masala and mix well.

Let this cook for 10 mins till it gets thick.

Now make the seasoning. Heat oil in a small pan. Add all the seasoning ingredients once the oil is hot. Let this sizzle for few mins.

Pour this over the curry and mix well.

Serve with rice and curry.

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