Bangalore Vankaya Kootu / Chayote Stew

Bangalore Vankaya / Chow Chow  / Chayote  often known as  "Bangalore vankaya" in telugu is very rich in amino acids and vitamin C. Kootu basically refers to a dish made with vegetable and dal and can be eaten with an accompaniment to hot steamed  rice as well as roti. .  For this kootu, I have used Chana dal but you can also prepare this with moong dal. The same  recipe  can also be used for bottle gourd, ridge gourd and cabbage.
I used to cook chayote as an ingredient in  Majjiga pulusu  or a simple curry by just sautéing it and adding grated coconut. I got this recipe from a tamil friend of mine and after trying this,  I loved the kootu so much that now a days I hardly use Chayote any other recipe.
Here goes the recipe….

Ingredients

• Bangalore Vankaya / chayote - 1 ( peeled and chopped into pieces)
• Channa dal / Moong dal - 1/4 cup 
•  Onion-  1 medium sized ( finely chopped)
• Turmeric - a generous pinch 
• Salt  - to taste

To grind

• Coconut (freshly grated) - 1/4 cup
• Jeera / Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Green Chillies - 3-4 (adjust acc to spice of chilli)

To temper/ popu:

• Oil - 1 tsp
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Jeera - 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
• Chana dal - 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves - few
• Asafoetida - a generous pinch

Procedure:

Cut the chayote into cubes. It is better to soak chana dal in water for half an hour before cooking. Pressure cook the chana dal, Chayote , turmeric and salt for about 2 -3 whistles . Dont make it very mushy.

Meanwhile grind the coconut,chillies,cumin seeds into a  paste.

After the pressure releases add this ground paste  to the vegetable and dal mixture and mix well. Boil them for 2-3 mins on medium flame and bring to boil.

Take a vessel for tempering. Add oil and when hot add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal, chana dal, asafoetida and curry leaves followed by the finely chopped small onion and mix well.

Serve with rice or also as an accompaniment to chapathi/roti . 

My kootu in the picture isnt in a flowy consistence and is more or less like a curry...My hubby likes it that way. You can make it in a dal like consistency. Anyways, it tastes great  and makes a mild, comforting and healthy meal.