Go Back
Print
Beetroot kootu with milagu kuzhambu and rice

Beetroot Kootu

Beetroot kootu, a mildly sweet and spicy coconut-ty stew. It is made with cumin and coconut spice paste and seasoned with coconut oil tempering.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian, Tamil Nadu
Keyword Beetroot stew, Healthy Indian sides
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 4
Calories per serving 100 kcal
Author Nisha

Ingredients

  • 750 grams beetroot, finely diced
  • 2 tablespoon mung dal or toor dal
  • 1 teaspoon rice flour (mixed in a tablespoon of water) to thicken and combine the gravy

For Grinding

  • ½ cup grated coconut, fresh or frozen
  • 1 red chilli depending on spice level
  • 2 small green chillies
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds

For Tempering

  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • Few curry leaves
  • ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon urad dal | split black gram
  • ¼ teaspoon asafoetida
  • 1 teaspoon channa dal | Bengal gram optional

Instructions

  1. Cook the beetroot & dal until it is soft and tender in a saucepan. If pressure cooking, add a cup of water, salt and the chopped beets. Once the pressure is reached, cook for 12 to 15 minutes. 

  2. Keep the dal also along with the beetroot in a separate dish in the pressure cooker. Else, cook the dal separately until it is soft and mushy. It should be smashed. 

  3. Meanwhile grind the ingredients mentioned under "for grinding" into a thick smooth paste by adding very little water.

  4. Once the beet is cooked, drain the excess water to another vessel. Reserve the cooked water. If there is too much water the kootu will be runny.

  5. Transfer the cooked beets back to the same pan. Then add the ground paste, cooked dal (if you have cooked it separately) and rice flour paste (mix rice flour in a tablespoon of water and make it to a paste). Bring it to a boil and then turn off the flame.

  6. Tadka: Heat a small pan and add coconut oil. Add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Add the channa dal and once it starts to brown slightly, add the urad dal, red chillies and curry leaves. Once the dal becomes golden brown turn off the flame and add the asafoetida.

  7. Pour this over the beetroot kootu and mix well. Check for salt and adjust. Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes. 

Serving Beetroot Kootu

  1. Beetroot kootu can be had as a side to any rice dish. Or you can mix this to white rice, like a curry and have it. 

  2. It is best served as a side to any rice dish that is spicy or kind of dry like Thogayal and parupu podi sadam or pulikachal/puliyodharai

Recipe Notes

  1. You can substitute 6 tablespoon of desiccated unsweetened coconut also. 
  2. Rice flour is used as a thickening agent and it helps in combining the beetroots and the coconut paste into a wholesome concoction. This is not mandatory. Keep in mind, if your kootu is runny, use rice flour to thicken it.  
  3. When adding rice flour, do not add it directly to any hot mixture. It will lump. Mix it in cold water and make it into a paste. Then add this paste to the mixture.