Meatless Monday Moolangi ( Radish) Sambar

I am the kind who drools over vegetables! Today, I am proud to be part of Meatless Monday.Meatless Monday is a organization whose goal is to reduce global meat consumption.For more information about Meatless Monday go here.I am thankful to Mrs Sonal Gupta for introducing me to this movement.She has a great blog http://simplyvegetarian777.wordpress.com.

As a child, I never ate moolangi/ radish. This is because my mother never bought or cooked moolangi. Why???because she does not like the smell that it imparts while cooking. I always wanted to find out how it tasted. When I started living on my own, I started using radish. I like it, especially when I make this sambar out of it. The smell of it when it cooks is a little unpleasant , but that's only temporary. The taste is great.

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

Moolangi /White radish: 2 medium length ones.
Onion: 1 medium chopped
Tur dal: 1/4 cup
Sambar powder: 1 1/2 tsp
Chilli powder:1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder: 1/4 tsp
Jaggery/ brown sugar: 1/2 tsp
Tamarind: marble sized if dry,( 1/4 tsp if pulp)
Water: 1 cup+ 1 cup
Mustard seeds  : 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves: 1 sprig
Asofoetida: pinch
Cilantro ( coriander leaves): 1/4 cup chopped.

Method:

Cook tur dal  thoroughly with 1 cup water in the pressure cooker and keep aside. When cooled, whip it lightly so that it becomes homogenous.

With a knife/ peeler scrape the peel of the radish. Wash it and slice it into 0.5 cms thickness slices.

Add one cup water, salt and cook it on the stove-top. When half cooked, add the chopped onions. Should take about 10-15 mins max for the radish to cook.

In the mean time take 1/2 cup warm water and make a tamarind solution. Add sambar powder, chilli powder, turmeric powder, jaggery and mix well.

To the cooked radish, add the tur dal. Mix well.

Now add the tamarind & sambar powder mixture and let it come to a boil. Turn off the flame.

In a small frying pan, heat oil, add mustard. Once the mustard splutters, add curry leaves and asofoetida powder. Add it to the sambar.

Garnish with freshly chopped cilantro/ coriander leaves.

Serve hot with rice/ idlis.

Enjoy!

Cooking made easy:

I tend to clean as I cook. This makes sure that I do not have a whole pile of dishes and a messy kitchen waiting to be cleaned when I am already tired of cooking. 

Tip for healthy living:

Radish has a whole lot of health benefits. They are potent detoxifiers and therefore purify the liver. It provides much needed dietary fiber and roughage hence preventing constipation.It also is filling and helps us get satiated quickly.They also are supposed to have anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties.

Food for thought: 

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. ( Lao Tzu).