Watermelon Rind Koottu
A ‘Koottu’ is a South Indian stew made with a combination of veggies and lentils. It’s usually mildly spiced and is light on the stomach. Here is my recipe for a Watermelon Rind Koottu.
Did you know that you can eat all parts of the watermelon? The seeds (with the black coating removed), the rind, everything. The first time I heard from my daughter’s friend that watermelon rind can be cooked, I was totally surprised. So I did some research and was amazed that the rind of watermelon is very nutritious. As the name suggests, watermelon contains a good amount of water and some fiber, both of which help keep you full for quite some time. It’s also filled with good amount of vitamins, minerals and heart healthy components.
Combine some lentils, coconut, coconut oil, curry and coriander leaves along with this nutritious watermelon rind and make yourself a rustic, nutritious, homestyle dish. Therefore, you can safely enjoy this watermelon rind koottu even during convalescence. Dishes like this are good for weight loss too.
Ingredients
Watermelon rind (cubed) – 3 cups
Moong dhal/yellow split gram – 1 cup
Fresh grated coconut – 3/4 cup
Green Chillies – 2 (or to taste)
Cumin seeds – 1 1/2 tsp
Asafoetida/hing – 1/2 tsp
Coconut oil – 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Urad dhal/Black gram – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – a few
Coriander leaves finely chopped – 1 tbsp
Salt – 3/4 tsp (or to taste)
Jaggery/brown sugar – 1/2 tsp (optional)
Yield
Serves 4
Prep time
25 mins
Cook time
20 mins
Method
1) Boil moong dhal until well cooked but not very mushy. Set aside.
2) Heat a wide pan, take the cubed watermelon rind pieces, add salt, jaggery, 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds, asafoetida and a few curry leaves. Add half cup of water to this. Mix and close the pan. Let it cook on medium heat for about 8 – 10 mins. Stir in between once. Keep the pan covered until it cooks.
3) After about 8 mins, open the pan and check if the watermelon rind is fully cooked and soft. If it is not, then allow it to cook for a further 2 to 3 mins.
4) Once the watermelon cooks fully, add the cooked dhal to this. Simmer. Let it boil for further 2 – 3 mins.
5) In the meantime, grind freshly grated coconut, 1 tsp cumin seeds and green chillies coarsely in a mixer.
6) Add the coarsely ground coconut mixture to the cooked watermelon rind. Mix well. Your watermelon rind koottu is almost ready.
7) After 2 mins switch off the heat. In a small tempering pan, take coconut oil. Heat a bit, add mustard seeds and wait for it to splutter. Once it starts spluttering, add urad dhal and fry until golden.
8) Add the remaining curry leaves and pour the tempering on the watermelon rind koottu. Add finely chopped coriander leaves. Mix well and serve along with plain rice or roti.
Notes
- I use moong dhal in most of my koottu dishes, because it is very light on the stomach and cooks faster. Instead of moong dhal, you can use masoor dhal or toor dhal too.
- I’ve used green chillies in this koottu. Alternatively, dry red chillies or whole black pepper can be used.
- Fresh coconut is the best for koottu, so don’t substitute it with dessicated coconut or dry coconut powder. If you don’t have fresh grated coconut, just add 2-3 tbsps of full fat coconut milk or omit the ingredient entirely.
- Coconut is highly nutritious and should be consumed as fresh as possible without much cooking. Therefore after adding the ground coconut mixture, don’t boil for more than a minute or two.
