Red Pumpkin/Parangikaai puli kuzhambhu

Red Pumpkin, we call it as Parangikaai in tamil, is a delicious vegetable with a light sweetness in it. I love this veg in kuzhambhu, sambar or kootu. My mom used to prepare a different type of kootu with this, which i will post soon :)

This parangikaai puli kuzhambhu is an excellant combination with curd rice and the veg soaked in the kara kuzhambhu tastes yummy.

Items required:

Parangikaai/Red pumpkin - as required. Cut in to cubes.
Green chillies - 1 or 2 slit lengthwise.
Curry leaves
Tamarind - a small amla size soaked in water
Oil  - 1 tablespoon
salt - required amount
sambar poweder - 3 tablespoons
fenugreek seeds - little. If fenugreek powder is avaible, take 1/2 teaspoon.
Mustard and Jeera seeds - little.

Method:

Heat oil in a kadai. Add the mustard and Jeera seeds. If you are using fenugreek seeds, add them now. Now add the pumpkin pieces, green chilly and curry leaves to the kadai and mix them well. Add required amount of water such the veg are just dissolved in the water. Add a pinch of turmeric powder and salt and let the veg cook in the water for few mins.

Once the pumpkin is cooked, add the required amount of tamarind juice extract, sambar powder, fenugreek powder and mix all of them well such that the powders dont form any lumps. Leave it in medium flame till the sambar powder and tamarind juice gets mixed with the veg nicely.

Remove from flame when the kuzhambhu is not so watery and not so thick. It has to be in medium consistency.

Serve hot with hot rice with a spoon of ghee and sutta appalam :)