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Tamilnadu · Lunch

Mor Kuzhambu (மோர் குழம்பு)

Traditional 7. Mor Kuzhambu recipe

🧺 Ingredients

• ¼ cup fresh coconut, grated
• 1 tbsp chana dal, soaked 15 minutes
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 green chilies
• ½-inch fresh ginger
• 3 tbsp water (for grinding)
• 2 cups thick sour curd (full-fat, preferably 1–2 day old for tang)
• 1 cup water (to dilute)
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 cup ashgourd (vellai poosanikai / winter melon), peeled and cut into 2 cm cubes — OR yam, colocasia, or even fried sundakkai vathal
• 1.5 tbsp sesame oil
• ½ tsp mustard seeds
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 10 curry leaves
• 2 dried red chilies, broken
• ¼ tsp asafoetida (hing)
• 1 tsp urad dal

👩‍🍳 How to make Mor Kuzhambu

1. Drain soaked chana dal.
2. Blend with grated coconut, cumin seeds, green chilies, ginger, and 3 tbsp water to a smooth, thick paste.
3. Set aside.
4. In a pot, add ashgourd pieces with ½ cup water and a pinch of salt and turmeric.
5. Cook on medium heat for 8–10 minutes until tender (not mushy).
6. If using yam or colocasia, boil separately for 12–15 minutes.
7. Set cooked vegetable aside.
8. Whisk thick curd with 1 cup water until smooth and pourable.
9. Add turmeric and salt.
10. Whisk again.
11. The mixture should be slightly tangy, smooth, and thin enough to pour.
12. Pour the buttermilk mixture into a pot over low heat (CRITICAL: buttermilk must NEVER boil — high heat causes curdling).
13. Add the ground coconut-cumin paste.
14. Stir continuously on low heat for 5–6 minutes until the coconut paste cooks through and the raw coconut smell disappears — the mixture should be warm and fragrant, thickened slightly from the coconut and chana dal.
15. Add cooked vegetable.
16. Heat sesame oil in a small tempering pan over high heat.
17. Add mustard seeds — crackle 20 seconds.
18. Add urad dal — fry 30 seconds until golden.
19. Add broken red chilies — fry 10 seconds.
20. Add curry leaves and asafoetida — sizzle 10 seconds.
21. Pour hot tempering into the warm buttermilk curry.
22. Stir gently.
23. Taste for salt.
24. Turn off heat immediately — do not allow mor kuzhambu to boil after tempering is added.
25. Serve immediately over rice.

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