Beetroot Poriyal

Beetroot Poriyal is a lightly spiced South Indian salad made with beets, coconut, spices and herbs. This is an easy way to cook this super nutritious root vegetable to make a hearty and tasty dish. In Tamil Nadu, this dish is called poriyal which would generally mean a form of sautéed or fried dish. Similar terms in other languages are mezhukupuratti (Malayalam), palya (Kannada) and vepudu (Telugu).

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Makes: 1 serving

Ingredients

• 2 medium beetroots, grated

• 1 teaspoon sesame oil

• 5 to 6 curry leaves

• ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds

• ½ teaspoon urad dal

• 1 tablespoon fresh coconut, shredded

• 3 green chillies

• ½ pinch asafoetida (hing)

Method

1. In a pan, heat sesame oil and add mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds crackle, add urad dal. Stirring often fry the urad dal till they get golden and aromatic.

2. Then add chopped green chillies, curry leaves and asafoetida. Mix well.

3. Then add finely grated beetroot. Add salt as per taste and mix again.

4. Cover the pan with a lid and let the beetroot cook on a low to medium-low heat.

5. Add grated coconut. Mix well.

6. Serve hot or warm as a side dish.

Nutritive value per serving:

• Calories: 217 kcal

• Proteins: 4 g

• Carbohydrates: 19 g

• Fat: 22 g