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Poosanikai Mor Kolambu (White Pumpkin Yogurt Curry)

February 22, 2019 by Senthil Sadasivam No Comments
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Mor Kolambu (Yogurt Curry) will be a jewel in my recipe book collection!  That is how much I love this dish, my family and friends are big fans of this recipe as well.  Please try to make it exactly the way I recommended below, and you won’t regret it.

Yogurt curry has it own regional influences (it is called Kadhi in the North), we will talk about the Tamil Nadu version in this recipe.

Mor milagai vathal (yogurt marinated sun dried green chilies) will enhance the taste of the Mor Kolambu, and I use them in all of my Mor Kolambu and Kadhi versions I cook. It is very important that the yogurt or curd you are using is sour.

We can make plain Mor Kozhambu, but there are few vegetables and other items that are a match made in heaven when making Mor Kozhambu, details under Notes section.

Poosanikai Mor Kolambu
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Poosanikai Mor Kolambu

A tangy and flavorful yogurt curry, with so many variations to choose from!  A must try, finger licking, super star jewel recipe from Senthil’s Kitchen.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian
Keyword Kadhi, Mor Kolambu, Poosanikai, Pumpkin, Yogurt Curry
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 4 people
Author Senthil Sadasivam

Ingredients

  • 2 cups Whole milk sour yogurt
  • Salt to taste

Tadka items

  • ½ tbsp Mustard seeds
  • 2 red chilies
  • ½ tbsp Urad dal
  • 1 tsp Fenugreek seeds
  • 1 tsp Cumin Jeera seeds
  • 10 Mor Milagai
  • 2 sprigs Curry leaves
  • 1 tsp Hing powder
  • 1 Onion chopped
  • 2 green chilies
  • 2 Tomatoes chopped
  • 2 tsp Turmeric powder
  • 2 tbsp oil

To make paste

  • ½ cup coconut
  • 2 tbsp Toor dal soaked
  • ½ inch Ginger
  • 3 Green chilies
  • ½ tbsp Cumin

For garnish

  • 2 tbsp Coriander leaves chopped

Instructions

  1. To make paste: coarsely grind coconut, soaked toor dal, ginger, green chilies and cumin seeds with some water and keep aside
  2. Separately cook Poosanikai (White Pumpkin): pressure cook pumpkin pieces with enough water to cover them with 1 tsp turmeric and salt for one whistle and release pressure immediately. You can also cover and cook in a regular pot.
  3. Tadka: Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and when they splutter, add red chilies, urad dal, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds and brown them a bit. Add mor milagai and fry for about 30 seconds. Add curry leaves and hing and fry for few seconds. Then add chopped onion and green chilies and fry for about a minute till the onions sweat a bit. Do not brown the onion. Add chopped tomatoes and fry for about a minute or two. Then add one cup water along with 1 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp salt and bring the contents to a boil.
  4. Add the boiled pumpkin pieces along with the water used to boil them.

  5. Add the paste and stir and boil for just 2 mins.  We do not want this sauce to be too hot when adding yogurt, otherwise yogurt may curdle.

  6. Switch of the flame and add yogurt and give a good stir. Check and adjust salt level.
  7. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Recipe Notes

  • You can skip turmeric if you want your Mor Kolambu to look white, but I prefer to add it.
  • Tips on how to make different Mor Kolambu versions:
    • Poosanikai (Ash gourd/ White pumpkin): peel skin and cut into half inch cubes and pressure cook with some water, turmeric and salt for one whistle
    • Vendaikai (Ladies finger/ Okra): cut into 1 ½ inch pieces and fry on a pan with 1 tbsp oil until okra starts to brown a bit
    • Drumstick: cut into 3 in pieces and pressure cook with some water, turmeric and salt for one whistle
    • Eggplant: cut into strips or cubes (not too big, not too small) and fry on a pan with 1 tbsp oil until the eggplant  starts to brown a bit
    • Chow chow (Chayote squash): cut into pieces and pressure cook with water, turmeric and salt for one whistle
    • Potato: peel skin, cut into pieces and pressure cook with water, turmeric and salt for one whistle
    • Taro root: peel skin, cut into pieces and pressure cook with water, turmeric and salt for one whistle
    • Carrot: peel skin, cut into pieces and pressure cook with water, turmeric and salt for one whistle
    • Green bell pepper: cut into 1 inc squares  and fry on a pan with 1 tbsp oil until the bell pepper pieces are cooked soft
    • Green tomato: no need to cook, add after tadka, and after onion is fried.  Red tomatoes maybe skipped if you are using green tomatoes.
    • Vadai
    • Milagai (Chilli) Bajji
    • Pakoda (Pakora)

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