Pongal is the main festival of Tamil Nadu and it is celebrated by Tamils all over the world. Also, people from different regions have different names for this festival. The main motto of this festival is to celebrate the harvest and fresh foods. In other words, Pongal is a way of saying thanks to Mother Earth, the Sun, Soil, and Rain. Thus people tend to use different forms of vegetables right from shrubs, and herbs to climbers and creepers in their cooking. Also, the making of Pongal dishes is the most important aspect of the whole celebration. These Pongal dishes are usually cooked outside on a porch and are often seen as a way to honor the Sun God. In this article, we guide you how to prepare Pongal kulambu.
What is Pongal Kulambu?
We all know Sakkarai Pongal (Sweet Pongal) and Ven Pongal (Savoury Pongal) as famous Pongal dishes. But how many of us have heard about Pongal Kulambu? A lot of the time we think it to be a normal sambar. Nevertheless, Pongal Kolambu or Kootukai Kolambu is a curry made with as many veggies as possible. In general, the food in itself is a celebration of fresh harvest.
For this Kootukai or Pongal Kulambu, you will need a minimum of 5 to 6 vegetables. Some traditional Pongal Kolambu uses up to 21 vegetables including onions and tomatoes. Here, let’s see the list of common vegetables used in Pongal Kolambu.
Raw Banana
Raw Mango
Sweet Potato
Pumpkin
Yam
Brinjal
Drumstick
Flat Beans
Field Beans
Types of Pongal Kolambu
Pongal kuzhambu comes in a variety of variations. It varies according to regions and customs. Let us further look at how to prepare the two most famous variations of Pongal Kolambu.
Sambar-Style Pongal Kulambu
For this, you will need toor dal. Cook the toor dal in an open pot or vessel and try to avoid pressure cookers. You can add tomatoes, garlic, and onions to the dal and cook for a few minutes. Once the dal is slightly cooked, add all the chopped vegetables and cook till they turn mushy. Meanwhile, also add chili powder, turmeric, coriander powder, hing, salt, tamarind extract, and sambar powder. Finally, add some tempering and the Pongal Kolambu is ready to serve hot.
Chettinad Pongal Kulambu
People in the Chettinad region make the same Pongal Kolambu without dal or coconut. Thus, this curry is not creamy as the previous one. Also, it is a very basic and oil-free curry, with no sauteing, or tempering. The vegetables are cooked with kolambu masala powders and tamarind extract. In the last, it is garnished with coriander and there is no tempering needed. You can also add a small piece of jaggery for flavor.
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