“Kulitha Saaru losuna panna ghalnu/ Horse gram Saar seasoned with garlic)” … a delicious traditional dish from GSB Konkani Saraswat Cuisine prepared with horse gram cooked water and usually seasoned with garlic to be served with rice during meals … however you can serve it also as an appetizer or soup during monsoon/ winter to beat away the chill in air … taste excellent with aromatic taste of garlic, I have nostalgic childhood memories of Amma serving it steaming hot with rice topped with homemade loni and roasted pappad … Yummilicious …
** We GSB Konkani Saraswats always prepared Kulith dishes on Saturdays though I have absolutely no idea why our ancestors made it a point of preparing certain grams/ pulses on certain days. However, my guess is that by doing so they kept in circulation each gram/ pulse for a day so that the family would gain maximum benefit of nutrients as each one is unique in its own way, Isn't that fantastic ??? we really should be thankful for such forethought's and knowledge, instead we in our ignorance have shunned all good practices handed over to us down the generations.
** The next time try practicing if not all at least some of the traditions, remember, they were all implemented for our own benefits. As for kulith it is a little bit heat producing to body which can be sorted out by serving it with a blob of fresh homemade butter. It tastes wonderful served hot with rice along with some side dishes like bhaji and papad. I have always prepared a saaru with cooked kulith water, whenever I used it in curries and relished it with rice topped with butter just like I did throughout my childhood.
** Kulith/ Horse gram is a pulse that is consumed a lot in Southern Parts of India. We GSB Community ie Konkani Saraswat’s have many dishes in our cuisine to our credit using Kulith/ Horse gram be it as curry/ idly/ dosa etc. Horse gram is a storehouse of nutrients and is very good for health. A protein rich lentil that is prepared in curry form or simple bhaji and saar. We also prepare many a type of dosa/ Idly with the same. In olden days they were fed by and large to horses hence the name.
** Those who had horses that were used for transportation of goods, fed them with cooked horse grams. The cooked water ie thick saar obtained while cooking, would be distributed among relatives/ friends to be consumed as saar by the house holders. The saar obtained when bulk horse gram is cooked tastes very different compared to what we prepare in small quantities at home. You have to indeed taste the same to know the difference. That saar is really very thick in texture having its own unique taste.
** I have been fortunate throughout my childhood to relish that thick saar, as we had many relatives and friends who would pass on the same to us. Most of the time Mom seasoned the saar with garlic and red chillies only. Kulith has an awesome aroma of its own and does not need addition of any other ingredients. Frankly it spoils its taste if you add anything else to it. My Dad loved this saar very much and was always looking out for ways to bring them home from some friends. Sometimes I do add in one or two petals of dried kokums while cooking the same, though it’s exclusively a matter of choice.
** Addition of kokum gives its slightly sour taste and the saar get's tastier. Kulith is brown in color but again comes in slightly different variations at times. Some places you get lighter toned one's while in some places it is very dark blackish sort in color. The color of the saar depends upon the color of the kulith. Some places we get reddish brown color which imparts a lovely color to the saar. Somehow I have not been able to get light brown colored one’s much in my vicinity as they are more so available in southern parts of India. However, taste wise both are equally good and there is hardly a difference.
** In some places where there is plenty of cooked saar available and no consumers of the same, have come up with their own idea to let not the saar go waste. It is cooked till it thickens into a paste form, I have no idea if they add on anything to it as a thickening agent, but it is bottled and transported for sale and is available in southern stores that sell Mangalore side stuffs. I have come across this one in Mumbai and purchased the same. It has to be stored in fridge however and remains good for quite some time.
** You just have to remove a tablespoon of the paste and mix it with 2-3 cups of hot water till it melts well to a thick saar. This has to be cooked and tempered and the saar is ready. The tastes too is similar, I guess with changing times people have begun to adapt to quicker and easier instant methods as everybody seems to be too busy with no time for cooking which is actually the root cause for most of our illness. We really do not know what goes into these instant ready packets or if they are really good for our health.
** A little bit of planning is all that is needed to relish homemade food. I do agree many of our dishes are laborious in methods, but there are some simple ones too that are really good for health and perfect for today's fast moving life. Kulith dish is one of them. Kulith is high in Iron, calcium and protein. In fact it is almost close to Nachani/ Finger Millet in its calcium content. The added bonus is it is very low in fat and is considered great for weight loss. Well I am no expert so plz. do consult if need be.
** I grew up relishing this safely and we love it from younger days and have always had it at least once in a month. We get kulith in powder form too that is used in preparing kadhi’s etc. will be posting the same very soon. I have already posted Idly and gravy dishes using the same, so also the saaru at the very beginning of blogging. I am repeating saaru in detail here unlike the older one though recipe is same. For upkari ie prepared with the cooked kulith after draining off the cooked water, check out the common link shared below which includes all kulith items shared in the blog, inconvenience if any regretted.
** Here is the recipe for "Kulitha Saaru losuna panna ghalnu/ Horse gram Saar seasoned with garlic" ... my style …
** Pick and clean 2 cups of kulith/ horse gram/ huruli kaalu and wash well. There plenty of small stones or some other dirt particles in horse gram and picking part is really pain if you do not get cleaned stock in your vicinity. I sometimes manage to get while many a times I don’t. However, a quick search for stones/ dirt particles is an absolute must before soaking the same. Please do not take any chances.
** Put picked and washed kulith/ horse gram in a bowl and add in plenty of water for soaking of the same. Keep this aside covered for at least 8 hours. Some people cook the kulith directly in pressure cooker without soaking. However, I always soak all types of pulses before cooking as I believe in doing so. I find that they get swollen well and not only cooking but digestion of the same also become easier for the body.
** Note : You can sprout the Kulith/ Horse Gram and use the same too.
** Wash the soaked and drained Kulith/ horse gram well and put it in a pressure cooker with just sufficient water for cooking. The level of the water in the pressure cooker should be about an inch above the level of the kulith put in the cooker. Now pressure cook the kulith on medium flame for 2 whistles. Lower the heat to minimum and cook for at least 5-7 minutes. In between if the cooker lets out a whistle or two, don’t worry. Now remove the pressure cooker from heat and allow it to cool down properly.
** MY NOTE : Now there are two ways to continue cooking. You either allow the cooker to rest as it is overnight or you can open once the steam has settled and prepare the required dish you want. Why allow it overnight or for 5-6 hours to settle ??? A good question indeed … Here is the answer….
** I always soak the kulith in the noon, pressure cook it late at night and then keep it overnight in the cooker to settle. By doing so, the saar ie the cooked water in the pressure cooker thickens a lot by resting in the same for some hours. After 5-6 hours when you open the cooker, you will see that the saar has become really thick and you get a thick aromatic saar when you use this cooked water to prepare saar.
** That’s my Method for preparation of thick kulith saaru/ horse gram saar, do give it a try and check for yourself, if not happy you can always prepare the dish directly. The choice is off course yours, you may choose any method that you feel comfortable with. Having said that I still suggest you give it a try once, I am sure you will get hooked to this procedure when you see the thick texture of the saar.
** To prepare the Kulith / Horse Gram Saar : Drain off the cooked thick saar/ water from the pressure cooker into a thick bottomed vessel. Add another cup of water to the cooked horse gram/ kulith and mix well. Strain off that water also into the vessel in which you have added the first one. Mix well and bring it to a good rolling boil. You can add in one two petals of kokum to the saaru while cooking.
** For traditional method of saaru kokum is not added on, however, I prepfer adding as it gives a lovely sour taste to the saaru, again this is also an individual choice and you may skip it if not desired. Once the saar comes to boiling point lower the heat, add in salt/ namak/ meeta to taste and let simmer for a good 10-15 minutes.
** For Tempering/ Seasoning/ Tadka/ Pannaka : Add 1 tblsp of any edible oil/ tel/ tela in a small kadai/ pan (I prefer coconut oil/ nariyal tel/ narlel tela). When hot lower the heat and add in 8-10 garlic cloves/ losun/ lehsun either peeled and slightly smashed or slightly smashed as it is with outer skin (individual choice again here). When they turn brown in color add in 2-3 red dry chillies (sukki mirsanga/ suki mirchi) (any variety you prefer that is spicy) cut into 1 inch sized pieces. Fry for a second and then add it to the simmering kulith saaru, mix well and remove from fire. Keep it covered aside for some time, say about 15-20 minutes before serving for the flavors to seep in.
** "Kulitha Saaru losuna panna ghalnu/ Horse gram Saar seasoned with garlic" is done and ready to be served. Always serve this saaru steaming hot with rice topped with a dollop of homemade cow’s loni/ butter along with other dishes like upkari/ bhaji or any other favored dish of your choice and a few roasted papad during meals. This is simply heartwarming in taste and during winter or monsoon you just feel so satisfied with this type of combo meal. You can even relish this saaru as an appetizer or soup too, it tastes wonderful. Remains good in fridge for 3-4 days. Amma always served it with rice topped with butter and I enjoyed it very much throughout my childhood and even now I follow the same, guess some habit die hard, not that I have any regrets on this one.
** Sharing common link to all "Kulith/ Horse Gram" recipes, wherein you will find them all, be it as curries, saaru, bhaji, dosa, idly, roti etc. Enjoy the dishes with your family and friends and do give me a feedback if possible ….
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