“Kulith (Horse Gram) Upkari And Saar” … We GSB Konkani Saraswats always prepared Kulith on Saturdays ... I have absolutely no idea why our ancestors made it a point of preparing certain grams/ pulses on certain days ... but 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 steaming hot with rice along with the same upkari with some fried papads … I have relished it this way throughout my childhood and even now I enjoy it the same way … Yummilicious ….
** 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. 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 the thick saar obtained while cooking, used to be either distributed among relatives and friends or consumed after tempering as saar by the house holders. The saar that is 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.
** In some remote 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 to 3 cups of hot water till it melts well and you get 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 required actually to relish homemade foods. 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 life. Kulith dish is one of them. Kulith / Horse gram 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 in all this so it is better if you do your own research. But 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. Somehow, it is surprising how posting of Kulith Upkari was left behind as this is a very common dish and I have posted the saar twice before. It was only when my frd. Wanted the link to upkari that I realized it was not posted except for the saar.
** Here is the recipe for both Upkari and Saar posted once again for all those who sent in the query … I have added them both together here again, I will share the links of others at the bottom of the recipe, please check through the same …
** Pick and clean 2 cups of kulith / horse gram and wash it well. There plenty of small unwanted stones or some other ingredients at times 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 sometimes I don’t. But a quick search for small unwanted particles or stones is an absolute must before soaking the same. Please do not take chances.
** Put the 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. But I always soak pulses before cooking. I find that they get swollen well and not only cooking but digestion of the same also become easier for the body.
** 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 a 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, do give it a try and check for yourself, if not happy you can always prepare the dish directly. The choice off course is 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 boil. You can add in one two petals of kokum to the same. Traditional method of saar does not add kokum, I sometimes add as it gives lovely aromatic and delicious saar.
** Once the saar comes to boiling point lower the heat, add in salt to taste and let simmer. Meanwhile in a small kadai add in 1 tblsp of oil, when hot lower the heat and add in 8-10 garlic cloves peeled and slightly smashed. When they turn brown add in 2-3 red dry chillies cut into pieces. Fry for a second and then add it to the kulith saar and remove from fire. Keep it covered aside for some time before serving for the flavors to seep in.
** To prepare the Kulith / Horse Gram Upkari (Bhaji) : This is similar to the saar there is no difference much, but the same is cooked as two different dishes unlike some pulses where we prepare it like patla bhaji know as saar~upkari.
** Heat 1 tblsp of oil in a thick bottomed kadai, when hot lower the heat and add in 8-10 garlic cloves peeled and slightly smashed. When they turn brown add in 2-3 red dry chillies cut into pieces and stir fry for a second. Now add in the drained cooked kulith / horse gram to the kadai. See to it that you have drained off as much cooked water as possible for saar before preparing the upkari.
** Add salt to taste and mix well. Lower the heat to minimum and cook covered for 5-10 minutes. Lastly add in 2-3 tblsp of freshly grated coconut and mix well. Cover and cook for another 2-3 minutes and then remove from fire. The kulith / Horse gram upkari (Bhaji) is done.
** “Kulith (Horse Gram) Upkari And Saar” is done and ready to be served. Serve both the dishes hot along with some fried papad for rice. Tastes awesome. You can even relish the saar as appetizer. But we Konkani Saraswat’s always serve it steaming hot with rice along with some side dishes. Add on a blob of fresh homemade butter on top of the saar / saaru on rice while serving, it tastes simply heavenly with a little bit of butter added on. I have relished it that way throughout my childhood and even now I enjoy it the same way.
** You can use the search option for "Kulith or Horse Gram" where you will get many more dishes prepared using it. Do try out various types of dishes to relish with dosa / Idly / roti etc. or with dal-chawal too. Enjoy the dishes with your family and friends and do give me a feedback if possible.
** You can also use the following link, by clicking on it where you will find many kulith / horse gram recipes …..
** Given below are two prior links of Kulith Saar, you may please check on those links too …
You are welcome dear. Do try out other dishes too ...
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