Paruppu Keerai Whole Masoor Dal Curry/Purslane Leaves with Whole Masoor Dal Curry

Paruppu Keerai AKA Purslane leaves, ohh man, i had a tough time searching the english name for this Greens. Purslane/Paruppu Keerai is considered a weed in the United States, it may be eaten as a leaf vegetable. It has a slightly sour and salty taste and is eaten throughout much of Europe, the middle east, Asia, and Mexico. The stems, leaves and flower buds are all edible. Purslane/Paruppu Keerai may be used fresh as a salad, stir-fried, or cooked as spinach is, and because of its mucilaginous quality it also is suitable for soups and stews.  

Picture Courtesy : www.india-forums.com

Now comes the health benefits of Purslane/Paruppu Keerai:

Purslane contains more omega-3 fatty acids (alpha-linolenic acid in particular) than any other leafy vegetable plant. Research published by Simopoulos states that Purslane has 0.01 mg/g of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). This is an extraordinary amount of EPA for a land-based vegetable source. EPA is an Omega-3 fatty acid found mostly in fish, some algae, and flax seeds. Also present are two types of betalain alkaloid pigments, the reddish betacyanins (visible in the coloration of the stems) and the yellow betaxanthins (noticeable in the flowers and in the slight yellowish cast of the leaves). Both of these pigment types are potent antioxidants.

100 Grams of fresh purslane leaves (about 1 cup) contain 300 to 400 mg of alpha-linolenic acid.[7] One cup of cooked leaves contains 90 mg of calcium, 561 mg of potassium, and more than 2,000 IUs of vitamin A. A half-cup of purslane leaves contains as much as 910 mg of oxalate, a compound implicated in the formation of kidney stones, however, note that many common vegetables, such as spinach, also can contain high concentrations of oxalates.

Information courtesy : Wikipedia
So guys, next time, you see this Keerai/Leaves, dont ignore it!!!!! Now Comes a Simple Recipe, Pressure Cooked with Dal and Tempered with Spices, takes hardly 20 minutes, but a whole lot of Goodness!!!!!!

Ingredients

2 Medium Bunches of Paruppu Keerai/Purslane Leaves

1/2 cup Whole Masoor  Dal/Sabut Masoor Dal

Approximately 1.5 Cups of Water

Salt to taste

Tempering

1-2 tsp Oil

1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds

3-4 Red Chilies, round variety, tops popped

hing a pinch

Method

• Clean, Wash and Chop the Greens. Soak Masoor Dal in water for 10 minutes.
• Take the Greens and the Masoor Dal in Pressure Cook, add water, Salt and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles.
• Once the pressure releases, Heat oil given under 'Tempering' in a pan, Splutter mustard seeds, hing, add red chilies and add this to Cooked Greens-Dal.

• Serve Hot with Rice, topped with ghee. If you are a health freak, you can have this with Roti's too.

Sending this whole lot of Goodness to Healthy Food for Healthy Kids - Toddler Lunch Event, hosted by me, Event by Nithubala and also Healthy Morsels - Baby and Toddler Food, happening @ Taste of pearl city, 

Avial

I tried Avial using frozen vegetables this time. Of course it would taste great when fresh vegetables are used.

Ingredients:
2 cups mixed fresh or frozen vegetables like beans, carrot, potato, chayote squash (chow chow), drum stick, pumpkin, elephant yam (senai kizhangu)
1/3 cup grated coconut
About a cup of yogurt
2 tsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp jeera
1 green chilli
6 cashew pieces
Salt
A few curry leaves
A pinch of hing
1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Method:
Chop vegetables into long thin pieces and boil in water adding turmeric powder till the veggies are fully cooked. Drain excess water. Let it cool.
Grind coconut, jeera, chilli and cashews to a smooth paste adding some water.
Add this paste and boiled veggies to yogurt. Add salt and hing. Drizzle coconut oil on top and garnish with curry leaves.
Stir well and serve with rice or adai.

If the gravy is thin, add some more yogurt. If it is very thick, add some left over water used for boiling the veggies. 

Big thanks to (Plumbing Now) Low-Martin House has water again.