Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Vazhaipoo/Banana Blossom Kootu

Banana blossom , the flower of banana is well know as vazhaipoo in tamil, this flower grows on the end of the stem holding a cluster of bananas, considered as an Asian or tropical vegetable, this banana blossom consits of tightly packed leaves or bracts that wrap around rows of thin stemmed male flowers,  the inner pale colored brats are usued for food dishes..Banana blossom can be sliced and served with rice, as gravies, as stir fries sometime as deep frying dishes..To clean this banana blossom, a particular techinic is followed since ages which goes for time consuming process but its still worth to do when its comed to the final product, buttermilk with a pinch of salt is used to soak this cleaned florets to avoid the discoloration..How to clean the banana flower, apply oil to both hand and take off the purple outer covering and remove the bunch of florets, repeat this until u reach the center of the blossom, separate each flowers from the bunch and remove the steam, chop the florets and soak them in buttermilk with salt to avoid the discoloration, now this banana blossom is ready to prepare,u can either prepare as stir fries or either pressure cook them to make out gravies etc, this banana blossom is a good alternative medicine for stomach ulcers, dysentry, menstrual disorders and painful digestion also rich in vitamin A and C...Here i prepared kootu with this healthy banana blossom and this kootu tastes too fantastic with hot steaming rice served with any sort of spicy side dish..



1no Banana flower(chopped & pressure cooked)
1cup Cooked moongdal
1no Onion (chopped)
1no Tomato (chopped)
1tsp Ginger garlic paste
1/4tsp Mustard seeds
1/4tsp Cumin seeds
1/4tsp Turmeric powder
1/2tsp Fennel seed powder
1tsp Coriander powder
1/4tsp Red chilly powder
 Salt
Oil
Curry leaves + Coriander leaves (chopped)

To Grind:
1/4cup Grated coconut
1tsp Cumin seeds
3nos Green chillies

Heat a tbsp of oil, let splutters the mustard seeds & cumin seeds, add immediately the chopped onion pieces and ginger garlic paste, sauté until the raw smells goes on, now add the chopped tomatoes, cooked banana blossom pieces and sauté again with turmeric powder,red chilly powder, coriander powder and fennel seed powder..cook everything in simmer until the veggies get well tossed with the spice powders, meanwhile grind all the ingredients from the list to grind as fine paste, add this paste to the cooking veggies and stir occasionally, after few minutes add the cooked moongdal to the veggies, salt and curry leaves and give a stir..add enough water if u need, cook everything in medium high flame until the veggies get well cooked..finally add the chopped coriander leaves and put off the stove..

Serve hot with hot rice, idlis or rotis..

26 comments:

Finla said... Reply To This Comment

I have not had banana flowers for years. Back at home mom made different variety of dishes with the flowers.
This curry looks yummy especialy as it has gravy.

Raks said... Reply To This Comment

Never made kootu with banana flower! Thanks for the recipe Priya!

Sushma Mallya said... Reply To This Comment

Hi Priya never made curry with banana flower, very new te me:)...looks very creamy and nice...I have an award for u pls come and collect it from my blog :)

chef and her kitchen said... Reply To This Comment

Never made anything with banana flower...looks yummy..

Nandinis food said... Reply To This Comment

When I was young, I always cry at seeing this plantain flower due to its thuvarppu taste, but now I eat it for its health benefits! Kootu looks healthy and nutritious!

Abhilash said... Reply To This Comment

amme! is this a simple dish...

Priya you are superb...

I think taking the bannan leaves will be a real work...

The final output is of-course good...We have a banan plant in the dockyards, will try with it.

Unknown said... Reply To This Comment

I just made valaipoo vadai and yet to post it and you r here with this yummy looking kootu, sounds new to me!

LifenSpice said... Reply To This Comment

Priya, loved the new look of your blog.
That dish with banana blossom looks delicious! Love banana flower becoz of its health benefits.

Sarah Naveen said... Reply To This Comment

I love banana flowers..But i ve made only thoran and Cutlets with that yet..
This curry looks so yummy... i ll dfntly try this next time...

Menaga Sathia said... Reply To This Comment

எனக்கு மிகவும் பிடித்த டிஷ் இது.நன்றாகயிருக்கு உங்க குறிப்பு!!

Saraswathy Balakrishnan said... Reply To This Comment

I can never find good banana flowers here in Texas..they are my favorite..thanks for sharing this kootu with us dear

Deepthi Shankar said... Reply To This Comment

never made kootu with it .. looks soo good

malar said... Reply To This Comment

hey Priya! This picture is very nice...I can never find vazhaipoo here.. :)
(www.malar-n.blogspot.com)

priya said... Reply To This Comment

looks soooo yumm....delicious!!

chakhlere said... Reply To This Comment

Hey, this is a new dish for me. looks yummy.

Anonymous said... Reply To This Comment

thats amazing, the colour, the way its presented. simply nice.I never add ginger garlic paste in any kootu, wil try it ur way next time.

Unknown said... Reply To This Comment

Looks absolutely lovely and healthy.

Gita Jaishankar said... Reply To This Comment

Wow Priya...delicoius kootu...my grandma also prepares this kootu with moong dhal...she too adds fennel powder :)

Sh... said... Reply To This Comment

vazhaipoo has always been my favorite only if I chose the right flower..:)

Preeti Kashyap said... Reply To This Comment

i love vazhaipoo...kootu looks yumm..healthy too..

Unknown said... Reply To This Comment

Looks creamy and tempting..never tried curry with banana flower...will try this..

Nithya said... Reply To This Comment

Wow.. this is so nice and creamy. Sure to try it soon :)

CurryLeaf said... Reply To This Comment

New dish for me.Looks great

Parita said... Reply To This Comment

the curry looks very delicious and creamy priya..never tried anything with banana flower as yet, would love to try it soon!

VIDYA VENKY said... Reply To This Comment

lovely recipe priya i have vazhapoo at home will make it & let u know

Valarmathi Sanjeev said... Reply To This Comment

Never made kootu with this, looks wonderful.