Simple Cabbage Koottu

This unpretentious cabbage koottu is such an everyday food that it never occurred to me to post a version of the recipe here until now. Especially now. Since I have not been making anything exotic and have been relying on comfort foods for the last several weeks...

I can eat a bowlful of this cabbage koottu as a meal by itself... but, it is good with rice, simple roti or even spelt or whole wheat tortillas.

Crisp green cabbage, some moong dal, and perhaps some coconut, curry leaves and green chilies is all it takes to make this dish in its simplest form. If moong dal is limited to say ¼ cup (dry) per 4-5 cups of finely chopped cabbage, this qualifies as a "low-carb" diet easily, of course, not including the rice or roti to go with it, and assuming one doesn't eat it all in one sitting. Agreed, I am not a nutritionist and wouldn't want to start pretending to be one, but, this sure seems like such a light carb-load to me, at least based on glycemic index readings I've seen so far :)

Ingredients
4-5 cups of finely chopped green cabbage
¼ cup split yellow moong dal
¼ cup dry (unsweetened) grated coconut
1-2 dry red chilies or fresh green chilies
5-10 curry leaves (optional)
salt to taste
chicken or vegetable bullion cubes, or broth (optional)
water as needed

Preparation

1. combine the coconut, chilies and curry leaves in a blender and process to a fine powdery paste; set aside; reserve some curry leaves for garnish if preferred
2. bring about 2-3 cups of broth or water to a boil, add the moong dal and allow it to cook partially; add the bullion cubes to the water, if using; add the cabbage and cook till it is not raw anymore - I like the cabbage to hold the crunch and not get mushy
3. add the coconut+chili+curry leaves paste, simmer some more till moong dal is done to your liking - I like it cooked through but still firm and holding shape, not mushy
4. adjust salt to taste; add water as needed - I like the koottu to be fairly thick, not runny, so it can be eaten by the spoonful as a solid meal

Green beans or even carrots are a good addition to this dish... of course, peas and potatoes will not keep it low-carb, but are a good addition as well...