Murunga Keerai or drumstick leaves or moringa leaves has more health benefits and medicinal properties hence I use it regularly. I cook the drum stick leaves as soup, poriyal or dry curry, thanni saaru / kind of thinly sambar and in this type of dal as kadayal. Murunga keerai paruppu Kadayal is a comfort food and can be eaten with plain white rice. We can nicely mix with steamed rice and top up with ghee or gingelly oil. Simply we can eat with any pappad or pickle.
- keerai are excellent source of many vitamins and minerals.
- It is high in antioxidants which act against free radicals in our body
- It is said to lower blood pressure
- It is believed to reduce cholesterol also
- Since the leaves are rich in zinc, it aids in hair growth and skin health.
I have used toor dal to make this paruppu kadayal. You can choose to use masoor dal too or you can even use the combination of moong dal and toor dal. The variations of this dal are the kadayal which uses onion and garlic. If you want some tangy taste add one tomato after onion and garlic. Since I didn’t want to use tomato, I made it this way. We have it with rice and a dry curry, you can choose to have with chapati too.
Keerai masiyal/keerai Kadayal/kadancha keerai is a dish I am eating since my childhood. This dish was the most frequently prepared at our home. I’m usually make this dish with arai keerai and with manchatti (clay pot) and paruppu mathu to blend keerai while it is hot. Paruppu mathu is a wooden tool used to mash lentil (paruppu). When you use paruppu mathu, keerai won’t become a fine paste and it will be tastier. If you in hurry to prepare make it somewhat cool down and put in a blender. You can either grind the moringa leaves little coarse or a smooth paste. For kids you can blend like smooth paste is preferable.
Watch murungai keerai Kadayal in Tamil.
Keerai kadaiyal | Murungai Keerai Kadaiyal | Drumstick Leaves Kadaiyal
Ingredients
How to make Keerai kadaiyal | Murungai Keerai Kadaiyal | Drumstick Leaves Kadaiyal
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To prepare keerai Kadayal, firstly pressure cook toor dal.
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Wash twice and add water and asafoetida powder.
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Add garlic cloves and turmeric powder.
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Pressure cook for about whistles in medium flame.
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To prepare Kadayal, heat mud pot with oil.
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Add mustard seeds and urad dal.
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Add cumin seeds and allow them to splutter.
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Add dry red chillies.
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Add slitted garlic cloves.
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Add chopped small onion.
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Add salt to this onion and garlic.
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Sauté well.
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Add properly cleaned and washed drumstick leaves (murungai keerai).
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Add turmeric powder and little sugar.
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Mix well in oil itself for 2-3 minutes.
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Add cooked dal.
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Add little more water to reach required volume.
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Add natural sea rock salt to this Kadayal.
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Cook for another 5 minutes in medium flame. Do not cover the pot.
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After 5 minutes switch off the flame.
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Transfer this in to another vessel and smash nicely with wooden masher.
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Blend it nicely for 2-3 minutes. Or you can use mixie do it in pulse mode after cool down.
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Drumstick leaves Kadayal is ready.
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Very healthy drumstick leaves / murungai keerai Kadayal is ready to serve with steamed rice or chapati.
