Carrot kosambari ~ Carrot and mung bean salad

Festival season with all it's sweets and snacks always leaves me craving something light, healthy and nutritious. Something that is healthy to the core and is completely unlike all the rich calorie laden food that is inevitably an integral part of any festival season. Something like...... this kosambari. Kosambari is a salad that originates from South Indian cuisine. It is made with either cucumbers, cabbage or carrots. Kosambari usually combines one kind of vegetable with some soaked split mung beans/ moong dhal, making it a good combination of nutrition and protein.

This is one of my favorite salads and I could easily have a big bowl of this salad anytime :) With a hint of heat from the chilies, natural sweetness of the carrots and coconut, hint of tartness from the lemon juice, every bite of this salad is just bursting with flavor. If you are craving something light and healthy, this might be just the salad for you too :)

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Ingredients and method to make carrot kosumbari

1/3 cup split mung bean lentil ( mung dhal / paytham parappu)

4 med large carrots grated

3 Tbsp freshly grated coconut ( or frozen thawed to room temperature ) (nariyal/ thengai)

3 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro ( coriander leaves/ hara dhania / kothamalli )

Salt to taste

1/2 Tbsp lemon juice ( or to taste ) ( nimbu ka ras/ elimbicham pazham)

Seasoning

2 tsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds ( rai/ kadagu)

2 Thai or Indian variety green chilies cut finely ( hari mirch/ pachai molagai)

Pinch of asafoetida powder ( hing / perungayam) (optional)

Rinse mung thoroughly and drain. Soak mung in sufficient water for at least 1 hour or a little longer.

Grate carrots and add to a large bowl. Drain soaked mung thoroughly and add to grated carrots. Add salt to taste, coconut and cilantro/ coriander leaves and mix well.

Heat oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds to it. When the seeds begin to splutter, add green chilies and asafoetida if using and stir a few times. Pour entire seasoning on the salad. Add lemon juice to salad and mix again.