Kosumbari(Carrot and coconut Salad-Karnataka style)

Kosumbari is a very popular Karnataka style salad/raw food. It is served in almost all marriages and such other functions across Karnataka. I did taste this salad many times but never knew how to make it until I went to a friend?s house for lunch where her mother made it for us. From then on it has become a regular accompaniment in our house hold food too. It is simple and easy to make if you have all the ingredients at home. There  are a lot of variations for this salad, but this recipe is the most simple and basic form of it. And it would be a good way to get kids eat their veggies too

Here is what you require for a serving for 2 people:

Moong dal/Split green gram dal :  ½ cup

Carrot : 1 medium

Grated coconut : 3 to 4 tbsp

(You can adjust the coconut as per your wish. You can liberal with it too )

Chilli : 1 small size

Coriander : a few sprigs.

Lemon juice of half a lemon

Salt : to taste

Pre- preparation:

Soak the moong dal in water for half an hour or till the dal turns a bit soft. If you are pressed for time, you can always soak it in lukewarm water to quicken the softening process.

Grate the carrot and keep aside. The carrot and coconut need to be grated very finely. 

Remove the seeds from the chillies and chop them. It is a good idea to chop them into bigger pieces as finely chopping might bring in more heat into the salad.

For the coriander, remove the stems as we do not require them, since we are not cooking the salad on heat. Just separate the leaves and chop them finely.

Squeeze out the lemon juice and keep aside.

To assemble the salad:

Drain out the water from the dal, wash well and remove the excess water.

Add the grated carrot, coconut and the coriander leaves and mix well.

Add salt to taste, mix well and check seasoning.

It is a good idea to add the chillies at the end so that the salad doesn?t get too spicy.

Refrigerate. This will help the flavours to amalgamate well.

Squeeze lemon juice, mix and serve as an accompaniment with rice or an evening snack. Enjoy.