Name: South Indian Wedding Pineapple Kosambari
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 145 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: ½ cup Pineapple, finely chopped into tiny cubes; ¼ cup Split Yellow Mung Beans, moong dal, soaked for 2 hours; ½ cup Cucumber, peeled and finely diced; ⅛ cup Freshly Grated Coconut; ⅛ cup Pomegranate Seeds; ½ tsp Mustard Seeds; 4 Curry Leaves; ½ tsp Cooking Oil; ½ Green Chili Pepper, slit; ¼ tsp Salt

South Indian Wedding Pineapple Kosambari

2 hr 25 mintotal

25 min hands-on2 hr hands-off

Prep 20 min · Cook 5 min

Serves: 2
Difficulty: Easy
Spice: Mild

Add to your week

Method

Drain the soaked yellow moong dal completely. Ensure there is no excess water left.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the soaked moong dal, finely chopped pineapple, diced cucumber, grated coconut, and pomegranate seeds.
In a small pan, heat the cooking oil for tempering. Add mustard seeds and let them splutter.
Add the slit green chilli and curry leaves to the hot oil. Sauté for a few seconds until fragrant and pour the tempering over the salad.
Add salt immediately before serving and toss everything well. The sweetness of the pineapple and the crunchy lentils creates magic.

How to tell it's done

Extremely crunchy lentils and cucumber punctuated by explosive bursts of sweet pineapple and juicy pomegranate.

Nutrition

Per serving, from 2 servings.

154kcal

Where the calories come from

Protein7.1 g18%
Carbohydrate25.6 g63%
Fat3.5 g19%

Sugars: 8.1 g
Saturated fat: 1.8 g
Fibre: 5.9 g
Sodium: 297 mg
Potassium: 458 mg
Calcium: 47 mg
Iron: 2.2 mg

Estimated by calculation from the ingredient list, using USDA FoodData Central. Not a laboratory analysis.

Getting it right

Tip

Make sure the pineapple is ripe and sweet. If it is too sour, it will clash unpleasantly with the raw lentils.

What to serve it with

A festive staple in South Indian weddings, perfectly balancing spicy, heavy festive meals with its cooling sweetness.

Common mistakes

The kosambari is watery and the pineapple tastes washed out.: Drain the chopped pineapple as well as the dal. Fresh pineapple carries a great deal of juice, and it dilutes the tempering that is meant to be the savoury counterweight to the fruit.

Storing and reheating

Serve within an hour or two. Soaked dal keeps a day in the fridge and the tempering can be made ahead; chop the pineapple and salt the salad only at serving.

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