In traditional ,G S B style cooking , there are different types of side dishes . Sukke , Song , Ghasi , koddle etc are dishes which are made with cooked masalas . There are few dishes like koota ,Gojjus , Bajji , Bharata etc which does not use cooked masala . The shelf life of these dishes are say one day to the most . Basically these are ready – to – eat . In koota we can used vegetable like yam , Chinese potato , phagil ( Spiny gourd ) . The vegetable is crispy fried and add to ready masala and served immediately . The idea is to keep the crunchiness intact while eating . Only then we can enjoy the koota authentically . Here I have used the most popular vegetable for koota , yam .

Ingredients :

1 . Surnu ( Malbar yam ) – 250 gms .

2 . Grated coconut – 1 cup .

3 . Red chillies – 6 – 7 .

4 . Tamarind – a small pebble size .

5 . Asafoetida – a small piece .

6 . Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp .

Oil for deep frying .

Salt to taste .

For seasonings :

Oil – 1 tsp .

Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp .

Curry leaves – 1 sprig .

Method :

1 . Remove the skin of the yam and chop the yam in to small 1/4 inch cubes .

2 . Wash the chopped yam without touching them . It could cause itching if touched . Remove the chopped pieces from the water using a stainer .

3 . Keep the yam pieces in colander for few minutes to drain the water from yam .

4 . Sprinkle little salt to the yam pieces and keep aside for 10 – 15 minutes . Squeeze the yam pieces before frying .

5 . Heat oil and fry the yam pieces till crisp and golden brown , don’t over fry the yam as it gives burnt taste .

6 . Fry all yam pieces in batches and keep aside .

7 . In a small pan fry the 1/2 tsp mustard seeds without adding oil . When it starts splutter switch off the flame and keep aside .

8 . In same pan add little oil and roast the red chillies and keep aside .

9 . Grind together grated coconut , red chillies , tamarind , asafoetida and mustard seeds with enough water to a smooth paste .

10 . Now add salt . Also add enough water to the ground masala as to get a thin chutney type consistency . This is to avoid over absorption of liquid and the koota becoming dry . It should be like thin gravy .

11 . In a small pan heat oil add mustard seeds when it starts to splutter add cury leaves and switch off the flame .

12 . Add this seasoning to the koota masala . Now add fried yam and mix well , surna koota is ready .

13 . Serve this with rice as side dish .