Crunchy Cucumber Salad (kosumbari), a nutritious & delicious salad that is made during spring & summer in southern parts of India. During Summer it is made almost every day in many homes due to its nutritional value, it’s simple ingredients &easy preparation.
Everyone enjoys it as it is a perfect salad to beat the heat. We have it as a snack by itself accompanied by seasonal fruit juice (Lemon, Melon) or we eat it as a side with our lunch menu. I have used it as a side dish for Lemon Rice (my previous recipe), which is a traditional combination in our home.
Do try this salad, it is easy to prepare. It is a delicious salad, the combination of veggies are really good as we get the beautiful juicy flavor of the cucumber, nutty flavour from the dal, sweet flavour from the fresh coconut & refreshing flavour of the coriander leaves. It goes without saying that all the ingredients are very nutritious & delicious. You definitely need it to keep your mind & body cool, refreshing this summer.
It tastes great by itself, you can eat it as a side with your lunch menu (Lemon Rice, Tomato Rice, Pulao, Roti & dal etc)
You can also watch my video on
Ingredients:
- ½ Cup – Moong Dal (Split Mung Beans/Split Green Gram). You can reduce the quantity to ¼ cup if you wish, it will not alter the flavour of the salad.
- 1 ½ Cup – Cucumber (finely chopped)
- ½ Cup – Freshly Grated Coconut
- ¼ Cup – Coriander Leaves (Chopped)
- Salt
Prep Work:
1.Moong Dal
- Wash & soak the Moong dal in water for atleast 1 hour.
- Just before you assemble drain the water & let it sit in a colendar/filter for a few minutes until just before you start to assemble the salad.
2.Cucumber:
- Wash the cucumber & cut the tip off (1/2 inch), now we take the cut piece & rub it against the cucumber.
- We rub it for a minute & then we will see foam forming around the cucumber (this foam is the cause bitterness in the cucumber).
- We throw away the small piece of cucumber & wash the cucumber to remove the bitter foam.
- We follow the same method for the other side of the cucumber. We throw away the small piece & wash the cucumber.
- We peel the skin out, cut them into two. Then we cut the two pieces into four & cut the core (seeds) out.
- We dice them into fine pieces & set it aside.
Method:
- We take a flat wide box (as it is easy to store in the refrigerator).
- First transfer the moong dal into the box & spread it evenly. Press it with a spoon so it sets nicely.
- We transfer the cut cucumber on top of the moong dal, we spread the cucumber evenly & press it so it sets nicely.
- Then we transfer freshly grated coconut & spread it evenly.
- Finally we transfer chopped coriander leaves & spread it.
- We can prepare this ahead of time & refrigerate it. (it stores well in an air tight box in the refrigerator for upto 3-4 days).
- Just before we serve, we take the required quantity, add salt to our taste, mix well & serve. (please add salt just before serving else it makes the salad watery & soggy).
- Ready to Serve.
This salad sounds perfect for summer~
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi… Absolutely!!…. Do give it a try & let me know… 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person