I discovered moong dal (mung bean, 绿豆) through my Indian friend who introduced me to Indian cuisine some time ago. The husk of moong dal is green in colour, but the bean itself is yellow after de-husking.  It is commonly used by Chinese in making dessert (such as green bean soup and sweetened green bean paste). Amongst all the beans and lentils, split moong dal is the easiest to cook as it do not need pre-soaking or pressure cooking. It is also an excellent source of high quality protein that is easier to digest as compared to meat. Hence, the Indian ancient medical science Ayurveda recommends moong dal for children and the elderly.

This recipe is my own concoction. Although I uses very little mild Indian spices and herbs in this recipe, you are free to adjust the amount to suit your toddlers’ liking. It requires very minimum time and effort to create this dish. As this is a very versatile dish, you can easily recreate this recipe using any kind of lentils or beans such as green lentil, yellow lentil, red lentil, cow pea, chick peas etc. It is also a wonderful dish which you can hide include in your kid’s diet  a variety of vegetables such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, brinjals, beans, cabbage, raddish etc. Or, if you have to clear your leftover vegetables in the kitchen, this dish can be your solution. You can choose to make this curry either thick or thin, depending on whether you want to serve it with rice or chappati.

Despite its name, this dish is not spicy at all. Cooked with a variety of herbs and spices, the moong dal is infused with delicious flavour. The cooked pumpkin and tomatoes give it a velvety texture as well as enhancing its taste.

I love to cook this super-fast dish now and then as my son never seems to get tired of eating it over and over again. 

It’s good to start exposing your toddlers to cuisines from different culture so as to widen their choice of food  and they can grow up to be cultural rich.

Healthy food doesn’t need to be expensive. If you are looking for a quick and easy, healthy, hearty, meatless yet tasty meal without having to burn a hole in your pocket, this dish is just perfect for you.

Other reading reference: Click here

>>>>>>> Click on PAGE 2 BELOW for lentil and vegetable curry recipe and step-by-step photos…………

My Legume Love Affair is created by Susan of the Well Seasoned Cook. This month, MLLA 22nd addition is hosted by Sowjanya of Ruchikacooks. You can participate by submitting an entry before 30 April 2010. Click here for the host line-up.

Lentils

I would like to thank my friend EC and Kwong Wah Yit Poh (KWYP) (光华日报) for inviting me to be one of their food panelists in the daily recipe column. Founded in Penang, KWYP is the oldest Chinese newspaper in Malaysia with the largest readership in the northern region. I feel so honoured to receive this invitation as it was my favourite childhood newspaper.

From 13 June onwards until end of August 2009, my recipe column «亲子厨房» will be featured in KWYP on a bi-weekly basis. All the featured recipes will be children-friendly. Below is a copy of my 1st featured recipe and the translated version for your reading pleasure.

Update on 20 July 2010: You can view the soft copy of my featured recipe here: PUMPKIN RICE (chinese version)

< Click on the picture for larger view >

RECIPE FOR PUMPKIN RICE

Serve: 4-5 persons

Ingredients:
160g uncooked rice —– rinsed and drained
220g pumpkin –— de-skinned and cut into cubes
130g chicken breast –— cut into cubes
7 nos dried shitake mushrooms –– soaked, drained and cut into cubes
35g dried shrimps –– soaked, drained and pat dried
5 nos shallots –– sliced thinly
350ml water (include the water used for soaking mushrooms and dried shrimps)
Spring onions (for garnishing) — chopped

Seasonings:
1½ tbsp light soya sauce
1 tbsp dark soya sauce
½ tsp salt
Dash of sesame oil and pepper

Methods:

1. Marinate chicken breast with light soya sauce, sugar and cornflour for at least 30 minutes.
2. Heat up wok, sauté shallots until fragrant and golden brown. Dish up and set aside.
3. Heat up wok, sauté dried shrimps with low heat until fragrant. Add in mushrooms and stir-fry for a while. Add in chicken and stir-fry until half-cooked.
4. Stir in rice and seasonings until well combined. Transfer into rice cooker. Add in water and cook until the rice is 80% cooked. Add in pumpkin and shallots and continue cooking until the rice is cooked thoroughly. Use a spatula to loosen the rice.
5. Dish up and garnish with spring onions. Serve.

Tips:

1. As Australian pumpkin can turn soft faster than local pumpkin, cut it into small size about 1.5-2 cm.
2. You can divide fried shallots into 2 portions. Add in the first ½ portion in step (4) and retain the remaining for garnishing.
3. Chicken breast can be replaced with chicken drumsticks.
4. Different types of rice required different amount of water. As a rule of thumb, add slightly more than the usual amount of water required for cooking.
5. If you are using fresh shitake mushrooms, blanch with boiling water and drain.
6. If you are using a cooking pot, follow step (1) – (3), then put all the ingredients into a cooking pot, add in water and cook under medium high heat. When the water starts boiling, reduce to medium heat. When the water has dried up, reduce to low heat, add in pumpkins and fried shallots and cook until the rice is thoroughly cooked. Stir occasionally to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the cooking pot.

I still remember the first time I made this soup. It was a total FAILURE! I felt so discouraged because nobody liked it including myself. But I couldn’t figure out what went wrong because I had followed exactly the recipe from the newspaper cut-out. Then after searching for sometimes, I managed to find another simple recipe from Kuali Online. It turned out to be my son’s favourite now (partly because pumpkin is his favourite). With some modifications, I had derived at my own version as follows:

Ingredients:
400g pumpkin (chopped)
1 medium sized potato (chopped)
1 large white onion (chopped)
250 ml fresh milk
750 ml water – It depends on personal preference. If you prefer a thicker soup, then you can reduce the water.
2 slices ginger
1 tbsp butter (for frying)

Seasonings:
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of nutmeg powder (optional) – it enhances the flavour of the soup

Methods:
1. Melt the butter in a cooking pot.
2. Fry/ bake the onion until translucent.
3. Add in pumpkin, potato, onion and ginger slices and stir well.
4. Pour in water and bring it to a boiling point. Then simmer for about 15 mins or until all the ingredients are softed and mushy.
5. Remove the ginger slices, pour the mixture into a blender and blend until it becomes smooth.
6. Pour back to the pot. Add in milk and seasonings and bring it to a boiling point.
7. Off the heat and serve with toasted bread/ rice. (I used toasted raisin sticks).

Variation:
You can add in cooked fish or prawn in the soup.

Ingredients:
140g pumpkin
200g cauliflower
140g minced meat (marinated with 2 tbsp light soya sauce, 1tsp sugar and cornflour)
1 red onion

Seasonings:
1½ tbsp oyster sauce
½ tbsp concentrated chicken stocks
½ tbsp sesame oil
Dash of pepper
Cornflour

Methods:
1. Heat up wok with oil. Sautee onion until transparent.
2. Add in cauliflower and stir fry for a while. Add a bit of water and cover with lid to simmer for a while.
3. Add in pumpkin and seasonings. Continue to simmer until the pumpkin is cooked (before it becomes too soft)
4. Add in cornflour for thickening.

Ingredients:
120g rice (2 persons) – (rinsed and soaked for 15 mins)
160g pumpkin (cut into cubes)
1 chicken thigh (de-boned, removed skin and cut into small cubes)
4-5 fresh medium size shiitake mushroom (washed with running water, cut into small chunks)
25g dried prawns (pre-soaked for 15 mins, retained water for cooking later)
5 shallots (sliced thinly)
3 tbsp oil
Water for cooking (depending on the type of rice used)
Spring onions (for garnishing)

Seasonings:
1 tbsp light soya sauce
2 tsp dark soya sauce
½ tsp salt
Dash of sesame oil & pepper

Methods:
1. Marinate the chicken with light soya sauce, sugar, sesame oil & conrflour for at least half an hour.
2. Fried shallots until golden brown, set aside.
3. Heat up 2 tbsp oil of shallot oil, add in dried prawns and stir fry under low heat until fragrant. Add in mushrooms and dash of sugar, stir-fry for a while.
4. Push the dried prawns and mushrooms to the side of the wok, add in chicken and stir-fry until the chicken cubes turn pale (half-cooked).
5. Add in pumpkin and continue to stir-fry for a while. Add in a little oil if the mixture looks dried.
6. Add in pre-soaked rice, fried shallots, then followed by seasoning and stir until all the ingredients are well-combined.
7. Transfer all the ingredients to a cooking pot, add water to cover ¾ of the rice mixture.
8. Cook under low heat and stir occasionally until the rice is cooked thoroughly.

Note:
I do not have a rice cooker at home. Most of the time, I am using a steamer. Therefore, it is considered my first attempt using a cooking pot to cook rice.

I had been referring to the recipes from Hockiak and Piggy’s Journal for cooking my own pumpkin rice.

Ingredients:
180g pumpkin (shredded)
1 large Japanese cucumber (shredded) – 150g
125g vegetarian duck (shredded) 黄金素鸭肉
Small handful of white sesame seeds

Seasonings:
3 tbsp plum sauce
1 tsp oyster sauce
1 tsp light soya sauce
½ tsp sesame oil
5 tbsp water

Methods:
1. Heat up wok with oil.
2. Stir-fry pumpkin with little bit of water until it starts to become soft. Then add in the veg duck and seasonings and continue to stir-fry.
3. Then add in cucumber. Stir-fry with high heat for a while.
4. Dish up and sprinkle with sesame seed. Serve.