Chayote squash Majjige Huli/ Kodakyana ~~Recipes from South Canara

Mild, simple yet delicious, Majjige huli or Kodakyana is authentic and one of the traditional dishes of Karnataka. This yogurt curry is a part of almost all festival meals of us Kannadigas.

This post is a part of the Culinary Hoppers Blog hop post. The theme was South Canara cuisine. There are two variations to Majjige huli and it is also called as Kodakyana in Mangalore and Udupi. I got this recipe from my mum who learnt it from her mom. My grandmother is from Mangalore and is the best cook I have ever known. Though she is over 80, she still loves to cook and teach us her recipes. Majjige huli is prepared in Bangalore and Mysore a little differently than in Mangalore and Udupi.

Majjige huli and/or Kodakyana can be prepared with Winter melon/Ash gourd, Cucumber, Tindora, Snake gourd, Okra, Chayote squash and even potatoes. I planned on preparing Kodakyana especially with Chayote squash since I wanted to post this recipe for a blog hop. Chayote squash goes well with this yogurt curry and this curry tastes best when served with hot steamed white rice.

Nutritional Information  (Approx) (per serving)
Energy	79		Calories
Fat	5.2		%
Carbohydrates	6.3		%
Dietary Fiber	2		%
Sodium	31.6		mg
Vitamin A	0.7		%
Vitamin C	4.8		%
Calcium	8		%
Iron	2.3		%
Protein	2.8		Grams
Sugar	3.7		Grams

Ingredients
Chayote squash (chopped)	2 small
Salt	to taste
Water	1 cup
Yogurt	2 cups

To Grind:
Fresh grated coconut	1 cup
Chana daal (Soaked for 20 mins)	1 tablespoon
Ginger	2-3 small pieces
Cumin seeds	2 teaspoons
Green chillies	3
Coriander leaves	a handful

To Temper
Coconut oil	1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds	1/2 teaspoon
Red chillies	2
Curry leaves	4-5 leaves
Asafoetida/Hing	a pinch

Soak Chana dal for atleast 20 minutes. Chop the squash, add little water and cook till they turn soft and well cooked.
Grind everything under "To Grind" table to a coarse paste. Make sure the ground paste is not too fine and smooth.

Mix the cooked squash and it's cooked water with the ground paste and bring it to boil. Add salt and mix. Simmer the flame. Add yogurt and stir well. Keep the flame low and wait for it to boil. Once it starts to boil, switch off the flame.
Heat oil and add ingredients under "To Temper" in the order mentioned. Add it to the boiled mixture and mix. Serve hot with piping hot rice.

* Make sure to simmer the flame before adding yogurt to the mixture. If the flame is high, the curry will curdle.
* Also, whisk the yogurt before adding it to the mixture to get the smooth texture.
* There are two versions to Kodakyana where the other version is bland. You can try it by just skipping everything else under "To grind"except coconut.