Dumrot / Kashi Halwa / ದಂರೋಟ್ / ಕಾಶಿ ಹಲ್ವ

Dumrot or Damrot reminds me of the sumptuous marriage banquet or "maduve mane oota". It is usually served along with idli chutney for breakfast. This is a popular combination. It is also called kashi halwa. It is prepared from ash gourd or winter melon (boodukumbalakaaayi). This week I was lucky to find ashgourd in the Indian store. I decided to make damrot right there :)

Servings: I used about 1/4 kg ashgourd, which yielded about 2 servings of halwa. Yes the ashgourd shrinks in volume and the final halwa is much less compared to the raw vegetable.

Ingredients:
1 cup - grated Ash gourd/ Winter melon / ಬೂದುಗುಂಬಳ ಕಾಯಿ ತುರಿ
4 tbsp - Ghee / ತುಪ್ಪ
6 tbsp - Sugar / ಸಕ್ಕರೆ
a pinch - Cardamom powder /ಏಲಕ್ಕಿ ಪುಡಿ
Raisins, Cashews fried in ghee/ ವಣದ್ರಾಕ್ಷಿ , ಗೋಡಂಬಿ - ತುಪ್ಪದಲ್ಲಿ ಕರಿಯಿರಿ

Peel the ashgourd , take out the seeds, cut it into big pieces. Then grate the pieces. Ash gourd has lot of water in it.Take the grated ashgourd and squeeze it with a cloth or hand remove as much juice as possible from it. Save this juice for later.

Take a pan, keep in on medium flame. Add 2tbsp ghee. After it heats up add the grated ashgourd to it. Stir it nicely for around 7 - 10 minutes ,till the ashgourd gets a slight brownish color. Now add the ashgourd juice you have saved from before to the pan. Stir for a minute, put a lid and leave it. the ashgourd gets cooked in its own juice. This will take 15-20 minutes. Check in between, if the mixture is getting dry add 1-2 spoons of plain water. Taste the ashgourd to see if its cooked.

Once the ashgourd is cooked soft , add 6 tbsp sugar and 2 tbsp ghee to it. Sugar extracts more water from the ashgourd making the mixture liquid like. Keep stirring till the moisture evaporates. The sugar makes the mixture sticky and thick as the same time. It should get the consistency of halwa.

Add cardamom powder, deep fried raisins and cashews to the mixture. Dhumrot is ready :) You can eat it warm or keep it in fridge and eat it cold. Either way its tastes great!!!

Henceforth if you crave for Dumrote you don't have to attend a marriage, you can make it at home yourself:)