Chayote Kootu (Coconut Lentil Stew)

From the garden

• 3 medium chayotes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes, seeds kept · The flat seed in the center is the sweetest, nuttiest part of the fruit, so cube it and cook it with the rest.
• 4 small shallots, thinly sliced · small red shallots are the everyday onion of a South Indian kitchen
• 2 green chiles, slit lengthwise · left whole so you can fish them out
• 1 tsp fresh turmeric, grated (optional) · or 1/2 tsp ground turmeric, which is what gives kootu its pale gold
• 1 sprig fresh curry leaves, leaves pulled from the stem (optional) · about a dozen leaves; fresh or frozen, never dried
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

From the pantry

• ¾ cup yellow lentils (moong dal or toor dal), rinsed until the water runs clear · moong dal cooks fastest and gives the creamiest kootu
• ¾ cup coconut milk · or 1/2 cup grated fresh coconut blended smooth with water
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp black or brown mustard seed
• 2 tbsp coconut or neutral oil
• 1½ cups rice · for serving
• salt · to taste

1. Start the rice. Simmer the rinsed lentils in 2 cups of water with the turmeric until they slump into a loose porridge, about 15 minutes for moong dal and 25 for toor.
2. Add the chayote, shallots, chiles, and a teaspoon of salt with another cup of water. Cover and cook over medium-low until a knife slides into a cube with no resistance, about 12 minutes.
3. Stir in the coconut milk and cumin and simmer uncovered 4–5 minutes, until the kootu mounds softly on a spoon. Chayote turns tender without collapsing, so the cubes should still be cubes.
4. Heat the oil in a small pan until it shimmers, add the mustard seed, and wait for it to pop and skitter, about 30 seconds. Drop in the curry leaves and count to five.
5. Pour the tempering, oil and all, over the pot and stir once. Rest 5 minutes off the heat, taste for salt, scatter the cilantro, and serve over rice.