BM#6 Day 5

One of the distinctive features of the Rajasthani cuisine is the use of the dried beans, berries, vegetables and the sun-dried eatables made from lentils and whole grain.This curry is made from sun-dried badi (dried lentil dumplings), kachri (vegetable from the cucumber family grown especially in desert region) and  dried gawarfali(cluster beans). In Rajasthani language Akshya tritya is known as Aakha Teej, Akkha means whole in marwadi so on Akshay atritya, marwadi  people like to cook every thing whole like this sabji . Read more about rajasthani cusine here.

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole badi / dried lentil dumplings
  
• 2 cup dried gawar fali / cluster bean
  
• 8-10 dried kachri (a vegetable from cucumber family)
  
• 1/2 cup thick fresh beaten curd
  
• 1 tea spoon cumin seeds
  
• 1/4 + 1/4 tea spoon turmeric powder
  
• 1 tea spoon chilli powder
  
• 2 tea spoon dhania / coriander powder
  
• 1 pinch of asafetida
  
• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
  
• 1 handful chopped cilantro / coriander
  
• 1 tablespoon oil
  
• salt to taste

Method

• Soak the dried gavar fali/cluster beans for 2 hrs.
  
• In a pot take 4 cups water and let it boil.
  
• Add gawar fali,1/4th tea spoon turmeric powder and let it boil for 10 minutes.
  
• Add badia and kachri to the same boiling pot along with the kachri.
  
• Boil till the badia, falia and kachri gets cooked, approx.10-15 minutes.
  
• In a curd add salt, turmeric powder,red chilli powder,dhania powder and beat it.Keep aside.
  
• Heat oil in a separate pan.Add cumin seeds,asafetida and crushed garlic.

• Add spices mixed beaten curd.
  
• Cook till the curd leaves the oil.Approx.3-4 minutes.
  
• Add boiled badi, kacheri and gawar falia.

• Let it cook with curd gravy for 5 minutes.
  
• Serve hot with kheech (wheat/millet porridge) or bajra (millet) roti.

Note

You can use fresh cluster beans and kachri also in this recipes. If you are using fresh vegetables,boil badia only for 10 minutes rest the process is same.

Have another look at  kachri  photo here and here .

Have a look what my fellow Blogging Marathoner's are doing.

I came to know about the weekend herb blogging from Srivalli's  Cooking 4 All Seasons blog, which is an event started by Kalyan of kalynskitchen. Being from the state of Rajasthan, I took this opportunity to introduce the quintessential Rajasthani dish of all times - The Panchkuta.
This dish is essentially made up of 5 ingredients found widely across the Great Thar Desert. For ages, this has been the mainstay food of travellers across the desert. It has long shelf life after being cooked and does not require refrigeration unlike other foods. In case you are travelling through Rajasthan, don't be amused if you find your fellow traveller pulling up a box of Panchkuta with pooris/rotis and enjoying his lunch/dinner.

The five ingredients of Panchkuta are sangri, kair, Kumat, Goonda and dry red chillies.

 Sangri ( Prosopis cineraria ) - Sangri ki phali (pods of the khejari tree) grows in Rajasthan. This is the protein powerhouse of the desert with 53 per cent protein. Linky

Kair ( Capparis decidua ) - This is a wild berry which grows on the shrubs in the Thar. Linky
Kumat ( Acacia Senegal ) - Seeds from the pods of this small deciduous tree. Linky

Other ingredient which form part of the Panchkuta is goonda (Cordia mixa) Linky. With the current place I am in, I couldn't get this.The taste of this dish is slightly different and has to be developed. If you taste it after soaking/boiling them, it might not be that agreeable, but once the dish is ready, the taste comes out really well.

Ingredients

• 1 cup sangri
• 1/4 cup kair
• 1/4 cup kumat
• 4 dry red chillies
• 1 tablespoon raisins
• 1 tea spoon haldi (turmeric) powder
• 2 tea spoon red chilli powder
• 2 tea spoon dhaniya (coriander) powder
• 2 tea spoon amchur(dry mango) powder
• 1/2 teas spoon cumin seeds
• pinch of hing (afsofedia)
• 2 tablespoon oil
• salt to taste.

Method

• Soak sangri, kair and kumatia in water overnight.

• Drain the water. Add 2 cups of fresh water,1 tea spoon salt and 1/2 tea spoon haldi and boil for 10 minutes.
• Drain the water.
• Heat oil in the pan. Add cumin seeds, hing and red chillies.
• Add sangri, kair and kumat.
• Add all spices and amchur powder. cook for 2 minutes.
• Serve with poori or bajri (millet) roti.