What
colour comes to your mind when you hear the words fresh vegetables?
Of course green, the colour of those super healthy green leafy
vegetables.
Green
veggies come in such a great variety of shapes and sizes, that
initially I had difficulty in differentiating one from another. There
are some green vegetables like chandan batwa which show their face
only once or twice in the entire year. Then there are ran-bhajyas
which are actually weeds. To name a few they are machul, ambushi and
aghada (you will find it everywhere once it rains. It forms a part of
patri meaning basket of leaves offered to Ganpati on ganesh
chaturthi).
'Which
vegetable is this?' I would naively ask the seller and she would
first laugh at my ignorance and then share the name. Her innocent,
full teeth laughter hidden behind the wrinkles of vagaries of being
poor vegetable grower. I am yet to discern the secret behind it.
There
are umpteen methods of cooking green veggies. I personally prefer the
curry types over dry ones. Also, among curry types I love those which
are prepared using buttermilk or curd. Chakwat is my all time
favourite.
They
have their peculiar characteristics too. Palak is salty in taste. No
any salt is required to be added to it while cooking. Ambat chuka,
machul and ambushi are naturally sour. I feel that the art of cooking
green veggies is that the masalas and the other accompaniments that
you add mustn't kill the original taste of the leaves. In fact most
of them don't require any masala at all.
I
also liked koshimbir made of onion leaves. The cook at my hostel mess
would prepare it. No matter how much I tried I couldn't replicate the
taste at home.
Then
there is lasun pat or lasun leaves. I can't describe its heavenly
piquant sourish taste in words.
Of
all the green vegetables palak and methi are the king and queen
respectively. Here I am sharing with you two of my favourite methi
recipes.
Dahi
methi
Ingredients
– Finely chopped methi leaves one cup, chopped garlic two spoons,
four green chillies, mustard seeds, a pinch of hing, besan two
spoons, 3/4th cup curd, salt, two spoon oil.
Method
Heat
the oil and add mustard to it. Add green chillies, garlic and fry for
a while. Then add methi leaves to it. Keep stirring. Mix dahi and
besan and add it. Let it boil. Thereafter, add the hing and salt.
Methi
Dholana
Ingredients
– Methi two cups, two spoons finely crushed groundnuts, one lemon,
one onion, red chillies powder, haldi, oil, hing, jira.
Method
Finely
chop the methi leaves. Add crushed groundnuts, finely chopped onion,
chilly powder and salt to it. Add lime juice as well. Thereafter,
heat a spoonful of oil in the tadka pan. Add jira, haldi and hing.
Add this seasoning to the aforesaid mixture and stir well. Remember
this is a form of salad and the leaves are not to be cooked. Just the
seasoning will have to heated and added. Try this recipe. I am sure
you will fall head over heels in love with it.
