Ambadichi Bhaji (Sour greens curry)

 

       Ambadichi Bhaji (Sour greens curry)

Type Comfort in MS word, select it, right click and see the synonyms: Soothe , console, reassure, calm, relieve ..This Ambadichi Bhaji (Sour greens/Gongura curry) makes every synonym for comfort sound true:

½        Soothes your palette

½        Consoles you when you are feeling low

½        Reassures you when you dearly miss your mom’s cooking

½        Calms you down when you are upset

½        Relieves your stress

Yes this is one of the recipes I rely on when I am in need of some ‘Comfort food’ (of course provided the greens are available).

       Ambadi/sour greens/Gongura leaves

Ambadi leaves are sour -almost vinegary to taste. But this tartness is what makes them so tasty and special. I read here that these greens come in two varieties- Red stemmed and Green stemmed. Here we usually get the green stemmed variety, so I have used that. What makes this a quintessentially Maharashtrian recipe is the use of Jowar Kani (broken Jowar grains). The Ambadi leaves are stemed together with the Jowar Kani to make this very special Ambadichi bhaji -which makes me nostalgic and reminds of my mom’s or my granny’s cooking each and everytime I make it.

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Ambadichi Bhaji

Servings :about 3-4

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 Ingredients:

1 big bunch Ambadi leaves (cleaned,washed and chopped)

1 cup Jowar (Sorghum/White millet) grains

2tbsp Toovar dal (arhar dal/yellow lentils), soaked in water for ½ hour

2tbsp Peanuts soaked in water for ½ hour

Salt as per taste

For the tadka:

8-10 garlic cloves peeled and crushed

2-3 tsp oil

½ tsp cumene seeds

½ tsp mustard seeds

1-2 tsp Red chilli powder (adjust to your taste) 

To make the Jowar Kani:

     Jowar Kani/Broken Jowar Grains

Coarsely grind the Jowar grains in the mixer for few seconds. Tranfer to a sieve (used to sieve atta or Maida). Remove the powder which falls at the bottom (this flour can be added to the usual jowar flour for making Bhakris, or add this to the usual Roti atta)Use the broken jowar kani which remains in the sieve to make Ambadichi Bhaji. If any unbroken jowar grains are left in the sieve, run them once again in the mixer and repeat the above procedure. Soak the Jowar Kani in water for ½ hour along with the Toovar dal and peanuts. 

 To make the Bhaji:

Steam the chopped Ambadi leaves and the soaked Toovar dal, Peanuts and Jowar Kani. For steaming I use a stainless steel sieve kept on a steamer-a deep vessel filled with 1/3 water. Alternatively you can use a pressure cooker without the whistle. Cover the sieve and steam till the leaves are well cooked (takes about half an hour) 

Ambadi leaves,soaked  Jowar Kani,Toovar dal and peanuts in SS sieve for steaming

Remove the bhaji from steam,add salt and mix nicely. In a small pan heat oil ,add the mustard seeds, then the cumene seeds,then the crushed garlic. Fry nicely till your kitchen smells of the garlic, switch off the gas ,add the chilli powder and immediately pour this tadka on the bhaji so that the red chilli powder does not get charred.Mix nicely and serve with Bhakri or Roti!