Kundru/Tendli Masala Fry

Kundru or tendli is a type of ivy gourd. I have heard many different names for it in India regionally. I love to eat it stir fried with onions or just slow cooked till it becomes caramelized and crispy. Apart from the taste it is good to know that this gourd is considered beneficial in lowering blood sugar.

  

Ingredients

 kundru/tendli sliced  lengthwise

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

red chilli powder (I used 2 teaspoons, adjust according to liking)

dry mango powder/amchur or juice or lemon

1 teaspoon garam masala or chaat masala (optional)

salt to taste

Oil for cooking (about a tablespoon)

Method


Heat oil in a non-stick pan. Add the mustard seeds and once they pop, slide the sliced vegetable in the oil. Mix well so that oil coats the vegetable. Now add salt and turmeric powder. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally until kundru starts wilting. It will reduce in quantity as the water from it dries out so be careful while adding salt. Once the vegetable is soft and slightly caramelized, sprinkle the chilli powder, garam masla and dry mango powder. If not using mango powder then squeeze the juice of lemon after transferring it to a glass bowl.

Serve with parathas, roti or plain rice.

Nani ke Pindi Chole (Chickpeas soaked in spices, my grandmother's style)

This recipe belongs to my Nani. It is full of flavor and tastes even better the next day after the chickpeas have soaked in all the flavor of the spices. Apart from the fact that these are delicious, I love making chole this way as it is also a quick recipe if you have the spices ready. I usually roast and grind the spices and keep in in an airtight container to use it whenever I need to. All you have to do is boil the chickpeas and mix in the masala. These chole taste the best with bhature or deep fried bread but I wanted to keep the meal healthy and so I served it with pita bread, greek yogurt and raw onions.





Here is the recipe........

Ingredients:
250 grams chickpeas
1 teaspoon thinly sliced ginger
2-3 black cardamom
1 bay leaf
half teaspoon asafetida/hing

Spices to be dry roasted
1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
half inch cinnamon stick
2-3 cloves
1 tablespoon dry pomegranate/anardana

Other spices to be mixed in
1 teaspoon garam masala/chana masala
1 teaspoon red chilli powder
2 teaspoons dry mango powder/amchur
1 teaspoon black salt
1 teaspoon black pepper powder

2 tablespoons oil for cooking and salt according to taste

Method:

1.      Soak the chickpeas overnight. I soaked them longer so they got little sprouts too.

2.      Boil the chickpeas with salt, black cardamom and bay leaf.

3.      Prepare the masala/spices by dry roasting cumin seeds/jeera, coriander seeds/dhania, dry pomegranate seeds/anardana and cinnamon/dalchini.

4.      Grind the roasted spices in a coffee grinder and mix the other dry spices in it (red chilli powder, dry mango/amchoor powder, garam masala and/or chana masala, black pepper powder and black salt.

5.      Sprinkle all the masala on top of the cooked chickpeas.

6.      Heat two-tablespoon oil drop in thinly sliced ginger and asafetida/hing powder and pour it over the chickpeas. Mix everything well. Taste for salt and adjust accordingly. If the gravy is too thick, add a little water, although it should be on the thicker side.

7.      Before serving, add chopped cilantro and juice of lemon.

Traditionally this is served with bhature and a side of raw onion, green chillies and maybe some pickle. However, since I decided to avoid the fried bhature I served it with pita chips and yogurt and it was equally delicious.