Have you tried the lockdown recipe Parmal ki Kadi?

The happy feedback has really motivated me to start with my dream project, my second book on millets. With back to back five days of millets workshops, offline and now online, and one-on-one conversation with more than 200 participants from different states, cultures, countries and also diverse health conditions, I believe, I have gathered much that needs to be documented and shared with the world.

And in that quest of performing better and at the same time protecting my family, I am up to some ‘back to the basics’ kitchen experiments, too. You may be surprised but these days, pickling vegetables like bottle gourd, raw turmeric, sun-drying tomatoes, garlic and onions, and even sprouting fenugreek seeds for some yummy salads and dips, are proving to be truly relaxing for me. With these fool-proof ancient kitchen hacks and ideas straight from my late grand mom’s wisdom, I believe, I am on my way to some lockdown evolution.

The recipe today is very basic and quick. And trust me, this recipe has been well accepted by my daughter who is not so keen on trying green vegetables. Because my daughter loves Punjabi-style kadi, I tried to cook it up with some leftover pointed gourds (parmal), which were about to shrink in isolation in my refrigerator. This quick parmal kadi came as a rescue lunch idea on an already-busy weekday.

I clubbed this yummy lunch with simple wheat chapatis (Indian flatbread) smeared with cow ghee and some spicy homemade instant green chilli pickle. You can put this entire platter under zero food wastage category, too.

Read more for the step by step recipe of parmal ki kadi and you can always replace pointed gourd or parmal with any other vegetable like bottle gourd, ridge gourd, bitter gourd or even just plain potatoes. But, do try it, and let it be a happy lockdown meal for your family.

I clubbed this yummy lunch with simple wheat chapatis (Indian flatbread) smeared with cow ghee and some spicy homemade instant green chilli pickle. You can put this entire platter under zero food wastage category, too. (Photo by Shalini Rajani)

Parmal Kadi (kadi with pointed gourd)

Ingredients: (serves 4)

• 6-7 medium size pointed gourds (parmal; can be replaced with other vegetables of same family)
• 1 medium tomato finely chopped (optional)
• 1 cup curd
• ¼ cup sorghum flour (jowar aata)
• ½ cup gram flour (besan)
• 2 tbsp mustard oil
• ¼ tsp mustard seeds
• ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds (methi dana)
• ½ tsp ginger garlic paste
• A pinch of asafoetida (heeng)
• ¼ tsp Kashmiri red chili powder (can be substituted with any other chili powder)
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• ½ tsp coriander powder
• Rock salt to taste

Method:

1. Roughly scrap the outer skin of parmal and steam them for 8-10 minutes.
2. Once a little tender, finely chop them and keep them aside.
3. In a deep bowl, mix curd and both the flours. Add salt, turmeric and coriander powder. Mix it nicely and add adequate water before whisking again.
4. Now in an iron wok (kadai), heat 1 tbsp mustard oil. Once the oil heats up, add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and asafoetida.  As the spices start to crackle, add ginger garlic paste.
5. Now add steamed and chopped parmal (pointed gourd) and chopped tomato. Add salt and turmeric and allow it to be cooked on low flame for 2-3 minutes covered.
6. In the meantime, give a last whisk to the settled curd and flour mixture. And as you see the oil starts separating in the wok, keeping the flame on low, add curd-flour mixture. Mix it all nicely with continuous gentle stirring.
7. Cook it for another 10-12 minutes and the kadi is ready for tempering.
8. For tempering heat 1 tbsp of mustard oil and add ¼ tsp of Kashmiri red chili powder and quickly pour the oil chili tempering in the kadi.
9. Serve hot with your favourite accompaniments.
10. This recipe is inspired from ‘Jowar Ki Kadi’ (sorghum millet kadi) from the book Quarantine Cuisine.

Health benefits of the seasonal vegetable Pointed Gourd (Parmal)

Pointed Gourd (Parmal) is rich in fibre, which helps for proper digestion. It also helps to solve gastrointestinal and other problems of the liver. So try to add this veggie to your regular diet. It is high in antioxidants, vitamins A and C that help you with immunity boosting, too.

(Shalini Rajani is the founder of Crazy Kadchi and holds innovative and healthy cooking workshops for all age groups)