Tuesday, November 24, 2015

FOODIE SPECIAL.... Time for undhiyu, the winter delicacy

FOODIE SPECIAL
 Time for undhiyu, 
  the winter delicacy


Imagine an explosion of so many delicious tastes in your
mouth at one go -soft brinjals, browned potato, crunchy
muthiyas, sweet yam, crunchy beans and spices!
That's undhiya for you, the traditional Gujarati winter
specialty that's made overnight and slowcooked to
perfection. This is also the right time to eat it -for undhiyu
 is served at restaurants across the city -from mid-November
 to the end of February .Here's what goes into its making...

A DELICIOUS IMPORT
Undhiyu is a dish that doesn't really find it's origin in the city.
It has a melange of ingredients -Surti papdi (beans that are
brought in on the Flying Rani train from Katargam, Surat
each morning), arya kakdi (a zucchini-like cucumber that
comes from Gujarat), kand (purple yam), sakariya
(sweet potatoes), lilwa dana, rajgiri kela (banana), ringanna
(brinjal). The methi muthiyas (steamed and fried wheat balls)
 are added to it. The special winter green garlic that is now
making an appearance in markets, is also added.
Everything is painstakingly slow-cooked overnight in
layers with green chillies, coriander and grated coconut.
 Says Bakul Shah of an 80-yearold eatery at CP Tank,
“The ingredients are crucial to it; the tenderness and
sweetness of the vegetables make all the difference.“

SLOW-COOKED, MINUS ANY WATER
The dish was originally prepared in the ground in an earthen
 pot. Today , we eat a more practical version, which is made
 in large vessels or a cooker. And there are actually two
types of Undhiyu. “From Surat to Ahmedabad, it is made
in a green masala and the Saurashtra side prepares it with
with red masala,“ informs Shah. He makes it traditional style,
cooked in groundnut oil without any water, and using a
certain process. “The vegetables are first layered in a
vessel -papdi is used in the first layer as it's a tough
vegetable so cooking it takes time,“ he explains.
This is followed by potatoes and brinjals (slit and stuffed
 with masala) as well as kand and kela. Only once it is
cooked, the muthiyas are added so they don't break.
The final topping is coriander and coconut masala.
The vessel is then covered with a thali. “This is cooked a
little dumstyle where a little water is poured on the cover
 so the heat is generated by the water ensures the
contents are cooked,“ adds Shah. The contents are
given a stir at the end.

BEST HAD WITH
The delicacy is had on its own or with plain white rice and
salty buttermilk seasoned with zeera. “Bajra rotla is another
 option, but you can also have undhiyu with wheat phulkas,“
 informs foodie Rumi Ranji.

HOW IT GOT ITS NAME
The word Undhiyu comes from `undhu' which means upside
a down in Gujarati. The story goes that earlier, farmers used
 to cook this dish in an earthen pot and bury it in the ground
 and set fire from above to cook it.

PONKH IS IN SEASON TOO
This is also the best time to eat ponkh a tender, green jowar,
which lends warmth to the body. It is imported from Surat
and available only from November to February. Ponkh is
healthy; it has dietary fiber, iron, phos phorus and helps
stabilise blood sugars. Traditionally, it is had raw with
limbu sev and green chutney.
One can also make ponkh patties and ponkh barfi from it.

IT'S HEALTHY
This is one-pot dish of undhiyu has an assortment of
vegetables, which make for a nutritious bite. Go easier
on the oil if you're trying to cut down on the calories.
You can also use extra virgin olive oil as a replacement.
Try it on a multi-grain bread or have it in a wheat or
bajra roti, which makes for a light and filling wrap.

TRY THIS SURTI UNDHIYU (SERVES 6)
Procedure:
Cut the potatoes and brinjals into segments taking care not
 to separate them at the base. Take half the quantity of the
 masala mix and fill the masala in the segments.
Keep it aside. In a thick and broad based vessel add mustard
 seeds and when crackles add the Surti papdi pods along
with the lilva and tuver dana. Add a pinch of soda bicarb
to it. Add salt, ajwain, ginger and green chillies crushed,
dhania jeera, half the green garlic and the remaining
half masala.
Mix the papdi when the contents start simmering.
Arrange the brinjals, potatoes, purple yam, sweet potatoes
 dices, green peas all around the simmering papdi.
Add the remaining masala and cover it with a little water
on top. Be careful as not to stir the veggies rigorously as
the sections tend to break. Cook this on a slow fire.
When it is done add the diced bananas and the
dhania-jeera powder and cook for five more minutes.
Add the fried methi na muthiyas. Enjoy it hot.

Ismat Tahseen

TNN24NOV15

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