Dahi Waley Tinday

Yes. It is yet another tinda recipe ( plz excuse me for doing those back to back). And a quite simple one at that. It reminds me of the 'Dahi-aloo' that I make quite often. Lazy, refreshing and quite good with a couple of rotis. Perfect for the hot summers .

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 10 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 cup apple gourd /Indian baby pumpkin /tinday (peeled and chopped into medium sized cubes)
• 1 cup yogurt
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp grated ginger
• 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp fennel seeds
• a pinch of asafoetida
• 1 green chili
• 1 tsp oil
• salt to taste
• cilantro for garnishing

Preparation - Take the cumin and fennel seeds. Pound them into a coarse mixture.

Take the yogurt in a mixing bowl and beat lightly to break any lumps. Add a little salt .Mix.

Cooking - Heat the oil in a pressure cooker. Add the asafoetida followed by the mustard seeds and the broken  green chili. Once the chili turns somewhat brown, add the pounded spices. Stir fry for 10 seconds.

Add the chopped apple gourd and mix with the spices. Add very little water (3-4 tbsp), salt and close the lid. Cook for 1 whistle on medium flame.

Remove from the flame and keep aside for 10 mins.

Open the lid and transfer the contents into the mixing bowl containing the curd. Sprinkle chopped cilantro.

Serve at room temperature with rotis or jeera rice. 

Tinday ki Subzi ( Curried Apple gourd )

'Tinday' or 'tindi' happens to be one of those vegetables that I had never came across during the first twenty years of my life. It was only when I started working and had this Delhi girl as a room-mate, that I was introduced to this vegetable. But with her limited cooking skills, the first time we tried cooking this vegetable, it turned out to be disastrous.

And I never got around to trying it again till last month when a neighbor told me about this really simple recipe that she got from her 'Nani' . I tried it and quite loved it. And from then, I started experimenting with this vegetable. The recipe that I am sharing today is one of the spicier versions that one may come across but I am hooked onto it. Read on -

Preparation Time - 20 mins

Ingredients -

• 2 nos Tinday /apple gourd
• 1/2 cup curd
• 1/2 tsp ginger paste
• 1/2 tsp garlic paste
• 2 tsp onion paste
• 1/4 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp red chili powder
• 2 pinch turmeric seeds
• 2 pinch garam masala
• a pinch of asafoetida
• whole spices ( 1 black cardamom, 1 green cardamom, 1 inch cinnamon, 2 cloves )
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• salt to taste
• 2 tsp oil

Preparation - Take the curd, ginger paste, garlic paste, half of the powdered spices and salt into a mixing bowl. Beat together. 

Peel the tinday and make a cross on each one till almost 2/3 of the length. Remove the seeds from inside. Add to the curd mixture and allow to marinate for 2-3 hours.

Cooking - Heat the oil in a pressure cooker. Add the whole spices and fry till fragrant. Remove and keep aside.

Add the cumin seeds followed by the asafoetida. Add the onion paste after 20 seconds. Fry till light brown.

Add the marinated tinda along with the marinade. Sprinkle a little salt. Close the lid and cook for 2 whistles on a medium flame.

Remove the cooker from the flame and keep aside till steam escapes. 

Open the lid and garnish with fresh cilantro .

Serve hot with white rice or rotis !!

Note - Will post another simple version in the next few days !!