Suran (Yam) And Tomato Upkari ~ Bhaji With Ginger.

Suran (Yam) And Tomato Upkari / Bhaji With Ginger ......... A simple upkari with the awesome flavour of ginger ........ Goes well with Dalitoy (Seasoned Tuvar Dal) and SheetHa (Rice) ...... Yumz ......

Suran / yam is considered to be very good for health. Mom used to say it purifies the blood. But sometimes the suran / yam have a little bit of itching sensation which wards off when cooked with a pinch of tamarind paste or with the addition of tomatoes. I always prepare suran bhaji / upkari with the addition of tomatoes as we like them very much that way. Seasoning differs by either mustard, ginger but the most often preparation is the one using garlic. Today however, I decided to prepare the bhaji with ginger as it was a long time since I prepared it that way. You see we love garlic and onions more than other any other type of seasonings in any given dish.

Cut about 500 gms of Suran / Yam after removing the outer thick mud-dish skin into strips of about 2 inches with ¼ inch thickness. Wash them in plenty of water. Soak in water for some time, say about 10-15 mins. and then again clean off under rinsing water. This removes the stickiness and excess starch and mud in the pieces. Put them in a colander to remove / drain excess water. Keep this aside ready.

Heat a thick bottomed kadai with 2 tblsp of oil, when hot, lower the heat and add in 1 tsp of mustard seeds, as they begin to splutter add in grating of about 1 inch long ginger piece, 5-6 red chillies cut into pieces along with a few curry leaves and stir for a minute.

Add in the drained yam / suran pieces and mix well. Sprinkle some water, cover with a tight lid and cook on low heat stirring often till 90% done. Now remove the cover, add salt to taste and 2 medium sized tomatoes cut into small cubes and mix well. Cover again and cook till done. 

Remove from fire, Suran / Yam Baji (Upkari) is ready to be served. Serve this with Dal-Chawal or as an accompaniment with any other dish of your choice. You can serve it with roti / chapati / paratha too. You can also lastly garnish it with a tablespoon of freshly grated coconut if desired. I have not as I do not much prefer coconut garnish with suran bhaji.