"Vali ani Duddhe Ambat/ Malabar Spinach And Red Pumpkin Curry" ... A delicious Sweet-Spicy curry seasoned with onions that's usually prepared with addition of Raw Papaya along with Vali, I could not get it so replaced with pumpkin ... tastes awesome when served with Ukde SheetHa (Red Boiled Rice) or any Rice, you can also serve it with roti/dosa, tastes delicious with panpolo/neer dosa ... Yummilicious .....
** A few days back I had posted Malabar Spinach/Vali Ambat/Curry prepared with addition of Tuvar Dal. Vali or Malabar Spinach as you all know is a leafy vegetable, a creeper with thick stems that is one of Konkani Saraswat’s favorite leafy veggie and we prepare many dishes using the same. I have added many dishes with this leafy vegetable as I always prepare it when in season. I will not run into details as I have written enough of the same. I will share a common link to all dishes where in I have used Vali, you can check out for the same and enjoy trying them out. Ambat is a curry prepared often in Konkani Saraswat Cuisine which is seasoned with onions and that is the beauty of this dish. The aroma that the fried onions impart to the dish is simply mouthwatering.
** Today’s dish is prepared using Duddhe/Red Pumpkin/Kumbalakayi/Lal Bhopla/Kaddu along with Vali/ Malabar Spinach/ Basale/ Mayalu. Usually this dish is prepared adding on raw papaya with vali and is a spicy-sweet dish as jaggery is also added to the curry which I have already included in the Blog before. This is one of mothers favorite curry and so was it my Grandma’s too. Even my hubby and me like this dish though we love the one with addition of dried prawns more. Well, a delicious dish in all that I urge all of you to try out if Vali/Malabar Spinach is available in your vicinity. Repeating the preparation of the dish once again though the gravy etc. remains same and there is just a few minor changes in preparation.
** Here is my simple recipe for "Vali ani Duddhe Ambat/ Malabar Spinach And Red Pumpkin Curry" … My Style …
** Ingredients :
Vali/ Malabar Spinach/ Basale/ Mayalu : One small bundle.
Garduddhe / Red Pumpkin / Kumbalakayi/ Lal Bhopla/ Kaddu : 250-300 gms.
Onion / Piyavu / Kanda : One small sized.
Jaggery / Goda / Bella : 50-75 gms grated or cut to small pieces.
Sal to taste
** Masala to be Ground :
Coconut / Soyi : 1 cup finely grated fresh coconut
Kashmiri Red Chillies / Kumte Mirsanga : 8-10 chillies fried in little bit of oil.
Tamarind / Imly / Chinchama : one small marble sized ball.
** For Tempering / Seasoning :
Oil : 2-3 tblsp
Onion / Piyavu / Kanda : One medium sized.
** Peel off the skin and chop the onions both given under ingredients and tempering finely and keep aside ready separately.
** Wash and chop the leaves of one large bunch of Vali / Basale / Malbar Spinach finely. You should at least have 6-8 cups of chopped leaves. Also cut the stems into 3 inch pieces. Rinse in colander under running water and keep this ready aside. Check the picture enclosed.
** Wash the Duddhe/Red Pumpkin, remove the innermost fleshy portion to which the seeds are attached and then cut it into 2 inch sized pieces retaining the skin. Wash and keep it ready aside.
** Add in the chopped Vali / Malabar spinach leaves along with the cut stems into a pressure cooker pan along with about 2 cups of water. Pressure cook on medium heat to 2 whistles. Allow the pressure in the cooker to drop on its own. When able to open the lid do so carefully, staying away from the cooker lest the vapor hits you on face. Pour this into a thick bottomed stainless steel Vessel and keep ready.
** Now in the same pressure cooker add in the prepared and kept duddhe / red pumpkin pieces. Strain some cooked water from the vali/Malabar spinach and add to the duddhe and pressure cook on high heat to one whistle. Remove and let cool for not more than 2-3 minutes or else the duddhe will turn mushy. Also do not add in too much water while cooking.
** Now release the pressure from the cooker carefully with the help of tongs. Open the lid and allow to cool. This method is followed so that the duddhe does not get overcooked. If not comfortable with this method you can cook with the strained cooked vali water in the vessel too, but it takes some time. Choose any method you wish too. Add the cooked duddhe to cooked the Vali / Malabar spinach in the vessel.
** For the Masala to be Ground : Add in the coconut, fried red chillies (plus or minus depending upon individual preference) and the tamarind into a mixer grinder and grind to a very smooth paste with little bit of water. You can strain a little bit cooked water from the vali and dal from pressure cooker and use it too. That is what I usually do. In any case do not use too much water nor make the ground masala thinner in texture.
** Add the ground masala to the cooked Vali / Malabar Spinach and Duddhe/Red pumpkin in the vessel and mix gently. Check and add in water if necessary to bring to a thick gravy consistency. Add in one of the chopped onion, grated jaggery, salt to taste, mix well and bring to boil on medium flame. Once it comes to full boil, lower the heat and let it simmer. Keep stirring in between to avoid the masala getting burnt.
** For Seasoning : Heat oil in a small pan, when hot lower the heat and add in the chopped onion and fry till the onion turns brown in colour. Do not keep the heat too high or leave the seasoning unattended, the onions may start getting burn from the sides. Keep mixing often to get evenly fried onion. Once browned, remove and pour this over the simmering curry and keep the dish covered aside for the flavors to seep into the curry.
** "Vali ani Duddhe Ambat/ Malabar Spinach And Red Pumpkin Curry" is done and ready to be served. Serve the ambat/ curry hot with red ukada (boiled) rice or ordinary plain rice. This curry is best when served with rice. But you can also relish the dish with roti / paratha / poori in which case see to it that you keep the curry slightly thicker in texture than for the rice. The other best combo with this curry is "Panpolo/Neer Dosa", it tastes wonderful. Enjoy this curry hot with your family and friends.
** This curry is traditionally prepared with addition of raw papaya and is called "Vali Popashpala Ambat/Malabar Spinach Raw Papaya Curry", A very famous dish in Konkani Saraswat Community. As papaya was not available, I just though why not try it out with semi ripe duddhe / red pumpkin and trust me it tasted wonderful. I have already posted that curry in the Blog before and I am sharing the link to it below, do check it out.
** Sharing below a common link for dishes prepared using “Vali/Malabar Spinach”. There are many dishes added there with lots of varieties both Veg. and Non.Veg. Do go through the link and try out those that appeal to you and your family. There are lots of pictures included there which will help you understand the dish better. If this leafy creeper type veggie is available in your vicinity, do try out the dishes and give me a feedback if possible.
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