“Tendle- Batato- Ambado- Piyava Bhutti (Ivy Gourd/ Gherkins- Potato- Hogplum- Onion Curry” … there is nothing more heartwarming than traditional home cooked food to be relished during meals … here is a delicious sidedish served during meals from GSB Konkani Saraswat Cuisine … the addition of ambado/ hogplums when in season makes it that much more tastier … Yummilicious …..
** Gherkins are called Tendle in Konkani while in they are also familiar as Ivy Gourd/ Tindora/ Tondekayi/ Kovakkai etc. I have posted several “Bhutti” recipes in various combinations in the blog and each one of them is excellent in taste. This is a semi spicy thick masala gravy dish as I mentioned several times before, that is usually served as side dish along with dalitoy- sheetHa in GSB Konkani Saraswat Cusine.
** Rice being staple of south India, Konkani’s from Mangalore usually relish it for lunch though here I must mention this dish tastes excellent when served with chapati or parota / roti. In fact, I love to have it even with panpolo (neer dosa) and I always make it a point to keep some for breakfast next morning. Try it with other dosas too, you will definitely agree with me that its one of the best combination.
** Again as mentioned in my other posts you can use any tart veggies in like hogplums (Ambado), Bimbul (tree sorrel fruit), karmbala (starfruit), harvo tomato (raw tomatoes) and in case none of these are available then you can always add a little bit of tamarind while grinding in masala. Here I have added hogplums as its available in plenty during monsoon and in my home we love the flavor it imparts.
** There are many more combinations shared to which I am sharing a common link at the bottom of this recipe, so that you can browse through them in leisure. Having said that Ivy Gourd, Cabbage, Potato along with onions is the most famous in Saraswat Cusine. Life is a memorable and beautiful journey that becomes that much more desirable when good food too takes priority, so go ahead and enjoy it.
** Here is my recipe for “Tendle- Batato- Ambado- Piyava Bhutti (Ivy Gourd/ Gherkins- Potato- Hogplum- Onion Curry” … My Style ….
** Clean about 250-300 gms of medium sized tendle (Ivy gourd/ gherkins/ tondekayi/ kovakai) in plenty of water and remove all dirt etc. sticking to it. Slice of the end tips on both sides of all tendle and cut them lengthwise into half and then width-wise into halves. In all you will get 4 pieces of each tendle, keep them aside soaked in water.
** Peel of the skin of 2 medium sized potatoes (batato/ aloo) and cut them also into cubes of almost the same size as that of tendle and keep them also separately soaked in water to prevent get browned. Peel of the skin of 2-3 medium sized onions (piyavu/ kanda) and cut them into small pieces and keep them ready aside. Similarly wash, slice off edge stem portion and cut if tender or or crush 3-4 hogplums and keep them aside.
** For the ground masala: Add 1 cup of freshly grated coconut (soyi/ nariyal), 7-8 red kashmiri chillies (byadgi mirchi/ kumte mirsanga), 2tblsp coriander seeds (kothimbir/ dhania) into a mixer grinder and grind to a paste with just enough water. The paste need not be very finely ground, however should not be very coarse. The masala should be thick and evenly ground as this is a semi thick side dish.
** Note : I have added ambado/ hogplum to bring tartness as in my home we love the flavour it imparts to curry dishes. However, these are available only during monsoon or if brined. If not available or you do not want to add the same for any given reason you can add in bimbul, karmbal or raw tomatoes if available too or else you can just skip them all and add a small marble sized ball of tamarind (chinchama/ imly) while grinding the masala and which is what we follow in case none are available.
** Heat 2-3 tablespoons of oil (tel/ tela) into a thick bottomed kadai/ pan. When hot add 1 tsp of mustard seeds (sasam/ rai) and when they begin to splutter add in 6-8 fresh curry leaves (kadipatta/ karbevu). Fry for a few seconds, add cut onions and further fry until translucent, say for about 2-3 minutes. Now add cut tendle pieces, ¼ cup of water, mix well and cook covered on low heat till almost 75% done.
** Now add in the potato pieces, mix well, check out and sprinkle water if needed and further cook covered till both veggies are 90% done. Now add the cut/ crushed hogplum along with the ground masala, salt (namak/ meeta) to taste, a little bit of water if necessary, mix well, and once again cook covered on low heat. Keep stirring often to avoid the masala getting burnt at the bottom as it is thick in consistency
**. When you see bubbles appearing on the surface of the curry consider the curry is done. However, continue to mix and cook for another few minutes, say 5-8 minutes to be on safer side. If the masala is not thoroughly done there are chances or the curry turning rancid on cooling, so you should cook it well thoroughly. When done remove from heat and keep it aside for 10-15 minutes for the curry to settle well.
** Note : Addition of excess water will turn the curry thinner texture, so add only if absolutely necessary, remember this is a semi thick consistency curry, so be careful. Keep some hot water alongside while cooking and keep adding a little bit as and when you find necessary, that way you will be able to keep a check on the curry or if on settling if the curry thickens too much, you can add some hot water, mix well and serve too.
** “Tendle- Batato- Ambado- Piyava Bhutti (Ivy Gourd/ Gherkins- Potato- Hogplum- Onion Curry” is done and ready to be served. In GSB Konkani Saraswat homes it is usually served as side dish with Dalitoy (spiced tuvar dal) and sheetHa (rice). However, I have always been fond of relishing this curry with roti/ chapati/ parathas/ panpolo (neer dosa) or any other dosas as it tastes fantastic. This is one of the best dishes with tendle/ gherkins and I am sure no can resist enjoying the same.
** Do try out this delicious dish and try serving it with your own favorite combinations; I am sure your family will love it. Good food should always be enjoyed with people we love, it is believed issase pyaar badta hey (meaning by doing so love gets multiplied). Also always, do take out some time to cook food in your own kitchen with the help of your partner/ friend and trust me by doing so you will not only be building a greater rapo between yourselfs but will also be one happy family.
** For more recipes of “Bhutti”, please browse through the common link shared below ….
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