“Alvamande-Vatane Ambat (Arvi/ Colocasia Root- Green Peas Curry)” … nothing beats the taste of the curry when seasoned with crisp brown fried onions and when I think that I have exhausted the ideas of various combinations I can think of, I come up with a new one that is equally tasty as the previous one if not more … served with rice it’s a food matching made in heaven … while alvamande is available almost all round the year, green peas is seasonal, so make best use by adding them to dishes and enjoy a delectable meal with family … yummilicious ….
** I am always amazed at the numbers of veggie combinations we can do and each time it surpasses my imagination. I am sure to come up with more but this one was definitely a sixer with my family. Ambat is a medium spiced curry from GSB Konkani Saraswat community that is prepared by in almost every home be it Veg or Non.Veg. Peas prepared as curry in combination with most of the veggies often tastes fantastic and the best way to serve it is with rice and in my home we just love it.
** I have included plenty combinations of Ambat and will be sharing a common link at the bottom of this recipe which you can browse through in leisure. I assure you they all taste wonderful and though I prefer to serve it with ukde sheetHa (red boiled rice) it tastes equally good with roti, idly, dosas too. When peas are in season I make the best use of the fresh ones by adding them to curries, bhaji, rice dishes etc. and when the season gets almost over I store them in freezer to be used for another few months.
** The recipe is the same as of all other ambat dishes shared before with minute changes depending upon the veggies use. Addition any pulse or lentils is followed in ambat recipes that is prepared with only veggies while the non-vegetarian ones do not include them. Again, if using veggies like fresh green peas, pigeon peas etc. there is no need of including other pulses/ lentil like tur dal etc. Here I have prepared peas in combination of Alvamande (arvi/ colocasia roots) and the curry tastes awesome.
** Here is my simple recipe for “Alvamande-Vatane Ambat (Arvi/ Colocasia Root- Green Peas Curry)”... my style ….
** Ingredients :
Alvamande/ Arvi/ Arbi/ Colocasia Roots : 10-12
Vatana/ Fresh Green Peas : 2 cups
Kudampuli : 4-5
Salt/ Namak/ Meeta : to taste
** Masala to be Ground :
Coconut/ Soyi/ Nariyal : 1 cup freshly grated
Kashmiri Red Chilly/ Kumte Mirsanga/ Byadgi Mirchi : 8-10
** For Seasoning/ Tempering/ Tadka/ Pannaka :
Oil/ Tel/ Tela : 3 tblsp
Onion/ Piyavu/ Kanda : 1 large sized.
** Alvamande are root/ tubers of colocasia leaves ie. Patrade paan/ leaves. They are also called Arvi/ Arbi in Maharashtra and some other northern parts of India. As these have plenty of mud stuck to it, cleaning of the same becomes a little bit tedious. Firstly, soak them in plenty of water in a large bowl for 20 minutes to loosen it. Once the mud get softened scrub and wash them in plenty of water until you find them clean.
** Add cleaned alvamande in pressure cooker with enough water and pressure cook to one whistle. Remove and keep aside for the pressure to drop on its own, then open the lid, rinse the cooked alvamandes under under running water to completely cool it. Once cooled gently peel off the skin and cut the alvamande into 1 inch thick rings/ roundles as shown in picture and keep them ready aside in a vessel.
** Note : There are two methods you can follow to cook them to perfection. You can either peel off the skin with a help of a sharp knife or peeler, cut them into required sized pieces and then cook them or pressure cook until done or follow the method of first pressure cooking the same and then once cool enough it is easy to remove the outer skin which is then cut to required sized pieces, just follow any out of the two. I always prefer to first pressure cook, cool, peel and cut to pieces, as they turn out perfect.
** I have used fresh green peas here, say about 2 full cups after shelling them. If fresh ones are not available or not in season you can use dried ones too. Just soak them over night or for 8 hours, pressure cook separately to 2 whistles or until perfectly cooked and then use them as mentioned, however the taste lies in fresh ones.
** Peel off the skin of one large sized Piyavu (Onion/ Kanda) and chop them to fine pieces and keep it aside ready for seasoning.
** Masala to be Ground : In a mixer grinder add freshly grated coconut along with Kashmiri Red Chilly and grind to a smooth paste with little bit of water, remove and keep it aside ready. Remember, the masala should be ground very fine.
** Note : I have added Kudampuli, a sour sun-dried fruit from southern part of India, largely used as a souring agent to curries. However, you can add either of the mentioned veggies here like bimbul (tree sorrel fruit), ambado (hogplum), karmbala (starfruit) or dried kokum (bhiranda) in place of kudampuli too. If none of these are available or you do not want to use then add a small marble sized ball of Chinchama (Tamarind/ Imly) while grinding the masala, this is what is used in most of the GSB Konkani homes.
** In a stainless steel vessel add green peas along with fresh water, say about 2 inches above the level of the peas and bring to a boil, then let cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes or until almost done. Add in pressure cooked and cut alvamande pieces along with ground masala, kadumpali (washed well), salt to taste and mix well. Check consistency and add water as required to bring to a gravy consistency.
** Bring curry to a boil on medium heat stirring often until you see bubbles appearing on surface. If you find the curry has turned out too thick then add some more water, mix well and let cook thoroughly. Lower the heat to minimum and continue to simmer for 5-10 minutes while you go ahead preparing for the seasoning.
** For Tempering/ Seasoning/ Tadka/ Pannaka : Add the finely chopped onions into a small pan along with oil and let fry stirring often on medium heat until it turns crisp and golden brown. Do not burnt or make it dark brown or it will turn bitter. Now remove from heat and pour over the simmering curry and mix well.
** Once the curry has been seasoned, remove from fire and keep it aside covered for about 20- 30 minutes for resting. This helps in flavors to be infused into the curry and turn it that much more aromatic. Before serving once again check consistency as it tends to thicken up, add hot water if desired only, mix well and its ready.
** “Alvamande-Vatane Ambat (Arvi/ Colocasia Root- Green Peas Curry)” is done and ready to be served. Tastes excellent served hot with Ukde SheetHa (Red Boiled Rice) or plain steamed rice during meals along with some salad or papad. However, if you are not a rice eater then you can serve it with Roti or Chapathi too in which case remember to keep the texture of the curry slightly thicker than to be served with rice. Tastes equally good served with Idly, dosa, appo or oondi too, which are all choices of people from southern part of India as is the food habits of the region.
** I always endorse that home cooked food is best way to keep your family safe, active, healthy and is one of the best gift you can pass on to coming generations. It is not all difficult as it seems when you read through and over years turns to be a breeze work with little planning. Do try out this combination and enjoy with your family and friends before the season of fresh pigeon peas comes to an end. There are plenty of wonderful, easy, traditional dishes in the Blog that you can try out in leisure too.
** The new year 2024 has begun and we are already two days old, and before we realize the months will have passed off in a Zzzaaappp just like that, so don’t wait for another day, another time or another way, just go ahead and try out the dishes and enjoy them with your family and friends. I am sure they will love it.
** There are many more "Ambat" recipes both Veg and Non-Veg included in the Blog which you can browse through the common link provided below ….
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks.