Free Imagine Things

Here is my favourite Recipe, whenever I see Lady's finger/Okra/Bendekaayi/vendakka, I always get tempted to make this. This really goes well with chappati or with Hot Rice and tsp of oil, it's absolutely delicious.

BENDEKAAYI GOJJU










Ingredients:

• 1/2 Kg Lady's Finger
• 1 Lime size Tamarind
• little bit of jaggery(optional)
• 2 to 3 tsp of Rasam powder
• 1 sprig of curry leaves
• salt to taste
• 1tbsp Rice flour
• 2 to 3 tbsp oil

Seasonings:

• 1tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tbsp channa dal
• 1tbsp urad dal
• a pinch of turmeric powder

METHOD:

1. Soak Tamarind in a clean water for 1/2 an hour, squeeze and filter the water and keep it aside.
2. Wash and wipe clean Okra & cut them into 1/2'' pieces
3. Take a Kadai, pour oil and when it is hot, add mustard seeds once they splutter add the other seasonings and roast them for a minute until they change colour.
4. Now add the cut okra into the kadai and roast them in a low flame, add the curry leaves now, fry them until they are cooked.
5. Add a tsp of salt when in process of cooking the vegetable cooks faster and gets coated with salt.
6. Add the Tamarind extract and add another 1 or 2 glasses of water until the okra is completely immersed, so the water stands an inch above the vegetable.
7. Allow it to cook until the raw smell seizes from it, now add the rasam powder and allow it boil another few minutes so that the Ghaatu (spiciness) of the powder decreases
8. Add jaggery & salt to taste, you can add water a little more to increase or decrease the quantity of the gravy.
9. If the gravy doesn't thicken take a tbsp of rice flour mix little water and make it into a paste and pour it into the gravy, within minutes the gravy thickens and now it is ready to serve
10. Serve with hot rice & a tsp of oil or with chapatis

NOTE: Please use red or green chillies as you like because I might be using more or less spiciness for your taste buds.

VARIATIONS: This gojju can be prepared with just Tomatoes, or Tomatoes, garlic & onion, or you can omit garlic, Bitter Gourd (karela), Brinjal, spring onions or EERULI HOOVA with Tomatoes, Mango.

METHOD VARIATION

This Gojju can be prepared by using this method too, The above said method was a simple one In this method you need to grind some ingredients. You can use this recipe for all the above mentioned vegetables, Here is the recipe,

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 tsp Jeera/jeerige
2. 1/2tsp fenugreek seeds/menthya/methi seeds
3. 2 tbsp Black Til (Black Sesame)seeds/yellu
4. 5-6 Red chillies (you can combine both guntur & badigi chillies)
5. 3 to 4 tbsp of copra/dry coconut
6. 1 tsp oil

Take a pan and fry all the above ingredients except for copra, when they all change colour and a nice aroma comes out of it take out allow it cool, roast copra for a minute in the same pan. when all the ingredients are cool grind them to a powder, use this powder instead of Rasam powder and follow the above said method.

In another method with all the above ingredients dry roast with a tsp oil, below said ingredients

• 1 tbsp urad dal
• 1 tbsp channa dal
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds

powder them, use them instead of rasam powder

In another method with a little alterations using few of the above ingredients you can also add

1. 2 tbsp of Dry roasted peanuts
2. 2 tbsp White Till (instead of Black Til)
3. fistful of 2 tbsp of chutney dal/roasted gram dal/Hurigadale
4. 1/2'' cinnamon stick
5. 1tsp Khus Khus/poppy seeds/ Ghasagase

The same way dry roast Till, cinnamon stick & Khus Khus, Grind all the above ingredients and add to the Gojju.

You can also make Gojjus with PINEAPPLE, dried NEEM Flower- which is very good for health, cucumber, Black GRAPES, You can also make with mixed DRY FRUITS like dry grapes, cashews, pista, badam, etc.,