While Southern India consumes Drumstick or better known as Saragvo | Saragvani Seeng | સરગવાની શીંગ , in Gujarati cuisine, it is a fairly infrequently used ingredient. Though not uncommon, I must admit. Forgotten could be a better choice in my opinion because my mom always tells me stories about the various kinds of drumstick curries her grandmother used to make. But me being me , I have mostly cooked drumsticks into that occasional Sambar. Which is why I am writing down this સરગવાની શીંગ બટેટા નું શાક | Drumsticks and Potato Curry in a spicy gravy of curd and gram flour here, preserving it for posterity.
Recipe: ( Serve 2-3 )
Ingredients:
- 3-4 Moringa sticks / drumstick stems, select tender yet fleshy ones, washed, trimmed and cut into 2″ or 2.5″ inch pieces,
- 2 medium potatoes, washed and chopped into quarters, ( I chose to retain the skin, you can peel it if you like ),
- 1/2 a cup of thick set curd/Greek yogurt ( or 3/4th cup of regular thinner curd ), preferably mildly sour,
- 2 tbsp of gram flour / Besan,
- 8-10 cloves of garlic ( adjust as per your preference ),
- A piece of ginger, about 0.25″ in length,
- 1 tbsp + 1 tsp of Kashmiri Chilli powder or any mild chilli powder,
- Salt to taste, and as needed,
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped,
- 3 tbsp ( or more or less, as you usually use in your cooking ) of peanut oil ( recommended , but you can use any mildly flavoured oil of your choice ),
- 1 tsp of cumin seeds,
- 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds,
- A few curry leaves, ( optional ),
- 1 tsp of cumin coriander powder,
- Coriander leaves, finely chopped, as a garnish.
Method:
- Take the drumstick pieces and the potato chunks in a pressure cooker and add water, just enough to get them half submerged. A few fat pinches of salt, and cook them until soft. I let the pressure build up to the first whistle on medium, and the turned to simmer until the second whistle. Turn the heat off and let the pressure subside naturally. Drain the water but do not throw it away, reserve it since it contains a lot of nutrients. You can do this in an open pan too if you want.
- Mix the curd and the gram flour into a smooth paste. Adding the water leftover from cooking the drumsticks, make a smooth, lump free slurry. Set it aside.
- Make a paste of the garlic cloves, ginger, 1/2 tsp of salt, and 1 tbsp of red Chilli powder. Add a few drops of water if needed to make smooth paste. I used mortar and pestle for this to make a paste quickly for such small quantities. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds, let them crackle and the add cumin seeds and let the brown until fragrant for a few seconds. Add the curry leaves and the finely chopped onion and let it get golden brown on low to medium heat with a pinch of salt. Once it is softened and browned, add the chilli ginger garlic paste and cook for another minute or so until it no longer smells raw. Then add the cumin coriander powder, chilli powder and more salt as needed. Mix well, add a little water to unstick the spices from the bottom of the pan and cook well.
- Finally add the gram flour slurry and mix. Let it come to gentle boil on simmer. Add the drumsticks and the potatoes, mix well, adjust the consistency and again simmer everything until thoroughly mixed. Take it off the heat and serve garnished with coriander leaves with steamed rice.
Diving into My Pensieve 