The Steaming Pot - Easy vegetarian recipes from India

This recipe pays homage to parval, a gourd popular in the eastern states of India. Whenever we make a trip to Bihar, we come back loaded with parval ^[1] by the bagful – we could buy this elsewhere too, sure, but the quality we find in Bihar is unmatched.

If you do get hold of parval glistening green on the outside, seeds and flesh tender and firm – count yourself blessed and make parval ki bhujiya this way. This recipe lets the gourd take the spotlight – no dousing in spices, no other vegetables added to the mix.

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This recipe of kairi khatti-meethi chutney (sweet and sour raw mango chutney) is so elementary, even Watson wouldn’t need a Holmes to explain it to him. Or so I thought till a friend asked me what I had put in the amazing accompaniment I served with the meal.

Ginger? Lime? Some Far Eastern condiment you brought back from the travels?

It turns out that what we believe is too obvious for words may not be so.

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Start-of-season green grapes tend to be tart and work best when combined with other ingredients – a few grapes in fruit rabri, for example, or in fresh juice. A recent addition to my list of go-to recipes for sour grapes is this green grape chutney, flavored with Bengali panch phoron spice and fennel powder.

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Chana dal kosambari with lots of carrot, coconut and coriander – the mix of colors and flavors in this salad is so inviting, you can’t but reach out for seconds.

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Staple, durable veggies – potatoes and onions – join forces to give us this easy dry sabzi: aloo pyaz ki bhujiya. It’s vegan and very light on spices, just right for the lunchbox or a shared picnic basket.

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A green papaya side dish that’s light, tangy and full of nutrition. Papeeta ka chokha asks of you only five ingredients and is a breeze to make (discounting the will it takes to peel the toughish skin).

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