The Steaming Pot - Easy vegetarian recipes from India

Kaddu poi (pumpkin basale leaves curry) is a Bengali/Oriya signature style of cooking these two nutrient-packed, vividly colored vegetables together: pumpkin (kaddu) and basale leaves (poi).

(more…)

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.

(more…)

Potato pumpkin masala is a testament to the power of "slow and steady". Potato and pumpkin cubes simmer gently with tomatoes and aromatic spices to produce this winner of a dish.

(more…)

Broccoli and red pepper are not traditionally used in Indian cooking, but they take to Indian spices very well. A simple red capsicum curry works wonderfully when you want to cook quick. With a bit more time and a few more ingredients on hand, take a stab at this colorful mixed vegetable recipe.

(more…)

Red pumpkin bharta is a dry preparation of pumpkin, a simpler version of red pumpkin curry with stronger notes of mustard oil.

Unlike traditional bharta (mashed vegetables) like baingan bharta, this one does not use boiled/roasted vegetables as its base. Pumpkin cooks quickly and mashes easily without pre-treatment. This is also a chunky bharta instead of a typically smooth one, which works well with pumpkin.

(more…)

Red pumpkin does a great job of absorbing spices and mingling with a range of flavors: spicy, sweet, tangy, salty. These traits of the vegetable are put to perfect use in this glorious red pumpkin curry recipe.

(more…)