What do you do with an assortment of vegetables when the clock says snack-time? Make mixed vegetable pakoras, if you ask me. This pakora recipe does not demand exactness; take the broad template and switch around the veggies and/or quantities as you wish.
While surfing Afghani food channels, I paused when I saw this layered, brilliantly colored thumbnail: “kaddu borani“, said its label. I hit play and by the end of it, had my mouth salivating and my heart saluting the beauty of this dish.
Kaddu borani takes a set of independently prepared ingredients (pumpkin + tomato sauce + yogurt sauce) and meshes them into something so exquisite, the end product is nothing short of a work of art.
Chayote slow-cooked in a tomato base – simple flavors that get their kick from a tempering of mustard and asafoetida. This is one of those curries that only ask for time, not exceptional skill or effort.
This piece of wisdom that I received from my Punekar friend was worth its weight in gold during the pandemic lockdown. With just besan and my backlog of onions, the barebones jhunka recipe gave me several filling, comforting meals.
So, what exactly is jhunka? Wikipedia defines it as:
…a vegetarian traditional Indian dish prepared in Maharashtra, Goa and North Karnataka. It is essentially a chickpea flour porridge.
Hmmm. Calling it a “porridge” is rather a stretch! Do they mean pithle? I’ll let the matter rest with a Shakespearean reference and point you to the blog becauseanyonecancook, which describes pithle and jhunka with more nuance.
A bright side dish to perk up your mealtimes. Cucumber pomegranate salad with the zing of lemon and mint – the very definition of healthy gorgeousness.
Grape and walnut fried rice – a treat to the senses! Revel in the flavors of tart-sweet grapes, toasted walnuts, caramelized onions studding fried rice.