The Steaming Pot - Easy vegetarian recipes from India

A no-cook style of eating raw mangoes that’s lip-smacking delicious and what’s more – so easy a "no cook" can make it. Just get yourself a good quality knife/peeler and you are all set for preparing this…well, I call it raw mango salsa, though I hesitate to title the post so considering it might not be a purist’s idea of "salsa".

No matter what it’s called – it tastes wonderful!

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Chayote was an untried, untasted vegetable for me until an article in The Awl piqued me enough to cook with it.

Since then, it is as if Destiny has been conspiring to make me eat the chayote. Every few days I get a sign that points me towards this modest squash. The latest was this scene from the film Chef:

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Baingan masala – an easy and delicious curry to make with baby eggplant. Unlike the more intricate recipes that involve stuffing the eggplant or dry-roasting the spices, this baingan masala recipe is beginner-friendly and relies on accessible ingredients. Try it!

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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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A starring recipe for a party menu: lauki kofta – spiced balls of grated bottle gourd, deep-fried and simmered in a rich tomato gravy. The preparation of lauki kofta takes a bit of planning, and the steps for making the bottle gourd balls can’t be rushed or parallelized – but the end result makes the dish worth every bit of the effort.

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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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Not too long ago, the mention of sundal outside of south India would be met with quizzical stares. Times are changing – this simple boiled legume dish is gaining traction far and wide for its health benefits, compatibility with special diets (vegan/Jain), and ease of making.

Sundal can be made with various types of legumes – chickpeas or peanuts for example. This recipe uses a very light and easily digested legume: yellow moong dal.

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