sorry, I forgot to write the recipe for the moothias
Here is the recipe for the moothias for the Undhiyu.
By the way, I found some interesting info on Undhiyu.
- "The name of this dish means “upside down” in Gujarati. At the height of the winter vegetable season, before the searing heat of summer ends the harvest, tender fresh produce was collected and placed in a terra-cotta pot that was sealed with a terra-cotta lid using a layer of wet clay around the rim. The pot was then placed upside down in a pit in which a fire had been made and allowed to burn down to hot coals. More coals were heaped around the pot and the vegetables inside were allowed to slowly steam their way to doneness. "
Methi Moothia (Chickpea flour dumplings):
1 cup channa flour
pinch baking soda
¼ cup methi leaves, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon garlic paste
1 pinch haldi
2 green chillies, minced
1 tbs lime juice
¼ tsp sugar
water
4 tbs plus 1 tsp vegetable oil
For the methi moothia: Combine chana flour, haldi, baking soda, and methi leaves in a bowl. With a mortar and pestle, make a paste of minced green chillies, garlic paste, salt, lime juice, sugar, and one teaspoon oil. Add paste to the channa flour and methi leaves. Add just enough water to bind the ingredients. Heat 4 tablespoons oil in a small frying pan or heavy-bottomed casserole. Form dough into little dumplings and deep fry in hot oil until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Set aside.
About ½ hour before serving, add the methi moothia to the Undhiyu. Just before serving, add fresh grated coconut and chopped coriander and a little water. Cover and steam for about 3 minutes. Garnish with remaining fresh grated coconut and chopped coriander. Serve with bajra no rotlo, a delicious roti made with bajra-millet-flour.
The Parsis also have a version of Undhiyu. They call it Oobariyu - and they make it with mutton and Surti papri. It is cooked in Udwada, Dahanu, Sanjan, and other places of early Parsi settlements, in the traditional way in a sealed earthenware pot placed upside-down on embers in a hole in the ground, and covered with earth, and allowed to cook thus for several hours.
The characteristic flavour given in both these dishes is ajwain. The tender seasonal papri contains enough water to cook the vegetables through.
Personally, I omit the sugar in the recipes, as our family does not like it. However some people do, and so it is optional.
The mother of a Sindhi friend of my son, an excellent cook, once made Undhiyu using tomatoes and sugar. It was delicious. However it was not the real Undhiyu.
Garam masala is also not traditional. Nevertheless one should experiment and try new ways of doing things!
By the way, do you know that chillies, mint, coriander, brinjals, tomatoes, potatoes, and many other vegetables were introduced from America into our country India by the Portuguese?
These 'foreign' vegetables are governed by the shadow planet Rahu!
Mrinalini