Magge- Bikkand Sukke (Yellow Cucumber- Jackfruit Seeds Dry Curry)

Magge- Bikkand Sukke is a coconut based dish made using yellow cucumber and jackfruit seeds. I got this recipe from my mother. Jackfruit seeds and yellow cucumber make a good combination. Yellow cucumber is little sour and this is perfectly balanced by the sweetness of jackfruit seeds. 

Jackfruit seeds are very tasty and healthy too. They are rich in protein. So next time don't forget to save the seeds. You can enjoy them plain, cooked in salted water or make a gravy like this.

Ingredients:

• Jackfruit Seeds, halved- 1 cup
• Yellow Cucumber, small sized - 1 (around 2 cups)
• Grated coconut, fresh/frozen - 2/3 cup
• Roasted red chillies- 4-5
• Tamarind- A small ball (gooseberry sized)
• Coriander seeds- 1 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal/Split blackgram- 2 tsp
• Jaggery- A small piece
• Oil- 2 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 1tsp
• Curry leaves- few
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Peel the jackfruit seeds and cut them into halves.

Wash the yellow cucumber and cut it into half. Discard all the seeds and then chop them into small cubes.

Now transfer the jackfruit seeds into a pressure cooker with 1 inch of water and little salt. Cook it for three whistles.

Once cooked, transfer the cooked seeds on a plate without the water.

In the same cooker (containing the water in which the seeds were cooked) add yellow cucumber pieces and cook it for a whistle. Set it aside.

To Prepare Masala: Fry coriander seeds and urad dal in 1/2 tsp of oil, until it turns light brown. Allow it to cool on a plate. 
Now take grated coconut, jaggery, roasted red chillies, tamarind, salt, roasted coriander seeds and urad dal in a blender.

Grind them to get a coarse mixture. Add little water so that all the things come together. Don't make the masala very fine. 

Now take a kadai and heat oil. Add mustard seeds. Once it starts to splutter, add curry leaves. Then add the ground masala.

Fry it for few seconds and then add the cooked seeds and yellow cucumber cubes.

Mix well and add salt, if required. Add little water to make the gravy medium thick.

Then close the lid and let it cook for 4-5 minutes on a medium flame. Turn off the heat. Magge- Bikkand Sukke is ready!!

Serve it hot with rice and dal. Above measurement serves two people.

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Jeev Kadgi Gashi (Bread Fruit Curry) ~ Coconut Based

Jeev Kadgi Gashi is a very flavorful, rich gravy. In Konkani, Jeevkadgi means breadfruit. I got this recipe from a cook book written by Jaya V Shenoy. In this recipe, the bread fruit, chickpeas and cashew nuts are simmered in a wonderful roasted coconut gravy. This is the first time I making this dish and it tasted very good. 

I am very fortunate to find bread fruit in the farmer's market that too year round. It is one of my favorite veggie and making  fritters  is my favorite way of using it. 

Ingredients:

• Dry Chick peas (Chana) - 1/2 cup
• Bread fruit (Jeev Kadgi) - 1/4 th of a medium sized
• Tender Cashew nuts* - 1/2 cup, heaping
• Oil - 2-3 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 3/4 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 sprig
• Salt- To taste

For Masala:

• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen - 3/4 cup
• Dry Red chilli - 5-6
• Tamarind - A small piece
• Turmeric powder- 1/8 tsp
• Coriander seeds- 2 tsp
• Urad dal (Split black gram)- 1 tsp
• Oil - 1 tsp

*I used the dried tender cashews. You can also substitute with regular whole cashew nut.

Procedure:

Wash and soak chickpeas overnight. Discard the soaked water and transfer it into a pressure cooker along with water, just enough to cook it.
Now add the dried tender cashew nuts in hot water.

Let it sit for a while so that the skin gets softened (skip this step if you are using fresh tender cashew nut). Then discard the skin and add it along with chickpeas in the cooker. Add little salt and pressure cook it for three whistles.

While the chickpeas are cooking, prepare the breadfruit. Discard the skin and cut it into small pieces.

Then cook it in little water along with salt until tender but it should still hold its shape.

For masala: Roast the coriander seeds and urad dal in few drops of oil until they turn light brown. Transfer it to a plate. In the same pan add grated coconut and fry them until they turn light brown. Transfer it to the same plate. In the same pan, roast the dry red chillies in few drops of oil. Transfer to the same plate and allow them to cool.
Now transfer all the roasted ingredients along with turmeric powder and tamarind into a blender.

Grind to get a smooth paste. Add water as required to get a thick, smooth paste.

Now transfer the cooked bread fruit pieces to the cooked chickpeas - cashew nut mixture.

Then add the ground masala.

Mix it well and bring it to a boil. Once it starts boiling, continue heating for 3-4 minutes on a medium heat. Then turn off the heat. Finally mix in the seasoning.

For Seasoning - Heat oil. Once hot, add mustard seeds. Once it splutters, add curry leaves. Then turn off the heat. Add this to the prepared gravy and mix well. Jeev Kadgi Gashi is ready!!

Serve it hot along with rice. Above measurement serves 3-4 people.

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Benda Chakko ( Okra Dry Curry)

Benda Chakko is a popular konkani dish. The okras are cooked in a coconut based masala resulting in a very yummy dish. This dish is little bit on the dry side and makes a good accompaniment to rice. I got introduced to this recently from my SIL. Till then I thought it can be made only using raw jackfruit. This is specially made using overgrown (hard) okras.

Try making this simple yet delicious curry. I am sure you will love it. 

Ingredients:

• Okra (Lady's finger), small sized- 18-20
• Grated coconut, fresh/frozen- 1/2 cup
• Roasted red chillies- 4-5
• Tamarind- A small ball (gooseberry sized)
• Coriander seeds- 1 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal/Split blackgram- 2 tsp
• Jaggery- 1tsp
• Oil- 2 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 1tsp
• Curry leaves- few
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Wash okra and pat dry it completely using a cloth or paper towel. Then trim off its ends.

Then cut them into small pieces (1.5- 2 cm long or as desired). 

Then prepare masala.
To Prepare Masala: Fry coriander seeds and urad dal in 1/2 tsp of oil, until it turns light brown. Allow it to cool. 

Now grind grated coconut, roasted red chillies, tamarind, jaggery, salt and roasted coriander seeds, urad dal. Add little water so that all the things get well blended. Don't make the masala very fine. 

Now take a kadai and heat oil. Add mustard seeds. Once it starts to splutter, add curry leaves and the cut okra. Mix well and fry for 3-4 minutes on a medium heat.

Then add the ground masala.

Mix well until all the okra pieces get a coating of the coconut masala. Then add little water just enough to cook the okras (nearly 1/3 cup). 

Then close it with a lid and allow to cook until the okra pieces are well cooked and most of the water has evaporated. Then turn off the heat. Benda Chakko is ready!!

Serve it hot as a side dish to rice or rotis. Above measurement serves two people.

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Beans Sukke (Beans Dry Curry)

Beans Sukke is a simple Konkani dish. This is a coconut based dry curry. I got this recipe from my mother.

Ingredients:

• Beans, chopped- 1 cup (heaping)
• Potato, small sized- 1
• Grated coconut, fresh/frozen- 3/4 cup
• Roasted red chillies- 4-5
• Tamarind- A small ball (gooseberry sized)
• Coriander seeds- 1 1/2 tsp
• Urad dal/Split blackgram- 2 tsp
• Jaggery- A small piece
• Oil- 2 tsp
• Mustard seeds- 1tsp
• Curry leaves- few
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Wash and cut the beans into bite size pieces. Then cube (small sized) the washed and peeled potato.

To Prepare Masala: Fry coriander seeds and urad dal in 1/2 tsp of oil, until it turns light brown. Allow it to cool on a plate. 
Now grind grated coconut, jaggery, roasted red chillies, tamarind, salt, roasted coriander seeds and urad dal, to get a coarse mixture. Add little water so that all the things come together. Don't make the masala very fine. 

Now take a kadai and heat oil. Add mustard seeds. Once it starts to splutter, add curry leaves. Then add the chopped potato and fry for a minute or two. Then add chopped beans and mix well. Let it fry for 1-2 minutes on a medium flame. Then add enough water and allow them to cook.

Once the beans and potato are cooked upto 75% , add in the ground coconut masala.

Mix it well. Add little water, if it is too dry. Check for salt at this point. 
Allow the veggies to cook further in the masala (this might take 4-5 minutes on a medium heat). Adjust the final consistency of the dish. You can make it dry or retain little moisture.

When done, turn off the heat. Beans Sukke is ready!!

Serve it hot, as a side dish to rice and dal. Above measurement serves 2-3 people.

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Gointa Gooli (Coconut based Pointed Gourd Dry Curry)

Gointa Gooli is a simple coconut based dry curry. In konkani, Gointa means Pointed Gourd. I got this recipe from my mother's sister. 

Gointa (also popular as parval or potol or pointed gourd) looks like Ivy gourd but it is bigger in size. It imparts a very unique flavor to the dish. I grew up eating this only in the form of fritters and they used to taste great. This used to be a seasonal veggie for us and hence would be available only for 3-4 months. I tried making it for the first time and enjoyed with dal.

Ingredients:

• Gointa/ Parval/ Pointed Gourd- 15-16
• Grated Coconut, Fresh/ Frozen- 2/3 cup
• Roasted Red chillies- 3-4
• Tamarind- A small piece
• Oil- 1-2 tsp plus for seasoning
• Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
• Curry leaves- Few
• Salt- To taste

Procedure:

Take the washed pointed gourd and chop off small pieces on either end.

Now start chopping it into small pieces.

Then heat oil in a pan and then add the chopped pointed gourd. Toss it well.

Fry it on a medium flame until it becomes brown and crispy, with constant mixing (this might take between 20- 30 minutes). Also sprinkle little salt when half done.

Now the frying part is done. Next part is to prepare the masala.

For masala- Grind grated coconut along with red chillies, tamarind and salt to get a coarse mixture (add little water so as to bring everything together). Don't grind the masala too fine. Masala is ready.

Now transfer the masala to a bowl and mix it with the fried pointed gourd pieces and then season it. Mix it well.

For seasoning- Heat oil and then add mustard seeds. Once it starts spluttering, add curry leaves and turn off the heat.
Gointa Gooli is ready!!

Serve it as a side dish to rice, dalitoy. Above measurement serves 2-3 people.

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