Carom leaves chutney

Had this carom leaves pot for the longest time - the first plant in my house. My mother had given it to me for its medicinal value. We used to give the juice from the leaf to my son whenever he had chest congestion as a toddler. Besides this, it was used to make pakodas - the carom leaf pakoda is very yummy. But given the fact that we are all very health conscious now, the pakodas were rarely made and whenever I pruned the plant, I would throw away the leaves. Yesterday I decided to check out if there were any other recipes and found tambli (coconut based curry) and  chutney. After looking up quite a few of these, decided to make a chutney with some variations of my own. By the way this plant is a very hardy plant and very easy to grow - using stem propagation.

Ingredients

Carom leaves 15 to 20
Grated coconut 1 tablespoon
Urad dal 2 teaspoons
Red chillies 2
( I used bedgi which is not very spicy, this can be varied based on type of chilly and taste)
Tamarind paste 2 teaspoons
Garlic cloves 4 to 5
Salt to taste

Method

1. Dry roast the urad dal and red chillies and keep aside.
2. Wash and roast the leaves till they change colour. Turn off the heat and put the garlic cloves in. The residual heat should lightly roast the garlic.
3. Grind all the ingredients together in a processor to get the chutney. Can be eaten with roti, rice, idlis, dosa, your choice.

Saag and makai ki roti

Sarson ka saag as the name suggests is made with mustard leaves. I tried the same recipe but with safflower leaves (kardai as it known in Maharashtra) It tastes just as amazing - even my fussy teen loves this dish.

Ingredients

Serves 3 - 4

For the saag

Spinach leaves 1 bunch
Safflower leaves 1 bunch
Fenugreek (methi) leaves  a handful (optional)
Radish 1/2
Garlic  10 cloves
Green chillies 2
Ginger grated 2 tsp
Chana dal 1/2 cup
Onion (finely chopped) 1
Ghee 1 tbsp
Mustard oil  1 tbsp.
Salt to taste
Butter 1 tsp

For the Makai ki roti

Corn flour (called makke ka atta)  2 cups
Salt to taste
Water to knead into dough

Method

1. Clean the greens thoroughly and roughly chop them. 
2. Add the leaves, chopped radish, chana dal, 1 diced green chilly, 1 tsp ginger, 5 cloves garlic and 1/2 cup of water, in a vessel and pressure cook for 2 whistles. 
3. Once the pressure drops, grind the cooked mixture to a fine paste. 

4. In a pan, heat ghee and mustard oil. I add the mustard oil to give it the mustard flavor - it's completely optional
5. Add 1 chopped green chilly, remaining garlic finely chopped and the ginger.
6. Fry for a minute and add the onions.
7. Fry till they soften and add the green paste. Cook till almost dry. 

8. Serve with a dollop of butter and the Makai ki roti.

For the Makai ki roti, make rotis like you would make chapatis. These will be a little rough around the edges but that's ok. Roast them on a flat griddle or tava. You can add some butter while roasting or apply a little when they're done and still warm.