Choki Wangan Hatchi + Muji

Just two and a half decades ago, we used to live in Kashmir. There used to be great scarcity of vegetables during winter season due to extreme cold conditions. To overcome this problem, we used to preserve the vegetables in summer by drying them. Today I have prepared one such dish and want to share the steps of preparation with you to refresh your old memories.




Ingredients

1. 25o gms wangan hatchi (dried brinjals).
2. 300 gms muji / nadroo (radish / lotus stem).
3. 1 table spoon salt or to taste.
4. 3 ladles mustard oil.
5. 1 pinch hing (asafoetida).
6. 1.5 table spoons of laal mirch powder (red chilly powder).
7. 2 table spoons saunf powder (fennel powder).
8. 1 tea spoon saunth powder (ginger powder).
9. 1 tea spoon zeera (cumin seeds).
10. 4 half crushed laung (cloves).
11. 2 crushed moti elaichi (black cardamom).
12. Juice of two lemons / imli paani (tamarind pulp in water).

Method

1. Wash wangan hatchi with normal water and soak them for 10 minutes.
2. Clean muji / nadroo and cut them in thick slices.
3. After 10 minutes, put the wangan hatchi in cooker and give two whistles and remove the weight  quickly.
4. Wash again with cold water twice, squeeze and keep them aside.
5. Now heat oil in a cooker and put the pieces of muji / nadroo in it altogether, when they are half fried, put zeera, salt and wangan hatchi in it and fry them together on low flame for 3 - 4 minutes, stir occasionally to avoid burning.
6. Now add mirch powder and hing along with 1/2 cup of water, keep it on low flame (till water evaporates and  red colour along with oil appears) and mix the contents with ladle carefully to avoid breakage.
7. Add 2 glasses of water along with saunf, saunth, laung and moti elaichi.
8. Cook for 5-7 minutes on low flame till tender.
9. Add lemon juice / imli paani and cook for another 2 minutes.
10. Enjoy the dish with boiled rice.