Pendaro

What is Pendaro ? This is the question I asked my husband when we visited the market to buy flowers for the Ganesh Utsav as he insisted on buying this vegetable. They were there in plenty. Since this was the first time I had come across this vegetable, I was hesitant. But he informed me that this vegetable is rich in iron. Being a health freak, I agreed to buy provided he knew how it is to be used. But believe me; it (health) does not come cheap! The Pendaros were being sold for Rs.80/- per kg. We bought half a kilogram.

On our return to Bangalore, I was excited to try out this new vegetable and so asked my husband to tell me how to go about cutting the vegetable and preparing the curry. To my surprise he was clueless in the preparation but told me that I can prepare “upkari”, “gojju”, “phodi” and “sukke” out of this vegetable and that he has tasted them during his childhood days!

I then contacted some of my local relatives and friends for any guidance on how to cut and prepare any dish out of it. Most of them seemed to have eaten it sometime but not very sure on the preparation. I finally contacted my sister-in-law in Mumbai who was very pleased to give me all the details that I wanted to know. So here I am !

I am sure most of the Amchis (term used for konkani speaking people) who were brought up in the coastal Karnataka (Mangalore, Udupi etc) region would relate to this vegetable.

I was told that this is a wild vegetable found in the coastal Karnataka forest region and is available only during the monsoons especially during the Ganesh festival time. "Pendaro" is the Konkani word for this vegetable. I have not been able to find its equivalent name either in Hindi or English. I tried to find its botanical name but without success. If anybody reading my blog can give more info on this rare wild vegetable, I shall be much obliged.

 Pendaros in a basket

This vegetable is almost round in shape, dark green in colour and resembles raw mango in appearance.

It cooks easily though. There is a seed inside which need to be discarded. Once cut, the seed turns black immediately (within seconds) and the rest of the vegetable will also change its colour after a while. While cutting, the chopping board and your fingers too will turn dark brown. But you needn’t worry as the stain can be easily removed by scrubbing and washing with soap.

I prepared Gojju (side dish) and  phodi (shallow fried) and upkari  (dry curry) from this vegetable. Since I am trying this out for the first time, I made it in small quantity – serving for two only. I found it quite tasty. The taste of the pendaro upkari was similar to that of  Raw Banana upkari.
Pendaro phodis can be prepared in the same way as  Phagila Phodi

Pendare Gojju

Pendare Gojju

Ingredients:

Pendaros	2
Green chilles	1
Salt	To taste
Curds	½ cup
Seasoning ingredients:
Oil	1 tsp
Mustard seeds	1 tsp
Curry leaves	1 sprig
Asafetida (hing)	½ tsp (a pinch)

Method :

Pendaro halved

1. Wash the pendaros. Then cut off the ends. Halve it and remove the seed. If the inside is tough near the seed, then remove this thin layer.
2. Chop the rest of the pendaro into medium size pieces.
3. Steam these for about 25-30 mins.
4. Mash them with a potato masher.
5. Roughly grind green chilies and salt and mix it with the mashed pendaro.
6. When cooled, add curds to it and mix well.
7. Finally heat a small pan. Add oil, and mustard seeds. When mustard seeds start spluttering, lower the flame. Then add curry leaves and asafetida. Switch off the gas and pour the contents on to the curd and                                                the mashed pendaro mixture.Mix well and serve.

Steamed Pendaro pieces

Serves: 2

Note:

• You can pressure cooker the pendaros. It should not take more than 12-15 mins.
• I used the steamer as I had to steam other vegetable too during that time.
• Can be served as a side dish. 

Pendaro Phodi  (Sliced pendaros being shallow fried)

I also made Pendaro phodi. It tasted fantastic too.  Any phodis for that matter tastes wonderful and this phodi is no exception !

Pendaro Upkari (Dry curry)

Pendaro Upkari was made with garlic and dry red chilies as seasoning in oil. This is a regular konkani upkari. Its taste was similar to that of raw banana upkari.

Monsoon in Goa

This trip to Goa was long pending and somehow or the other, it would get postponed. We finally managed to do this trip thanks to the long week end. The time spent at the beaches is really therapeutic and the monsoon season makes it adventurous too.

The scenenic splendour of Goa during the monsoon is simply dazzling. The lush green paddy fields, hills and the country side are a sight for sore eyes. The roads though narrow are smooth and devoid of pot-holes ! The palm fringed beaches with the spectacular sunrise and sunset are the main attraction. Goa is a sea-food lover's paradise and one should not forget to mention the locally brewed "Feni". For the non-vegetarians, Goa is a gourmet's delight. For the vegetarians (like me) the choice is limited. I tried a vegetarian xacuti (eaten with rice) at the Crown Goa (Harbour Cafe) which was very delicious and I hope to try this out in my kitchen !

Since Bangalore is in the interior of Karnataka, we are deprived of these heavenly beaches. So, we had our fill of these wonderful beaches not only in Goa but also in Karwar and Gokarn in coastal Karnataka on our way back.

I am sharing  a few photos of these wonderful beaches.

Colva Beach - Dark clouds looming overhead

Aguada Beach - Sunny with a hint of dark clouds

Anjuna Beach - Clouds obstructing the view of the sun

Sunset at Anjuna Beach when the clouds cleared for a few minutes

Spectacular sky at Anjuna Beach

 Karwar Coast, Karnataka - Lush Green

Om Beach, Gokarn- Karnataka - Sunny afternoon with the waves splashing

P.S. 

For a detailed Goa trip report, you may see it shortly on my daughter's blog - http://ifornature.blogspot.com/

Jackfruit Patholi

This is my third sweet dish made after demolishing the jackfruit!!

Patholi is a Konkani word for a sweet dish that is steamed in a leaf. The batter for patholi is generally made of rice flour and the leaf used to prepare this dish is the turmeric leaf which has a powerful aroma of its own.

Since jackfruit is a very aromatic fruit by itself, the leaves used for jackfruit patholi should be non-aromatic (as the two strong flavours will clash) like the Banana leaf (“Cholko” in Konkani ) OR the Champa (flower) leaf which is known as “Kud Champe Paan” in Konkani. Traditionally it is prepared in these leaves in coastal Karnataka (Udipi, Mangalore, Karwar areas).

Since my husband managed to get Kud Champe Paan, I prepared the patholi in these leaves.

Before Steaming

After Steaming

Ingredients:

Ripe Jackfruit plums(deseeded)	12
Rice powder	3 – 4 tbsps
Salt	a pinch
Jaggery (molasses) powder	2 tbsps
Coconut scrapings	1 cup
Cardamom powder	teaspoon
Banana leaf (bits /”cholko”) or Champa flower leaves (Kud Champe Paan)	10

Method:

1. Wash the Banana leaves or champa flower leaves thoroughly and wipe them dry and keep aside.
2. Grind the jackfruit plums along with one tablespoon of coconut scrapings, rice powder and salt without adding any water to a smooth paste. Divide this ground paste roughly into 10 equal portions and keep aside.
3. Crush the remaining coconut scrapings along with jaggery and cardamom powder and mix it well to prepare what is known as choorn in konkani
4. Now spread all the 10 leaves with the front side facing you. On each leaf spread the ground mixture evenly on the leaf as shown.
5. Sprinkle the coconut +jaggery +cardamom mixture (choorn) in the centre lengthwise as shown in the picture.
6. Gently fold the leaves lengthwise (as shown in the picture) and place these in the cooker (without the whistle) or in a steamer and steam for about 40 – 45 mins.
7. Serve hot.

Note:

• If using bannana leaf, you will have to cut the leaf into 7-9” bits and follow the same method as above.
• Patholi is generally eaten hot (after discarding the leaves) with a little ghee (clarified butter) smeared on it.