Undhiyu is a one pot vegetable casserole dish that is the hallmark of Gujarati vegetarian cuisine. This is an easy Surti Undhiyu recipe that does not take much time.
String and pod the surti papdi beans. I used half-half of surti papdi (hyacinth beans) and valor papdi (fava beans).
After stringing them and halving them, rinse very well. Drain all the water and set aside.
In a bowl of water, peel, rinse and place the other veggies - 10 to 12 baby potatoes, 1 medium sweet potato, 2 cups chopped purple yam. Also keep 8 to 10 small brinjals.
Note that the only the upper stalk of the brinjals have been removed and they have not been slit. You can also just rinse and keep the brinjals aside.
Preparing methi muthia
Take 1 cup tightly packed methi leaves, finely chopped and 1 cup besan or gram flour in a mixing bowl.
Add a pinch of baking soda, ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon red chili powder, ½ teaspoon cumin powder, ½ teaspoon coriander powder and ½ tablespoon oil.
Next add ¾ to 1 teaspoon sugar or add as required, ½ teaspoon salt or add as required and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
Simply mix everything and keep aside covered for 10 to 15 minutes.
Then add 1 to 1.5 tablespoons of water and mix really well. Keep the mixture slightly sticky, so that the methi muthia remains soft after cooking.
Apply some oil in your palms and shape the muthias. Keep aside covered with a bowl or lid. If you want you can also deep fry methi muthia. If fried then add lastly once the undhiyu is done and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes.
Making green masala stuffing mixture
Take the fresh grated coconut and chopped coriander leaves in another mixing bowl.
In a mortar-pestle crush to a paste, 1 to 1.5 inch ginger, 8 to 10 garlic cloves and 2 to 3 green chilies. You can also crush or grind all three of them together. If using ready paste then add ½ tablespoon ginger paste, ½ tablespoon garlic paste, ½ tablespoon green chili paste. You can also use finely chopped garlic chives instead of garlic.
Add 2 tablespoons of white sesame seeds, ½ tablespoon ginger paste, ½ tablespoon garlic paste or chopped green garlic chives, ½ tablespoon green chili paste.
Also add ¼ to ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, ½ teaspoon red chili powder, 3 teaspoon coriander powder, 2 teaspoon cumin powder, 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
Season with 1 tablespoon sugar and ¾ to 1 teaspoon salt. Feel free to adjust these seasonings according to your preferences.
Mix very well and then check the taste. Add more lemon juice, salt or sugar if required.
Stuffing veggies
From the base, give a criss cross slit to the small brinjals and stuff the masala in it.
In the same way also, stuff the masala in the baby potatoes. If you want you can stuff the masala in the raw bananas also.
Keep the stuffed veggies aside. Some stuffing masala will be left. Keep this aside.
Tempering and cooking undhiyu
Heat 4 to 5 teaspoons sesame oil or peanut oil in a 3 litre pressure cooker.
Add ½ teaspoon carom seeds and ½ teaspoon cumin seeds. Stir and fry on low heat until the carom seeds and cumin seeds crackle.You can also use sunflower oil or safflower oil.
Then add ⅛ teaspoon asafoetida/hing. Stir and mix on low heat.
Now add the stringed and podded beans. If you are using fresh pigeon peas, you can add them at this step.
Mix and stir well. To preserve the green color of the beans you can add a pinch of soda if you prefer.
Now add half a portion of the leftover green stuffing masala.
Again mix very well and sauté for 3 minutes on a low to medium heat. Then make a neat layer of the beans at the bottom.
Then place the chopped purple yam in a neat layer.
Then make another layer of chopped raw bananas and sweet potato.
Now sprinkle ¼ of the coconut masala evenly. Don't stir.
Make a next layer of stuffed brinjals and potatoes.
Add ½ cup water from the sides. Don't stir or mix.
Now gently place the prepared methi muthia in a layer. Sprinkle 2 to 3 pinches of salt all over.
Cover the pressure cooker with its lid and pressure cook on a medium to high flame for 2 whistles or for 8 to 10 minutes.
When the pressure settles down on its own, remove the lid and gently mix everything without breaking the stuffed veggies.
While serving if you want, you can garnish Surti Undhiyu with chopped coriander leaves or some grated coconut. Serve Undhiyu with poori or roti.
Notes
Substitutes:
Purple yam - elephant foot yam or regular yam.
Small brinjals - medium sized aubergines.
Fresh pigeon peas - fresh green chickpeas, edamame beans, green peas.
Surti papdi - fava beans or fresh lima beans.
Baby potatoes - medium or large potatoes
Recipe Notes:
Please use 3 litre pressure cooker as mentioned in the recipe. If you use a 4 or 5 litre cooker, you will need to adjust the amount of water and the cooking time.
Undhiyu can also be made in a pot. So add water as needed to cook the veggies.
You can omit adding garlic if you prefer.
Feel free to adjust the seasonings and spices as you like.