Gavarfali Subji

Whenever I go to the vegetable market, I see bunches of gavarfali lovingly tied together with a rubber band (or a piece of twine). For the longest time, I didn't even know what it was called, and even after I found out, I could never understand why people seemed to treat it with so much reverence. To me, it seemed just like a rustic version of beans (a vegetable none of us is fond of).
Yesterday, however, I decided to be a little more adventurous, and bought a bunch of gavarfali. Now I know why people swear by the vegetable!

250 gms gavarfali (cluster beans)
1/2 tsp jeera
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
a pinch of hing
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
1 tsp oil
salt to taste

For the curd mixture

1/2 cups curds

2 tsp dhania powder

2 tsp chilli powder

1/4 tbsp besan

salt to taste

Method

String the gavarfali by removing the ends and edged fibre.
Pressure cook the gavarfali in 1 cup of water for 2 whistles. Keep aside.
Combine the curds, coriander powder, chilli powder, gram flour and salt and whisk well.
Heat the oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, asafoetida and fennel seeds.
Add the curd mixture, curry leaves, 2 tablespoons of water and salt and stir continuously.
Let the mixture simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the gavarfali along with the water used to pressure cook it. and mix well.
Cook the subzi for a few minutes more.
Serve hot with rotis.

Carrot-bean soup

When the days start getting cooler (by Bombay standards), hot soups start replacing salads and smoothies as those in-between mini-meals. This one was thrown together using stuff I already had in the fridge, but it is a keeper, most so because it is almost entirely fat free, and yet has a delightfully creamy texture.

Chop carrots and beans into small pieces, and steam till soft. I threw it into the pressure cooker when I was cooking the dal, and it worked out fine.
Put one cup steamed veggies, half cup curd and blend till smooth.
Pour it back into a pan, add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, and bring to boil with half cup water (you can use broth instead, but water works fine).
Garnish with a few chopped and steamed veggies.
Makes 2 servings.