Mixed Vegetables in Gravy.....a trip to Pondicherry.....Fresh Homegrown Drumsticks

Ok a very long title, I know...but how do I cover all that I want to say in this post on a short tag...so never mind...let that remain...and we shall move on...

Drumsticks from Pondicherry

What is the connection u ask...well we went on a trip...you guessed it...:-) to Pondicherry ....what can I say - it was such an insightful trip...
Let me give you some background...before I continue....

I had never been to Pondicherry before I got married...but T (hubby) and his family had been there many times...they believe in Sri Aurobindo & Mother (a lady from France...whose original name is Mirra Alfassa) and so after my marriage I had made a few trips to Pondi, loved going there - it was a very serene, peaceful place.. and I also looked on it as a good break in our hectic lives full of work, home, and family....

Recently due to a whole lot of stuff happening - we had not visited for over 8-9 years...me longer as T had visited once in the interim period....and the past few years was stressful to say the least - esp. with regards to our families...parents, the inevitable happenings in the passage of life...leading to a lot of introspection, wondering about the what's why's and how's of life....

With all this going on...this trip happened (quite unexpectedly I should add )...and this time around things were very different for me at least...I focused more on the spirituality of the place, rather than viewing it as a holiday spot...and imbibed from the atmosphere and the feelings of all around me...felt that the change in my thoughts, feelings which had already begun... start to consolidate and am hopeful that this will affect my actions, attitude too gradually....

At home

For those who are not in the know - Pondicherry has an ashram which is the main spot for all to gather, people come there, meditate, pray, read books about the ashram's philosophy(we got a few too), there are a lot of ashramites who stay there, who have come from different places in India and abroad, from different walks of life, different professions, who have given up their original lives to make a new one here under the guidance of Sri Aurobindo and Mother...they work here, live here, excersise, meditate,  and follow the philosophies laid down.

Streets of Pondicherry

The few days we were there we too visited the ashram regularly, went to their meditation session, OM choir session, ate the very simple food that they prepare at their Dining hall  and generally tried to just live in that moment. It was a great experience.....

We met T's cousins there, and had another surprise of another cousin's daughter(L)  who was also visiting, met up with some of our old friends there(J&A, a very lovely couple...thank you for all your help, M&G we had a great time meeting up with you both too )...and on the return trip back had an opportunity to catch up with some more family in Chennai( and a delicious lunch, thanks S,and great meeting Ma & Sh there too) enroute to Mumbai...so all in all it was a very satisfying trip. 

Beach of Pondicherry

The beach at Pondi is so awesome...our evenings were spent sitting out there, taking walks, and generally soaking in the ambience...our ashram guest house was right on the beach road...

Tea in our balcony

so morning tea was on the 
balcony of our room with 
the ocean in front of us...
sigh...missing it already..

One of the Ashram guest houses

So where does the drumstick come in and mixed vegetables in a gravy ??? well let me start with the second...the menu in the dining hall in the afternoons used to be, rice, curd, bread, mixed veggies in gravy, and sometimes a banana...and at night there used to be a variation with a slightly sweetened dalia. It is surprising how we used to relish such a simple menu every day.

Bharela baigan - Ravaiya

Ravaiya - Bharela Baigan

We were in the US and had a cousin staying with us - she was on a vacation for a couple of months - and was taking turns visiting all her friends and relatives...there was a wedding in the family also - which she had come to attend ....and prior to that she spent some time with us...we had a great time sightseeing, of course shopping, going for walks - there was a lovely park next to a lake - which made for a good place to go to spend some time - walking around and just sitting next to the lake and chatting....

While she was there we spent quite some time cooking ofcourse - she is a very good cook ( very popular for her khandvi - which is excellent ) and I am not quite familiar with all the Gujrati dishes...so decided to learn a few under her tutelage. Did not attempt khandvi ( though she did make it whilst with us ) - found it quite difficult...but managed to pick up a few of the easier ( for me ) dishes. Maybe one day I may be more ambitious to try out khandvi too.... :-)

Anyways ....so one of them was bharela baigan -or as they call it ravaiya, she taught me do it with 2 stuffing's - one with besan, the other with green masala ...love both of them - and have made both quite a few times. While the besan stuffing is also good - somehow the one with coriander leaves and masala turns out much better ...it has a lovely moist filling - can be made as spicy as you would like...and the brinjal always tastes very nice when it is coated ( or filled ) with a spicy masala.
This is the one I made today and would like to share...


Ingredients :

8 - 10 small purple brinjals
2 medium potatoes
1 large onion
a bunch of coriander leaves chopped ( about 1&1/2 - 2 cups )
2-3 green chillies ( as per taste)
6-8 garlic cloves
1 inch ginger
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1 Tblspn  coriander-cumin powder
1 Tblspn sesame seeds
Salt to taste
Oil
a pinch of asafoetida or hing

Method :
1) Chop the coriander leaves, ginger, green chillies, garlic, into small pieces almost fine paste.
2) Add the dry masalas - turmeric, salt, red chilli, coriander-cumin, sesame seeds
3) Put a couple of tsps of oil ( any vegetable oil ) and mix the above mixture properly.
4) To prepare the veggies, cut the stalk of brinjals, make a slit on one side taking care not to reach the bottom - then turn the brinjal in the opposite bottom and make another slit perpendicular to the first - and again leaving a bit untouched at the bottom.
Similarly peel the potatoes and make slits, skin the onions and make just one slit ( not 2 ).
5) Put the stuffing into the veggies on both sides - the leftover stuffing should be retained for later.

To cook there are various options - you can choose the one that suits you....
1) Put a couple of tablespoon of oil in a non-stick pan, add a pinch of hing, then put in the veggies, cover and cook - keep turning them after a few minutes each side till it is done.
2) Steam the above veggies in a steamer, and when done, take a pan with a little oil, put a pinch of hing, and stir the cooked veggies to light coat with the oil.
3) Take a pressure cooker / pressure pan - put a tablespoon of oil with hing then add the veggies in and pressure cook the veggies - just one whistle is normally enough ...in case you are cooking larger quantities - you may need to keep it a bit longer.

After the veggies are almost done - you can put in the remaining stuffing mixture around the veggies in the pan and let it cook for few more minutes...this gives sort of finishes off the dish.
Serve garnished with some coriander.

Enjoy !!!