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.
Recipe Snapshot
- Prep time: 60 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Total time: 75 minutes
- Yield: 10
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: Gujarati, Indian
Ingredients
- 150 grams surti papdi ((hyacinth beans) or a mix of surti papdi and valor papdi (fava beans) or 2 cups chopped surti papdi)
- ½ to ⅔ cup fresh pigeon peas ((fresh tuvar, lilva) - optional)
- 100 grams brinjals (- small-sized or baby eggplants or 8 to 10 small eggplants)
- 150 to 200 grams baby potatoes (or 10 to 12 potatoes)
- 100 grams sweet potato (or 1 medium sweet potato)
- 100 grams plantain ((unripe green banana) or 1 medium-sized)
- 150 grams purple yam ((kand) or about 1.5 to 2 cups chopped purple yam)
- 1 cup fenugreek leaves (- (fresh methi leaves) - finely chopped)
- 1 pinch baking soda
- 1 cup besan ((gram flour))
- 1 teaspoon white sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon ginger and green chilli paste (or ½ inch peeled ginger + 1 to 2 green chilies - crushed to a paste in mortar-pestle)
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ¼ teaspoon red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ tablespoon oil
- ¾ to 1 teaspoon sugar (or add as required)
- ½ teaspoon salt (or add as required)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 to 1.5 tablespoon water (or as required)
- ½ cup fresh grated coconut (- tightly-packed)
- 3 tablespoons coriander leaves (- finely chopped or ¼ cup finely chopped coriander leaves)
- 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
- ½ tablespoon ginger paste (or 1 to 1.5 inch peeled ginger crushed to a paste in mortar-pestle)
- ½ tablespoon garlic paste
- ½ tablespoon green chili paste (or 2 to 3 green chilies crushed to a paste in mortar-pestle)
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder
- 3 teaspoon coriander powder
- 2 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon sugar (or add as per taste)
- ¾ to 1 teaspoon salt (or add as required)
- ½ teaspoon carom seeds ((ajwain))
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ⅛ teaspoon asafoetida ((hing) or 2 to 3 pinches of asafoetida)
- ½ cup water
- 4 to 5 tablespoon sesame oil (or peanut oil or any oil)
Method
Preparing veggies
- 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.
Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note
Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.