The YUMMIEST Bhindi You’ll Ever Eat

Say what? Yummy and bhindi in the same sentence? It is possible, ladies and gentlemen. In fact, I’ll take this bhindi over chicken karhai any day.

Yup, I said it.

As a kid, we would eat vegetarian 5 days of the week. The post-school lunch was usually some sort of vegetable bhaji and dinner was always (always) daal chawal. And we loved it. There was no fuss about not having meat, about wanting to eat out more often or even thinking beyond having what we have been provided. Wow, what good children we were.

But in all honesty, times changed. We’re eating more and more meat, dining out way more than necessary, leaving our vegetable intake for the days we feel like being ‘healthy’ and leading lives that are just not sustainable for our bodies.

So the least we can do is take a U-Turn and see whether we can switch back to healthier, not to mention more cost-effective, patterns of eating.

Now that my justification is perfectly in place, back to bhindi (ladyfinger or okra). There’s a variety of ways to prepare it:

1. Crispy fried
2. Like a sabzi
3. Paired with another vegetable or even meat (bhindi gosht/ bhindi karhi/ Aloo bhindi)

Read: Aloo Recipes You Will Love

I’m sure there are plenty more variations but that’s another article for another time. Right now let’s focus on what you came here for: the yummiest bhindi sabzi ever. But which of the above three categories does it fall into? Wait for it….ALL THREE!

1. We slice it and fry it.
2. We add potatoes too, diced and fried (it’s getting wild in here).
3. Then we twice cook it by adding it to a sabzi masala.

With me so far? Great. Here’s the full recipe.

Ingredients:

2-3 tbsp. oil

½ kg bhindi, sliced

3 potatoes, diced

2 medium onions, sliced

3 tomatoes, chopped

Salt, to taste

2 tsp. red chili powder

½ tsp. turmeric

1 tsp. cumin powder

3 green chilies, split lengthways

Chaat masala, to taste

Method:

1. Fry the sliced bhindi until crispy. Do the same for the potatoes. Place them on a paper towel so the excess oil is absorbed well.
2. In a degchi (cooking pot), add 3 tbsp. oil and the onions. Cook on a medium-low heat until the onions are light golden.
3. Add the tomatoes and cook until they break down completely. The onions and tomatoes should be meshed well together.
4. Time to put in those green chilies.
5. Now add the salt, red chili powder, turmeric and cumin powder. Mix well.
6. Mix in the fried bhindi and potatoes.
7. Stir through and lastly, sprinkle with a little chaat masala.

That’s all. Don’t be fooled by how simple it is, that just adds to its charm.

You can serve this with your choice of carb or just eat with a fork- that’s what I do. And I LOVE IT. I hope you guys do too.