mungodi made from scratch | how to make mungodi at home and guar mungodi ki subzi

Mungodi is made of mung dal (skinned mung beans) after a paste of mung dal is dropped into small pellets and then sun dried to make little nuggets of lentil, it can be spiced or plain. Badi is the generic Indian name for these lentil nuggets and the specific name changes with the kind of lentil used. If it is made of mung, it is Mungodi.

There are several names for these Mungodis or generic badis (or wadis) all over the country but in Bihar and eastern UP it is always prefixed with the type of lentil used. So there is Mungodi made of mung, Urdouri or Adouri made of urad dal, Masurouri made of masur dal, others are called as badi simply.

The other significant variety is called Kumhrouri which is made of urad dal and white pumpkin (Ash gourd) which is also called as kumhra, so the nomenclature has a clue to the origin of the badi. I love talking about these with the older women who never tire of sharing their wisdom with anyone. Sepu badi of Himachal is a different type of badi

When I posted about alu mungodi ki subzi many of you asked for the recipe of mungodi as no one makes these at home now and these are not even available in many places. Moreover, the quality of the ready made mungodi is not always good. I have been my grandmother's apprentice for long enough to recreate thing on my own, so here is the recipe of mungodi that can be made at home without much fuss, if you make a small quantity.

Note that making mungodis at home 'used to be' a humongous task but it was so because such things were always made for friends and family too. Huge dabbas were sent to kith and kin, badi, papad and achar were always exchanged between families and friends. Social bonding was real and tangible.

The good old days.

Let me tell you there is one encouraging fact, that we can make the mungodis fairly easily at home. For mungodis it is only one ingredient mostly as these are always made without any spices. But cumin seeds are sometimes added to bring a hint of spice in them.

ingredients
1 cup of mung dal
1 tsp cumin seeds

preparation

Soak the mung dal for one hour.  

Note that soaking the mung dal for longer will result in more water content and flat mungodis that do not soak up the curry flavour when cooked.

Drain the water. Make a coarse paste with the cumin seeds, without adding any water. The paste should look like this.

Now make a cone using a plastic bag, reused or fresh. Or use a piping bag with a small hole depending on the size of mungodis you need.

Fill the mung paste in the piping bag, secure the top and start piping mungodis on a smooth surface.

I used a silpat sheet because it is much easier to take the mungodis off the surface. They may stick on plates even if you grease them.

My piping skill needs some brushing up. I have decided on more mungodis now, no cake icing please. 

My grandmother used to make mungodis on old muslin saris so it was easier to sun dry them and once the mungodis are dry they peel off easily from the thin cloth. And she used to shape each single mungodi with her fingers, piping them perfectly, using three fingers and thumb.

Time your soaking, grinding and piping in such a way that you lay out the mungodis in good sun at the start of the day. It took me 2 minutes of grinding and 5 minutes of piping the mungodis for this quantity. 

And of course the whole day of fun watching the mungodis dry, updating a few instagram pictures in between.

Once dry enough the mungodis can be flipped. It took an hour this time. Flipping the mungodis ensures faster drying and I was concerned because it is the tail end of monsoon season here and I did not want the mungodis to stay damp.

You see I made the mungodis on a whim and the monsoon showers couldn't deter me. It took 2 days to sun dry them while keeping an eye on the sudden showers that are characteristic of this season. I had to bring the mungodis indoors a few times but thankfully there was strong sun in between the showers.

Once dry, the mungodis are lighter and make a rattling sound when tossed around. Damp mungodis wont rattle.

Make sure the mungodis are not damp, as it catches fungus really soon.

Note that the mungodis made during the rainy season wouldn't last the whole year, in all probability, it has the tendency to get damp even if dried completely.

If for some reason, for example rains, your mungodis are not sun dried well, try and deep fry them to dehydrate well and keep in air tight containers. The mungodis can be used directly in that case. Else we need to fry them before currying them like in this alu mungodi ki subzi or Guwar mungodi ki subzi which has a hint of fennel.

ingredients for guar mungodi ki subzi 
(2 servings)

1/3 cup mungodis
250 gm guar cleaned, stringed and chopped in small bits
1 medium sized potato peeled and quartered 
1/4 cup whipped yogurt
1 tbsp everyday curry powder 
1/2 tsp fennel powder 
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
1-2 broken chopped green chillies
1 tbsp minced or grated ginger
salt o taste
1 tbsp mustard oil

procedure 

To make the guar mungodi ki subzi, heat the mustard oil in a pressure cooker, shallow fry the mungodis in the oil and once the mungodis are light pink and fragrant, remove the pan from the burner for a minute and add the everyday curry powder (or any light subzi masala of your choice), turmeric powder, red chilli powder and fennel powder in that order. Toss and mix while the spices get aromatic.

Return the pressure cooker pan to the burner, add ginger, whipped yogurt and stir to mix.

Now add the chopped guar, potatoes and green chillies, mix well an top up with 1/2 cup water.

Cover the lid and pressure cook till the whistle blows, lower down the heat an cook for a couple of minutes. Let the cooker cool down, open the lid and crush the potatoes with a ladle to make the curry a little mushed up.

Serve hot with drizzle of ghee with our Indian rice or roti meals..

guar dhokli ki subzi | cluster beans cooked with chickpea flour dumplings in a yogurt based curry

Guar phali or cluster beans would be undoubtedly one of my favourite vegetables. I know what you are thinking, how guar can be someone's favourite but it has a texture and a hint of bitterness that I love. This is one of those vegetables I have experimented with a lot too, reason being I see guar or cluster beans being used in various cuisines across the country and want to try them all. The simplest bhujia that I make with guar phali is with just garlic and green chillies and pair it with kadhi to make a comfort meal for ourselves.

I would admit it is me who loves guar phali more and keeps buying it by the bagfuls. But a stir fry style salad with guar phali and peanuts converted even the husband and he started enjoying the vegetable. There is a recipe of guar and dried shrimp in the drafts to be shared but I have not been getting time to share recipes here, although I intend to share at least one recipe a week. I cook every single day and keep experimenting a lot, keep cooking old recipes a lot too and there is a lot to share.

I know I am not being good with the blogs. I must get back to sharing recipes asap.

I love gatte in subzi, the curry made with chickpeas flour (besan) dumplings so popular in Rajasthan and known as dhokli in Gujrat. I have shared one guar dhokli ki subzi that uses the same besan dumplings but is very different from this version. Since I like gatte ki subzi so much I started making it with different vegetables and one of those is bottle gourd.

So technically this guar dhokli is also guar gatte ki subzi as much I understand. Although purists may differ. I would wait to hear from them if they are interested in sharing more about gatte ki subzi and dhokli ki subzi nomenclature.

Since I have already shared how to make the gatte for gatte ki subzi, I will skip the steps to make gatte. Once the gatte (the dumplings) are ready this curry gets ready in about 20 minutes.

ingredients...
(2 large servings)

guar phali chopped 200 gm or 1 cup
cooked and chopped gatte 3/4 cup
finely diced onions 1 tbsp (optional)
ginger garlic paste 1 tsp
red chilly powder 1/2 tsp
everyday curry powder 2 tsp
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
sour yogurt 1 cup
salt to taste
mustard oil 1 tbsp
fenugreek seeds 1/4 tsp

procedure 

Heat half the oil in the kadhai (I use iron kadhai), smear the oil all over the kadhai surface with the spatula. Tip in the cut gatte and toss to cook them lightly again. Searing them lightly and briefly so they soak up more flavours. Remove from the kadhai and keep aside.

Now tip in the fenugreek seeds, the chopped vegetables (including onions if using). the ginger garlic paste and the powdered spices all together and toss till it all gets mixed up and lightly aromatic. Since we are suing a little amount of oil we need to do this on low flame. This step takes about 5 minutes.

Now whisk the yogurt, dilute with 2 cups of water and pour slowly into the kadhai. Let it simer for about 10 minutes or till you get desired consistency. The gatte or dhokli will soak up water and become bigger, the guar cooks really fast so that will be taken care of automatically.

Garnish with coriander if you wish but it is not required.

You need tender guar for this curry, mature guar will taste awful any which way.

This curry tastes great with any Indian breads and even plain boiled rice. It makes a complete meal with just a little rice, I suggest you eat more of this curry and less of rice or roti and enjoy the meal better. Some green salad or just a few slices of onion suit this meal well but this is one of those frugal meal kind of curry.

The sourness of the yogurt balances the slight bitterness of guar really well and soaks up into the gatte to make them soft and melting.

If you are cooking the curry with lauki or bottle gourd as above, just fry the gatte, add the spices and toss till aromatic. Pour whisked yogurt and simmer. Add precooked lauki in the curry and let it simmer a little to get the flavours integrated.

Gatte or dhokli can be cooked with almost all vegetables but some of the combinations will definitely be your favourite. I like the gatte ki subzi with roughly chopped spinach too.

The boiled and lightly fried gatte keep well in the fridge for about a week and they freeze well for almost 6 months. So make gatte when you have time and cook the curries with whatever vegetables you like. Try gatte with guar once and I am sure it will become a favourite in your home too.

everyday subzi: guar moongphali ki sookhi subzi | cluster beans and peanuts stir fry

Guar is Cluster beans, also called as guar phali in Hindi. The beans are a developed taste for many but those who like this vegetable, just love it. A lot depends on how you choose the beans when buying as guar can get really hard and fibrous when you pick up mature or stale beans from the market. Look out for slender beans that are tender to touch and shiny in appearance. Guar phali can cooked in many ways, you can stir fry them with chilly garlic paste to make lasuni bhujia or cook them with eggplants with loads of garlic and some hing. A dry curry of guar beans made using a sesame powder is one of our favourite too. Guar dhokli I discovered later and became a favourite too.

Now you know how much I love cluster beans. You can imagine how happy I was to find a quicker way to cook this vegetable and that too when the husband reported that he liked the subzi in his lunch box. This is a sookhi subzi that borders on the territory of a 'stir fry salad', I found it one day on Anita's facebook timeline when she was cooking it and posted a picture. I was so curious I cooked (actually tossed) this curry the very next day and loved it. She later posted this recipe on her blog as well.

I have cooked this one a few times since then, once I added a little shallow fried dry shrimp too, like in this long beans recipe with sambal belacan. But I realised I liked it with peanuts and garlic only, with varying degrees of chilly heat depending on my mood and the summer heat we are living in.

Oh yes, and the recipe involved boiling the chopped guar and mixing it with a coarse powder/paste of the roasted peanuts, garlic and red chillies. Just that.

ingredients

chopped guar (tender cluster beans) 2 cups
roasted peanuts 1/2 cup (or as per taste)
garlic cloves 5-6 (or more if you like)
dry red chillies 3-4 (adjustable)
sesame oil (or any oil you like) 1 tsp
salt 1 tsp

procedure

Add the salt to a cup of water and bring to boil. Dunk the chopped guar in the boiling water and wait till they change colour, it takes about 4-5 minutes for tender guar. Keep the lid on while cooking. Drain and keep aside.

Lightly fry the garlic and chilly in hot oil. Take them out and pound them along with roasted peanuts in a mortar and pestle or in mixie jar, make sure the paste is really coarse.

Mix the paste with boiled guar and serve as desired.

We loved it mixed with plain boiled rice. Peanuts were a bit generous in my recipe so I decided that this will be our simplified balanced meal.

When the peanuts are lesser, I like to add a boiled egg to my plate.

Try this recipe at least once even if you don't like guar. I am sure it will convert you for life. Guar mugphali ki subzi is here to stay in my kitchen for sure.

everyday subzi | guar or cluster beans: two stir fries and a wonderful sesame curry paste

I never knew that the slightly bitter tasting gummy textured Guar can be a favorite of so many people.

love these beans called cluster beans in English but never thought of posting a recipe because not many people like this vegetable. That concept of mine was proved wrong when I posted Guar dhokli ki subzi, as I received many requests for posting more recipes of these beans. Here I am with two simple stir fries I love, cooked with guar phali or cluster beans..

 guar ki lasuni bhujia... 

This is the simplest of all stir fries especially if I use the green chilly and garlic paste stored in my freezer . I make this lasooni bhujia with many vegetables like raw plantains, parval (pointed guard), tendli or kundru (ivy guard), bhindi (okra), arbi (colocasia) or yams, jack-fruit or even potatoes. The green chilies and garlic paste comes handy for so many things, it is always there in my freezer and I just scoop out required quantity and a yummy bhujia for our daal chawal is ready.

For Guar you need to string the beans. Good quality guar is plump and soft and strings easily. Then it is held in a bunch, rolled together and chopped in small bits ......

For the lasooni bhujia you need 
(for 4-5 servings as a side dish)

250 gm of guar chopped
1 tbsp of mustard oil
1 tbsp of green chllies and garlic paste
1 tsp fenugreek seeds for tempering (I like it, can be replaced with cumin seeds or nigella seeds as per choice)
turmeric powder 1 tsp
salt to taste

To proceed ... heat mustard oil in a kadai or pan, throw in the tempering spice of your choice , wait till it splutters and them throw in the chopped guar. Stir fry adding salt and turmeric till the guar becomes shiny and a bit soft (not mushy). Add the green chilly garlic paste and a tbsp of water if the mixture is getting too dry. Cover and cook for a couple of minutes, stir to mix and cook uncovered till nice aroma of garlic wafts through.

Adding a little water with the paste and then covering the pan to cook is crucial in this simple recipe as the flavors of garlic and chillies are absorbed well by the vegetable and you do not get sneezing bout due to frying/burning chillies. This is particularly crucial if you are frying raw plantains or potatoes or any kind of yams this way ...


guar in sesame spice mix...

This spice mix has been a hit in my house since I developed it after making a healthier version of baghara baingan and then made a cabbage stir fry with it. It has been tried by many of my blogger and non blogger friends and has become a favorite in no time. I have myself used this spice mix to make many vegetables yummy  for family and guests and every time it has been a topic of conversation....

The sesame spice mix requires ....
sesame seeds 5gm
dry grated coconut 2 tbsp(25-3gm)
dry red chillies 8-10 nos. (to taste)
peanuts 50 gm 

Dry roast everything separately and then grind together when cooled. Some people have tried it without roasting and stir frying the vegetables after adding it for a few more minutes, but I strongly recommend dry roasting the seeds before making the powder (the powder will be a crumbly pasty one due to the oil content of the ingredients) ....it adds a whole lot of flavor believe me..... the paste/powder keeps well at room temperature for a fortnight and for six months in the fridge.

requirements for the guar with sesame curry paste ...

(for 4-5 servings as side dish)

Guar chopped 250 gm
potatoes chopped in small bits 1 no.
tomatoes chopped in small cubes 1 no.
cumin seeds 1 tsp
ginger chopped fine 1 tbsp
sesame curry paste 2 tbsp (or as much you like it)
mustard oil 1 tbsp
salt to taste

preparation...

Heat oil in a kadai and throw in the cumin seeds and wait till they splutter. Add the chopped ginger first and then the chopped guar and potatoes at once with salt and stir to mix well Cover and cook till 3/4 done , add chopped tomatoes and mix well. Keep stirring and cooking till the tomatoes get mushy. Add the sesame curry paste and a tbsp (or more if you wish to have some gravy, use more sesame paste in that case) of water, mix well to coat the vegetables and it's ready. Take off heat and serve hot ......... A toasted sesame aroma will fill your kitchen and you suddenly feel hungry ....... believe me.

You may feel like adding a bit of tamarind extract or lemon juice, but here I like it with just the slight sourness of tomatoes. Adjust seasonings to your taste that's it.

A garnish or toasted sesame seeds looks good but it does not enhance the taste.

The taste is in the sesame paste. Try it once and you will be hooked to it. I will post other vegetables cooked with the variations of this paste very soon. A bit of tempering or a bit of garnish, different cuts and different cooking techniques, all of these make difference in your finished curry or bhujia.....

cheers ....

everyday subzi: guar dhokli ki subzi | cluster beans curry with besan dumplings

There are a few unusual beans which my dad has actually conditioned all of us siblings to like. Guar  or cluster beans and bakla or fava beans are the ones which nobody seems to like but I do buy them whenever I get to see them in the market.

Guar is also known as guwar and this guar dhokli ki subzi is one of my favourite now.

Although  cook with these beans frequently, I have not posted any recipes apart from this one with bakla. We get good quality guar fali easily here in Delhi and I make many variations cooked with curds, with sesame, with garlic and green chillies etc. Still I keep looking for new recipes as Arvind does not like this vegetable much (only the sesame version he used to like earlier).

I asked for a gujrati style recipe from a fellow blogger Parita and she had posted this recipe of guar dhokri last year (I was pestering her so much). It's actually an easy and delicious recipe, made without any garlic and onion. The use of dhoklis, the chick pea dumplings in this curry makes it a keeper recipe. I made a few changes in the recipe to suit our taste, added ginger and tomato puree and the result was very very good, all the guar curries I used to make earlier were dryish in consistency, this one being a gravy curry was great with rice and chapati both.

ingredients...
for the curry..
guar beans stringed and chopped in 2 cm pieces 250 gm
asafoetida or hing 2 pinches 
cumin seeds 1 tsp
finely chopped ginger 1 tbsp
finely chopped green chillies 1 tsp
red chilly powder 1/2 tsp
coriander powder 1 tsp
cumin powder 1 tsp
black pepper powder 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
tomato puree 2 tbsp
salt to taste
green coriander chopped 1 tbsp for garnishing (i did not use this)
mustard oil 1.5 tbsp

for the dhokli...
besan or chick pea flour 1 cup
cumin , black pepper , and coriander powders 1 tsp each 
red chilly and turmeric powder 1/2 tsp each
soda bi carb 1/4 tsp
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil

procedure...
  
Prepare the dhoklis first (I made them while stir frying the guar but if you cannot handle both the things together it is advisable to make the dhoklis ahead.

Mix all the ingredients for dhokli and add a little water to make a stiff dough, roll the dough with oiled hands into a sausage like roll and cut thin roundels with a knife.

These slices of dough can be shaped into round discs and kept aside, or this step can be done while working on the kadai.

Heat mustard oil in a kadai and throw in the crushed asafoetida (I use the crystallized resin form) or the powder. Add the cumin seeds and wait till they crackle, throw in the chopped green chillies and chopped ginger and wait for a couple of seconds..

Now put in all the chopped guar beans and stir fry on medium flame till they look a bit translucent..

Add all the powder spices and salt to taste and stir fry till the spices turn aromatic....takes about 4-5 minutes on low flame . If using more oil for cooking , this step can be done at high flame and takes about 2 minutes.

Add the tomato puree and keep stirring for a minute or two.

Add enough water (I added about 500 ml) and the prepared dhoklis. Let it boil vigorously, the dumplings fluff up immediately as they have soda bi carb in it. I added 2 crushed dhoklis as suggested by Parita to thicken the gravy.

Boil to reduce the gravy and garnish with chopped green coriander if using...

This guar dhokli ki subzi was great with rice as well as chapatis. The steps of the recipe look a little cumbersome but it's really easy as there is no onion garlic to peel and chop and there is no paste to be made.

Dhoklis (or gatte) can take some time but if you do it simultaneously it's really a quick recipe. The dhokli was a new addition for me, I make gatte ki subzi and thought it must be like gatte having the same ingredients, but it tastes different when it is cooked differently.

Dhoklis complemented very well with the guar and this gravy. Do try this recipe if you don't like guar and want to include it in your daily meals.

Cheers...