Kadhai Bhindi

One of oldest memories of kadhai vegetables I have is from the winter wedding  parties, where the server would have different vegetables on one side of a large skillet and the kadhai masala on the other side.I would go and tell him my choice of vegetables ( which apparently were potato, carrots and peas most of the time) and he would mix the vegetables, masalas and flip them fancily in air once they were done. Somehow I still happen to remember the taste of kadhai vegetables and thought I would give it a try. Even though I am not a great fan of Okra / bhindi / lady fingers, I thought eating kadhai bhindi would make me like bhindi. It did work finally!

The recipe is as follows:

 

Prep time - 10 mins

Cooking time - 30 mins

Ingredients:

Okra / bhindi / ladyfingers - 2 cups, cut into 1 inch piece.

Capsicum / bell pepper - 1 medium , cut into 1 inch piece

Onion - 1 medium, chopped

Tomato - 2 medium, chopped

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp

Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp, crushed coarsely

Cumin powder - 1 tsp

Coriander powder - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Green chillies - 3 to 4, slit [ or as per taste ]

Chili powder - 1/2 to 3/4 tsp 

Turmeric - 1/4 tsp

Salt - as per taste

Oil - 4 to 5 tbsp

Garam masala - 1/2 to 1 tsp [ or as per taste ]

Cilantro - 4 to 5 sprigs

Lime juice - 1 tsp

Procedure :

Cooking kadhai bhindi is a bit tricky as bhindi / okra has a tendency to get slimy/gooey when cooked. And to prevent that, I cooked it separately.

In a pan on medium heat, heat oil. Add the okra / bhindi and pan-fry till they loose all the slime and get 70% cooked. I also added some lime juice to the okra ( as it helps in loosing the slime faster ) . Also do not add too much of lime juice as the okra would turn sour.

Once done, keep the fried okra aside and drain the excess oil. 

In the same oil ( on medium heat ) add the cumin seeds, wait till they splutter and then add the crushed coriander seeds. Add the onions and stir till they turn transparent. At this stage, add the turmeric and ginger-garlic paste and stir again till the raw smell of ginger-garlic goes off. This should take a minute or less. Now, add the tomatoes, green chillies and cook till the tomatoes turn little mushy. Make sure that the heat is between medium to low. 

Now add the cumin powder, coriander powder and chili powder and again cook till the tomatoes are real mushy and ooze out oil. This should take 3-4 mins on low heat. At this heat level, the tomatoes without adding any extra water shouldn't get burnt, but if you still feel it might, sprinkle very little water.

Add in the bell peppers / capsicum and cook covered  for 4-5 mins , stir and add the cilantro and again cook for a minute. Now add the pan fried okra, stir and cook covered for 3-4 minutes.

Sprinkle the garam masala and turn off the heat. Serve hot.