Potala Tarkari (Parwal Curry) Another way .......

If you want fresh Potala/ Parwal in this part of the world ..... you must be dreaming ! And if you badly want it then there is a word for it 'Compromise'. Sure you can find them in the frozen vegetable section of most Indian Grocery Stores. But I am little against that word 'Compromise' although it is a part of our everyday life. I still try to minimize it when it comes to cooking and pleasing my palette. Like they say 'Every thing comes for a price', the price of owning these fresh ones was 4.99 $ a pound. From the moment I picked those parwals I started weaving dreams of a special dinner ...... the attraction 'Potala Rasa'. What's so special about it ...... well you got to check that here.

But I was in two minds about it ..... Why ? Coz that recipe was already sitting on my blog and this vegetable was a rare sight. It's rare to spot fresh ones even in the Indian Grocery stores. So do you have this question for me "Do you cook to blog or Blog to Cook " .... Well Both !!

So my quest for a special Parwal Recipe began on Google and ended with my maternal Aunt. This was her tried and tested recipe so I was in no two minds about it. Although it needed a little bit of convincing for J who badly wanted Potala Rasa. The end result was great if you can buy my words.

It came out better than what I had expected and J was licking his fingers.

Preparation Time 30 minutes

Serves 3

Ingredients

Potala/Parwal - 10 nos (medium size)

Thin chopped Onion - 1 cup

Milk - 1 cup

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

Red Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp

Cumin Powder - 1/2 tsp

Garam Masala Powder - 1/2 tsp

Bay Leaf - 1

Cinnamon - 2 inches

Green Cardamom - 2

Black Cardamom - 1

Cloves - 3

Salt per taste

Oil for cooking

Method of Preparation

1 Wash Potala/Parwal and pat dry. Scrape the outer skin lightly. Slit in between.

2 Add some oil to a Kadhai. When hot fry the Potala/ Parwal by adding a little turmeric and salt to it. Cover and fry to cook faster. When Potala/Parwal gets 2/3 cooked remove from heat and keep aside.

3 Drizzle little more oil in the Kadhai. When warm add all the whole garam masala and bay leaf.

4 Add the chopped onions to it. Add salt per taste and a pinch of turmeric. Fry till the onions no more have raw smell and are soft. Add the cumin powder now.

5 Add milk to the onions, cover and simmer for 2 minutes. Now add the fried parwal to it. Cover and cook till the gravy is of medium consistency. ( Milk reduces to 1/2 it's volume).

6 Sprinkle garam masala in the end.

Serving Tips

Serve warm with any Indian flat bread.