Bendi-t Like This!

In our house, trash doesn't go only into the dustbin. It goes into our refrigerator too, only to be discarded after weeks and months of making a home there. But I've been getting better at waste management lately. The zillions of sauce sachets we've collected over the last year with deliveries of pizza and fried chicken went into some home-assembled pizza, and the jackfruit seeds I saved, intending to roast in the oven, went into some 'bendi'. Within just 10 days of our having consumed their flesh.

I am so proud of myself.

I am lucky enough to own a book, now rarely found, called Green Leafy Vegetables, by Shyamala Kallianpur. Yesterday, after buying some amaranth (thotakura) and Malabar spinach (bachalikura), I leafed through her book to look for something other than dal to make. And sure enough, my eye fell on this Amaranth and Jackfruit Bendi, which is described as a dish native to the Dakshina Kannada region of Karnataka. Some not-so-intensive searching on the Internet gives me the information that Bendi is so called when it is tempered with garlic.

The other stashed away leftovers I used to make this curry were half a small carton of coconut milk and a cup of grated and frozen coconut. More importantly, I didn't have to buy anything new to use up the old supplies I had. The amaranth, of course, was happy coincidence.

The recipe is from the book. My addition was the coconut milk.

Amaranth/thotakura, chopped along with tender stems: 4 cups
Jackfruit seeds: 16
Water: Some
Salt, to taste

Grind to a paste

Grated coconut: 1/2 cup
Coconut milk: 1/2-3/4 cup
Red chillies, dry-roasted: 8-10
Tamarind: Large lime-sized
Coriander powder: 1.5 tsp (The recipe suggested 1 tsp of coriander seeds sauteed in a few drops of oil)

Tempering

Oil: 1 tsp
Garlic, crushed roughly: 8 cloves

Remove the outer skin of the jackfruit seeds and soak them in warm water two hours ahead.

Pressure cook the jackfruit seeds with water for 10 minutes. I used fresh water, not the water in which they were soaked.

Put the seeds along with the water in which they were cooked into a large pan. Add the amaranth and some salt, along with some water, and bring to a boil.

Now reduce the flame. Cover and cook till the greens are tender, about 5 minutes.

Add the ground paste, bring to a boil and temper with the garlic fried in the oil.

Cover immediately to retain the aroma. Of course, this doesn't apply if you're a food blogger - at this point, you pour it into a pretty dish, wipe the splashes, lick your fingers and start the photography session.

Amaranth/Thotakura Jackfruit seed Garlic Bendi Humour Using up leftovers