Discovering Radishes In a Pod

Some sort of underdeveloped beans, I thought, when I saw them a few years ago. I couldn't quite decide whether they were cluster beans - they really were not. What they were, I could not tell. Neither could the seller. I didn't even think to taste them - come to think of it, I don't really taste many raw vegetables except in salad, and I certainly don't taste them when I'm buying them. I do, though, flick the tops of ladies' fingers (okra) to see whether they're good enough to take home. I know that riles a lot of people.

They were chilling in my fridge, when Anita put out this post and I got to know they were radish pods. I don't remember what I did with them then, probably a stir-fry. This time when I saw them at the store they were a little wilted - not their fault, I usually do my vegetable shopping at the fag end of the day - but I bought them anyway. I remembered they were pretty hardy, took a long time to cook and there was no harm of their withering into insignificance.

I tried dissecting them to look at them more closely but I couldn't find much. A pod pre-supposes a seed, but I couldn't find any after I cut them, though before I did, I could see and feel some bumps. I'll blame it on their thinness.

 I searched for both moongre and radish pods and came across quite a lot of both information and recipes. I finally came across this one and chose it because the tempering seemed quite different from the kind I usually use. Well, only the carom and cumin must have stuck in my head because I quite forgot the curry leaves, ground coriander and green chillies the next day when I made this dish. I had decided to give the tomato puree a miss and replaced the courgette with bottle gourd, which is as mildly flavoured. I had also had some soaked cow peas in the fridge, which I boiled and tossed in.

And oh, I did taste a few raw ones and they were very much like radish. I've seen other descriptions say they weren't quite radish-y or that they were milder but I couldn't discern a difference.

 My cousin who was visiting and tasted the stir-fry said it was excellent.

 I can't remember whether I used chilli powder or not. Not, I think.

 Radish pods/moongre: 250 gm
Bottle gourd, peeled and diced: 1-1/2 cup
Cow peas, boiled: 3/4 cup
Ajwain/Carom seed: 3/4 tsp
Jeera/Cumin seed: 1/2 tsp
Turmeric: A pinch
Chilli powder: 1/2-3/4 tsp (Optional)
Salt: To taste
Cow's Ghee/Oil: 2-4 tsp

 Top and tail the pods.

 In a pan, melt the ghee and temper with the carom and cumin.

Add the radish pods, saute for a couple of minutes.

 Now add the bottle gourd, mix well and saute for about four minutes.

 Then lower the flame, add the cow peas. Add salt. Mix.

 Cover and let it simmer. You can sprinkle some water if you like.

 Keep checking to see at what stage you can bite through the radish pods. I think it will take a long time to soften them (unless you use the pressure cooker) but I liked them when they still offer a bit of resistance. And I couldn't taste any radish once they were cooked.

I'm sending this off to Elena at Zibaldone Culinario who's hosting WHB this week, created by Kalyn and now run by Haalo.
  Weekend Herb Blogging vegetarian Radish pods