With the wintry weather slowly descending, Sindhi households get ready to prepare their season-special delight, Satsaagi. Every season of the year is known for specific kinds of fruit and vegetables that grow during that particular time. But come winter, Sindhis like to cook all the season’s produce together. How, you wonder? In the form of what they call ‘Satsaagi’, ‘Sat Bhajyun’, or ‘Chiti Kuni’.
For the unversed, Satsaagi is derived from two Hindi terms, where ‘sat’ means ‘seven’ and ‘saagi’ means ‘vegetables’. Hence, a combination of seven or more vegetables is prepared and served hot during winters. A quintessential Sindhi delicacy, Satsaagi brings together all the fresh produce of the season in a pot, which is then cooked together with loads of spices. Not only does each veggie lend a beautiful flavour to the final outcome, it also amps up the nutritional value of the same.
So, what goes into the making of Satsaagi? Since winter is a time of green leafy vegetables, spinach and bathua leaves go into the making of this dish. The green vegetables are known for their soft leaves of the form are mildly sweet but turn robust upon cooking while the latter is salty and earthy in taste. Then, there are other seasonal vegetables that go into the Satsaagi - including turnips, beetroots, carrots, and green peas.
Even veggies like cauliflower and radish can be added to the mix, to lend a little more taste to the dish. Satsaagi comes packed with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Rich in Vitamin C, the green vegetables are a great way to boost immunity and keep infections at bay. Along with that, they are also very fibrous which improves the functioning of the digestive system.
Sindhi households prepare this blend of seven different vegetables during winters and spruce it up with cumin, onion, ginger, and garlic. Each of the vegetables needs to go into the pot at the right time in the right quantity to give a flavourful outcome. Most of the vegetables are mashed before being added to the pressure cooker and water is added later. Mixed with sautéed hing and jeera, the veggies are cooked until soft and then paired with roti for a wholesome lunch.