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Everyday cooking is meant to be effortless, and bhindi ki sabji is a no brainer for daily meals. To change things a bit, perhaps one stuffs the vegetable for bharwa bhindi or fries them crisp for kurkuri bhindi. But, it can also be updated with ingredients that are not part of the traditional Indian culinary repertoire.
Take a cue from chef Renu Dalal who is known for her inventive and playful take on recipes. The cookbook author and daughter of celebrity chef Tarla Dalal has a penchant for experimenting in the kitchen. Over the years, she developed interesting hybrids of everyday vegetarian food which combine flavours from the world over with techniques of desi cuisine. She has a few clever ideas to update bhindi. They can be batter fried in maida or rice flour and served with a sprinkling of piri piri masala. Or, they can be sliced into slim discs and used as paratha stuffing. Dalal shares a recipe of stir-fried bhindi with a twist by using sesame oil, vinegar and soya sauce.
Chinese-style bhindi
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Serves 2
Ingredients
250 grams okra (bhindi)
Half tsp grated ginger
1 tbsp chilli garlic paste
2 tbsp chopped celery
2 tbsp chopped spring onion bulbs
1 tsp soya sauce
3 tbsp sliced green capsicum
Half tbsp white vinegar
Salt to taste
1 tbsp sesame oil
To garnish
2 tbsp chopped spring onion leaves
Method
1. Chop the ends of the okra (bhindi) and slice into two halves lengthwise. Further slice the bhindi into two again. From one bhindi, you will get four slices.
2. Heat the oil, add the spring onion (white part), chilli garlic paste and saute for half a minute.
3. Add the ginger, celery, soya sauce, white vinegar, capsicum and salt to taste. Saute for half a minute.
4. Add the bhindi and cook for two to three minutes till the it is well done.
4. Serve hot and garnish with chopped spring onions leaves.
