Winter dry curry of sweet carrots, tender green peas, and slightly bitter fresh fenugreek leaves sauteed in ghee with cumin.
Lunch · 15 min prep · 18 min cook · serves 4 Newly added
Ingredients
- 2 cups carrot , peeled and diced into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 cup green peas , sweet fresh or frozen
- 1.5 cups fenugreek leaves (fresh methi) , stemmed, washed thoroughly, and chopped
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp ginger , finely minced
- 1 green chili , finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp salt
Preparation
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Heat the ghee in a wide skillet over medium flame.
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Add the cumin seeds, minced ginger, and green chili; sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
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Add the chopped fresh fenugreek leaves; sauté uncovered for 3 minutes until completely wilted and dry.
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Add the diced carrots, green peas, turmeric powder, coriander powder, and salt.
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Toss well over medium heat for 2 minutes to coat the vegetables in the seasoned ghee.
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Cover the pan with a tight lid, reduce the flame to low, and cook for 10 to 12 minutes until the carrots are tender.
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Remove the lid and sauté over medium-high heat for 2 minutes to evaporate any remaining moisture.
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Serve hot accompanied by phulkas or dal and rice.
In the tradition
During the winter months in North India and Braj, tender red Delhi carrots, garden peas, and fresh fenugreek greens (methi) arrive simultaneously at the markets. Vaishnava deity kitchens celebrate this seasonal convergence in a harmonious three-part dry sabji: sweet, earthy, and pleasantly bitter (shad-rasa).
Sources & further reading
- Lord Krishna's Cuisine: The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking , Yamuna Devi (Page 230, Carrots, Peas, and Fresh Fenugreek Greens)
Classical citations mark where a tradition is drawn on; modern books are shared as further reading, not as prescriptions.