Uddamethi

Today I am posting a recipe from Goa. Everyday this week I will post a recipe from a different state in India.

Goa is very dear to me as I spent my childhood there. A quiet place where life moved at a very slow pace. A place where store owners downed their shutters at noon to take an afternoon break. A place where everything closed by 7 pm as people headed home to spent time with family.

The beaches were beautiful with very few people around. The sand was clean and invited everyone to build sand castles. The dog chased after the little crabs that ran all over the sand. The water was clean and lovely for anyone who wanted to swim. An evening stroll on the beach could mean watching the local fishermen cast a net in the shallows to bring in a catch. The day ended with a glorious sunset that turned the sky a brilliant red. This picture of a fisherman's boat beached at Bogmalo Beach was taken in the 70s.

Lots of kids took a boat ride across a river or river estuary to get to school/collage. The picture below overlooking the harbor shows the Zuari river estuary. We took a boat across to Dona Paula to get to college. If you were lucky you would see dolphins swimming alongside the boat.

Everywhere you looked everything was green. When I moved to Arizona I truly appreciated the greenery we so took for granted. The tall evergreen trees, cashews, mangoes, jackfruit and banyan. The picture below is the famous deepmal at Mangeshi temple. It is lighted up to the very top during the holidays and looks lovely in the night sky.

Goa is very different today. It has grown very fast and has a lot more people than there used to be when I lived there. The days when everyone in town knew everyone else are long gone but the people are just as easy going and helpful as they were. That has not changed at all.

Authentic Goan recipes in Hindu homes are very different from the non-Hindu homes. The Hindu recipes have little or no influence of the Portuguese culture. It is admirable how these families in defiance of the Goan inquisition practiced and preserved their culture and cuisine.

The recipe I picked for Goa is Uddamethi. This recipe comes from the Hindu households in Goa and is finger licking good. Uddamethi, the name refers to the urad dal and methi seeds used. But the jaggery and the raw mango all add to the flavor.

I got this recipe from a family friend, a Goan and a very good cook. She also cooks awesome human (who-mann) or fish curry.

You will need
1 raw mango
3 tbsp. jaggery
1 tsp. mustard seeds
4 curry leaves
1 tsp. fenugreek seeds
1/4 tsp. asafoetida
4 tbsp. olive oil
salt to taste

Masala
1 tsp. fenugreek seeds
1 tsp. urad dal
1 tsp. coriander seeds
2 dried red chili pepper
1/4 cup desiccated coconut
1/2 tsp. turmeric powder

Wash and peel the mango. Slice off the sides as close to the pit as you can. Save the pit with the pulp around it to make panha. Chop the slices into cubes. Keep aside.

Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a pan and roast the first four masala ingredients, fenugreek seeds, urad dal, coriander seeds and red chili pepper. Drain away the oil and along with the coconut and turmeric powder grind to a paste. Keep aside.

Add the remaining oil to the pan. Heat the oil and add mustard seeds. When they crackle add the crackle add the curry leaves, fenugreek seeds and asafoetida.

Now add the mango, jaggery and salt. Mix together.

Add enough water to just cover the mango cubes. Cook on high until the mango is tender but not mushy. There will be a distinct change in the color of the mango and most of the water should have evaporated.

Add the masala paste and mix together. Bring to a boil and simmer on low high for a couple of minutes.

Turn off the heat and serve with rice.