Kataachi Amti

"Such awesome climate", "Such a romantic weather", "It's raining", "It's cloudy", "Oh, there are cold winds" , "All i need is kandaa bhaji, bhutta and chai" or "A cup of coffee and a book"!! Yes people! It's Monsoon!!! The season has arrived. A lot of people hate this season for the mud, dirt and traffic jams. Yes, for the restaurants, events and fashionistas, rains surely play a spoilsport. But there are people like us, who love to get wet, get the clothes dirty and hands muddy. There is a different form of energy and newness everywhere in the season. Maybe because rains give a life. A life to a plant to form a tree. A life to a seed to grow into a fruit or a flower. Rains, i feel, connects us back to our roots.

Happy Monsoon!!!

There is a very beautiful article i came across recently which talks about "Dirt not being dirty". I could completely relate to the writer and am of the opinion that throwing ourselves in mother nature only develops our immune system and makes us strong. So, we should come out of the fears of "You will catch cold if you get wet in the rain", "Wash hands or change clothes as soon as you get them dirty" or " Use sanitizer even for popping a chocolate in the mouth". In fact we should be friends with the germs, so they can help us survive in any possible conditions. Read this article here . So all i can say is Let go... get dirty... be free... Just like them :))

Talking about connecting to the roots, there are some things, incidents, or words that bring the memoirs of our roots and instantly connects with us. Food does so too. Even though we are living in the fast food era of pav bhajis and pizza's, there are some dishes that connect us back to our roots. I am not only talking about the ancestral recipes here but regional dishes too. Like a simple daal has so many names and versions of dhal, curry, bele, paripu, varan or amti. The recipe i am posting today connects me to my roots. Its a typical Maharashtrian delicacy served with Puran poli. I have only made Puran poli twice and fortunately they have come out well! It is said that Puran poli is most difficult to make, and the one who is able to make it successfully is called a "Sugran" (a competent housewife). 

Puran poli and kataachi amti is a terrific sweet-spicy-tangy combination. This amti is made from the reserved water after boiling and draining the chana daal when making puran. Usually it is made in the same pan, and a little cooked daal (gram) is added for the taste but by nature, this amti is very thin like a soup consistency.

Ingredients:

Leftover water after pressure cooking 1 cup of chana daal ( bengal gram ) in about 2 and half cups of water for 3-4 whistles.

Cooked bengal gram - 4-5 tbsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Tamarind pulp - 1 n half tbsp

Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp

Goda masala - 1/2 - 3/4 tsp

Grated jaggery - 2 tsp

Salt - to taste

Coconut - 2-3 tbsp (Tastes great with fresh grated coconut but i didn't have it handy, so used dry coconut (kopra))

Oil - 1 tbsp

Cinnamon stick - 2 small

Cloves - 2-3

Bay leaf - 1

Curry leaves - 5-6

Recipe:

The leftover water after cooking the chana daal would come around 1 and half to 2 cups. Add about 2 cups of water to it and keep aside.

Try making the amti in the same pan in which puran is made. If not, use a fresh pan/kadhai. 

Scrape the puran from the sides and bottom of the pan and mix it with the gram water kept aside.

Note: I had forgotten to keep 4-5 tbsp of chana daal aside for the amti. So i boiled it again in another bowl. But you can keep some aside before making the puran.

Dry roast the coconut and cumin till golden brown and grind it together into a powder.

Heat oil in a kadhai. Add bay leaf, cinnamon and cloves. When it starts leaving aroma, add in curry leaves. Now add about 1 cup of the gram water to it. It will splutter, so make sure the flame is low. Add in the tamarind pulp.

Stir and bring to a boil. Now add salt, chilli powder, goda masala and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the jaggery (can also be replaced with salt), and the remaining gram water.

Let it simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the coconut-cumin powder and mix well.( If adding fresh coconut, add cumin seeds in the tadka and coconut in the end as garnish )

Tastes best when served either hot or cold with puran poli or steamed rice.

NOTE: If you are not making Puran or Puran Poli and just want to make Kataachi amti, then you can pressure cook or boil some chana daal on stove top for approx. 40 minutes till the daal is tender. Drain and use the water for kataachi amti and use the chana daal to make something else.

Happy Cooking :)