A Recipe for Odia-Style Ambila
Everyone, irrespective of gender and age, has the identical craving for my mother’s ଆମ୍ବିଳ.
Ambila is dish from Western Odisha, popular in homes across the region, but as is often the case with Indian food, is not so easy to get on restaurant menus. “Will you please make ambila?” was a request posed frequently to my mother, Mrs Pushpalata Pati. Nieces, nephews, co-sisters, pregnant women, everyone really, irrespective of gender and age, has the identical craving for her ambila. In fact, if your travel distance is within four to six hours, she will wake up early that morning, cook it and send you a parcel.
A couple of things to keep in mind while preparing this dish — when adding the whisked curd to the boiling vegetables, continue to stir vigorously, unless you want a curdled mess. And second, while bamboo shoot is optional, it is a very unique part of this recipe.
Image by cuisineculture91
RECIPE FOR ODIA AMBILA
Ingredients
2 ladies finger, cut into 2-inch pieces, sautéed with tiny drop of oil to remove and sliminess
2 small brinjal, with stem, cut lengthwise into four pieces
1 yellow pumpkin, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes
1 radish, sliced lengthwise
2 large tomatoes, sour variety preferable, cut into fours
1 cup sour curd, whisked well
1 tbsp bamboo shoot (optional)
Water
1 tsp turmeric powder
3 tsp salt
1 tbsp wheat flour
For seasoning
Panchphutana (an equal mix of mustard seeds, cumin, fennel, black cumin and fenugreek seeds, pre-mixed also available in grocery stores)
1 dry red chilli
1 green chilli
1 sprig curry leaves
1 tbsp mustard oil (vegetable oil also works)
Method
In a deep wok, bring 500 ml water to boil. Add turmeric powder and salt.
Now add the brinjal and allow to cook for two minutes. Then add the yellow pumpkin, followed by the sautéed ladies finger. Cover and cook.
Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a deep pan, and add in the tomato. Cover and allow to cook. If you enjoy eating large chunks, leave as is. If not, leave a few pieces in, and remove the rest when cooked soft, to puree later with the curd and wheat flour, using a blender.
To the remaining pieces of tomato in the pan, add the bamboo shoot. Allow to cook on low flame for few minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of water if it’s too dry.
Increase the flame to high, and with a spatula, stirring quickly, slowly pour in the whisked curd. Continue stirring. (This is a very important step, to keep the texture of the curd intact in the. process of cooking. The other vegetables would have cooked by now. Slowly pour them into this mixture and combine them together by folding in. Cover and switch off. In a separate seasoning pan, take one teaspoon oil, add panchphutana (equal proportion of mustard seeds, jeera, kala jeera, fennel, methi seeds), let it splutter, add curry leaves, one each of green and red chilli, pour this into the liquid and put the cover back on top.
When the whisked curd is added to the boiling vegetables, it is very important to keep stirring vigorously as otherwise the curd may change its texture and become tiny lumps.
Banner image by Padmini Mahapatra.
Anuradha Pati is an independent development professional with deep interest in craft-based livelihoods, reuse, recycle and sustainable living.
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