Potol Aloo Posto (Pointed Gourd and Potato in Poppy Paste)

Day 1 of Lock-down

It's Gudi padwa in Maharashtra today, the ushering of a brand new year.

Yesterday, I was thinking about the Covid situation and wondering that what kind of Padwa will the people of Maharashtra usher in this time? Everywhere there were news of distress, increasing count, increasing fear, careless people and helpless strays. Wherever I looked be it media, or social media nothing could spell misery in more capital letters. A major part of Maharashtra was already under lock-down so we were already aware that there is chances of the situation getting extended. And in the evening our PM declared a 21 day lock down. Much needed and very much anticipated move. The moment I heard it, I told myself this is it. Either this will consume you or you consume these 21 days to make a better version of yourself.

I thought of ordering some essentials from the popular delivery apps only to realize all the online market suppliers were cancelling the orders. There was an acute panic as more people realized this. And then there was news that the society was being put under lock-down as well – no exit, no entry beyond stipulated hours. There was panic and we went out to check if anything was open.

This was the first time I came out of home in a week. And the look of my area had changed. It looked like a dead town- the one we see in apocalypse movies. The sun beating down, a few police on the road, a few bikes and even few essential stores open. One realizes the proportion of the situation only after looking at these empty streets. I came back with two bags of essentials, exhausted, derailed, still panicked thinking what will happen if I don’t get food or essentials later on. I had decided in the morning that I am going to cut down on the amount of food consumed, be aware of how much water I am using, unnecessary electricity usage to be cut and so on. When I was out on the road to get some medicine, a young shopkeeper at the store told me, “we now need to eat one less chapati than we did, eat less portion of rice than we did. In Italy people are already eating food once a day”. I couldn’t agree more with him while thinking if this guy who is not highly educated understands the need of the hour, what part of it does the higher educated class not understand? His words touched me.

The meal was already planned for today. I had parwal at home which had to be cooked. And with the onset of the hot days a light meal would be good. Especially after running around for the essentials under the fiery sun, the exhaustion was evident. So made potol posto which is light on the tummy and is a feel good factor for me.

  

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 60 minutes

Serves: 4

Cuisine: Bengali 

Ingredients:

• Parwal - 250 gm 
• Potato - 2 medium
• Poshto (Poppy seed) - 50 gm
• Methi (Fenugreek) seeds- 1/4th tsp
• Fresh Coconut - 1/4th cup
• Green chilli - 2
• Mustard Oil 
• Salt and Sugar as per taste

Procedure:

1. Wash and dry the Parwals. Scrape off the skin in alternating lines. Cut it in halves as the picture. Cut the potato also in similar shape.

2. Soak the Poshto in a little warm water to prep it up for grinding. Keep it for about 30 minutes to soak.

3. Fry the parwal and the potato till they are 3/4th cooked. 

Tip: If you don't cover and fry the parwal, it will retain its color.

4. In a mixer grinder, grind the poshto with one green chilli and coconut chunks.

Tip: Adding coconut to the poshto paste gives the overall dish a very classic taste. It doesnt overpower poshto's flavor but adds more body and taste.

5. Take a wok and heat mustard oil till its smoking. Temper it with Methi seeds.

Tip: Traditionally in Bengal Poshto is prepared with kalonji. But I accidentally one day started using Methi instead of kalonji and the flavors it gave was far more robust than kalonji. Also, the combination of coconut and Methi is an absolute out of the world pairing.

6. Add the poshto paste to the wok. Add turmeric, salt and sugar. It should be a balance of salt and sugar in the recipe. Keep stirring the poshto and cook it till it becomes a bit dry and the raw smell goes off.

7. Add the fried potato and parwal to it and fold in everything.

8. Lower the flame and cook it till the vegetables are totally cooked. If you feel the poshto is sticking to the wok sprinkle a little water now and then, but not too much. The consistency should be just as shown in the pictures.

Serve it with steamed rice and urad (biuli) daal, the classic combination.

After coming home I had this for my lunch. Though this was supposed to be the consumed in one time, I decided lets be a bit sparce and save some for another meal. And for the first time it automatically came to my mind how grateful I was to have food on my plate. I cherished the meal like never before and even though the portion was small it left me fulfilled. Hard times teaches us to be more stronger than ever. Let us hope all this gets over soon.

And once again happy Gudi Padwa to all my Maharashtrian readers.