undhiyu recipe | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu |
by Tarla Dalal
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undhiyu recipe | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | with 60 amazing images.
Oondhiya is a classic Gujarati vegetable from the city of Surat and hence also called Surti undhiyu. Oondhiya is a preparation of vegetables and fenugreek muthias cooked in an aromatic blend of spices. A traditional undhiyu recipe requires hours on end to make. Here, we have presented a faster version using a pressure cooker that also uses less oil.
Undhiyu is a one pot vegetable dish that is the hallmark of Gujarati vegetarian cuisine. Generally preparing undhiyu takes a lot of time and needs patience. Traditionally the veggies are cooked or fried in batches. There are usually three versions of Undhiyu, matla undhiyu, Kathiyawadi undhiyu and the version we have made which is surti undhiyu.
As this undhiyu is cooked in pressure cooker, this recipe doesn’t take much time. The name “Undhiyu” is derived from the Gujarati word “undhu” which means upside down. Tradionally undhiyu is cooked in an earthen pot called matti nu matlu in gujju. The pots are sealed and placed upside down in a fire pit dug in the ground. the slow cooking in the earthen pot gives the dish a rustic flavor and taste. This method of making undhiyu is still used in my village, the flavor and aroma is distinctive.
Undhiyu is specially made in winter as some veggies used for making are only available in winter. My mother would make undhiyu for special occasions and also family get-togethers along with poori’s and aamras. Being a Gujarati I grew up with Undhiyu as special dish for which we has to wait all year long until the winters started and we would still just get to enjoy this vegetable for 2-3 months, but now-a-days everything is easily available. Every Gujarati household makes Undhiyu for Sunday lunch or festival like Uttarayan when the vegetables are in season.
The dish is a seasonal one, comprising the vegetables that are available during the winter, including green beans or new peas, small eggplants, muthia (dumplings/fritters made with fenugreek leaves, potatoes, and purple yam, yam. You can also add green peas if you wish to.
Ingredients of undhiyu are now available all year but are very expensive in the off season and the quality of the vegetables are not very good.
To save on time further, you can buy readymade dry muthias. However, ensure you add them along with the vegetables so that they turn soft on cooking. Ummmmm… I am reminded of Jalabi, Puri and oondhiya… trust me, that is the perfect combination to win a Gujarati's heart!
Enjoy undhiyu recipe | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | with detailed step by step recipe photos below.
For the methi muthias- Combine the fenugreek leaves and a little salt in a bowl and mix well. Allow to stand for 5 to 7 minutes and squeeze out all the liquid form the fenugreek leaves.
- Add all the remaining ingredients and knead into a soft dough, adding water only if required.
- Divide the dough into 18 to 20 equal portions and shape each portion roughly into a round by rolling it between your palms and fingers.
- Heat the oil in a kadhai and deep fry the muthias a few at a time on a medium flame till they turn golden brown in colour from all the sides.
- Drain on an absorbent paper and keep aside.
How to proceed to make oondhiya- Make a criss-cross slit on each baby potato, banana piece and brinjal taking care not to separate the segments.
- Stuff the vegetables evenly using ½ of the coriander-coconut masala mixture and keep aside.
- Combine the surti papdi, purple yam, yam, toovar dana and the remaining masala mixture in a bowl, mix well and keep aside to marinate for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Heat the oil in a pressure cooker, add the carom seeds, asafoetida and soda-bi-carb and sauté on a medium flame for a few seconds.
- Add the stuffed baby potatoes and brinjal, all the marinated vegetables, salt and 2 cups of hot water, mix gently and pressure cook on a high flame for 2 whistles.
- Allow the steam to escape before opening the lid.
- Transfer the cooked vegetables into a big non-stick pan, add the stuffed bananas and methi muthias, toss gently and cook on a slow flame till the bananas are tender, while stirring occasionally.
- Serve the oondhiya hot garnished with coriander.
Oondhiya, Undhiyu, Gujarati Undhiyu Recipe recipe with step by step photos
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If you like the undhiyu recipe | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | given below, here are some links to similar recipes :
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To make methi muthias for undhiyu | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | pick and clean fenugreek leaves bunch.
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Wash, chop and transfer the methi leaves to a deep bowl.
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Sprinkle a little salt and mix well.
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Allow it to stand for 5 to 7 minutes.
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After 7 minutes, squeeze out all the liquid from the fenugreek leaves. The squeezing helps to get rid of the bitterness from the fenugreek leaves.
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Transfer the squeezed methi leaves to a deep bowl.
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Add whole wheat flour.
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Add besan. You can also add jowar, bajra or ragi flour to the methi muthia dough.
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Add ginger-green chilli paste.
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Add sugar. It balances out all the flavours and a mandatory ingredient while making a Gujarati delicacy.
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Add turmeric powder.
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Add chilli powder. If you want the methi muthiya spicier then add more chilli powder.
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Add a pinch of soda bi-carb. This is optional.
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Add 3 tbsp of oil. It helps make muthiyas soft and melt in the mouth.
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Add salt to taste.
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Mix well to combine all the ingredients. Pour little water only if required and mix well to make a soft dough.
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Divide the dough into 18 to 20 equal portions.
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Shape each portion into roughly into a round or an oval shape by rolling it between your palms and fingers. If you are facing difficulty in shaping them, grease your hand with little oil before shaping.
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To deep-fry methi muthiyas, heat the oil in a kadhai and drop a few muthias at a time on a medium flame. For a healthier alternative, cook muthiyas in a paniyaram pan with little oil or steam them without using any oil in idli steamer or microwave.
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Deep fry till they turn golden brown in colour from all the sides. Don’t deep fry them over a high flame as they may remain uncooked from inside.
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Drain on an absorbent paper and keep aside. You can make this muthiya a day before making the undhiyu and keep them in an airtight container once they have cooled down.
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To make coriander-coconut masala mixture for undhiyu recipe | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | in a deep bowl take freshly grated coconut. If fresh coconut is not available, make use of desiccated coconut.
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Add finely chopped coriander.
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Add finely chopped fresh green garlic. It add incredible depth and flavours to this dish.
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Add coriander-cumin seeds powder.
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Add ginger-green chilli paste.
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Add chilli powder.
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Add sugar, lemon juice and salt to taste.
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Mix well using your hand and our masala is ready to stuff the vegetables. Before you begin coating the vegetables, taste and check. The green masala should be spicy and sweet. Adjust the flavours accordingly.
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Undhiyu is made during winter when the ingredients are freshly available in abundance. Every Gujarati household makes Undhiyu for Sunday lunch or festival like Uttarayan when the vegetables are in season. For Gujarati Oondhiya recipe, we will be using an assortment of vegetables like surti papadi, baby potatoes, brinjals, purple yam (kand), yam (suran) and fresh toovar seeds. You can make use of other vegetables like sweet potatoes, green peas, lilva, vaal seeds, snow peas etc. This is how surti papdi looks like.
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Wash and string the fresh vaal and cut the surti papadi vertically.
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Scrub and wash the baby potatoes, peel and discard the skin. Alternatively, you can slit them and stuff them with the masala. If you do not have baby potatoes then make use of regular potatoes and cut them into cubes.
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Slit and stuff baby potatoes.
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Cut 1 raw banana into 25 mm. (1”) roundals, stuff them and keep aside.
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Also, wash 3 to 4 small black variety brinjals, stuff and keep aside.
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Also, scrub and wash the purple yam, peel and discard the skin & cut them into big pieces.
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Similarly, scrub and wash the yam, peel and discard the skin & cut them & cut them into big pieces. All the root vegetables need to submerge underwater until use to prevent oxidation.
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Remove the seeds from fresh toovar, measure ¼ cup and keep aside.
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To make undhiyu recipe | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | in a deep bowl take fresh vaal
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Add purple yam and yam.
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Add surti papdi and the remaining masala mixture in a bowl.
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Mix well using your hands and keep aside to marinate for 8 to 10 minutes.
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To make Undhiyu recipe, heat the oil in a pressure cooker. Undhiyu gets its name from the Gujarati word “undhu”, which means upside down. Traditionally undhiyu is cooked upside down underground in earthen pots (matlu), which are fired from above. So, it makes use of a lot of oil but, to make it easy we are making use of the pressure cooker. Making it in a pressure cooker helps to cook Undhiyu in its own steam resulting in less usage of oil.
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Once the oil is hot, add the carom seeds. Unlike other subzi recipes were cumin or mustard seeds are used for tempering, this recipe uses ajwain which aids in digestion and imparts an amazing taste to Surti Undhiya.
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Add asafoetida.
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Add soda-bi-carb and sauté on a medium flame for a few seconds. Soda-bi-carb helps in softening of the vegetables and make them tender while keeping their natural colours intact.
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Add the stuffed baby potatoes.
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Add stuffed brinjal.
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Add all the marinated vegetables.
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Add salt.
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Add 2 cups of hot water and mix gently or else the veggies will break and masala will come out.
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Pressure cook Oondhiya on a high flame for 2 whistles.
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Allow the steam to escape before opening the lid.
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Transfer the cooked vegetables into a big non-stick pan.
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Add the stuffed bananas.
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Add methi muthias to the prepared Surti Undhiya.
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Toss undhiyu | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | gently and cook on a slow flame till the bananas are tender while stirring occasionally. Do not over mix as the veggies and muthiya may break.
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Serve undhiyu hot garnished with coriander. To make it a feast serve piping hot oondhiyu with poori and shrikhand for lunch.
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Q. I made undhiyu with this recipe and it turned out to a great taste when prepared but after some time it become very dry. Please can you suggest how to avoid it from being dry. A. The authentic undhiyu uses more oil than used in this recipe. You can try adding more oil next time to avoid it from being dried.
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Q. Ondhiyu too was a success Why is soda bi carb added to ondhyu? A. Soda bi carb is added to maintain the colour and also to speed up the cooking.
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Q. When is undhiyu eaten ? A. Every Gujarati household makes Undhiyu for Sunday lunch or festival like Uttarayan when the vegetables are in season.
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Squeeze out all the liquid from the fenugreek leaves. The squeezing helps to get rid of the bitterness from the fenugreek leaves while making the muthia.
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Shape each portion into roughly into a round or an oval shape by rolling it between your palms and fingers. If you are facing difficulty in shaping them, grease your hand with little oil before shaping.
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Deep fry till they turn golden brown in colour from all the sides. Don’t deep fry them over a high flame as they may remain uncooked from inside.
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You can make this muthiya a day before making the undhiyu and keep them in an airtight container once they have cooled down.
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To make coriander-coconut masala mixture for undhiyu recipe | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | in a deep bowl take freshly grated coconut. If fresh coconut is not available, make use of desiccated coconut.
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Toss undhiyu | Surti undhiyu | Oondhiya | authentic Gujarati undhiyu | gently and cook on a slow flame till the bananas are tender while stirring occasionally. Do not over mix as the veggies and muthiya may break.
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Nutrient values (Abbrv) per serving
| Energy | 645 cal |
| Protein | 11.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 63.1 g |
| Fiber | 15.6 g |
| Fat | 38.8 g |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg |
| Sodium | 68.2 mg |
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