Mixed Vegetable Curry (Gajbaje)

In my ancestral place, any Ganesh Chaturthi celebration is incomplete without the staple dish - Gajbaje. It's a simple, nutritious dish with all the possible vegetables which you can think of. Primarily the vegetables which crop up in early September are used in abundance, hence more of gourds and pumpkins. This dish is also made in Goa, sometimes cooked with Sichuan Pepper (Teppal or Tirphal) or without it and is known as Khatkhate. In GSB Konkani parlance, its known as Gajbaje. This is a one pot dish and is quite easy to make.

Gajbaje is also making an appearance in wedding menus, important celebrations and family festive events. My Dad asked me if I am planning to make Gajbaje for Ganpati lunch, hence the idea struck me. This is his favorite dish and he enjoys the one made by my Mom for obvious reasons. Mom makes use of atleast 5 vegetables to make this dish - Ridge Gourd, Pumpkin, Raw Plantain, Potato, Yam, Radish, Ladies Finger, Bottle Gourd, etc. I made use of all Fall vegetables - Butternut Squash, Yellow Squash, Corn on the cob and Bottle Gourd. The buttery flavour of Butternut Squash bowled me over. I like to munch on this nutritious dish just on its own slurping it hot from a big bowl. I plan on making on many such One Pot dishes during winter like Valval, Undhiyo, Khatkhate (with Tirfhal).

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients:
Vegetables (assorted) - 5-7 cups
** Primarily early Fall veggies - Corn, Butternut Squash,
Yellow Squash, Corn on the cob, Yam, Bottle Gourd, etc***
Grated coconut - 3 cups
Red Chillies (Byadgi) - 5-10
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Jaggery - 1 teaspoon
Tamarind pulp - 1 teaspoon
Salt

For Seasoning:
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 6-7
Oil/Ghee

Method:
Chop all the vegetables into 1/2" bite sized pieces. Bring them to boil in a huge pot with water good enough to immerse the vegetables, add little salt. Bring to boil and simmer on low flame. Cover with a lid and cook till partially done. On the side, roast red chillies in little oil separately for 2 minutes. Allow to cool. Grind to a coarse paste with grated coconut and tamarind. Add this paste to the cooked vegetables. Allow the gravy to cook along with the vegetables and cover with a lid. Adjust salt, add jaggery and water as desired. Cook till done and turn off flame. In a separate pan, heat ghee/oil, add mustard seeds and once they begin to pop, add curry leaves. Pour this seasoning on the curry, mix gently and cover with a lid. Serve hot as a side dish.

Note - Do not peel the skin of the vegetables. Retain some skin, otherwise vegetables will dissolve and disintegrate in the curry even before consumption. This curry is semi-dry but not too dry, hence do not make it too watery. I made a huge batch, reduce the quantity by half for a smaller batch.

Bottle Gourd With Lentils (Lauki Daal)

Bottle Gourd or Lauki is a vegetable loaded with health properties and nutrients. I was thinking of ways and means of combining this vegetable into our daily diet. Personally, I love combining vegetables with Daal hence the recipe for a dinner meal ~ Lauki Daal. The combination provides healthy options for daily meals and the vegetables and is a great way to have an inclusive, healthy and nutritious option available at affordable price straight from the grocery store. This dish is good for quick dinner meals when you have less time and need the dinner ready in less than 30 minutes.


Thanks Indira from Mahanandi for this delicious recipe. I love her simple, tasty and earthy collection of recipes. The taste was subtle and wholesome. I made few changes to the seasoning ingredients since I wanted to elevate the taste and add some more heat.

Recipe adapted from Mahanandi
Cooking time ~ 10 minute
Preparation time ~ 15 minutes

Ingredients:
Bottle Gourd or Lauki (chopped) - 1 and 1/2 cup
Toor Dal - 1 cup
Onions (chopped) - 1/2 cup
Red Chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/3 teaspoon
Salt - As per taste

For seasoning -
Ghee - For frying
Garlic (chopped) - 1 teaspoon
Red Chillies - split into two (Byadgi variety) - 2
Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 3-4

Method:
Wash Lauki and remove the hard skin. Chop them into pieces. Wash Toor Daal and add the chopped Lauki pieces along with Red Chilli powder, Turmeric powder and chopped Onions. Pressure cook for 3-4 whistles or till the Daal gets mushy and soft. Allow to cool. Mash the concoction with a Masher to a smooth paste. If you prefer non-mushy consistency, do not mash and leave the concoction as is.

In a separate pan, heat Ghee. Once heated up, add Mustard seeds and Cumin seeds. Once they begin to pop, add Red Chillies and Curry leaves and chopped Garlic. Saute till Garlic is lightly browned. Turn off the flame and pour this seasoning onto the Daal. Close the lid. Mix Daal with seasoning while serving with warm Rice and a teaspoon of Ghee. Serve with Vodee/ Vadams on the side.