plantain and fenugreek stirfry | kachhe kele methi ki subzi...

Having more greens for the nutrient value and minimizing the starches if you are a vegetarian, I know these are the concerns of a health conscious person. I often replace the potatoes with raw plantains for the nutrient value they provide for every gram of starch they have. Moreover, I use them with skin so it is all the more desirable as a mineral packed substitute of aaloo in the north Indian subzis .

Well, at least for the dry stir fries ...the way I like them. With gravy curries like aaloo matar you can't probably replace the potato with plantain as the texture will make it quite different ...but the plantain and peas in a gravy can be good otherwise, if you do not compare it with aloo matar ...just customize the curry according to your taste buds and it will be the yummiest thing ...

Replacing potatoes with plantains is a good idea for many North Indian homes as most of the day to day curries are loaded with potatoes. I was suggesting a friend to make Spanish omelet with potato slices in the base and she said potatoes are used so much in our daily  subzis so why making even the omelet with it. When I told I do not use potatoes for the daily curries she was surprised. I remembered I had a picture of the kela methi I make and promised her to post it... many other curries can be made this way and you will be surprised how you like this replacement.

Moreover the ubiquitous potatoes can be used to make some other things tasty and kid friendly when our daily food is not that loaded with potatoes ...like the broccoli and zucchini omelets can have a nice base layer of crisp potato chips for the kids while you have a plain green omelet.....

That is coming in the next post..:)

So as far as using the plantains or kaccha kela , I buy them by dozen and use them with skin. After a few days in the fridge sometimes the skin gets blackened so those parts can be scrubbed or peeled off but most of the fibrous skin can be cooked along. You would love it I know ... 
Just take care to slit the raw plantain lengthwise first and then slice them, this way it will absorb more flavors from the stir fry...

I have posted another stir fry with raw plantain ...aloo-sem converted to kela-sem ki subzi.

ingredients...

(for 2-3 servings..)
raw plantains 2nos.
ginger garlic and green chillies chopped as per taste
chopped fenugreek greens 2 cups
chopped dill greens 1 cup
salt n pepper to taste
turmeric powder 1 tsp
amchoor powder 1 tsp
mustard oil 1 tbsp
fenugreek seeds 1/2 tsp

procedure..

To cook the stir fry, add some fenugreek seeds to the hot mustard oil and as they get aromatic add the chopped ginger garlic, green chillies and the plantain slices as well, in that order...

Stir fry the vegetables till the plantain slices get a bit translucent, add salt and turmeric powder, mix well and then add the chopped fenugreek leaves. Adding some dill leaves makes this stir fry even more flavorful. I have used dill leaves in this stir fry too.

Keep frying the mix till the greens wilt and cling to the plantain slices. The whole cooking process takes about 10 minutes for this quantity...5-7 minutes of frying the plantain slices and then about 3-4 minutes after adding the greens...I like adding the stems of the fenugreek and dill greens too ...more fiber and more flavor too...

Add some black pepper powder and amchoor powder to finish and serve hot with chapatis or as a side dish ...

More recipes with this potato replacement will be featured here as I have some of them photographed .... enjoy this kele methi ki subzi till then...