Sojne Data-r Chorchori/Drumsticks cooked with mustard and poppy seed paste...still in season??

Sojne Data-r Chorchori or Drumsticks cooked with mustard and poppy seed paste…I thought the season was over for these  and then my dear Sabziwallah Bhaiya sent some over…and here is the first drumstick dish that I ever ate and learnt to cook

Sojne Data-r Chorchori (Drumsticks cooked with mustard and poppy seed paste)

Ingredients:

• Sojne Data/Senjan ki Phalli/Drumsticks, lightly scraped and cut into 3” long pieces, 6
• Potatoes, peeled and cut into thick wedges, 2 large
• Shorshe/Sarson/Mustard seed paste, 2 tbsp (refer to notes)
• Posto/Khus Khus/ White Poppy seed paste, 3 tbsp
• Kalo Jeera/ Kalonji/Nigella seeds, ¼ tsp
• Turmeric powder, ½ tsp
• Red chili powder, ½ tsp
• Salt, to taste
• Green chilies, slit, 1-2 (remove seeds if you want)
• Mustard Oil, 3-4 tbsp (I made this with 2 tbsp oil but ideally dishes with mustard paste are supposed to have a little more oil)

Instructions:

Heat oil in a kadhai/wok. Add the drumstick pieces and lightly fry for a couple of minutes. Remove and keep aside.

Now add in the potato wedges in the same kadhai and fry till they change colour. Remove and keep aside.

Add in nigella seeds and slit green chilies. Sauté for a 10-15 seconds and add in the fried vegetables, mustard paste, posto seed paste, turmeric, chili powder and salt.

Mix well and let it cook uncovered for 3-4 minutes.

Add in half to one cup water, cover and let it all cook together on medium low heat till the vegetables are done. 

Remove the cover and dry up the leftover water if any on high heat. Done!

Notes:

• Instead of the typical 4-5 vegetables as expected in a “Chorchori” , you are only seeing potatoes and drumsticks here since I don’t like yellow pumpkin and horseradish and I hate frying eggplants (I always end  up using too much oil)

• Always look for young tender drumsticks for better flavor as the older ones are bitter, hard and dry. Younger pods will be smooth green whereas the older ones will be have extremely pronounced bumps.

• If you haven’t eaten a drumstick before…they are best eaten at home sitting quietly in a corner! J The soft mushy centre with pulp and seeds is scraped away with teeth and the woody exterior is chewed to extract all flavor and then discarded on the side of the plate. (yes, not the most elegant vegetable to eat!!) or simply split open with a spoon and scrape out the pulp and discard the rest.

• How to make mustard and poppy seed paste: Soak seeds in warm water for about an hour, drain and grind with some water, big fat pinch of salt and one or two green chillies into a coarse paste. 

• I use Black Mustard seeds, just like my mother in law and the mustard is not too pungent here since poppy seed paste is also added in.  

• You can use yellow mustard seeds or a mix of black and yellow (2:1) to reduce the pungency. 

• If you want a smoother looking paste, make mustard seeds paste and then strain it through a fine sieve. 

• You can make this with dish with only mustard paste or only poppy seed paste as well.

And this is what Drumsticks look like ( picture taken from the net)