Gujarati Winter Food

Was invited by Twitter celeb Anaggh Desai for a special Undhiyu and Ponkh lunch.Anaggh is called "God" on Twitter.When you meet him,you feel it more so....towering in height,warm in disposition,here is a man who is well versed in many subjects,is straight forward and gets along with people of all ages and goes about connecting them.

Ponkh is tender jowar.Winter food.In farms,the stalks are roasted with their cobs and then beaten to separate each grain.I have had it before but nowhere as tender as at the Desai residence.The Ponkh was from their hometown Surat.It was served with sweet and savory accompaniments.

His wife Nippa made the most delicious Undhiyu ever.24 kilos of it for all their friends and family.Not much oil used.The beans were small and tender...Surti Papdi.It also had raw banana,sweet potato,yam,brinjals and fenugreek dumplings (muthiya).This had been simmered on a low flame for two hours and the end result was heavenly.In the North of Gujarat,it is called Undhiyo and is sweeter.In the South of Gujarat,in places like Surat,it is savory.Our friends,the Patels from Anand tell us that in their villages,it is cooked underground,upside down with the fire on top and has a lovely smoky flavor

Nippa had also got some Black Channa from Navsari.It had an unusual aftertaste and was a big hit.

Another Gujarati dish worth mentioning is Ubadiyu which one of the guests told us about...it's available alongside highways and consists of vegetables all steamed together with masala and leafy greens.Surti Locho is another steamed savory item made of poha,channa dal and urad dal