All You Need to Know About Undhiyu and its Regional Variations-

Undhiyu prepared by Warsha Vimadalal

Layered with the goodness of seasonal vegetables and masalas secret to each family, undhiyu is a labour of love, its makers, who toil for hours, will attest. Although the dish - which is synonymous with winters, especially for Gujaratis - is largely viewed as a vegetarian affair, various communities such as the Pathare Prabhus and Parsis, among others, have been whipping up their own versions - with mutton, chicken, and seafood. Even among Gujaratis, the preparation has diverse rules based on the region. While they're hailed by different names like popti, ghada and umbariyu, at the heart of them all is the same warmth that's essential for the season.

Undhiyu, a travelling concept

Before digging into its meatier counterparts, Breach Candy-based home chef Warsha Vimadalal takes us back to the Gujju origins of undhiyu: "The word is derived from 'undhu', meaning upside down. Traditionally, it is cooked in a matla or earthen pots." The Goan, who grew up with Gujarati friends and was married into a Gujarati household, believes that the dish has roots in rural farm areas. "To keep themselves warm, farmers would pick out seasonal vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, surti papri, bananas, etc, tip them into the matla, turn it upside down, place it in a pit, and fire it from above," she says.

Warsha Vimadalal, Rushina Munshaw Ghildiyal and Mahrukh Mogrelia

Every region in Gujarat has its own way of making the undhiyu, she adds, pointing to how those living near the coast use more coconut. "Gujaratis living in and around the villages of Daman and Diu, and Veraval, too, prepare non-vegetarian undhiyu," she notes.

Food chronicler Rushina Munshaw Ghildiyal, who has fond memories of undhiyu parties, points out that although originally it was cooked upside down in matla, in cities, we see an evolved version. It's like a festive dish, with the whole family chipping in. "I use a taller pot that has space for layering. You prep the veggies [by stuffing masala, usually chillies, coriander, coconut], and layer them with lots of green garlic and more masala, based on their cooking time," she asserts, adding that one must be generous with the oil. She says the undhiyu, like kadhi or even aluwadi, is a concept food that evolves with regional influences. "The preparation changes based on the climate in Gujarat. If you're from the arid region, the dish will have red chillies or garam masala. In our home, the Surti undhiyu is made, which draws on the green garlic. Some people make undhiyu with more dry masalas," she illustrates.

Kalar leaves add flavour to umbariyu

Prawn-tastic treat

Prabhadevi-based chef Bimba Nayak who belongs to the Pathare Prabhu (PP) community, explains that since their forefathers travelled from the Aravallis in Rajasthan, via Gujarat, before settling in the city, their food bears influences of these cuisines. Aligning with PP's affinity for non-veg fare, their version of the undhiyu - called ghada - consists of mutton, prawns or ghol fillets. "Ghada is an earthen pot. Many PPs follow chatur maas; they consume a few vegetables that they don't eat all year. One of them is brinjal, which is the star element of ghada along with a rare winter root, kasra," she says, adding it pairs well with telpolis.

A Parsi affair

Home chef Mahrukh Mogrelia from Nana Chowk tells us that Parsis tend to gorge on seasonal vegetables by adding fish or meat. "In villages and small towns such as Navsari, where I belong, winters are severe. Barbecues are a common sight. So, that must have motivated people to celebrate winter vegetables, and hence, we have umbariyu." She elaborates that unlike undhiyu, umbariyu, is flash-cooked. "We use a herb called kalar, which adds a smoky flavour. The layers are of meat chunks, papri, root vegetables, chicken drumsticks, papri, kebabs and then potatoes along with fresh masalas," she signs off.

Call 9833121884 (Nayak) for ghada; 9833671679 (Vimadalal) for undhiyu

Pathare Prabhu ghada

Ingredients
. 3 kg eggplant
. 500 g potatoes
. 1 kg onions
. ½ kg green peas
. 4 alkol
. 4 carrots
. 12 Kerala bananas
. 750 g konphal
. 750 g ratali
. 300 g groundnuts
. 400 g papri dana (tur dal, val)
. 100 g shingada
. 1 sugarcane
. 2 spring onions
. 2 green chillies
. 1 coconut grated
. 2 bunches of coriander
. 400 g cauliflower
. 750 ml oil
. 2 tsp hing
. 3 tsp jeera
. 4 tbsp salt
. 3 tbsp sÄÂu00c2u0081mbhar powder
. 1½ tbsp haldi
. 500 g double beans
. 250 g ghevda
. 250 g makhania
. 250 g surti papri
. 250 g warva
. 1 tbsp chilli powder
. 1 kg prawns, ghol or mutton

Method
Cut the eggplants and bananas into x-shaped slits. Keep the papris and ghevda slits whole; cut the potatoes into four pieces. Slice the konphal and alkol into 1" pieces, along with sugarcane, carrots and ratali. Chop the onions along with coriander and chillies. Add this to the grated coconut along with dry masalas and salt; crush with your hand. Add all the beans (danas), papris, chopped spring onions and mix it together. Fill up the slits of big vegetables. In a big pan, add oil and hing. Tip in the stuffed veggies and cover with a lid; don't add water. When they are half-cooked, stir them with the ladle. Then, add the cauliflower and cover; it takes about two hours to cook the vegetables. If not using sÄÂu00c2u0081mbhar powder, use jeera powder. Tip in the prawns, ghol or boiled mutton. Add an extra tsp of hing if using prawns. If using ghol or mutton, add a tsp each of garlic paste, ginger paste and salt. Fry this in the oil and then add to the cooked ghada for another 10 minutes.

Recipe by chef Bimba Nayak

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