About the Recipe
Janhi Aloo Posto is one of the authentic dishes of Odisha. Janhi or ridge gourd is rich in dietary fibre. This dish is rich and creamy in texture and the ‘posto’ adds a delightful flavour to the curry. It can be served along with rice or chapatti.
Ingredients
Ridge Gourd (Janhi/ Turai)
Poppy seeds ( posto/khas khas)
Garlic (rasuna/ lehsun)
Green Chillies (kancha lanka / hari mirch)
Onion (Piaja/ pyaj)
Potatoes (alu)
Turmeric powder (haldi powder)
Chilly Powder (lanka gunda/ lal mirch powder)
Sugar (chini)
Oil of your choice, preferably mustard oil (tela/ tel)
Salt (luna / namak)
Method
First of all let us make a paste of poppy seed. Grind the poppy seeds, garlic and green chillies to a fine paste either on a blender/,grinder or the grindstone that is ‘shila bata. Next, for making of the curry, peel off the ridge gourd and cut into medium sized pieces. Also Dice the potatoes and chop the onions. Then heat the oil in a pan. Better use the mustard oil for the authentic aroma it has which adds the required flavour to our Odia cuisines. Add in chopped onions and cook till it’s translucent. Then add the potatoes and ‘janhi’ (ridge gourd) and stir fry them till they are nicely cooked and become supple and tender. Now it’s time to add haldi powder, red chilly powder, salt and a pinch of sugar. Give it a proper mix so that the masalas coat evenly. Now add the paste poppy seeds that you have made. Mix it thoroughly and cook for about 20 minutes with the lid covered. The dish is now ready to be served.
