Kandali ka saag (stinging nettle greens)
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Tender leaves of the stinging nettle, cooked into a soft, spiced saag; a wild green of the Uttarakhand hills.
Region: UttarakhandOccasion: Winter and early springTime: 40 minServes: 4Vegan
Ingredients
- 4 cups tender nettle (kandali/bichhu ghas) tops, picked with gloves
- 1 tbsp rice flour or wheat flour
- 2 tbsp mustard oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- A pinch of hing
- 3 garlic cloves and 1 tsp ginger, crushed
- 2 green chillies
- ½ tsp turmeric
- Salt to taste
Method
- Wearing gloves, wash the nettle tops. Boil them in water for 5 minutes; boiling removes the sting.
- Drain and grind them coarsely.
- Heat mustard oil, add hing, cumin, garlic, ginger and chillies.
- Add turmeric and the ground greens and cook for 5 minutes.
- Mix the flour with a little water, stir it in, add salt and simmer for 10 minutes until thick.
- Serve with mandua roti or rice.
History
Stinging nettle grows wild near hill villages, and families have long gathered it as food when fresh vegetables are scarce in winter.
Significance
Kandali is now valued as a nutritious wild green, and its fibre is also being used for handloom products in Uttarakhand.